4 Ways Guest Self-Service Technology Makes Hotel Staff More Efficient and Effective

Technology doesn’t have to take the “personal touch” out of the guest experience. In fact, self-service options could make hotel staff even more accessible to guests.

Over the last couple of years, interest in using hotel guest self-service options has rapidly accelerated, according to “Hospitality in 2025: Automated, Intelligent and More Personal,” a report from Oracle Hospitality and Skift, a hospitality industry intelligence platform.

“Hotels have to find a way to be efficient and adaptable in the face of volatility across every aspect of their business in order to meet guest expectations, attract and retain employees and ultimately drive revenue,” states the Oracle report.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, hotels and other hospitality industries continue to face staffing challenges. But self-service kiosks, mobile apps, contactless payment methods and chatbots can help your hotel or resort serve guests with technologies they’ve come to expect, especially post-pandemic.

4 Guest Self-Service Technologies that Increase Hotel Staff Efficiency

1. Mobile phone apps

Nearly 70 percent of hotel and other hospitality respondents said they’ve effectively promoted their hospitality mobile apps for handling guest communications and requests, according to Oracle’s 2021 Hospitality Benchmark Report.

With your hotel’s mobile phone app, guests can personalize their rooms, check in and out and send messages to hotel staff about housekeeping preferences. They can message quick questions that can be answered promptly via the app’s messaging system.

When guests check in via their mobile phone, they can enjoy hotel amenities even if they’re room isn’t ready, reducing crowds in the lobby that could take attention away from hotel staff serving other hotel guests, says the report.

2. Check-in kiosks

“Alternatively to checking-in on an app, kiosks have been placed to provide guests with a convenient option for beginning their stay,” said Jon Squire, CEO of CardFree in an editorial for Hospitality Net, a global hospitality technology website.

“Not only does this streamline the check-in process for both staff and guests, it’s also a great way for hotels to lengthen the time the front desk can remain open without needing as many employees,” says Squire.

3. Chat-bots

Sometimes guests prefer instant answers from a chat-bot over calling the front desk. “Chatbots can operate 24/7 and provide customers answers to questions at any time in any language,” according to Squire’s editorial. “As a bonus, chatbots can help reduce customer service costs.”

4. Contactless payments and other services

Both hotels and guests surveyed agree that “contactless is king,” according to Oracle’s Hospitality in 2025 report. Around 60 percent of hospitality executives worldwide agreed that a fully contactless experience for basic hotel transactions like checking in and out, ordering room service and room keys is the most likely technology that the hotel industry will widely adopt within the next three years.

Technology and personalized service go hand-in-hand

Self-service technologies for hotel guests are prevalent, but they’re still not a substitute for personal service and human interaction, says the Hospitality in 2025 report:

“Hotels have to approach every investment and enhancement by examining what excites their guests, what inspires their employees, and ultimately,what will drive revenue for their business.

“Features that many fear will take the heart and personal touch out of hospitality are in fact becoming the foundation for a more personalized and customized guest experience. Guest expectations, combined with hotel applications identified throughout this report, show that the hotel of the future will be automated, intelligent, and deeply personal, all at the same time.”