There’s no denying how serviced apartments have become one of the fastest-growing hospitality categories in the last decade. However, with increasing focus on upping the game in terms of comfort, security, and efficiency, there’s been a tech-driven revolution in the space.
Technology in hospitality is now more about smart AI and automation driven solutions along with cutting-edge data analytics. Hyper personalization is one of the key outcomes behind these advancements, while there’s increasing focus on ensuring more convenient and seamless stays for guests.
Let us take a look at how innovation is redefining the serviced apartment segment, enabling better management and customer satisfaction alike.
Mapping The Smart Evolution of Serviced Apartments
It is clearly the era of smart serviced apartments, with several technological innovations reshaping the category. Some of them include:
Keyless Access & Digital Check-Ins
It’s a fact that more customers prefer keyless access hotels along with automated check-in and check-out features. These are ways in which serviced apartments are improving the guest experience while negating wait times and other hassles.
Several properties are allowing guests to unlock doors with key codes or smartphone apps. There’s also remote access control for empowering property managers. Digital check-in and keyless entry means independent access to properties outside of regular service hours, while avoiding lines at front desks. Guests can also get all information related to the apartment prior to arrival, including Wi-Fi passwords, parking details, etc. This is also helping cut down human errors while enhancing overall operational efficiency.
IoT-enabled smart rooms
Smart home integration in rentals is proving to be a game-changer in terms of customer convenience and experiences. There’s an increasing usage of IoT in hospitality with features like voice commands for controlling temperature, lighting, and entertainment in rooms, along with occupancy sensors for energy management. Smart sensors identify the presence of people in the room and change energy usage accordingly.
This lowers wastage and costs considerably. Smart mirrors with in-built screens also help provide information like hotel services, news, updates, etc. Guests can adjust everything via smartphone apps as well, while pre-setting preferences based on their profiles.
Connected devices like coffee makers, smart speakers, and smart televisions can also be controlled through the guest app. Sensors can also identify potential issues with smart devices and notify the authorities instantly, helping minimize downtime and enhance customer satisfaction greatly.
AI Concierge Services
These are useful digital assistants that leverage AI for personalizing customer services. Natural language processing and data analytics go into customizing interactions and forecasting preferences.
They can automate bookings/reservations, answer questions, and direct customers to suitable services, along with offering recommendations. While customers get served quickly, thereby enhancing their satisfaction, this also lowers manpower costs and gathers valuable customer insights for further service improvements.
Predictive Maintenance
Another way where there’s increasing usage of AI in serviced apartments pertains to predictive maintenance. AI and ML (machine learning) combine to understand, classify, and learn from operational data of all assets, devices, equipment, etc. This helps generate actionable insights and recommendations, thereby identifying potential failures/problems before they actually happen.
IoT gadgets, sensors, and other technologies are used to keep tracking equipment health, while AI platforms help analyze data to find trends and patterns indicating likely equipment failure. This lowers downtime due to repairs, enhances customer satisfaction, saves on costs, boosts efficiency, and also keeps the safety quotient high.
AI and Automation: The Backbone of Efficiency
Automation and AI (artificial intelligence) have been behind a massive digital transformation in hospitality, extending to the serviced apartment category as well. Here are some ways in which they actually work these days.
Automated Guest Interactions
Serviced apartments can now automate the entire guest interaction process with Chatbots, digital assistants, AI concierge, etc. NLP and machine learning are leveraged for simulating human conversations, while customers are provided answers to their queries, recommendations, and booking assistance instantly even outside service hours.
On the flipside, room automation systems help guests control temperature, lighting, entertainment, and more. Properties can lower costs while raising efficiency and customer satisfaction alongside.
Dynamic Pricing Strategies
Technology in hospitality has completely redefined this area. It is a strategy where prices are dynamically adjusted, depending on demand, the day, time, and availability. Real-time demand and parameters lead to strategic room rate adjustments for maximizing profits.
Managers can track availability and demand and tweak prices as required, with algorithms forecasting bookings and setting minimum amounts till a certain time of the day. Patterns from earlier periods can be identified through analysis of data like booking trends, competitor rates, customer behavior, weather conditions, etc.
Revenue management systems thus leverage AI and ML to forecast future demand and adjust prices alongside, while managing room inventory suitably. This matters since the right price at the right time is often a deciding factor while influencing customer booking decisions.
Dynamic pricing also helps lower revenue losses from unsold rooms. Lowering prices at the right moment may attract guests at the last-minute as well. With this strategy, properties can actually attract customers from other segments who would not otherwise opt for them.
Enhanced Security Measures
AI and automation also helps beef up security measures at these properties. For instance, everything from video-based analytics and real-time footage analysis to facial recognition is possible. Some other features include predictive maintenance, remote access control, and behavioral analysis for identifying potential breaches/anomalies.
Furthermore, automated security alerts, swifter response times, and personalized security solutions depending on the risks, size, and area. Smart intercoms are another trend that could become hugely popular in this segment going forward.
Contactless Payments & Digital Wallets
This has been one of the biggest innovations in the segment, enhancing overall security, guest experiences, and efficiency. It lowers physical contact between employees and guests, while ensuring quicker processing of payments and check-outs.
Guests can use multiple digital wallets or pay through their mobile devices, with negligible wait times in most cases. More serviced apartments now accept tap on mobile, RFID cashless card, and digital wallets (PayPal, Amazon Pay, etc.)
Data-Driven Property Management- Upping the Game By Several Notches
Data-driven property management technology has completely reshaped the game as well, not just for hotels, but also serviced apartments and rentals. Advanced AI-driven verification systems and algorithms are working their magic to make each aspect simplified and more efficient for properties.
Data analysis gives way to insights that help managers take informed and quicker decisions regarding guest management, inventory, pricing, operations, maintenance, and more. From market trend and occupant behavior analysis to predictive maintenance, tracking revenues, and customer feedback-oriented improvements, almost every area is covered.
Picture an automated AI-driven system that helps you manage bookings and inventory, adjust prices dynamically, automate customer interactions and personalize stays, schedule maintenance and housekeeping operations, and also gather customer data for future improvements and marketing needs. Sounds like an all-in-one-solution right? It is! This is where a good PMS (property management system) becomes the need of the hour.
Let us take an example of TheSquare, one of the top names in the serviced apartment category globally.
TheSquare’s Tech-Driven Initiatives
-
S210 Supplier Algorithm – TheSqua.re has a proprietary and innovative supplier verification system which chooses only the best apartments for listing on the platform. There is a 21o-point algorithm that accomplishes this ask.
-
S250 Supplier Algorithm – During the apartment onboarding process, this algorithm comes into play. All health and safety features of apartments are compulsory fields during this time. Properties are accordingly classified into deluxe, executive, and standard.
-
Dynamic Tiering System – There are multiple tiers based on the continuous vetting process, right from Tier 4 to Tier 1. This ensures that only the best properties in each category are listed on the platform.
-
aPerfectStay for Property Management – It leverages a cutting-edge property management system, namely aPerfectStay that comes with real-time PMS for housekeeping, billing, reporting, reservations, and maintenance. This also covers smart locks, front desk operations, reports and analytics, expenditure and accounting management, and more.
The Future of Tech-Enabled Hospitality
So, now that you’ve got an idea of the existing innovations, what does the future look like? It could well encompass these trends:
-
AR & VR Previews – Virtual reality and augmented reality will be used for more immersive experiences during booking and navigation. Guests can leverage AR for exploring properties virtually, while navigating to their rooms and getting more information, virtual concierge, recommendations, etc. VR will help build computer-generated real-world versions where tourists can have more immersive experiences on their trips.
-
Robotics & Automation – Robot concierge solutions aside, there will be increasing usage for deliveries, room services, offering information, helping with check-ins, etc. Cleaning systems can be automated with robots as well.
-
Hyper-Personalization – Simple personalized guest services won’t do anymore! Most properties will look to tap big data and analytics to customize marketing campaigns, guest experiences, offers, etc.
-
Blockchain-Based Smart Contracts – Blockchain will help manage guest transactions and identities securely, while making loyalty programs easier to manage. It will also make payment processes quicker while lowering fees and enhancing safety levels.
Conclusion
Technology has completely revamped the entire hospitality space and serviced apartments are no exception! Be it operations, housekeeping, maintenance, bookings, or even customer relations- there’s nothing that isn’t covered by technology.
The whole point is not only about making stays more comfortable and enriching for guests, but also about taking the hospitability industry forward on a futuristic growth path.
With innovative platforms such as TheSquare’s S210 and S250 algorithms, property management is now more secure and efficient than before. It also keeps the focus firmly on the guest above everything else- something that’s going to be the mantra for the future!
