The Purpose of Saving Time with Hotel Technology

Hotel technology is more important and prevalent in today’s world than ever before. Technology makes our lives easier as it completes tasks that we cannot or simply don’t want to manage. Many companies, especially software companies, promise to save us time which in turn saves us money and stress. Efficiency is top of mind for all types of business owners from small independent hoteliers, to the general managers of the world’s largest hotels. But, the real value of hotel technology goes far beyond simply saving us time.

Software’s Simple Purpose

First and foremost, the real value of hotel technology is to make our lives easier, which often saves  us time in the process. Good software has the ability to complete tedious, time-consuming tasks, freeing up our time to do other more important things.

Most businesses, especially those with limited resources, have access to tools that were once only available at the enterprise level. For example, hoteliers have access to more tools today that allow them to run a more smooth operation. Property management systems, channel managers, reputation management systems, etc. are widely available.

Not only do these technologies save time, but also allow smaller businesses to compete against the big guys. The playing field becomes more leveled everyday.

Two Ways Hotel Technology Saves Time

A quick search through the majority of SaaS or software as a service products, shows the value companies put on saving people time. Technology helps businesses a couple different ways. One, tech allow you to complete your existing tasks more quickly thus freeing up your time to do other tasks. Two, it allows you to complete tasks you could have never done before.

In the case of the first, think of how a social media management platform like Hootsuite. Hootsuite allows you to schedule Twitter or Instagram posts at all hours of the day, adding some autonomy to your day.

In the second case, think of how TrustYou pulls together your business’ reviews. The time and effort needed to find and analyze every single one of your business’ reviews is overwhelming. Hoteliers simply don’t have that kind of time available, so they rely on software to do it for them. Because of technology, you have the tools necessary to complete new tasks.

The Value of Saved Time

Saved time often sounds like a nebulous value-add. But, in terms of business, most technology providers will quantify that saved time into labor hours. For example, a property management system may save a hotelier two hours a day from importing and exporting reservations from various online travel agencies. Two hours a day then turns into 14 hours a week which saves a total of 728 hours a year. That’s a lot of time!

In the case of an independent hotelier, that time could be used to complete an extra project at their property. Or more commonly, allow the individual to turn their 14 hour workday into a 12 hour workday. Time is an invaluable asset that can be reallocated based on the individual’s personal preference. Technology providers know this and turn it into one of their most important value propositions.

Conclusion

We’re all racing against the clock everyday, to meet deadlines, to finish projects, and to improve our businesses. Technology has largely opened up a whole new realm where we can get more done, faster. Good technology helps us work smarter, not harder, and in turn saves us time. If you feel as if your business is thwarted by bottlenecks, consider turning to a new technology. Often you’ll find that there are endless companies out there willing to help you out.