What an HTNG Single Guest Itinerary implementation can do for your Hotel

Historically hotel property management systems have had great difficulty in knowing their guest. Information was kept in many different systems and integrating the data was an expensive proposition, as no standards existed to describe how that information should be captured, stored, or shared. Due to the prohibitive cost of implementing such a complex system, a lot of important and useful data was lost or left unused.

Today that has changed for two reasons; the first is the development of the internet and accompanying technologies such as web services, simplifying and standardizing the way in which software packages communicate. The second is the development of agreed formats and methods to transfer data for the hotel industry by using a common specification.

The group that created the common specification, HTNG (Hotel Technology Next Generation), came about as a result of the frustrations felt by the industry due to the sheer cost of trying to pull together all of data from the different systems they had purchased, and gathering anything more than basic posting information.

HTNG encompasses many different areas of the hotel industry, and is growing all the time. Current specifications range from systems and definitions for distributing rates and availability to sales channels, to methods for displaying information on digital signage points.

One of the earliest and most often discussed specifications is known as Single Guest Itinerary (SGI). SGI allows for guest data, bookings, and charges to flow seamlessly from any reservation system that participates, be it for your Spa, Golf Course, Activities Center, or Concierge. It allows you to consolidate all of these bookings centrally so that you can see, print, and manage a single guest itinerary. Every booking is stored directly against the guest’s record and is available whenever that guests profile is loaded.

The guest can make changes at any time: before arrival, upon check-in, or during their stay. They are now in control of planning their own calendar, and can know that their bookings will be immediately updated. As the systems are completely integrated, should they decide to cancel their room booking they still have the option of retaining as many of the other reservations as they want, and cancelling others automatically.

Regardless of the type of booking they want to make be it spa, tours, restaurant or golf, every booking is capable of being confirmed instantly, and conflicts with other appointments will show on the itinerary.

The hotel now has a more complete view of the guest and can understand their interests, view their total activities, deliver more services, and provide the guest with an itemized account of their spend in a manner previously unattainable. This results in faster check out with less disputes and the ability to market back to this guest, both before and after their arrival.

As an example, historically a booking system was usually only able to see the guest once they had checked in. This often led to disappointment for the guest and lost revenue to the hotel if there was no availability for that item on the day. Through SGI; guest details (including repeat guests) can be downloaded in advance and bookings made against their records. In the event that a guest calls to cancel their reservation, the reservations team can request whether the room booking alone needs to be cancelled or whether the activities should also be cancelled. If the guest is going to be a complete no show, all resources can be released at once, allowing other guests who may be wait-listed to have their booking requests fulfilled. As a minimum, management can reallocate staffing and rooms to match actual resource requirements.

Third party providers can be given access to guest details through SGI, allowing them to market to future guests in advance of arrival, ensuring that capacity, premium rates, and off peak bookings are managed, and that their resources are maximized for optimum returns. If the 3rd party provider is remote from the hotel, they can view all bookings for their services remotely, manage their arrival times and staffing levels, and ensure they are not dependent upon the hotel’s marketing of their services alone. The hotel now also has much greater visibility over what services are being provided to the guest, what the 3rd party operator’s service levels are, and can negotiate better commissions, rental rates and services from these providers.

The software provider benefits because they can build an interface which many other systems can use, significantly increasing their potential client list.  They can then concentrate on building richer functionality into their product set, and lowering the cost of ownership to the industry.  

Everyone wins because every booking is part of a single view of the customer. Package sales can be made more frequently, and adjustments for up selling are immediately reflected in the guest folio, with the description of the service, who consumed it, if it has been settled already or needs to be charged to the room.

So the question is: Does this really happen today? The answer is yes. Ask your supplier if they are HTNG compliant for Single Guest Itinerary and ask them to show you this in action.  

intelliSpa™ delivers on SGI today.