Self-service kiosks in hotels were a necessity during the pandemic due to social distancing and contactless transactions. However, now, consumers have woken up to the pleasure of contactless service.
One of the surveys in a recent study named “Hospitality in 2025: Automated, Intelligent, and More Personal” which was conducted across nine major markets, with 5,000 customers, and 600 hoteliers, revealed an interesting insight into what travellers want. 53.6% of the travellers surveyed said they preferred contactless check-in and check-out. Moreover, 31.2 % of hotel executives in the study thought that self-service combined with on-demand staff assistance was the future of the hotel service model. On this matter, 60% of the executives envisioned a completely contactless service model.
To make better sense of these data points, imagining a simple scenario may be helpful. After a long journey, you arrive at your hotel only to find that the front desk executives are busy with other guests. On the other side, if you are already running late for your next travel and run the risk of missing a long-distance train, bus, or flight, a slow check-out can delay you further. Instead, a digitised process, perhaps assisted by an executive around, may help travellers avoid such frustrating situations.
In other words, the hospitality industry as we knew it, is set to be transformed. In this blog, we will explore the top features of self-service kiosks in a hotel. Understanding these features may help us see why a contactless service model or a model with minimal contact with the staff has intrigued hoteliers and consumers alike.
A Deep Dive into a Key Capability of Self-service Kiosks in Hotels: Personalised Service
The report rightly pointed out that personalisation of service, as we know it in the context of hotels, has been very superficial so far. In fact, many of the advertisements that follow the use of guest data are about generic services and coupons, which may feel like spam to many end-users. However, personalisation remains a benchmark of good service in the hospitality industry, particularly for customer satisfaction and brand loyalty.
How will Personalisation be Driven?
During check-in at the kiosks or while using devices that are part of the property management suite, simple questions about guest preferences may go a long way. In this manner, the kiosk becomes a data collection device which can drive customer satisfaction by prompting relevant service options to the guests. The report mentioned that 51.5% of the survey respondents wanted to personalise offers based on the data and 48.3% wanted to provide customised services. Some other parameters include loyalty discounts for ancillary services and sharing data with travel partners to make an end-to-end personalised trip.
Revenue Impact of Self-service Kiosks and Devices Belonging to Similar Technology Bracket
As the self-service technology devices demand considerable investment, it is worth asking: is this data collection process just for intangible customer satisfaction? Or is it likely to impact revenue? Addressing this very question, the study showed that about half the respondents think that the technology-enabled service will boost non-room income for hotels.
Another point worth considering is “unbundling.” Transparency in pricing is a good indicator that the hotel cares about the guests, especially because the consumer may not be comfortable paying a hefty fee for amenities they have not used. Otherwise, a large amenities fee in the final bill may not appeal to many guests as they do not know the value they have been offered against this price. With self-service kiosks, guests can make the best of the concept of “unbundling,” i.e., they specifically choose the services they want and pay just for them.
From a business perspective, this pricing model can be lucrative too. While selecting one service, the device can leverage customer data to upsell and cross-sell. Additionally, the services themselves can be priced cleverly based on their popularity to make the most of this upselling opportunity enabled by property management devices such as self-service kiosks.
Concerns Around Personalisation and Their Solution
As self-service kiosks and other devices collect customer data, a major concern amongst both hotels and customers could be data security. This potential issue can be easily addressed by investing in cloud technology. About 84.7% of the respondents in the survey revealed that either they have already opted for robust cloud services or will do so in the next one or two years. It is important to note that the adoption of self-service kiosks and other such automated devices may be rapid but prestigious brands are likely to include a customer-first approach even in their data security measures.
Other Important Advantages of Self-service Kiosks for Hotels
Here are some pointers about how hotel self-check-in machines can offer an edge to industry players that have implemented them over those that have yet to adopt the technology:
- Improved Communication and Fewer Errors: Automating services can help avoid communication gaps and offer exactly the services that have been requested.
- More Cost-saving Opportunities: With automated services, the hotel can save on employee expenses, and instead, use their human resources to add the empathetic touch which adds warmth to hotel stays.
- Reduced Service Time: Self-service kiosks reduce wait times at queues and the gap between calling for a service and being served, thus ensuring that the guests have more control over their experience.
- Better Customer Satisfaction: As communication-oriented human error is reduced and the service becomes faster, customer satisfaction and in turn brand loyalty are likely to increase.
- Easier Feedback Implementation: Self-checkouts via self-service kiosks ensure that guests can offer more authentic feedback about the hotel than they would out of politeness or awkwardness in the presence of a hotel staff.
- Lesser Use of Paper: With digitised processes, the use of paper in the hotel is reduced, thus helping the business be more sustainable.
- Enhanced Staff Communication: With kiosks, the service request or complaint ticket directly goes to the relevant staff, saving operational time in task delegation.
Looking for the Best Self-service Kiosk for Hotels in the Market? Here’s a Robust Solution
Posiflex offers one of the most in-demand self-check-in kiosks for hotels across the globe. We have already transformed the way many hoteliers have driven their operations, helping them boost their profitability. We pride ourselves on our sleek devices that are reliable, with practically zero downtime and can integrate into your existing digital infrastructure without any hitch. Embrace the future of hospitality technology with us!
Curious to know more? Contact us today!
Published on 21st January 2025
