Back to BlogGreetings from Bangkok!
ทักทายจากกรุงเทพฯ
On Wednesday the 17th of February we held our first Independent Hotel Academy of 2016, which follows on from the success of our academy in Koh Samui last December. The venue, this time, was closer to home in the bustling Sukhumvit district of Bangkok. Frontdesk Anywhere, in collaboration with Louis T Collection, hosted independent hoteliers and multi-property hotel groups in an educational session on hotel cloud technology, the guest experience and changing trends in Chinese outbound tourism. Dozens of hotel managers, owners and consultants from across Bangkok attended the educational and networking. Thank you to everyone who attended the seminar and made the evening a worthwhile and enjoyable experience.
We covered several topics from new innovations in cloud technology to the changing expectations of modern travellers. For those who weren’t able to attend, we’ve condensed this into a few short points below. This is just a small part of the broader discussion that occurred during the academy. The good news is that we will be on the road again in the not too distant future as we plan to host more academy events across Thailand through March, April, May and beyond.
Key Takeaway #1: The Hotel Technology Gap
- Cloud-based platforms have exploded in popularity in the past six years and continue to rise
- Less than 3% of hoteliers globally are utilizing new cloud PMS
- 15% of hotelier’s plan to upgrade their PMS in the next 18 months - if you're not then your competitors likely are
Key Takeaway #2: Travellers Expectations Are Changing as Fast as Technology
- There is an 18% Increase in satisfaction when guests have three or more touch points besides the check-in/out process vs a 13% Decrease in Satisfaction when a guest experiences a technical frustration due to technology
- Time spent updating systems is less time delighting guests - newer cloud systems free you up to focus on guest
Key Takeaway #3: The Growth of Chinese Outbound Tourism
- Thai hotel occupancy reached 76% last year, its highest in 20 years. 7 million of those visitors came from China, up from 4.6 million from 2014
- It is essential to be able to communicate with Chinese guests; have a Chinese speaking GM or senior manager; this should not just be an entry level position
Hoteliers who are unable to attend our Independent Hotel Academies are always welcome to visit us in our new office located in Bangrak, Bangkok - Call us on +66 (0) 2-105-4539 or email sales.asia@frontdeskanywhere.com. We also recommend taking a look at recent eBook, How to Optimize Revenue with a Cloud-Based PMS.
Best regards,
ด้วยความเคารพ
Nicholas
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