How Can Online PMS Applications Ensure Employee Retention And Greater Guest Loyalty?

Hotels around the globe are continuously finding ways to increase their revenue and maximise the productivity of their employees. They are also looking for technological solutions to serve better their demanding guests. Online PMS is a hotel management solution that consolidates data from various departments in a centralised place to optimise the workflow of operations. The hotel staff has a huge responsibility to take care of the guests to ensure their pleasant stay experiences. With myriad tasks to manage, the staff can feel overburdened and stressed. Online PMS effectively streamlines hotel operations to help reduce the burden on staff members and increase their productivity. When job-related stress decreases, employees can become happier and more content with their jobs. Hotel PMS systems can help in employee retention in the following ways-

1. Enable transparent communications- Different hotel departments need to work together and communicate well with each other to properly serve the guests. The traditional method of communication can result in errors or delays in completing tasks and friction among different departments. Online Property management system facilitates easy and fast communication among different departments, allowing the staff members to achieve functional efficiency and save their precious time. For example, after the guests check out, PMS software can automatically notify housekeeping staff to clean the vacant rooms. The housekeeping staff can update the status of the room once cleaned in the PMS application. This information can be easily accessed by the front desk in real time, thus, allowing them to make better decisions.
2. Automation of recurring tasks- Online PMS automates recurring tasks related to reservation, housekeeping, billing etc., which optimises not only the workload of staff members but also minimises the chances of errors. This allows staff to focus on improving the quality of their services to further elevate guest experiences. Without this system, the staff has to maintain elaborate paperwork and spend hours managing different complex administrative and routine tasks. For example, the integration of PMS with the hotel's booking website and other online travel agencies means the room availability status and guest information are always up-to-date. Without this system, the staff may have to separately update the inventory information across different channels. This can be a time-consuming and daunting task and can result in errors like double-booking or over-booking.
3. Manage operations anywhere and anytime using any device- Cloud-based PMS is greatly advantageous as it allows the staff members to access and manage all the required data easily anywhere and at any time using mobile phones, tablets and other devices. The staff no longer needs to sit in one place to view and manage different hotel operations. For example, the Maintenance team can receive notification on the PMS mobile application about a new assignment while they are handling a repair task in a different part of the hotel property. The team can update the status of the new task from ongoing to complete once done. This boosts their productivity by enabling multiple-tasking. Hoteliers can log in to the application using their smart devices from any location and can easily adjust room prices, make changes to inventory across all the channels with a single click and perform other activities.

Hoteliers must ensure their guests are having a good time and are not facing any issues and convenience. It is a good way to ensure that these guests become the hotel's loyal customers. When guests are happy with the hotel's services, they leave positive reviews that can drive more guests to the property and increase their revenue. Technology in the form of PMS applications enhances guest satisfaction in the following ways-

• Easy check-in/out- Guests do not appreciate waiting for a long time in queues to get checked in/out, receive their keys or settle their bills. After the Covid outbreak, most guests prefer digital or contactless check-in/out systems that adhere to social-distancing norms. Efficient check-in/out processes not only save time but also lead to seamless guest experiences, therefore, helping the hotels to build guest loyalty. An Open API helps hoteliers to integrate disruptive technologies to better serve the guests and to stay ahead of their competitors.
• Personalised experience- The online PMS captures all the information of their returning customers, allowing them to quickly make a repeat reservation with the same hotel. The property management system allows the front desk to easily access information, preferences (either they are keen on slots for free fun or marketing strategies) and other special requests of their returning guests from their previous stay. This profile building helps them manage their staff and plan their activities accordingly to provide tailored experiences to their guests. Improved services not only strengthen the hotel's relationship with guests but also prompt them to leave positive reviews on the hotel's website or other online booking channels. This further encourages more guests to choose the given hotel property, thus, boosting hotel reservations and revenue.
• Reduced chances of mistakes- If a guest, upon arrival, finds out the booked room is allotted to another guest at the same time, it can lead to a poor guest experience that can diminish the hotel's reputation. Hotel PMS systemsautomate the reservation process and ensure the inventory information is updated across various booking channels, thus, reducing the possibility of mistakes such as double-bookings/over-bookings.
• Easy POS integration- A PMS integrated with POS systems facilitates the easy sharing of information across different operations. This means guests can enjoy various on-site amenities like the food at the hotel's restaurant or spa services etc., in a hassle-free manner. PMS will keep track of all their purchases that can be clubbed together in a single invoice. The guests don't have to make multiple payments and can pay for the products purchased or services used all at once at the time of checkout.

Summing Up-

An online property management system can, therefore, help hoteliers to manage their day-to-day activities effectively and with great ease. These digital solutions, along with boosting revenue, make the lives of staff members easier. The improved services lead to impeccable guest experiences, thus, helping hotels in winning their loyalties.