Tourists, guests, and business travellers spend a lot of their stay time on their smartphone. Many hotel chains, including Hilton, already offer keyless check-in services and door entry through mobile apps, and increasing numbers of hotel guests use their smartphone for in-stay activities such as booking room service and ordering food and drink.
However, many hotels still don’t get the basic’s right such as providing a world-class wireless experience so business travellers can connect with colleagues and clients on their smartphone.
Ask any hotel manager and they will have experienced many complaints relating to a guests wireless experience:
- I can’t connect to the hotel Wi-Fi…
- The hotel Wi-Fi is slow and I can’t do any meaningful work…
- Logging onto the hotel’s wireless network is painfully slow…
- Phone calls keep dropping due to poor signal in the hotel
Hotels require both a strong mobile signal and Wi-Fi
These are the people that use hotels and their facilities, whether they are business travellers, leisure travellers, or event organisers. We are living in an era where technology dominates every aspect of our life, and hotel guests and customers not only expect but demand a clear, stable mobile signal at all times and in all areas.
According to a recent survey, millennials are now the most frequent demographic of business traveller. This fast-growing customer segment has grown up with technology and has different expectations from previous generations (dial-up modems, laptops, and phones connecting to slow and clunky Wi-Fi systems).
Mobile signal enhancement solutions boost mobile signal and increase data speeds
Many hotels fall into the trap by thinking that a Wi-Fi connection in the venue is all that is required. But, research has proven that you also require a strong mobile signal and data service to ensure guests can connect on their terms.
Guests demand a frictionless experience and wish to connect to voice, data, web, and smartphone apps immediately. But many, if not all, hotel Wi-Fi networks require guests to log-in by opening Wi-Fi settings, log-in, enter personal details and accept the terms and conditions of service.
Some guests will do this. However, most don’t bother due to privacy concerns and the fact the most hotel wireless services are, useless and slow even when they can connect!
A seamless mobile service connection, on the other hand, only requires the guest to use their standard voice and data plan, which provides quick and easy access to apps without the clunky and tedious process of connecting to Wi-Fi.
What does this mean for the hotel industry?
Well, one of the key changes is in how travel and accommodation are booked, and the factors that influence the booking decision.
Increasingly, loyalty programs and other perks are considered less important than local experiences. And individuals are booking their own travel rather than going through an assistant or a corporate travel department with 69% of travellers booking business accommodation themselves.
This presents a great opportunity for the hotel industry, but the winners will be those who think through the whole accommodation experience of the guest, and what that will mean for the likelihood of a return visit.
“69.5% of the UK’s general public expect a good mobile signal when visiting a hotel”
– OnePoll Survey of 2000 UK consumers (August 2018)
These days, people expect connectivity whenever and wherever they want it. They have mobile data packages that allow them to use their devices for both work (email, internet, file uploads and downloads) and leisure (music, social media, films, and television).
And while a tourist may not return to the same hotel twice, a business customer may return week after week… if their experience has been a good one.
Digital infrastructure within hotels helps drive stay time, occupancy rates and Net Promotor Scores (NPS)
There are still venues that charge people to access a poor Wi-Fi signal to do things that most people consider to be a basic ‘human right’. These organisations will be the long-term losers, as consumers vote with their feet and choose establishments more suited to 21st-century living.
When it comes to conference centres, the argument is even more obvious. People who are holding conferences want two things:
- Attendees who want to promote the great experience they’re having at the conference (on social media)
- Attendees to give positive feedback on the event and the venue
Without a quality mobile signal and wireless experience, the former is not achievable, and the delegates’ frustration with poor connectivity will be voiced through the feedback mechanisms provided by the organiser.
In this space, an amazing venue can be let down simply by the quality of the catering and the connectivity. If the feedback is negative in either of these areas, the organiser may consider changing the venue next time.
Are you delivering a world-class wireless experience in your hotel?
Find out more about how to deliver perfect 4G signal across the four major providers using in-building coverage solutions.
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