The importance of personalisation in the hospitality industry

For hotels, winning the hearts and minds of guests is increasingly about getting inside their hearts and minds. Therefore, personalisation is the key. With online travel agencies (OTAs) and accommodation-sharing platforms leveraging the power of huge amounts of data to personalise their communications and so too their product offerings, hotels need to work harder than ever to keep up.

And it’s not just the competition driving this, but the customers themselves:

• 86% of consumers say personalisation plays a role in their purchase decisions (source)
• 62% of consumers say they have recommended, chosen, or paid more for a brand that provides personalised service (Ibid)

Companies that heed this message, reap the reward:

• Brands that create personalised services by integrating data and advanced technologies achieve revenue increases of 6 - 10% (source)
• These brands are achieving a five-to-eight-times return on investment (Ibid).

Why personalisation is so important in the hospitality industry?

The following statistics clearly show the consumers’ demand for personalised experiences:

• 74% of consumers get irritated with websites that show them advertising or promotional material unrelated to their interests (source)
• 53% of consumers prefer apps to find accommodation (source)
• 60% of consumers said they want offers that are targeted to where they are and what they are doing (source)
• Customers who received contextually relevant messages via geolocation technology were 59% more likely to make a purchase (source)
• Segmented emails by age, location or into more specific and targeted audiences receive a 14.4% increase in open rates and a 14.9% increase in click-through rate than the list average (source)

How are hotels getting more personal?

Some hotel brands have embraced personalisation and are using it to create a highly tailored service. Starwood Hotels’ Preferred Guest app learns more about guests the more they stay, achieving ever-increasing levels of personalisation. The most loyal customers even get their own personal ambassador to manage their visit.

Premier Inn’s Hub Hotels app allows guests to personalise room settings such as TV, lighting and air-conditioning, helping them create their own tailored homely environment. So too does hotel chain citizenM provide in-room tablets to personalise entertainment content, room temperature and lighting schemes – all of which data is stored on the Guest Experience Ecosystem, providing staff with real-time updates on guests’ preferences.

Personalisation is key and it can be integrated into all stages of the guest experience, from pre-stay to post-stay and everything in between.

You may be interested in: 

• 5 ways personalisation can help hotels boost direct bookings
• 5 ways to personalise the guest experience and increase revenue
• Why every hotel needs a digital strategy
• Top 25 tips to increase hotel revenue and boost direct bookings

How Criton can help you

Criton is an award-winning technology provider which enables hotels and serviced apartment operators to take the guest experience to the next level with a sophisticated mobile app. Criton helps hotels to streamline the entire guest journey and maximise in-stay revenue. Get in touch today to find out how we can help your business.