Latest GO Technology research from Zonal and GCA

Hoteliers are playing catch up with restaurants, pubs and bars when it comes to adopting technology to drive sales and build loyalty.

According to the latest GO Technology report​ from Zonal and CGA, which tracked the technology habits of 1,500 frequent hotel customers, order and pay apps are a huge untapped revenue opportunity for the hotel sector.

Hotels need to move quickly as competition stiffens, not only from local bars and eateries, but from fast growing food delivery services, such as Deliveroo and Uber Eats.  

Despite it being the norm and preferred method to book a room using a hotel’s own website (67%), this is where the technology journey for guests seems to end. 

Three in five (60%) consumers have never used a technology solution to check in to a hotel, although there is demand for this service with nearly half of those surveyed (45%) wanting to see automated check-in in the future.

During their stay, well over half of consumers say they have never used tech to order room service (70%), book activities or excursions (67%), reserve restaurant tables (64%) or pre-order food and drink (63%). These figures contrast sharply with the restaurant and pub sector, where smartphone pre-booking and order-and-pay are now firmly embedded.

These stats also demonstrate how far behind the curve the UK hotel sector is to overseas operators, who are upping the ante when it comes to the guest experience by adopting futuristic tech features such as robot butlers, keyless entry, blockchain reward systems and chatbots as in-room concierge.