Guest Internet: Break the Trend, Sell Guest Internet

Summary

This article talks about the cost to keep up with maintaining the network, faster speeds and increased bandwidth usage for the guests.  Hotels for the most part offer free internet service, they did so at the beginning of the internet because the cost was low.  Now that the cost is much higher it might be necessary for hotels to charge for internet usage to cover the increasing cost of the network.  Many guests are addicted to having internet and the internet must be fast. The hotel industry owners and managers are torn between whether they should charge for internet or not charge for internet.  The article offers a tier option for hotel guests.  If you want the increased speed then you will need to pay for the service.  The slower connections are either free or for a small fee.  The faster connections are will cost slightly higher.  Almost all hotel owners and managers thought that once they put in a network that was it.  They did not realize there would be constant upgrade costs for software and hardware.  The more bandwidth and speed that is required to make the guest happy, the more the cost to upgrade the network.

Reflection

When I read the first part of the article I did not agree with the thought of charging for internet service.  Free internet access is a selling point for hotels.  I personally would not stay at a hotel it if did not offer wireless whether it was free or you had to purchase the service for a minimal amount.  Then as I read farther into the article I began to understand the point of view of the author.  Charging for the internet might be a good not only for the customer but also for the hotel.  Many hotels now a days charge for parking, then there are some hotels that also offer you valet service which would be on the same lines as the tier system that the author is talking about.  I definitely would be one of the guests that would pay for internet access but if the hotel is going to charge for it, it better be fast without any downtime or connection loss.  I can also see guests getting very upset if the hotel does charge for the service but instead of using the revenue to keep the network running smooth and fast but instead use it for something else the guest will complain. 

Warner, T. (2011, March 31). Guest Internet: Break the Trend, Sell Guest Internet. Retrieved April 15, 2011, from Hospitality Upgrade: http://www.hospitalityupgrade.com/_magazine/magazine_Detail-ID-585-Guest-Internet:-Break-the-Trend,-Sell-Guest-Internet.asp

Into the Mindset of the Guest

Summary

Caesars Entertainment Corporation has decided to let the customers help to make the decision of their technology during the creation of the technology, not after it is launched.  Caesars also brings the technology team into the research lab as the customers are testing the technology.  This helps the implementation of new technology that is useful.  Too many times technology is introduced that the clients/customers do not even use, whether it is hard to find or is not user friendly. As the testers are testing the technology the IT developers are there making changes and tweeking their product that the customers are giving feedback right on the spot.  This helps to reduce the product development time because the changes are done immediately where the customer can give additional feedback.  One case in particular was a reservation system Caesars was developing for their online reservation booking system.  Caesars found what they thought would be a hit was actually a total flop.  They redesigned the reservation system on the spot while the customers were testing and giving very important feedback.  Caesars feels that watching the reaction of customers is very important.  It is hard to get feedback from the customer after the technology has been developed and implemented and it is less costly.

Reflection

I was excited to read this article.  Too many times management and IT developers implement or introduce a product to the public or the employees that is meaningless and actually more cumbersome to work with.  If the managers and the IT developers would have asked the opinions of the customers or the employees in the first place and to actually take their advise the products out there would be more useful.  You can have all the focus groups and studies you want but if management and the IT developers do not take the advise of the customer and the employee that have to work with the products those focus groups and surveys are useless.  I feel the way Caesars conducts the their research by having their IT development team in the research room watching the expressions and listening to the comments of the testers and making the changes immediately is one of the smartest decisions management has made.  I also feel that many businesses would save millions of dollars if they took the same approach as Caesars does when implementing new technology.  Ask the workers who have to work at the reservation system, have them help develop it.

Lorden, A. A. (2011, April 8). Into the Mind of the Guest. Retrieved April 10, 2011, from Hospitality Technology: http://hospitalitytechnology.edgl.com/top-stories/Into-the-Mind-of-the-Guest72035