Social media is a powerful, ubiquitous communications tool that’s changed how we all interact with the world – and hotel organizations can revolutionize their communication and operational workflow by implementing its best practices.
With a familiar messaging interface, hotel staff interacts more efficiently and more often. A global team managing hundreds of properties can simply and safely pose and answer questions across the organization. Entire brands are more connected and engaged. Here’s why a social networking approach to hotel communication works for any organization.
Familiarity, Usability and Engagement
Hotels are slow to adopt technology because training a staff on a new system and using it to its fullest is often difficult and time-consuming – too time consuming when you have guests to serve and revenue goals to hit. But everyone, from grade schoolers to grandmas, recognizes a Facebook-style “feed” and knows how a post or comment works. On-boarding a platform like GuestEQ that utilizes the same interface means staff are up and running in literal minutes.
That familiarity increases use. People actually like communicating and connecting within a social network.
Additionally, a factor in hospitality’s current labor shortage is a lack of engagement in the job itself. A hotel-specific social network changes that by removing departmental communication silos. Co-workers interact in a way that’s more comfortable – commenting, asking questions, tossing in emojis. It all encourages more interaction, and from our experience at Reneson using GuestEQ, the staff enjoys it.
Simplified Communications within an Expanded Network
Much of today’s hotel operations strategies are outdated. It’s either walkie talkie and paper-based, or a staff is bouncing among a handful of software tools just to handle the simplest housekeeping request.
Contrast that with a social media approach that funnels everything into a single, scrollable feed that’s unique for each user. Part task list, part community bulletin board, part skills enhancement tool, the feed is a hub that simplifies how everyone does their job.
Beyond the slick interface, social media networks are just that – networks. Co-workers are all connected, of course, but this goes beyond a single hotel’s walls. GuestEQ specifically can connect hotels across a portfolio or across a single brand. A general manager at one hotel can pose a question to hundreds of other GMs. Same for revenue managers, housekeeping, maintenance, etc.
That all means more engagement, not just with just a single hotel, but in building a community and career in hospitality.
Checks and Balance
The problem with social media is, of course, all the bad stuff – name calling, insensitive comments, trolling. Those are not a problem when utilizing a hotel-specific social media communications platform (especially one built by hoteliers).
Management not only has oversight over the communications taking place and can set certain rules, but they also get a snapshot of hotel activities at a level of detail they didn’t previously – without micromanaging or wasting time sifting through old-school reports.
Tangible Results
The result of poor staff communication is an upset guest or a blown booking opportunity. All of the above improvements to staff efficiency, workflow and morale correlate to improved guest engagement and higher guest satisfaction scores.
By borrowing what works from Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn, hotel staff is more connected, talkative and comfortable. Knowledge bases are expanded. Problems are solved. Laugh-cry and clap emojis are had by all. Sign up for a free trial to try it out for yourself.
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