How should hotels integrate AI chatbots without hurting guest experience?

Hotels should deploy AI chatbots to handle routine inquiries while ensuring clear, smooth escalation paths to human staff for complex or sensitive requests. The key is designing handoff protocols that feel natural and responsive to guests rather than frustrating dead ends.

What are the risks of fully automating hotel guest communications?

Full automation can strip away the personal, empathetic interactions that guests value in hospitality. When chatbots fail to resolve issues or lack context, guests may feel underserved, leading to negative reviews and reduced loyalty.

What makes an AI chatbot effective in a hospitality setting?

Effective hospitality chatbots are trained on property-specific data, can recognize the limits of their capabilities, and are programmed to escalate to a human agent at the right moment. They work best when viewed as a first line of service, not the entire service layer.

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Hospitality

Hospitality Industry Can Ensure Quality AI Chatbot Experiences by Supplementing, Rather Than Replacing

Human staff and AI chatbots work best together when hotels prioritize seamless handoffs over full automation

This story was produced through MarketScale. See how Hospitality teams put it to work with Executive Thought Leadership.

By Calvin Tilokee · April 30, 2024, 12:00 AM UTCAiAi Chatbot.Artificial IntelligenceCalvin Tilokee

Key takeaways

AI chatbots should augment hotel staff, not replace them, to maintain service quality.

Seamless transitions between AI and human agents are essential for positive guest experiences.

Over-reliance on automation risks undermining the personal touch that defines hospitality.

AI continues to permeate the hospitality industry as they increasingly turn to AI chatbots to enhance customer service. However, this move towards digital assistants comes with its own set of challenges, particularly in maintaining the quality of interactions to ensure they meet brand standards and customer expectations. With the stakes high for customer satisfaction and brand loyalty, the need for effective quality control measures for these AI chatbot systems is quite critical.

What strategies can hotels implement to ensure their chatbots are not just functional but also a true extension of their service excellence?

In an Experts Talk roundtable discussion on the hospitality industry ahead of AAHOACON 2024, Calvin Tilokee, CEO and creative director of Revpar Media, shared some thoughts about the use of AI chatbots in hotels. Drawing from his firsthand experience with AI in the hospitality sector and as a former revenue manager, Tilokee explained how hotels can ensure that their chatbots deliver quality experiences consistent with their brand values.

Several main points of his analysis covered:

Ensuring that information provided by chatbots is accurate and up-to-date to avoid disseminating incorrect information, like non-existent amenities.
The importance of why AI chatbots should communicate in a way that reflects the hotel's brand voice, enhancing the customer's experience by maintaining a consistent tone and style.
How crucial it is that chatbots understand and respond correctly to customer inquiries, addressing their needs effectively.
Why AI should be used to augment the capabilities of human staff, not replace them, leveraging its strengths to enhance efficiency while retaining human oversight. AI should be used to augment the capabilities of human staff, not replace them, leveraging its strengths to enhance efficiency while retaining human oversight.
As AI technology evolves, continuously assess and refine the chatbot's performance to ensure it aligns with customer service goals and technological advancements.

Video TranscriptExpand ↓

Yeah. I mean, as as a former revenue manager, I have a contentious relationship with AI and all of these RMS systems that have been trying to replace us for, you know, fifteen years already. You know, you really what it comes down to is is fact check everything similar to what Stephanie was saying, you know, is is is the chatbot speaking in your in your brand voice? Is it responding to the question that's asked? You know, we'll we'll utilize some chat GPT in in creating or at least getting ideas for creating content, for some of our clients. And, we we did a series of, location based amenities for one of my hotels. And it said, that the hotel had Empire State Building, view rooms. And we're like, we don't have those. You know? So you wanna make sure that you double check. You don't wanna you know, we're we're not at the point AI is not at the point where it's it's completely seamless, where it's, it has all the right answers. You know, you you've you've got a fact check and use it as a tool to supplement what you're doing as opposed to looking at it as something that can, you know, replace efforts completely. I don't think it's it's there yet. Well, it's interesting because I I I mean, I remember even in two thousand eighteen at the properties that I was working at, and now now I'm like, wow. Two thousand eighteen was a long time ago. Right. But but, yeah, I mean, we were using AI yeah. We were pretty much. Yeah. Definitely. We're using AI chat, services at that time. So, I mean, there's elements of it that's not new.

About the author

Calvin TilokeeCEO & Creative Director

Calvin’s passion for hospitality was cultivated in his teenage years which led to obtaining a Bachelor’s degree in Hotel & Restaurant Management from the University of Eastern Shore. During a 20 year hotel career, Calvin has amassed a diverse skill set spanning multiple brands and markets, including Hilton, Marriott, IHG, Starwood, and Independent properties. Experience at select service, full service, suburban, city, luxury and waterpark hotels from New York City to Los Angeles has given Calvin a unique perspective and skill set. Calvin's passion for people has also led to co-founding Lighthouse Strategic Advisory. Lighthouse focuses on helping women & minorities realize their dream of hotel ownership.

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