What is IoT in hospitality?
IoT in hospitality is a technology system that uses the internet to connect hotel and guest devices, creating a digital ecosystem that can enhance hotel efficiency and improve guest experiences.
‘IoT’ stands for the internet of things, where ‘things’ can refer to any device that connects to the internet: smartphones, HVAC systems, security cameras, smart locks, sensors and more.
What is the impact of IoT in hospitality?
IoT in hospitality industry businesses, and specifically IoT in hotels, can have a huge impact on hotel efficiency and profitability. It can also seriously enhance the guest experience.
In this guide we’ll take a closer look at IoT in travel and hospitality: what it means to be an IoT hotel, and what you and your guests stand to gain from it.
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How IoT helps hospitality
Hotel IoT generates a huge amount of data about your business and your guests. Savvy hoteliers can use this information to better understand their business and their guests, and generate insights regarding issues to solve and opportunities to capitalise on.
How does the internet of things influence the experience of the customers in the hotels? It allows a hotel to provide ultra-personalised experiences. An example: a guest checks into a smart room and sets the thermostat to their preferred temperature and dims the lights to their preferred brightness. The smart room remembers these settings, and automatically sets them as the default every time the guest stays in the future.
Why should independent hotels and groups invest in IoT technology?
IoT technology is increasingly being implemented in hotels. The trend is clear – IoT hospitality systems are the future, if not the present.
Beyond the perks that IoT systems offer, IoT-fuelled guest experiences are also fast becoming less a novelty, and more an expectation for hotel guests. Hotels that don’t offer these experiences could soon be the odd ones out.
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What are the benefits of IoT in the hospitality industry?
The IoT concept is rather abstract, and can be hard to wrap your head around. So what are the real-world benefits that a hotel can expect from an investment in IoT technology?
- The ability to deliver a more personalised guest experience.
- Improved energy efficiency through smart HVAC and lighting systems.
- Greater operational efficiency through streamlined, automated internal processes.
- Significantly reducing equipment repair and replacement costs through predictive maintenance.
- Enhanced security from smart locks and real-time surveillance systems.
- Better business decision-making powered by data.
- Contactless and convenient guest interactions (mobile check-in/check-out, smartphone room access).
How can IoT in hospitality grow your hotel business?
Knowledge is power. IoT transforms your business into an information generating machine, and the answers to almost any business question you care to ask can be found within the data: what your guests are looking for in their perfect stay, how to deliver on those desires, how to optimise operational efficiency and resource distribution, and more.
Examples of IoT in hospitality
What exactly do IoT solutions for hotels look like? Here are a handful of the most popular IoT trends in hospitality that your hotel can begin implementing right now.
Smart rooms and automation
Smart rooms are hotel rooms fitted with an array of internet-connected devices: air conditioners, lighting systems, TVs and tablets, smart mirrors, voice assistant technologies and more.
These devices allow guests to adjust the in-room experience to their tastes, and allow them to ask questions and order room service quickly and easily.
Predictive maintenance
Predictive maintenance tools use sensors to track the performance of key hotel systems, such as HVAC, solar arrays and water heaters, and alert you if any early signs of potential issues are detected.
This can result in huge cost savings, both through the prevention of costly equipment failures and the optimisation of hotel resources.
Keyless entry systems
From digital key cards to locks that allow guests to gain access using their own smartphones, smart keyless entry systems can simultaneously enhance the guest experience and the security of your hotel.
Viki Edy Priyatna,
E-Business & Reservations Manager
Qunci Villas
How is IoT used in hospitality? Practical applications for hotels
Let’s get practical. How can you enhance your hotel through IoT? Examples include:
Enhancing guest experiences through IoT
Personalise guest stays, and give guests the power to personalise their own stays, by offering smart room controls, voice assistants and services informed by data on the guest’s preferences.
Improving security and data privacy with IoT
Smart locks and surveillance systems can enhance on-site security, although you need to ensure any internet-connected system are implemented alongside robust data protection measures.
Scaling IoT solutions for hotel chains
Multi-site hotels stand to benefit from the scalability of IoT, as the more data you can collect, the more optimised you can make your operations and the more personalised you can make your experiences.
Balancing cost and scalability when implementing IoT
Not sure which IoT technologies you want to implement? Start small and test out different options, gradually building out an ecosystem that aligns with the wants and needs of both you and your guests.
A key part of implementing any new technology or system is to ensure it integrates with those you already have. Enter SiteMinder, the ultimate hotel platform for IoT integrations.
