You may have your choice in airlines, but you generally have one option if you’re looking for a direct flight between cities. This has given airlines the freedom to be heavy handed in deploying technology, even when it wasn’t quite ready.

It’s undeniable, though, that the approach has worked. We are completely comfortable now with going to the airport, entering info into a kiosk, printing out a bag tag, and dropping the bag off… all without having to talk to anyone.

Hotels don’t have the same luxury. If guests are annoyed by poor self-check-in options, they can just as easily go to the next hotel. It’s much easier for hotel guests to jump from one brand to another than for airline passengers.

You must be careful in your choice of technology and then commit to embracing the self-service option. Only by putting resources into the deployment will you ensure successful adoption. Going back to the airline example, when airlines launched check-in kiosks, they had more staff roaming the check-in area than today. Brand ambassadors helped you if you got stuck and were often able to help multiple passengers at once. Aside from that, the time they spent with each passenger was shorter than if they had been checking them in at the counter.

Hotels need the same level of commitment. You can eliminate your entire front desk right now if you have the right technology and lobby ambassadors. You can even keep the elite guest area with kiosks reserved just for those guests with a dedicated ambassador.

Guest awareness is also an important aspect. Overcommunication is key, and designing the right messages to draw attention to the benefits of self-check-in is worth every penny as it drives conversion.

Three ways to encourage guests:

Communicate self-service options and benefits often
Provide in-lobby support on how to check in at a kiosk
Reward guests for using self-service check-in

An extension of the above is proper staff training, critical to ensuring a positive guest experience. If staff members stumble over the technology, it does not instill confidence in guests.

Three important staff training areas:

Comfortable using every aspect of mobile and kiosk check-in
Talking up the benefits of the new technology while helping guests
Identifying when guests need help vs those comfortable with technology

Thank you to our member guest blogger today, Virdee, for this insightful information.