Texting is playing a larger role in every day life and businesses are catching on to its appeal by implementing SMS services. Because of the flexibility of this communication method, text messages have been used for multiple purposes like reminders, promotions or weather warnings.
Now, customers who stay at select Four Seasons and Loews hotels in the United States can utilize text messages to enhance their upcoming stay. Once the message is sent, hotel employees have four minutes to respond back to the sender, otherwise the manager jumps in.
As of January 2014, only four locations in the country offer a text messaging service that is directly connects to the building's concierge desk. However, it is likely to gain traction among other hoteliers due to its popularity among guests, according to USA Today.
"Not having to download an app saves a step and time, and anything that saves time will win in the marketplace," Chekitan Dev, marketing professor at Cornell's School of Hotel Administration, told the source. "Plus, this saves voice message errors, wait time and allows for a text trail."
Guests who want to take advantage of the service are able to do so right when they check-in because the front desk registers their phone number into the hotel's system and voila, customers can begin making requests right away — even when they are not on the accommodation's grounds.
The news source explained how during one instance, a guest staying at the Four Seasons Philadelphia asked to make arrangements for him to attend a football game while he was having dinner — hotel employees added that these types of requests rarely occur in the eight months they have been using the texting concierge program.
A text message concierge service has great potential in the hospitality industry. Employees do not have to wait stationary at a desk and a pleasant hotel experience can lead to returning guests. Swift SMS Gateway can assist in developing this type of text messaging platform.
