Hospitalitech Magazine - December Issue

December Issue Alannia Resorts prepares to expand with SIHOT.PMS

Are UK hoteliers and hosts prepared for a demand boom?

Take your hotel to the next level with hungrrr technology

Page 9

Pages 12-13

Pages 20-21

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Contents 4

Industry News

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Reservation & Booking Software

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2022 Editorial Calendar

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Recommended Companies

To feature in an upcoming issue or to discuss advertising opportunities please contact a member of the Hospitalitech team; Publication Manager Dean Little - 01227 314 324 dean@warmwelcomemagazine.com Sales & Marketing Manager Michael Amor - 01227 314 324 michael@warmwelcomemagazine.com Editorial Assistant Carol Jean - 01227 314 324 carol@warmwelcomemagazine.com

From jingle to mingle: Getting the most out of music this Christmas It’s safe to say that last year’s Christmas left a lot of us with a resting Grinch face. However, this year, with call for greater optimism, the ghosts of Christmas past will hopefully not be returning.

With Summer 2021 coming to an end, we are entering the stages of swapping the sunshine and cocktails for log fires and blankets, preparing ourselves and getting the stage set for the most wonderful time of the year. However, is it too early to be thinking of Christmas?

When should you start playing Christmas music?

Playing Christmas music in October would seem out of place. However, introducing the Christmas joy steadily gives time for customers and staff alike to adjust. Large retailers tend to release their Christmas adverts around the 5th of November and according to google trends search terms like “Christmas music”, start to see a rise in midNovember, peaking at the 13th of December.

For many, Christmas songs are a large part of the overall experience.

By gradually increasing your festive

playlists in this time frame, you can deliver a build-up of anticipation for the big day whilst also keeping in touch with staff and customer’s wants and needs.

Diversify your playlists It can be very tempting to press shuffle and let the likes of Mariah and Wham! do the rest. However, you could spend a little extra time this year and think about the atmosphere and tone you want to set within your business. We now have accessibility to countless Christmas songs in different genres. Businesses can easily mix different styles of Christmas music that bring a unique, tailored experience for your customers - curated by you. Furthermore, diversity in your playlists is not just beneficial for your customers but for your employees too – trust us, by December 31st they’ll be singing your praises!

Offering a variety of music for staff during the Christmas break could indeed offer them a break from Christmas. If you own a café and would like to create a relaxing, quirky ambience, would your employees potentially prefer listening to some

relaxing festive jazz instead? Don’t allow your staff to become claustrophobic and dare to be different with your music this Christmas.

Schedule for different parts of the day Just as with your everyday background music usage you should consider what songs are suitable for different parts of the day. Caffé Nero do this extremely successfully, “We use music to change the atmosphere so, like all good retailers we split our day into parts… and you can actually feel the atmosphere change. More and more up-tempo as we go through the day so it has a huge influence.” Pablo Ettinger – Cofounder of Caffè Nero.

Christmas music can evoke a range of emotions in us, and songs can vary substantially in their styles and genres. Whilst relaxing festive jazz might be nice in the morning, at peak hours having some Christmas chart toppers playing the most wellknown songs could help to motivate and boost moral for your employees and encapsulate the festive spirit customers. Remember: your music choices can reflect your brand but they can also influence and appeal to early shoppers and last-minutegifters alike. It can also help your workforce to remain engaged throughout the season of goodwill!

If you are going to introduce music this Christmas, or if you are already using music in your business, you’ll usually need a music licence. By purchasing TheMusiclicence you are supporting the future of music by helping to ensure its creators are fairly rewarded for their music.

TheMusicLicence covers virtually all commercially released music available – millions of songs & recordings, including the most popular & well loved music, not just from the UK, but globally, allowing you to choose the music that reflects you and your customers this Christmas.

For more information call 0800 0868 798 or visit: www.pplprs.co.uk/tune-into-christmas

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Night Time Industries Association Partner with Zapaygo to Launch New “Ask For Angela” Safeguarding feature within the order and pay app for businesses across the sector.

The Night Time Industries Association and preferred partner Zapaygo, one of the UK’s leading order and pay apps, launches ‘Ask for Angela’ feature, to be available across all their venues as part of the broader safeguarding initiative available to businesses.

be beneficial to better support people wishing to receive support anonymously.

An exceptional amount of work has been done within the sector, which is focused on creating safer environments for people to socialise within, and build public confidence.

This initiative is one of many layers of safeguarding mechanisms which will prove to enhance communication between staff and customers if they are feeling vulnerable or concerned about their safety.

Zapaygo users will be able to select the ‘Ask for Angela’ option from a participating venue’s menu as simply as if they were ordering a drink. ‘Ask for Angela’ is a nationally recognised safety initiative which allows people to alert a venue to a personal safety concern. In the past, this has relied upon speaking directly to a member of staff.

While ‘Ask for Angela’ is already a successful scheme, the NTIA and Zapaygo recognise that technology can provide an additional option to help venues implement this initiative even more effectively.

Venues wishing to use this feature would receive the notification, like any other order, through the Zapaygo system, and implement their safety protocol without individuals needing to speak to a member of staff directly. This offers an additional way to access the ‘Ask for Angela’ initiative which may

Elliot Hall, Founder and CEO of Zapaygo, said: “Technology in our industry has long been used to improve the customer experience and operational efficiency.

Following the recent increase in concern over the wellbeing and safety of guests in late night venues, Zapaygo, in partnership

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with the NTIA, have been working on ways to use our technology to integrate personal safety features too. We believe that we can offer solutions which fit industry standards and work in real-life, operational practice. The safety of our users is top priority.”

Mike Kill, CEO of the Night Time Industries Association, said: “The NTIA are constantly working to improve inclusion and safety in night time spaces. This initiative will enhance the communication channels between customers and staff when they are feeling vulnerable or compromised.

It is clear that the enhanced mitigations around searching, communication and training alongside safety mechanisms like this initiative will go a long way to building confidence in the sector, and the ability for people to enjoy a safe night out.”

To find out more about Zapaygo’s partnership with the NTIA, visit www.ntia.co.uk/zapaygo-partnership/

The evolution of the CFO is accelerating at pace, but 90% working in hospitality are feeling the pressure ‘The future CFO’ research conducted by Xledger, the cloud finance software provider, has found that a resounding 100% of CFOs working within the hospitality sector have seen their roles evolve over the past three years, 88% of which said that it has evolved significantly. Whilst promising, 90% say that they are feeling pressure as a result of this evolution.

Yet, 90% are still carrying out repetitive and manual tasks as part of their main role. CFO’s and heads of finance in the hospitality sector in particular, spent an average of 20 hours per week on these tasks – which, when benchmarked against other sectors, was one of the highest. However, it’s not only a lack of efficiency that CFO’s are currently contending with, when asked about their ability to forecast ahead, 35% said that they can only see up to three months ahead. A worrying 7% said that they can only forecast up to one month ahead.

The additional responsibilities will mean that they have ample opportunity to affect company growth with responsibilities such

as ‘modernise the finance strategy and processes’, ‘provide accurate learnings from the business’ need to pivot during the pandemic’ and ‘provide data driven forecasts and accurate insights’.

But some of the new responsibilities also fall outside of the finance function such as ‘company culture and human leadership’, ‘connecting the business and identifying silos/ inefficiencies’, ‘providing accurate learnings from business diversion’ and ‘company ESG efforts’ all cited by a large number of CFOs. Ian Halliwell, Sales and Marketing Director at Xledger comments, “The hospitality sector is one that experienced the most volatility over the past 18 months, led by the pandemic, but there are also wider impacts causing long term change.

These include the demands of tech savvy consumers, the need for seamless technology and a consistently changing competitive landscape. This is possibly why we’re seeing the evolution of the CFO in this sector happening at such an accelerated pace. CFOs have seen the number of

responsibilities in their remit expanding - and some of these away from the finance function – which is encouraging as it provides greater opportunities to lead change in their organisations. What’s concerning is the pressure that the vast majority are experiencing.

“It seems that the root cause of this pressure can be summarised as a need to harness the right technology and tools to do their job.

That 90% are carrying out repetitive and manual tasks as part of their main role and 35% can forecast only three months ahead, it highlights a lack of automation and ability to harness their data effectively. It seems we’re still in the early stages of the well documented evolution of the CFO but with these teething problems, we have far to go.’

The study has illustrated some of the important challenges that need to be overcome for the CFO role to evolve effectively.

But advancements in cloud and automation technologies bring new ways to enhance roles and tackle the burden of repetitive tasks.

Xledger is a one-stop solution automating tasks across expenses, approvals, payments and reporting meaning that the finance team, all budget holders and senior stakeholders can log in to one place to obtain a true view of the data. It provides the solution to many disparate and manual methods used in accounting today and brings together distributed and multi-entity organisations to leverage economies of scale.

Xledger was purpose built for the cloud from the ground up and designed to function for optimum performance, allowing organisations to experience the full fruits of the cloud ERP revolution.

Xledger’s ‘Future of the CFO study’ is available to download at: www.xledger.com/uk/wp-content/ uploads/sites/4/2021/11/future-cforeport-digital.pdf

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How smart technology can assist small businesses in the transition to future net zero Every business in the UK has a part to play when it comes to reducing carbon emissions. It’s often large businesses and “gas-guzzling” industries such as manufacturing and oil that are in the limelight for energy offences. However, it’s important to consider that small businesses also play a significant role in the transition to future net zero.

- Installing rainwater harvesting systems

The UK Government recently launched the Together for Our Planet campaign. As the UK’s 6 million small businesses make up 99% of the UK’s enterprises, it’s time to acknowledge the small, but practical steps each and every small business in the UK can take to reduce carbon emissions.

- Installing smart meters

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said: “Every step that a small business takes on their journey to net zero adds up–not only in protecting the health of the planet, but also in future-proofing their business and encouraging new investment, new customers and new opportunities for growth. We are providing the support and advice small businesses need to join us and become leaders in the fight against climate change.”

The campaign calls for all small businesses to lead the charge to net zero, encouraging them to pledge to cut their emissions to net zero by 2050 or sooner through the new UK Business Climate Hub. The Together for Our Planet Business Climate Leaders campaign supports small businesses in taking their next steps to reduce emissions. The hub provides small businesses with practical tools, resources and advice on steps to take to reach net zero. These include: - Installing energy-saving light bulbs - Switching to cleaner forms of transport, such as electric vehicles - Using environmentally-friendly packaging options - Replacing windows with energyefficient alternatives - Switching to renewable energy suppliers 8

- Reviewing procurement to include local and sustainable suppliers - Installing heat pumps and electric charge points for vehicles - Increasing solar energy production

There are huge opportunities for small businesses to go green. In doing this, they not only play their part in saving the planet from the impact of climate change, but they can also grow their businesses and ensure they are fit for the future.

Other benefits to small businesses include: - Differentiating themselves from the competition - Attracting new customers - Attracting new investment - Saving money on their running costs Smart technology makes achieving these objectives simpler and easier.

Smart metering, centralisation of energy and monitoring of building assets can empower organisations to make the right energy decisions and build a brighter, cleaner future for all.

Smart metering and automated meter readers It’s true that what you can measure, you can manage. Smart meters and automated meter readers (AMRs) help you take control of your business’ energy use and costs.

They also put an end to estimated billing and manual meter reads.

You can either replace a traditional meter with a smart meter or retrofit AMRs onto your existing meters.

These devices provide real-time consumption data, giving you an accurate understanding of your business’ energy consumption

habits and insight into how you can make your operations more efficient. For example, you could lower your energy consumption and emissions significantly by turning your heating down by just one degree. Your smart meter or AMR can give you the data to prove this.

Smart building management system A centralised system that allows for advanced energy reporting and monitoring will allow business owners to periodically adjust their energy use according to peak times, identify inefficiencies and reduce energy consumption and cost overall.

A smart building management system can also control other parts of the building, such as heating, lighting ventilation and air conditioning. Different areas and functions of the building can be fitted with sensors and connected via a data network that feeds real-time information into the management platform.

For example, occupancy sensors can be used to automatically control heating and lighting systems—if there is no-one in a room, lights and heating can be turned off (thus saving energy). This is just one example of the power of smart technology in helping small businesses reduce their energy consumption in both the short-term and the long-term.

The time is now for small businesses to take action against climate change. This will help them seize new opportunities, grow, encourage investment, create new jobs and adapt to the challenges of our changing planet. In addition, reducing emissions can lower your business’ running costs, save you money and help attract new customers.

Using smart technology will, ultimately, help you maintain a competitive advantage as we head towards a net zero future.

Alannia Resorts prepares to expand with SIHOT.PMS Alannia Resorts has upgraded its property management system to respond to changing market demands and optimise digital operations as it prepares to expand.

The award-winning holiday company has deployed automation across its portfolio to manage pricing and distribution of its 2,000+ beds across its camping and glamping sites, and holiday bungalows. The realised improved efficiencies and time-savings will help the group fulfill its ambitious growth strategy.

With four holiday resorts distributed between the Spanish provinces of Alicante and Tarragona, Alannia Resorts needed a property management platform to manage at resort-level, with group-wide access to review overall performance.

The switch from a dedicated campground management system to using a fully integrated, customised property management system (PMS) was taken to allow staff to manage the company’s array of products and distribution channels in a more reliable and less timeconsuming way.

“We needed a global PMS partner that was versatile and would

enable us to manage our properties like a hotel,” said Diego Gil, Chief Information Officer, Alannia Resorts. “The available software management programs for campsites do not offer much of the needed functionality.

However, our glamping business model differentiates us from campsites as our needs are more comparable to a holiday resort. SIHOT.PMS fulfilled our core criteria, while being customised to our business model” By selecting SIHOT.PMS, Alannia Resorts has gained full visibility and control at group-level while enabling single property management through a shared corporate database. This provides the group more flexibility to compile reports and review performance while enabling improvements to its online sales strategy. The company can now configure more structured offers and promotions linked to the BAR, where previously availability and prices had to be uploaded to the system manually.

“Alannia Resorts needed a flexible system to address all its market segments, while being able to meet the legal compliance in each country it operates,” said Carsten Wernet, Chief Executive, SIHOT.

“The team can connect its existing applications and third party software to the PMS and customise the setup for each property - providing local management and group control. As a result Alannia Resorts experiences less friction in data management and can automate a majority of the sales and booking process.”

Alannia Resorts also uses a number of self-developed software programs that needed to integrate with the new PMS, such as sharing data from its own AI-driven RMS (revenue management system).

“SIHOT enables us to automate many processes to reduce the manual processes to manage rates, distribution and reservations. On a financial level, we have gained peace of mind due to the reliability of the data, and the ability to control this data. Furthermore, SIHOT has a global presence with the possibility of infinite integrations through Web Services or open APIs that supports our ambitions to expand further around the world,” continued Gil. Read the full case study of Alannia Resorts switch from a dedicate campground management system, to a fully integrated hospitality management platform www.sihot. com/en/alannia-resorts-and-sihot/

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Easyway tracks the ups and downs of guests’ emotions to improve their Hotel experience Innovative Guest Sentiment feature helps hotels monitor and react to guests’ feeling before, during and after their visit EasyWay - the premier end-toend contactless guest journey platform for hotels - has taken hotel personalisation to a new level with the launch of a rich Guest Sentiment feature.

EasyWay Guest Sentiment uses machine learning to detect and track guests’ feelings and emotions by analysing words, phrases and emojis used within messages throughout the guest journey.

The multilingual tool works across a variety of direct messaging channels including SMS, WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger and many more.

Every message is assessed, providing hotel staff with a realtime snapshot of each guest’s mood. Supplying greater

automation for hotels, EasyWay can identify the most appropriate response to match customer sentiment within the guest journey and respond in real-time.

The system tracks guest sentiment throughout the guest journey, identifying when to change tact to avoid overwhelming or harassing guests with too many messages. The guest journey platform can also identify potential brand ambassadors, connecting directly to social media pages or TripAdvisor to encourage guests to share their positive experiences.

The EasyWay platform also alerts staff to potentially delicate guests and serious complaints so they can be promptly addressed by the most appropriate staff member. It can also detect opportunities to promote additional services and ancillary products to drive more revenue for the property.

“We have focused our development on enabling hotels to innovatively respond to guest sentiment automatically to prevent issues from snowballing before negative guest experiences affect the reputation of the hotel,” said Roy Friedman, CEO and co-founder of EasyWay. “Guest satisfaction can be monitored in real-time to continually improve the guest journey and support staff with appropriate responses.

Through the data insights, hotels gain a greater understanding of what guests think about the services, amenities and facilities.

This helps hotels adjust offers and messages to meet and exceed guest expectations, improving hotel reputation and capitalising on brand ambassadors.”

Hotels benefit from a team of EasyWay CX experts to help them establish their guest journey and define core engagement touchpoints.

This process helps optimise guest satisfaction and identifies revenue opportunities.

EasyWay enables hotels to interact directly with guests through automated digital contactless communication.

The platform utilises text messaging channels - SMS, WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, WeChat and many more - to improve hotel operations, enhance guest satisfaction and drive additional revenue by providing personalised services and special offers in a timely manner.

EasyWay Guest Sentiment is open to subscribers who want to be among the first hoteliers worldwide to take advantage of the innovative technology.

For further details visit www.try.easyway.ai/sentiment/

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Are UK Hoteliers and Hosts Prepared for a Demand Boom?

Cloudbeds Hospitality Platform helps UK properties accelerate the recovery The UK hospitality industry has lagged in COVID pandemic recovery, with many suggesting ongoing government restrictions are holding the country back as other nations surge ahead.

In fact, the business travel market in the UK is expected to shrink by 17% this year compared to 2020, according to the Global Business Travel Association. Out of the top 15 business travel markets, only Japan is expected to show a worse annual growth figure.

But, as more and more of the UK and European population is vaccinated and these restrictions

are loosened, we expect 2022 to be a booming year for travel. By summer, we expect the floodgates will open. Why? For one, consumer savings during the pandemic was at an all-time high, and after being cooped up for nearly two years, travelers are ready to spend that money.

Expect a rocky rebound As guests come back through the doors, however, one of the biggest challenges we see for hoteliers and hosts is meeting rising guest expectations amid ongoing labour issues.

Travelers are returning after 18 months at home and have only their best lodging experiences in mind. They expect the same

experience as before, if not better.

And now, after the pandemic, travelers expect safe and contactless experiences like digital check-in, payments, mobile key and guest messaging on their preferred digital channel.

Meanwhile, the hospitality labour market in the UK struggles to rebound. As they reopen their doors, many operators are hardpressed to find talented staff.

Teams are running thin and, at larger organizations, many positions in sales, marketing and revenue have been centralized.

Lodging owners and operators will be best served by considering ways to operate more efficiently well into the future, starting by implementing some best practices now.

Accelerate recovery with Cloudbeds For all the reasons mentioned above, hospitality businesses are turning to technology and adopting digital tools faster than ever before.

They’re looking for solutions that drive revenue and increase guest satisfaction while at the same time streamlining operations by automating mundane tasks that were previously handled manually by staff.

In the past, hoteliers and hosts had to work with a number of different tools and vendors to achieve these goals. But more and more properties today are choosing a platform approach, partnering with a single technology provider that seamlessly integrates all the tools they need into one single platform.

At Cloudbeds, we believe every lodging business large or small should have access to the same tools to operate successfully. Our platform is designed to allow every lodging business, from a boutique hotel to a city hostel to a serviced apartment, to compete on a level playing field in both acquiring and servicing guests.

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The Cloudbeds Hospitality Platform seamlessly combines tools for operations, revenue management, guest experience, marketing and payments with a marketplace of third-party integrations to help independent hoteliers and hosts grow revenue, streamline operations and enable memorable guest experiences.

Turn to Cloudbeds’ open platform to: Meet the needs of modern, techsavvy consumers.

As we exit the pandemic, more people are now comfortable with self-service in all areas of our lives, from self-checkout at the grocery store to mobile boarding passes.

Digital transactions are quick and efficient, but most importantly, contactless experiences keep both guests and staff members safe.

With Cloudbeds, lodging businesses can easily set up a mobile-friendly website and booking engine to make it easy for your guests to find and book the property. Check-in and check-out is a breeze with Cloudbeds Payments, a modern payment processing solution that allows guests to pay easily and seamlessly with their favorite payment method, from contactless credit cards to mobile wallets.

of popular online booking sites like Booking.com, Expedia, and Airbnb. Tools like Cloudbeds’ Pricing Intelligence Engine (PIE) allow hoteliers and hosts to automate rules and alerts that optimize pricing strategy and track competitor pricing, ultimately helping to optimize occupancy and maximize revenue.

Increase revenue by driving demand and managing distribution.

With many properties working with a leaner staff, it’s become even more critical for hoteliers and hosts to find ways to automate tedious tasks so that employees can refocus their time on guests. Cloudbeds Hospitality Platform is fully and seamlessly integrated, meaning that all data — reservations, rates, availability, payments, and more — all sync instantaneously, saving you time entering the same data in multiple systems. Change rates once in your PMS and they are instantly updated across your booking engine and all distribution channels. Or, when a guest pays with a credit card, know that the payment will sync directly with the guest reservation, saving you hours of reconciliation time.

Cloudbeds’ fully integrated PMS, channel manager and booking engine allows properties to easily manage and distribute rates across all channels, including your website as well as hundreds

Streamline operations to run a more efficient business.

Furthermore, Cloudbeds’ userfriendly interface makes learning the system quick and easy, meaning that your property doesn’t need to spend a lot of time training employees — a major advantage in an industry with high staff turnover. Online resources such as Cloudbeds University provide additional opportunities for staff to expand their knowledge on areas ranging from front desk operations to reporting and revenue management.

By offering a variety of mission-critical functions in a single integrated software platform with an open API, Cloudbeds helps properties maximize revenue while minimizing time spent on administrative tasks. The platform is designed to elevate every aspect of a property – from the business, to the staff, to the guests – and equip hospitality leaders with what they need to stay competitive in an evolving market. To learn more, visit www.cloudbeds.com 13

Technology holds the key to success in battle for bookings with Otas

By Phelim Pekaar, CEO P3 Hotel Software Sometimes the challenge of building direct booking revenue can seem insurmountable for hotels. Online Travel Agencies (OTAs) are the undisputed kings of the global travel booking industry – their dominance built on the back of superior technology, strong user experience, seemingly limitless resources, and the perception that they have the best room prices.

Yet, if the COVID19 pandemic has taught us anything, it is the importance of embracing technology – such as online check-in and checkout – to provide solutions to problems.

Hoteliers who wish to compete with OTAs for a larger slice of the bookings pie need to arm themselves with the tools to drive direct bookings. They need to marry specific integrated tech solutions to traditional values of hotel customer service and bring the offline experience online for potential guests.

Fomo vs Loyalty

surprising number of hotels fail to overcome this vital first challenge – and if a hotel can’t match rates for their own rooms, they’ll never truly be in the race at all.

A direct booking engine channel should always offer the best possible rate options, including mobile, geolocation discounts, and blended rate functionality to ensure guests are offered the best price for multiple nights on a single booking and to maintain rate parity with OTAs. Such functionality has been available for some time, but the problem has always been integration and providing customers with a seamless journey through their purchase.

Secure payments This is particularly apparent when it comes to payments; too many hotel booking engines don’t have direct payment integration and being taken offsite to a separate payments page is a red flag in terms of trust and credibility for many customers.

OTA sales tactics are anathema to the concept of traditional customer service. Their algorithms are quick to pile on the pressure on potential travellers, confronting them with hard-sell messages like, ‘book before it’s gone’ and ‘limited hotels in this location’.

Some engines, too, display realtime page views or the number of rooms left, particularly when availability is low.

The banking world has already decided that the days of unsecured payments are ending, so now is the time to act. Facilitating integrated authenticated secure payments provides reassurance for hotels and customers alike, while providing hotels with immediate cashflow and removing the risk of chargebacks.

The drip-feed of such messages are designed to elicit a fear of missing out (FOMO), to instil a sense of panic and persuade you to act impulsively.

This strategy can be as effective as it is manipulative, but hotels should be wary of mimicking it because of the potential damage to reputation and ability to build loyalty.

Creating trust is vital in the early stages of the customer journey, and OTAs appeal to travellers because they allow people to compare hotel options throughout the world. The fact that their websites are reliable and easy to navigate also creates trust – there is confidence that the system works and that booking transactions are handled securely.

So how and where do hotels compete?

Rate matching Rate parity is the foundation for competing with OTAs, but a 14

Creating trust

To engender the same level of trust, your booking engine must deliver an excellent user journey. Visual consistency as part of a strong brand experience will lead to greater guest loyalty, but it must

be seamlessly integrated – only solutions which keep the user in the same page, domain name and sub-domain will provide the level of reassurance that allows you to compete with OTAs. Make it personal OTAs use artificial intelligence (AI) to generate an experience personalised to each customer – showing the most relevant hotels, rather than just listing them by price, and highlighting relevant nearby services and experiences based on information provided by the customer.

Until recently, competing with OTAs in this area wasn’t feasible, but that is changing. My own company, P3 Hotel Software, is now rolling out an AI solution that is integrated with our own booking engine which analyses guest data gathered by booking engines and uses it to provide personalized booking experiences for customers in the same way that OTAs do.

AI-powered hotel booking engines also improve revenue management and operational efficiency, while providing hoteliers with valuable data insights needed to successfully implement dynamic pricing models.

Hotels can outperform OTAs on personalisation and build customer loyalty in other areas, too. Booking engine software can enhance loyalty programs by displaying available rewards when a guest is booking another stay, and tailoring promotional offerings for restaurants, spas, parking, and other property amenities. Indeed, when a booking engine is integrated with a hotel’s central reservation system, it can provide guests with the ability to book these amenities directly.

Service not fomo With the tools to compete on rates, payments, trust, loyalty and personalisation, the importance and value of customer service becomes a clearer win for hotels when taking on OTAs and driving direct booking revenue.

In an industry that prides itself on service, there are long-term benefits in embracing software solutions which offer reassurance to potential guests, rather than relying on aggressive sales tactics.

P3’s innovative booking engine provides functionality which allows hotels to establish trust, foster loyalty, and offer a more personalised experience in the critical first stages of the customer journey – leading to a higher conversion rate and increased direct bookings.

About P3 P3 Hotel Software has over 20 years’ experience providing customised booking solutions for large independent hotels and hotel groups. P3’s solutions cover all stages of the online guest journey and integrate seamlessly with Oracle’s market-leading OPERA hotel reservations and management system.

Core products of custom booking engine and online check-in/ check-out facilitate a smooth booking process for customers and an enhanced guest experience, with friction points in hotels removed.

P3 also provides hotels with SelfServe Kiosks to automate checkin and check-out processes; connection to the world’s leading Metasearch engines; Corporate Booking tool; Loyalty program and Gift Voucher solutions; responsive Web Design and CMS. For more information please visit: www.p3hotels.com

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OpenTable helps your restaurant thrive with its reservation software that goes beyond just bookings.

Let’s help diners discover your restaurant.

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restaurant.opentable.co.uk

The next generation Hotel Booking Platform - how a seamless online journey drives guest loyalty Post-pandemic travel has changed, with guests now increasingly likely to head directly to a hotel’s website to find out more information and to book.

Consequently, an advanced booking engine that boasts seamless integration with your hotel website will be key to transforming this enhanced traffic into bookings. And, importantly, these direct bookings won’t come with OTA fees – meaning more revenue for your hotel.

hotel or a resort, you’ll need a booking solution that’s been designed with that type of property in mind. You want a technology partner that understands your unique requirements and who you’re looking to attract. The right solution will help you know your guests better thanks to powerful, data-driven insights, which enable you to provide the best possible online guest journey, thereby increasing both guest satisfaction – and ultimately your revenues.

Next generation hotel booking engines though are more than just the source of direct reservations.

They are expected to act as a comprehensive and easy-to-use platform that’s tailored to fit hoteliers’ needs, helping properties to stand out within a highly competitive market by delivering a brand experience that guests will remember.

For guests, it’s all about clear navigation and easy access to relevant information in a minimum number of steps. A powerful booking platform maximises the potential of (up)selling offers, enabling hoteliers to achieve the greatest possible increase in sales per room. Any number of offers and room landing pages can be set up with all the relevant information to hand so the guest has minimal reasons to leave the booking

Different hotels, of course, have different needs. If you run a leisure

process; something that gives them the confidence to go ahead and finalise a reservation.

To help defend against OTAs and other third-party online channels, the right booking platform will allow you to offer unique incentives to book directly – such as tailored packages. Advanced database segmentation lets you create personalised communications, tailored offers, newsletters and/ or campaigns that are aligned to individual guest’s preferences. By creating specific landing pages that can use sophisticated offers or upsell ‘experiences’ or even suggest more flexible payment plans, hoteliers can offer a valueadded experience to those booking directly, helping to foster long-term relationships.

Another benefit of a seamless user experience across all devices is that it helps reduce the abandonment rate. By offering vouchers, alternative suggestions for dates in case of no availability and attractive discounts for direct bookers, platforms such as Profitroom’s Booking Engine 360 deliver real added value for both hoteliers and their guests.

Ultimately, it’s about tangible results, which is why Profitroom’s award-winning Customer Success team works with our clients every day to use all the data that’s coming in to drive conversions, improve performance and boost revenue.

The Profitroom Booking Engine 360 is a prime example of a solution that offers all of the above benefits, having been developed exclusively with leisure hotels and resorts in mind.

For more information visit www.profitroom.com or scan the QR code for a personal consultancy.

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The premium booking platform for leisure hotels and resorts Introducing Booking Engine 360 Your brand and property are unique so demand a platform that can be tailored around your needs. Supercharge your direct bookings and stand out online with the leading booking engine on the market.

Our comprehensive and easy-to-use platform will flex around your needs to elevate your direct booking game and deliver a brand experience your guests will remember!

dedicated Client Success & Support teams send bespoke offers with new SMS messaging functionality recapture abandoned bookings instant triggers for purchase intent integration with Metasearch platforms

Find out more: www.profitroom.com or book a personal appointment by scanning the QR code.

Take your hotel to the next level with hungrrr technology The modern day traveller demands both ease and efficiency from their hotel experience. Whether guests are gracing your property for a holiday, business trip or other special occasion, exceed their expectations by introducing your very own website and mobile app, powered by hungrrr technology.

- Introduce table ordering in all dining and drinks venues via the app

From room service and table ordering solutions, to guest assistance and booking systems for leisure activities, satisfy their every need at the touch of a button, improving overall guest experience whilst driving sales and revenue.

Leisure & merchandise sales tool

Our solutions are designed exclusively for the hospitality industry, enhancing customer experience, driving sales and enabling our partners to stand out from their competitors.

- Guests can place orders and request bill at touch of a button - Reduce pressure on waiting staff during busy periods

- Allow guests to book leisure activities offered at your property via the app - Manage spa bookings, outdoor excursions and more - Showvase merchandise items you have on sale & have purchases delivered to guests’ rooms

Features for your function space - Make it easier to host weddings, charity balls and other special occasions - Offer pre-ordering for events as well as table ordering on the app - Reduce lengthy bar queues, allow guests to browse for longer and increase average spend In addition to our feature-rich technology, we also have an experienced hotels team, with extensive knowledge of the hotel service offering and tailoring a tech solution. They’ll be on hand to support you every step of the way when you choose hungrrr for your website and mobile app.

Virtual room service solution

Streamlined guest services & assistance

- Manage room service orders directly from your app

- Allow guests to request support directly from the app

- Allow your kitchen team to manage requests as they come through

- Replace toiletries, provide WiFi passwords and more with ease

There’s never been a better time to sign up, as our next 100 customers will receive the service free, forever*. That’s right – you’ll have no setup fee, no monthly fee and no commission on orders, with all hardware at cost. All you’ll have to cover is the cost of your merchant services with our nominated partner.

- Send requests directly to your house-keeping staff or porters

Call 0330 900 2273 to request a free demo or email sales@hungrrr.co.uk.

Table ordering from dining outlets

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Feature-rich technology for hotels Room service Guest assistance Order to table Order to meeting space Order to function room Merchandise sales Virtual concierge offering

Find out more about hungrrr

hungrrr.co.uk sales@hungrrr.co.uk

A smart balance: how connected tech is transforming our energy reuse remit Businesses and organisations across the UK are under pressure to implement commitments and actions to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. But, to truly commit to a carbon-neutral (or even a carbon-negative) future, cutting down on emissions is not enough. That’s why technologies for energy reuse are beginning to receive a lot of attention from governments and other stakeholders.

Over the last decade, the UK has been developing technological options to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Carbon dioxide removal (CDR) and energy recycling have an essential role in UK climate action. Carbon dioxide removal includes nature-based approaches, such as reforestation, as well as technology-based approaches. These involve capturing carbon dioxide emissions from power plants and industries for underground storage or reuse.

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Combined heat and power (CHP) The government is backing the combined heat and power (CHP) model in the UK, also known as ‘cogeneration’. CHP is a highly efficient process that captures and utilises the heat that is a by-product of the electricity generation process.

The heat generated is supplied to an appropriately matched heat demand (which would otherwise be met by a conventional boiler and require additional fuel to be burnt).

By using heat that would otherwise be wasted when generating electrical or mechanical power, CHP systems offer an efficient means of working towards reducing emissions.

In fact, CHP systems avoid network losses and reduce emissions by up to 30% compared to conventional generation via a boiler and power station. Thus, CHP offers the most significant single opportunity to reduce energy costs and improve environmental performance for many organisations.

The CHP process is especially welcome for sectors that use significant amounts of energy, such as food production.

An example of CHP is The Shard in London, the tallest building in the EU with 72 storeys. This landmark building is powered by a natural gas-fuelled CHP plant to operate at the highest level of energy efficiency. The plant provides energy for electricity and water heating to the surrounding area, reducing carbon emissions and contributing to the low-carbon footprint of the building.

Air source energy generation In its attempt to significantly reduce household use of greenhouse gases to net-zero by 2050, the UK government aims to install 600,000 heat pumps per year by 2028. Heat pumps take heat from the air outside or the ground and circulate it around a central

heating and hot water system. As a result, heat pumps are cleaner and more energy-efficient than gas.

Currently, over 80% of British domestic heating is supplied by gas boilers, which is why the government is driving a switch to heat pumps. However, heat pumps require electricity, which means that upgrades to the grid will be necessary. The electrification of water heating will also only result in decarbonisation if the electricity is renewable-sourced.

Another challenge with the switch to heat pumps is balancing the electricity load. Adding in lots of synchronised heating demand with heat pumps could result in network bottlenecks.

Compounding this challenge is combining increased electricity demand with inflexible energy generation. Because heat usage fluctuates with the time of day and year, heat pumps will make electricity demand rise and fall more dramatically.

Smart solutions for load balancing To support the roll-out of heat pumps, we will need to use electricity when it is available and when the network has the spare capacity. Smart and automated meter readers provide accurate, real-time consumption data to help utility providers, building managers and occupants make more informed decisions around optimising electricity usage.

Heat pumps themselves could be optimised using smart thermostats to save both money and energy.

These smart thermostats can use artificial intelligence to automate temperature settings based on specific daily routines and heating needs.

Reaching a net-zero 2050 will require a more innovative and flexible energy system based on data and digitalisation.

Fortunately, today’s connected technology is helping us move in the right direction.

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2022 Feature List January

July

• Finance & Accounting Software • Printer & Labelling Solutions • Restaurant Technology • Security

• Apps • Contactless Payment Solutions • Guest Feedback Software • Security

February

August

• Contactless Payment Solutions • Hospitality Management Software • Hotel In-Room Technology • Staff Rota Software

• EPOS • Music & Sound • Reservation & Booking Software • Staff Rota Software

March

September

• Apps • Guest Feedback Software • Online Order & Pay • Wi-Fi & Connectivity

• Finance & Accounting Software • Printer & Labelling Solutions • Restaurant Technology • Wi-Fi & Connectivity

April

October

• EPOS • Hotel TVs • Music & Sound • Reservation & Booking Software

• Apps • Contactless Payment Solutions • Security • Staff Rota Software

May

November

• Hospitality Management Software • Printer & Labelling Solutions • Restaurant Technology • Training & Recruitment

• Hospitality Management Software • Hotel In-Room Technology • Music & Sound • Online Order & Pay

June

December

• Digital Menus & Signs • Hotel In-Room Technology • Online Order & Pay • Wi-Fi & Connectivity

• EPOS • Finance & Accounting Software • Hotel TVs • Reservation & Booking Software

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Recommended Companies

It’s Lolly Ltd

Salto Systems

Assa Abloy

www.itslolly.com

www.saltosystems.com

08000385389

+44 01926 811979

www.assaabloyopening solutions.co.uk

enquiries@itslolly.com

info.uk@saltosystems.com

+44 (0)1902 364 500

EPOS, Payment Solutions Security, Entry Systems

Security, Entry Systems

Zapaygo

Adactus

Sonace

www.zapaygo.com

www.adactus.co.uk

www.habitech.co.uk

0333 301 9746

+44 (0) 1844 269090

01256 638500

info@zapaygo.com

hello@adactus.co.uk

sales@habitech.co.uk

Apps, Online Ordering, Payment Solutions

Software, CRM, Loyalty Software

Sound, AV

Siteminder

Paypod

www.siteminder.com

www.mypaypod.com

+44 (0)20 3151 0730

+44 (0) 161 678 0111

PMS, Booking Software

Payment Solutions

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Features in next months issue are on: • Finance & Accounting Software • Printer & Labelling Solutions • Restaurant Technology • Security

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