The Future of Cloud PMS Is Here

Today's Property Management System is considered the central nervous system of hotel operations. It is the command center for, among other things, guest interactions, room reservation management, pricing, channel management and distribution, food and beverage management, etc.  

The conventional legacy PMS is an on-premises software platform with functionalities and features that range from barebones to rich and sophisticated.

Aging legacy software platforms have a couple of serious disadvantages, including:  

• The cost of installing, maintaining, and training staff.  
• They lack the ability to be innovative and hinder quick adoption of new functionalities necessary to meet modern guest requirements and changes in market conditions.  
• These systems are reluctant to open up to third-party applications, integrations, and solutions, thereby depriving the property and its guests of some very innovative and much-needed applications and services. 

Fortunately for the hospitality industry, the future is already here in the form of cloud-based property management systems. As the undisputed heartbeat of any hotel, your PMS must continue to evolve if it is to support you and changing guest needs.  

Is your PMS future-proof? Consider these key areas as major game-changers for all lodging owners/operators: 

1. Contactless Technology Will Lead the Way 

In a survey conducted by Skift, 45% of respondents stated they are more likely to stay at a hotel that minimizes physical contact with the staff. This is a growing trend causing many owners to invest in contactless technology.  

Contactless technology has become a buzzword ever since COVID-19 brought us face to face with increased risks of contamination. It was critical that the hospitality industry adjusted to the changing reality and embraced contactless solutions. This has quickened the adoption of next-gen technology, and the contactless hotel experience is now the new normal. 

So, what is a contactless guest experience? Contactless guest experience eliminates or reduces human contact to a minimum when providing hotel services. From making reservations to hotel check-ins, from room service to catering, from sightseeing to learning about tourist attractions and events, there's nothing contactless technology can't do more efficiently. Some of the benefits of using this technology include guest and employee safety, reduced guest stress, automated workflows, integrated analytics, and personalized services. 

2. Text Messaging with Guests Will Streamline Efforts 

No matter how much we try to avoid it, hotels still communicate with guests via in-person interactions or phone calls. In recent years, text messaging has emerged as the go-to channel for interfacing between hotels and guests. 

Guest messaging allows hotels to communicate with guests through SMS or other messaging applications like Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp. A recent report found that, 85% of people prefer to communicate through messaging instead of calling. With guest messaging, hotels can meet guests where they are at and engage with them even more than before. In fact, the study further found that 98% of messages are opened. 

Increased guest engagement is vital for hotels since it enables them to provide the most personalized experiences possible. When conversations with guests are clear, hotels can identify and address any issues immediately, thereby paving the way for the utmost guest experiences. 

Try these tips if you want to increase guest engagement:  

• Welcoming guests personally with pre-arrival messages  

• Setting up automated replies for frequently asked questions  
• Setting up customized, scheduled messages  
• Using text messages to notify guests about events or special offers  
• Using text messages to request feedback at the end of the guest stay 

3. Integrations to Third-Parties Will Be Expected 

Integrating 3rd party channels and solution into your PMS is key to maximizing efficiency and staying competitive. Essentially, integrating other systems into your PMS allows the two systems to interact with each other via an automated interface, which transmits the requested data between the two systems. 

Such interfaces eliminate the need to duplicate data. As such, they significantly cut the administrative load on hotel staff and also minimize the chance of human errors. 

Here are some integrations that can add value to lodging operators:  

• Integrating the PMS with a keycard lock system enables the PMS to directly encode and manage the keycard by sending relevant data to the lock system.  

• Integrating PMS with OTA and GDS channels can help maximize online revenue. The integration interface allows OTA/GDS inventory, rates, and reservations to be controlled directly within the PMS.  
• A PMS-POS integration automates the process of posting restaurant charges to guest folios, improving efficiency and accuracy.  
• PMS-PBX/Voicemail integration enables effortless management of internal communications.  
• Integrating your PMS with your guest messaging solution lets you automate routine messages to guests. 

4. Your PMS Will Become Your New CRM Tool 

A good PMS solution should include a robust CRM (Customer Relationship Management) component to empower hotel operators/owners to use targeted marketing efforts more effectively and personalize the guest experience. Through a CRM, the PMS will be able to pull lists so you can send information directly to the customers you want with highly targeted guest communications based on rich customer profiles. 

The goal of integrating a PMS with a CRM is not to seek absolute perfection in terms of connectivity. That said, with an excellent coupling of your PMS and a CRM, you will be able to drive greater loyalty and more direct bookings from past guests, reducing your reliance on high commission based bookings via OTAs. 

Bottom Line  

The Cloud PMS is the future of the hotel industry. To recap, some of the key benefits of embracing a cloud PMS include:  

• It's easy to install and maintain, eliminating the need for on-premise IT support. 

• It’s quick to train staff, and easy to use, increasing staff productivity.  
• It automates many administrative tasks, saving team time and effort.  
• It automates redundant processes and tasks, enabling the hotel to operate with leaner staff.  
• It provides guests with a contactless experience.  

• It enables regular software upgrades with no downtime and no additional costs.  
• It provides reporting and performance analytics. 
• It enables access from any device anywhere at any time. 

Whether you're looking to switch your PMS provider or not, satisfy your curiosity and see what else is available to you.  Contact rezStream to schedule a demo today.