Let’s start this article off with some good news. The 2020s may have started off hard for hotel owners, but everything’s humming along now. This summer is expected to be the biggest ever for travel and hotels. While that will help your bank account in the long run, a lot of hotel owners have been cash strapped these last couple of years. That means necessary upgrades might have been skipped in order to make payroll. It was the right decision to make, but you might not be able to compete in this new market where demand is so high.
With all of that said, here are 5 tech upgrades for hotel owners that are really worth the money.
#5: New and upgraded wiring
There are few sayings in the hotel industry more common than “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” That little mantra might even beat out “the customer is always right” in the way it’s used. Certainly when it comes to your network and television wiring, it seems like a good idea. The last thing you want to do is face a massive construction project while your guests are right around the corner, right? Believe me I’ve been in hotels that are undergoing renovations and it’s not a great experience.
But, is your wiring really up to snuff? Wires can get eaten by bugs, decay due to extreme heat and cold, and can even snap from being strung too tightly. On the other hand, your walls might be full of long lengths of spare wire that contractors left there. Cable runs that are too long contribute to network errors and problems watching TV.
It’s really worth it to have a qualified installer inspect your property and find out where the problems are. I guarantee there’s something that can be improved.
#4: Hotel Room Television (yes really!)
Yes it’s truer than ever: fewer people watch live TV on vacation. But, you’d be surprised at the number of people who do. Traveling for business can be lonely, and a lot of folks still turn on the TV just to break up the silence. Still more look for local news while they’re traveling, to try to get a little bit of the local flavor.
If your hotel’s TV system hasn’t been upgraded in 5 years or more, you’re probably missing out on the features that people want. It’s not just HD anymore. Although, if you’re not providing HD at this point, you really need to. Hotel systems that let people check out easily are less expensive than ever. There are easy ways to promote your restaurants ad activities just like larger chains do.
There’s something more exciting about hotel TV, too. New systems allow popular movies and content to be downloaded in the middle of the night and stored on a computer at your hotel. This means there’s less strain on your internet in the early evening when everyone wants to stream.
#3: Better cell service
What’s your hotel made of? I mean what are the building materials? If you answered cinder block, aluminum girders, or even energy-efficient glass, then you probably know your customers don’t get great cell service indoors. When they can’t connect to their own carriers, they bog down your Wi-Fi, which makes everyone unhappy.
There are innovative solutions now that bring strong cell service indoors in hotel rooms and even public spaces. These are buy-once, use-forever solutions that are proven to make your guests happier. Cell phone signal boosters work in the hotel bar, keeping people in their seats (and drinking) for longer periods, too.
#2: Improved Wi-Fi
If you’re still using equipment from a decade ago or longer, that’s great! Honestly if you chose the right stuff in the 2010s it’s still probably humming along giving you no problems. But is it doing the job?
Today’s Wi-Fi access points can handle more users and provide more speed than ever before. And it’s not just hotel rooms. Temporary access points can provide secure networks for conventions, too. Having a modern Wi-Fi infrastructure in your hotel will pay dividends for years, making your hotel more attractive to travelers and cutting down on those middle-of-the-night calls that everyone dreads.
#1: Expanded internet
I know I’m not the first person to tell you this: In the 2020s, “getting away from it all” definitely doesn’t mean turning off your phone or getting away from emails. Your internet service is the backbone of your hotel’s operations and it’s a big part of the guest experience. If you lose internet, you lose the ability to accept credit cards and make reservations. In other words, you’re out of business.
it’s true that your customers don’t take vacations in order to get on the internet, but an internet outage will ruin their time away as quickly as bad weather or a closed theme park. Internet is part of our lives now, like it or not. It’s expected… it’s not a “nice to have” anymore.
That’s why you need better internet service. If you haven’t looked at your service in the last 3 years, you really need to. Yes, things really do change that quickly. You could be paying less for faster service than you have now. Faster internet means more capacity, happier guests, and easier transaction processing. There’s literally no downside.
While you’re looking at your internet service, consider a failover system. Adding a second internet service will keep you up and running if there’s a weather-related outage. It may not give you the same blazing speed, but at least you’ll still be able to process credit cards. These systems are easy to install and very economical.
One place for all five recommendations
You’re busy. I get it. You don’t have time to track down contractors for all these upgrades. That’s where the good news comes in. When you work with Signal Connect, you’ll get one point of contact who will help you with all five of these pain points– and more! They’ll show you how upgraded technology pays for itself quickly and how you can get it all done more easily than you ever expected.
Interested? Great! Call the experts at Signal Connect at 888-233-7563. You’ll reach a qualified consultant in our Detroit-area offices. We don’t believe in overseas call centers or script readers. Instead, we believe in real, honest customer service. It’s what we do. So call us during East Coast business hours, or fill out the form below if it’s after hours.
