Excerpt from PhocusWire.
I think the notion that guests are demanding human- provided services is overstated. The vacation rental sector is an example of why guests don't care about human- provided services as much as we think.
What can hotels learn from vacation rentals?
In North America, vacation rentals/ short-term rentals accounted for close to a third of room nights in 2011. One third! Most of the short-term rental bookings were done online.
Imagine booking online, receiving online confirmation and pre-arrival information, entering the unit using the mobile key or keyless entry, enjoying your stay, packing your bags, and leaving on the day of your stay.
All of this while having a completely humanless experience. Human involvement is hidden from the actual guests: vacation rental management, IT and technology management, revenue management and distribution, marketing, housekeeping, utilities, maintenance, etc.
Is the hotel ready for human-less services?
The digital transformation, driven by data and next-gen technologies, is changing both customers and hotels at an unprecedented rate. The new hotel tech stack is being hampered by what is stopping it from adopting next-gen technologies.
There are three main obstacles to the accelerated adoption of next-gen technologies in our industry.
The mentality of the owners and operators of the hotels has turned the industry into one of the most technology-averse in the world.
Lack of understanding and fear of new technology. I do not have trained staff to deal with it. It makes operations very difficult.
The labor unions in major metropolitan areas with highly-unionized labor force are against any automation or technology that can reduce the number of paying members.
The Industrial Revolution could not be stopped because of the rapid adoption of next-gen technologies in the same way that the Luddite movement in early 19th century England could not be stopped.
Will technology ever replace humans? A good question!
Next-gen technology will inevitably replace mundane, repetitive and dangerous jobs in the hotel industry.
The hotel can still keep a human guest-facing facade, but it can automate all of the back-end operations. Add humans with a warm smile to the mix.
How much labor would a hotel need in the future? In five years, I think the industry will not need as many people as it does now and the savings from payroll will pay for the investments in next-gen technology.
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