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Digitization: Hotels can attract customers better

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January 18, 2016

Uncover digital opportunities

The hotel industry was at the forefront of the digital age, responding to new technology by quickly enabling direct booking online. In many cases, however, innovation ended there. Yet today’s consumers have more concrete expectations than ever before, comparing prices and offers across a number of websites before completing a booking, of which 18% are already made over mobile devices alone. They also look for information and share reviews, often before a hotelier can respond, and all of these trends cut across social and education levels as well as age groups. The question now is how industry players can meet changing consumer needs, reduce their dependency on booking portals, and increase their competitive edge. The answer is a strong, up-to-date digital presence that can help win back direct contact, increasing efficiency and customer loyalty.

By the year 2020, 44% of the population will have grown up with digitization. Our exclusive international study made in collaboration with the Österreichische Hoteliervereinigung (ÖHV) investigates how the hostel industry can innovate to meet the future of customer demands.

Today’s hotel guests have more concrete and higher expectations than ever before.

Focus on the guest experience

The result of our expert’s extensive research is 19 recommendations for relevant digital initiatives that focus on the guest experience and different aspects of daily business. Additionally, we broke these recommendations down into two further groups: the “standards” that reflect the essentials needed to remain competitive, and the “opportunities” that can help set you apart from a sea of competition.

From experience-oriented initiatives such as online room selection and taking a more curated approach to social media, to online check-in/check-out and learning how to use data to create individualized guest experiences, our in-depth study guides you through the lessons to be learned from more strongly digitized sectors and shows you how to become an invaluable partner to your guests at every stage of the customer journey.