Hotel Online
News for the Hospitality Executive


 
 

"CHECK IN YOUR WAY"
OpenWays Launches New Campaign to  Aid Hotels' Mobile Marketing Initiatives


The OpenWays front-desk bypass / mobile room-key platform gives hotels a new marketing edge; Travelers have a 'Voice' / make a 'Choice' at registration

Visit Booth 2551 at IH/M&RS November 13-16 in New York!

 

Chicago—[October 22, 2010]—Mobile phones are ubiquitous, and as such mobile marketing has quickly become a part of everyday life. Hotel chains and independents looking for a new marketing edge to establish differentiation while increasing occupancies, strengthening customer loyalty and positively impacting the guest experience should visit OpenWays, the hospitality industry's first mobile room-key solution, in Booth No. 2551 at the International Hotel/Motel & Restaurant Show Nov. 13-16 in New York.
 
"OpenWays is providing hotels with marketing benefits and property differentiation like never before," said Pascal Metivier, OpenWays Founder and CEO. "Today's consumers demand a voice. They want everything delivered 'their way.' Therefore, OpenWays is giving hotels -- any size, any segment -- the ability to say to its loyal and prospective guests: 'Check In Your Way.' Through OpenWays, travelers can direct the course of their hotel experience from the very moment the first reservation is made."

Metivier explained that anyone making a reservation at a hotel who owns a cell phone (any brand and using any carrier network worldwide) will have the opportunity to securely receive a room number and "mobile room key" that will open/unlock the room door with their mobile device. It doesn't matter if a guest is carrying a standard Web-based cell phone or a newer iPhone, BlackBerry, NOKIA, Android or other smartphone device, an application (embedded or mobile web-based) will allow them to open the door to their room by simply pressing a key icon on their phone.

"It's a very simple and stress-free process -- and that in itself is a great message to promote via a hotel's marketing campaign," Metivier said. "When a guest makes a reservation at an OpenWays equipped hotel, he or she is invited to enroll in the mobile room-key service before their check-in date," Metivier said. "Then, on the day of arrival, the guest receives a text message containing both the room number and a secured link to retrieve the room key. Once at the hotel, the new freedom-of-choice experience begins."



With OpenWays, guests have a choice in:
  • Bypassing the front desk and use their mobile room key vs. stopping stop at the front desk and waiting in line for a plastic keycard
  • Benefitting the environment and supporting the hotel's "green" initiatives by using their mobile phone as a room key vs. using a plastic keycard that will end up in a landfill
  • Obtaining a supplemental keycard at anytime during their stay
  • Opting-in and out to receive future text messages from the hotel and receiving incentive promotions while at the property for discounts at retail or dining outlets, as well as receiving room upgrade offers
  • Downloading relevant apps from the hotel to support their ongoing brand loyalty, maintain loyalty point information and continue to make mobile reservations 
"What makes OpenWays so attractive to hotels today is its ability to allow any guest, using any of the 5  billion-plus cell phones on  the market today, to make hotel reservations, enter their room and Description: http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcS6HvexeXUG395RcGknurEioO3NrEVyGCgAr2u62YMfHy7qlMM&t=1&usg=__LDNADcaenklORTkFl5CHQ2c1iFU= Description: http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcS6HvexeXUG395RcGknurEioO3NrEVyGCgAr2u62YMfHy7qlMM&t=1&usg=__LDNADcaenklORTkFl5CHQ2c1iFU=keep on top of hotel promotions and loyalty programs right on their mobile device," Metivier said. "It's a leaner and greener way of marketing to guests vs. the high-cost and non-green marketing gimmick of offering passé plastic cards to store loyalty data."

Goodbye Plastic Keycards
Norm Rose, Senior Technology and Corporate Market Analyst for PhoCusWright, said the idea of moving away from plastic keycards is really catching on.
 
"Using the guests' cell phone not only as the room key but also as a payment device is the direction the future is headed," Rose said. "The multifunction aspects of today's mobile devices is limitless -- especially from a marketing perspective. Using the device to delight the guest prior to arrival based on what you know about that guest will be key to brand loyalty and property longevity. Hotels using mobile apps for delivering a key to the door, and delivering coupons and other marketing materials based on a person's preferences are the ones that will become industry leaders."

OpenWays aids in a hotel’s mobile marketing efforts by promoting convenience to guests, capturing coveted personal data, and delivering a platform for communications before, during and after the guest stay.

"Deploying OpenWays supports a hotel's mobile applications and initiatives, including loyalty programs, widgets, Web2Mobile, etc., with automatic hardware detection allowing for full content compatibility," Metivier said. "We welcome anyone looking to fortify their mobile marketing initiative to give us a call today."

OpenWays will be on display in Booth No. 2551 at the International Hotel/Motel and Restaurant Show November 13-16 at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York. To pre-schedule an appointment with the OpenWays team, contact Pascal Metivier at ++ 33 6 85 622 306 or [email protected].

About OpenWays

OpenWays is a global solution provider of mobile-based access-management and security solutions. With offices in Chicago, Las Vegas, Seoul and Paris, OpenWays provides technology solutions allowing for the secure issuance and delivery of access rights and keys process via any cell phone operating on any network. The OpenWays solution is truly unique as it built on the concept of credential dematerialization. The OpenWays mobile room key solution works on ALL the 5 billion cell phones in service in the world today. For more information, please contact Pascal Metivier at ++ 33 6 85 622 306 or email [email protected] or Barb Worcester at +1 440 930 5770 or email [email protected]. www.openways.com.
.
Contact: 

Barb Worcester
PRPRO
Tel: (440) 930-5770
[email protected]
 

.
 .
Also See: OpenWays Mobile Application is Live at a Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Express Hotel; The world's first mobile front desk bypass solution is up and running at two IHG properties / September 2010

Aitor Agueda Joins OpenWays as VP of R&D; Twenty-five year hospitality and security systems veteran instrumental in designing the most installed and successful electronic-locking systems in North America joins OpenWays to lead R&D efforts; Maurizio Zama promoted to Chief Operating Officer / September 2010

OpenWays Cell Phone Based Front Desk Bypass Solution is Adding to the Business Traveler Experience; HITEC attendees using OpenWays app to enter Guestroom 20X said the mobile room key solution, which gives travelers freedom to completely bypass the front desk by using their cell phone for guestroom access, is ideal for all guests who want to avoid lines at the front desk; Company answers new questions posed at the premier technology event / July 2010

Front-Desk Bypass Cell Phone Solution: OpenWays Announces First Pilots at a Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Express Hotel; OpenWays and IHG will pilot a new cell-phone-based front desk bypass solution that offers guests the option to use their personal cell phone as a mobile room key / June 2010

OpenWays Mobile Phone Front Desk Bypass Solution Selected for Guestroom 20X at HITEC; Attendees of the 38th Annual Hospitality Information Technology Exposition & Conference will have an opportunity to check into a virtual hotel, bypass the front desk, and open their room door securely using nothing but their cell phone -- any mobile device, any carrier works! / May 2010

OpenWays Opening Doors to Gen Y Travelers Wishing to Bypass Front Desk; Allowing guests to check-in remotely by equipping door locks to open via any cell phone is ideal for attracting this green-conscious, tech-dependent, instant gratification generation / May 2010

OpenWays Selected by Microsoft® to Join Its BizSpark™ Start-Up Program; Developer of the world's first crypto acoustic solution for check-in/out and room access via any mobile phone to receive full Microsoft marketing support, tools, licensing, and global visibility / April 2010

ITB Berlin Attendees Flock to OpenWays' iPhone App for Front-Desk Bypass, Acoustic Room Keys; Attendees at world's largest trade show for the travel industry flocked to see world's first crypto acoustic solution for check-in/out and room access via any guest's mobile phone; OpenWays was one of 11,127 companies from 187 countries that exhibited at the record-breaking event / April 2010

OpenWays Presents its iPhone Application to Bypass Front Desks and Open Room Locks; Mobile solution provider that developed the world's first crypto acoustic solution for check-in/out and room access via any guest's mobile phone announces new services to further enhance operations and guest services. / February 2010

OpenWays Responds to FAQs Regarding its Front Desk Bypass Solutions that Securely Open Hotel Room Doors by Cell Phone; Mobile solution provider that developed the world's first acoustic solution for check-in/out and room access via a guest's mobile phone regardless of type answers hospitality industry's most frequently asked questions / February 2010

100% of the World Cell Phones to Open Doors with OpenWays' Apps; Hospitality's FIRST Check-In /-Out Solution with Mobile Room Key Delivery for ALL Cell Phones is at IH/MRS! / November 2009

4 Billion Cell Phones Now Opening Doors to Better Guest Service Thanks to OpenWays / October 2009

OpenWays Introduces the Fastest and Greenest Way to Check In and Open a Hotel Room Door; Mobile room-key application for ALL cell phones NOW AVAILABLE / October 2009
..
.

To search Hotel Online data base of News and Trends Go to Hotel.OnlineSearch
Home | Welcome| Hospitality News | Classifieds| One-on-One |
Viewpoint Forum | Industry Resources | Press Releases
Please contact Hotel.Onlinewith your comments and suggestions.