US hotel technology specialist Koridor has launched its MyRoom platform allowing guests to choose their room and select upgrade options.
MyRoom uses technology such as augmented reality, 3D imagery and virtual tours to show users hotel floor plans, room images and any available upgrades they can choose to buy.
Koridor’s CEO Larry Hall explains how the technology enhances the way guests select their rooms and the next steps in personalising the hotel experience.
What benefits does MyRoom provide to hotels and their guests?
We consider the MyRoom platform unique in that it allows guests to peruse available rooms, consider features and upgrades, and then select their room in much the way they select an airline seat or rental car today. We optimised MyRoom for the unique characteristics of a hotel and the demands of a hotel operation.
MyRoom offers guests a capability they seek, and we believe guests will gravitate to this service, hotels that offer it, and the channels through which they book, once they use it and discover the wide range of benefits. Through the process of selecting their ideal room, a guest enjoys an immersive and engaging experience that builds the emotional anticipation hotels desperately seek with their guests.
Does this service create a new revenue stream for hotels?
It's a valuable tool to drive additional revenue for a property. The MyRoom platform enables a guest to evaluate upgrade options on their own terms and in such a way that the propensity to upgrade increases significantly. Even if a guest does not upgrade, the room selection process creates a more loyal, more engaged guest who will likely spend more at the property during their stay and become more loyal to the property and the brand.
How important is increasing personalisation for guests and the hotels themselves?
Personalisation, or achieving a higher level of guest personalisation, represents one of the highest priorities for the hotel industry. We developed MyRoom to give hoteliers a tool that has a clear and quantifiable means to deliver previously undeliverable levels of personalisation. We have a number of initiatives to integrate our platform with other applications and platforms in use throughout the industry including CRS, booking engines and central reservations/distribution systems.
Have hotels been slow to take advantage of new technologies such as augmented reality and 3D imagery?
I would not describe the industry as being slow to take advantage, but rather the industry has not found the right use case to deploy these types of technologies.
What are the next steps in this process of increased personalisation?
One way we achieve a greater degree of personalisation involves the presentation of room attributes and features the guest does not see during the reservations process. This capability represents an easy win for the hotel and the guest. The next iteration of the personalisation process involves access to other datasets that give MyRoom the ability to curate inventory and find the room that creates a “best fit” for the guest. In this case, we have the ability to anticipate guests’ needs, which leads to a much more rewarding experience for the guest.
Can this technology be extended to other parts of the hotel experience?
We believe the MyRoom platform can and will extend well beyond rooms. Our focus on merchandising, personalisation and consumer behaviour represents universal benefits we believe apply equally well to meeting rooms, food and beverage, tours and attractions and other perishable inventories.
Hall adds that the company currently has several hotels being set up with the technology and an additional 10 pilots in the pipeline.