It's a mainstay at industry conference panel discussions: the role of guest-facing technology in hospitality.
Someone will talk about a tech innovation, or at least an innovative way of using existing technology, that is improving the guest experience at their hotels. That same person, or maybe another executive, will also speak about the need for that personal touch in hospitality, promising that technology or robots will never replace employees.
The goal of guest-facing tech, of course, is to make things better for the guest. But what if the guest isn't ready for that tech? Well, you end up with the situation as presented by this writer for the New York Times who had more tech than she could handle.
A TV set in a bathroom mirror that she couldn't easily figure out how to turn off. Bathroom lights she couldn't turn off. Motorized drapes. Voice-activated lights — that's a new one to me.
Technology has an ever-growing role in all our lives. That you carry a small computer in your pocket with you all day is enough proof of that statement. Generally, we’re all pretty comfortable with the tech we encounter, and for the most part can figure things out, but there’s also a certain amount of fatigue that creates as well.
When a guest stays in a hotel, something as simple as turning something on or off shouldn’t feel complicated. I’m not saying that operating the smart mirror or the bathroom lighting situation was complicated, but for the writer, it felt complicated. On/off is binary, as simple a concept as can be, so its operation should match.
Having never stayed at that hotel, I don’t know how those things work. If any system requires having to move through several screens or menus before reaching the feature you want, that’s probably too much.
To me, that’s like when car companies use touchscreens for a car’s radio/audio, climate control and other things instead of physical knobs and buttons. Yes, the touchscreens give you more options, but if you’re just trying to do something that was as easy as adjusting a knob before and now you have to navigate to another screen, that’s frustrating — and dangerously distracting.
Another thing pointed out in the article is a system for guests to scan a QR code to be directed to an app or website to control features in their room, connect with the hotel concierge and other things. That’s cool and all, and if it connects to my loyalty program app to do these things, great, but I don’t want another app on my phone. I’ve got too many on there as it is.
Overall, these are minor gripes, but if the end goal is a frictionless stay, it’s important to be mindful of when trying to make something convenient instead makes it feel more complicated. For a guest, it doesn’t actually have to be more complicated to feel more complicated. It seems easier to flip a switch to turn on a light than to navigate touchscreen options.
We’ll get there, though, eventually. As in-room tech matures and refines, it will seem simpler. As it grows its presence in the hotel room, guests will become more accustomed to it. We’re just in that awkward phase where it’s not quite there yet and not enough rooms have these features to be universally accepted.
You can reach me at bwroten@hotelnewsnow.com as well as Twitter and LinkedIn.
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