This article is part two of a three-part series on PMS. Here is part one.
The deployment of a property-management system should lead to a greater number of repeat guest stays as well as a higher volume and positive brand advocacy, including favorable reviews on social media. The guest life cycle begins before the guest is even looking for a hotel and continues beyond when they leave the property.
The more cutting-edge PMSes will have the ability to communicate with guests not only at booking but also during the pre-arrival phase, the guests’ stay, and the departure to cultivate that relationship, said Todd Sabo, president of RMS Hospitality Solutions. “Being able to email or text that guest will nurture that guest experience,” he said.
The PMS is integral to the hotels at those key check points, agreed Firas Bacha, senior product manager at Springer-Miller Systems. “Check-ins and check-outs are key,” he said. “Those can greatly impact that guest experience and the compliments or complaints will happen during that time.”
The PMS is the center of the right workflows that will form that guest experience, said Suman Pal, principal product manager at Agilysys. “There are multiple workflows working together: distribution, marketing, sales, revenues, managing the staff and activities,” he said. “Each and every point has to be done seamlessly to the guest’s liking.”
According to Jos Schaap, founder and CEO of StayNTouch, a mobile, cloud-based PMS provider, today’s guest is quite different than in years past. Above all, they crave control.
“In the old days, guest satisfaction meant things like carrying your bag, 24-hour gourmet in-room dining, choice in pillows, bathroom amenities, laundry service and wake-up calls,” Schapp said. “Today, consumers want to be able to move around while still being connected whenever they want. With advanced mobile technologies, guests no longer must conform to the business operations of the hotel, such as waiting in a long line to check in.”
A good PMS should also recognize that the guest will want a different experience and persona when traveling for business versus being on a family vacation, Pal said. The guest may want a special wine at the hotel restaurant when traveling with a spouse but prefer a drink coupon for the bar when on business. “A great PMS will allow all these systems and bring them together because it touches all of these systems,” he said.