Impact of AI on Hotels: A New Skill Set for the Future By Are Morch

From business intelligence in the hospitality industry to automating front desk and back-office tasks, AI is here to stay. Artificial intelligence embedded in the software you use every day, such as your PMS and POS, enables better efficiency, a deeper connection with your guests, and, ultimately, more success for your hotel. Developments in artificial intelligence have had global banks recently integrate online chatbots into their websites and mobile apps. The gaining popularity of chatbots could be considered surprising for an industry that handles other people’s wealth and perceives security as top priority. As millennials and younger generations are more engaged by products that provide “instant gratification,” the strategy of offering recommendations and immediate booking in one chat period may entice this audience. This simple program is accessible by text message and Facebook Messenger.

However, most were not just built-from-scratch applications. Instead, many companies are offering chatbot integrations on pre-built, heavily used messaging applications such as Facebook Messenger, Slack, Skype, and WhatsApp. This may further increase reach to millennials, the most frequent of social media users, and the most willing to travel than generations before them.

Technological Inertia: A Laggard in the Digital Age

Independent hoteliers must find ways to foster cooperation among technology partners to help create this unified system, or our industry will be the last to innovate while their competitors grow in sophistication. Today’s most sought-after PMS technology providers are prioritizing such partnerships. This approach is separate from a hotel’s technology integration strategy, but the ethos is similar. As such, operators must find ways to coax partners into working together or find new partners. This technology is poised to bring innovation to hospitality and all other industries and is waiting for no one.

Ada Tray enhances the guest experience by incorporating AI-powered chatbots into hotel websites, providing instant assistance with bookings, customer service, and enquiries. This 24/7 automated support can significantly improve customer satisfaction and engagement. IHG has integrated “IHG Assistant,” an AI chatbot that helps the hotel chain manage customer interactions and bookings efficiently. Available ChatGPT 24/7, this tool quickly responds to guest inquiries and streamlines the booking process, ensuring a smooth and hassle-free customer experience. By automating routine interactions, IHG Assistant allows human staff to focus on providing more personalized service where it counts. The Ritz-Carlton Yachts enhance their luxury guest experiences with an AI system designed to customize the yacht environment.

Leonardo Hotels save 14,000 hours using HiJiffy’s conversational AI

Yeah, the tech stacks are very different, and they’re built up differently. So, just for example, at the very beginning, you had Priceline and Agoda have what’s known as a merchant model, in which case people would pay upfront for their reservations. Booking.com started off in a different way, where they took no money upfront; you paid, for example, at the hotel, and then Booking.com got paid a commission after you left. Now, of course, we want to try and do things where we can actually get some synergies. Procurement is done across the entire organization, but of course, there can be different needs. So, you want to try and get volume scale benefits, but in the end, there are times you say, look, we’re not going to try and do this one-size-fits-all because they’re different needs, and that comes on a case-by-case basis.

At a time when the rush for technological innovation has people afraid to lose human interaction, things like eye contact, a warm smile, and a cheerful “hello” at check in speaks volumes about the service that is to come. Therefore, it’s critical that the hotel PMS is intuitive enough to enable front desk staff to do these engaging tasks, rather than keeping their heads down and eyes glued to the computer screen. Personal service, trust, and old-fashioned “hospitality” still matter.

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A recent study shows these requests account for guests‘ most commonly asked questions, making them a frequent source of repetition among hotel workers. The future of hospitality is here, and it’s more human – and more revolutionary – than we ever imagined. While the long-term financial benefits of AI are clear, the initial investment in technology and training can be substantial. Hotels must carefully consider their AI strategy, focusing on solutions that offer the highest ROI and align with their brand and guest expectations. A resort that implemented AI-driven predictive maintenance saw a 40% reduction in equipment downtime and a 25% decrease in maintenance costs. Moreover, guest satisfaction scores improved by 15% due to fewer disruptions and quicker resolution of issues.

In the end, AI will not replace the magic of human interaction, but it will empower hoteliers and staff to work smarter, offering more personalized, efficient, and profitable service. The key is not to see AI as a competitor but as a collaborator in the journey toward delivering exceptional guest experiences and improved business outcomes. Since AI grows its capabilities alongside its stores of available data, it’s not difficult to imagine how prompts and chatbots could guide guests through the entirety of their journey in the near future. Diverting repetitive requests to AI presents a more significant impact than simply performing actions faster; it allows operators to rework their position from supervising technology to overseeing the guest experience. However, operators need faith before taking their hands off the wheel.

Gravity Forms booking plugin

The feature aggregates viewing information from all videos that the artist has uploaded, as well as videos from their profile that have been copied and reuploaded by fans. Music Insights then generates a dashboard for the artist, which offers easy to understand fan demographics. This dashboard includes a list of tour suggestions, made up of cities that hold the highest viewer population.

This approach is particularly beneficial for hotels looking to increase customer lifetime value. Triptease offers a direct booking plugin that integrates with hotels’ websites to enhance direct bookings through transparent price comparisons with OTAs, targeted messaging, and actionable data insights. A significant advantage of Triptease is its ability to improve direct booking rates by offering guests clear price comparisons, thereby instilling confidence in the value they’re receiving. AI-driven data analytics tools will be used to process vast amounts of operational data in real time.

Aligning with its vision of becoming a sustainable tourism destination, the Department of Culture and Tourism — Abu Dhabi has announced new initiatives to promote sustainability within the tourism industry. “By collaborating with our hospitality and event partners, we can pave the way for a more sustainable future,” said Saeed Ali Obaid Al Fazari, executive director, strategy sector at Department of Culture and Tourism — Abu Dhabi. The revenue for ChatGPT App 3-to 5-star hotels in Oman went up to $191 million in March 2023, compared to $127 million last year, according to data from the National Centre for Statistics and Information. During the same period, the number of hotel guests in star hotels increased by 26 percent, reaching 522,753 in March 2023 from 416,287 in March 2022. Omanis remain the top guests with 181,369 visitors, while visitors from Oceania saw the highest growth of 210 percent.

While the initial investment in these technologies can be significant, hotels are seeing returns through increased guest satisfaction and operational efficiencies. United Arab Emirates-based Azizi Developments has announced its plans to invest up to $16 billion through the launch of 50 upmarket, luxury hotels and resorts and one seven-star hotel in Dubai. The developer plans to add nearly 20,000 new keys to Dubai’s hotel stock over the next five years. Azizi’s hotels and resorts would be managed by its very own hospitality division, the company said in a statement. The announcement follows Azizi’s recently revealed plans to enter the hospitality sector, with its new chief operating officer — hospitality, Michael Zager, leading the developer’s newly established hospitality division. The developer also said that it has already acquired most of the necessary plots of land for its hotels and is planning to launch the construction before the end of 2023.

Advanced Data-Analytics for Operational Efficiency

Hotel revenue managers can easily obtain information on average daily rates, room nights, and revenue pipelines, streamlining the entire process and eliminating the need for manual data searches. However, as AI continues to evolve, hotels must focus on AI readiness, ensuring a harmonious integration that enhances service delivery without displacing the human touch that remains at the heart of hospitality. Implementation of Quicktext Velma Le Boutique Hotel Moxa implemented Quicktext Velma, an AI-powered communication platform designed to interact with hotel guests through natural language processing. Velma was integrated into the hotel’s communication system to handle inquiries via the hotel’s website, WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, and SMS. IHG Hotels & Resorts has taken significant strides in sustainability by implementing an AI-driven system across its Avid hotels to optimize energy use. This system uses sensors and AI algorithms to adjust heating, ventilation, and air conditioning based on real-time occupancy and environmental data, drastically reducing energy waste.

• In addition to this, AI-driven analytics can predict peak booking times to help hotels prepare for high-demand periods, ensuring a smooth operation and enhancing guest satisfaction.
• AI enables predictive analytics that can identify potential issues before they become problems, ensuring a smoother, more enjoyable stay for your guests.
• With the partnership, Pana’s paid users can now link the app to their Expensify account.
• Accor has signed a master development agreement with Saudi Arabia’s Amsa Hospitality to develop and franchise 18 hotels across second-tier cities within Saudi Arabia over the next 10 years.
• The history of the CFAA is not cut and dry, and certainly, it does not always get applied well.

With one of the youngest and most modern fleet of 411 aircraft, Turkish Airlines increased its fleet size and workforce by 10 percent compared to the same period last year. In the first quarter of 2023, the airline carried over 17 million passengers in total, with a domestic load factor of 80 percent and an international load factor of 81 percent. Turkish Airlines was one of the few airlines in the industry that exceeded its 2019 international capacity by 26 percent. Oman’s ministry of heritage and tourism plans to implement 40 projects for boosting adventure tourism in the country.

Since human beings are not actually able to multitask, how do you ensure that all of these things happen simultaneously and correctly? Robo-advisors are digital platforms that provide automated, algorithm-based financial planning services with little to no human supervision. The service, which offers free and subscription models, also targets business users by offering features for group collaboration. While individual users can use HelloGBye for free, they can also gain more perks, such as the ability to earn rewards points and no booking adjustments fees, with a subscription for $19 a month. Companies also have the option to purchase business subscriptions for $199 a month, according to its website. Mezi also claims to be an online concierge that users can chat with for trip recommendations, flight information, and hotel availability.

But the rise of AI in travel planning has made it easier for consumers to find the information they need. One of the wonders of doing an AI agent chatbots hotel is that there’ll be no hold time — you’ll go right to the machine. You can foun additiona information about ai customer service and artificial intelligence and NLP. And, by the way, the AI agent is never going to get angry back at the customer.