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Increase Reservations and Lower Labor Cost by Harnessing Cutting-Edge AI Technology
John Smallwood, President of Travel Outlook | November 29, 2022
How Artificial Intelligence is Changing the Hospitality Industry By John Smallwood, President of Travel Outlook November 2022 If you were to ask 100 hotels what the greatest problem they face in their day-to-day operations is, they would all reply with a similar version of the same story— staffing issues. Staffing shortages have become increasingly problematic for hotels around the world. These issues started before the pandemic and were made exponentially worse by the last two and a half turbulent years. Despite a hotel's best efforts, staffing shortages are noticed by guests and often negatively impact their stays. For most hot...
Embracing the Efficiency of AI Powered Tech
John Smallwood, President of Travel Outlook | June 9, 2022
How AI Can Facilitate Better Interactions Between Hotel Guests and Employees By John Smallwood, President of Travel Outlook June 2022 Whether management likes to admit it or not, hotels are riddled with inefficiencies. Hotel staff and guests’ interactions are vital in the hospitality industry. Premium service must be hands-on, friendly, and executed with a personal touch. But at times, these interactions can slow down or hinder guests during their stay. Front desk staff may be doing their best to focus on the guests in front of them, but when the phone rings, they must show the caller the same level of service and respect that they...
Kimberly Berry Appointed as Director of Digital Business Development for Annette, The Virtual Hotel Agent, Travel Outlook’s New AI Powered Servi
Travel Outlook Premium Hotel Call Center | April 6, 2022
Santa Fe, New Mexico (April 2022): Travel Outlook Premium Hotel Call Center® today announced that Kimberly Berry has been promoted to Director of Digital Business Development at Travel Outlook, overseeing sales and implementation of Annette™, The Virtual Hotel Agent™. Kimberly Berry joined Travel Outlook in 2020 from Hilton Hotels, where she worked as General Manager for three years. Kimberly Berry brings her experience in sales and guest relations in the hospitality industry to Travel Outlook to further improve Annette™ and its practical customer service applications for the hospitality industry. In addition, while working in Hy...
The Automation Generation
Annette™, The Virtual Hotel Agent | March 29, 2022
Why today’s travelers place efficiency ahead of personal connection The hospitality industry has always been a people-centric line of work. Face-to-face conversations with real humans have been the cornerstone of service industries since its inception. A smiling face behind the front desk of a hotel cannot be replaced. Technology, on the other hand, has continually shifted the way guest service representatives interact with travelers and hotel guests. Each generation brings a new disruptive technology that shakes up the way the world does business. With each change, there is resistance, but progress always wins out. In a recent story...
Annette The Virtual Hotel Agent Offers a 100% Accurate Understanding of Guest Needs Through Its New Feature, Precise Guest Insight
Travel Outlook Premium Hotel Call Center | March 24, 2022
Hotel managers constantly strive to anticipate their guest’s needs and concerns as they work to make their hotels more accommodating and inviting. This task was just made easier by the introduction of a new tool provided by Annette™, The Virtual Hotel Agent™. Annette is an advanced AI-powered voice bot that can answer up to 60% of the calls now being handled by front desk staff, simultaneously improving hotel profitability while providing enhanced guest service. Annette represents a creative and effective way for hotels to address post-pandemic staffing challenges, and to reduce fixed payroll expense. Annette’s new tool is c...
Language Barriers in the Hospitality Industry
Travel Outlook | March 8, 2022
How to translate the labor shortage The hospitality industry is obviously a global industry. Hotels connect people from all over the world and bring them together under one roof. Industry insiders understand the importance of having a multilingual staff at all hours. Given recent labor shortages, it is becoming increasingly difficult for hotels to find adequate staffing. Finding a bi or multi-lingual staff member can seem next to impossible. Even before the complications of the last two years, language barriers have plagued hotels for the duration of their existence. For customers, nothing is more frustrating than trying to reserve a r...
Above and Beyond Standard Hotel FAQ Chatbots
Travel Outlook Premium Hotel Call Center | March 2, 2022
How Annette™, The Virtual Hotel Agent™, Solves the Hospitality Industry’s FAQ Chatbot Problems No one enjoys speaking to IVR (Interactive Voice Response) systems, but we do so when it’s necessary. In today's digital world, interacting with IVR systems seems to be an increasingly necessary evil. But what if there was a next-generation voice bot that did away with the common frustrations associated with IVR systems? What if a voice bot could be as functional as an FAQ chatbot? That’s where Annette comes in. Annette is a virtual call center agent powered by artificial intelligence that is designed specifically for the hospitality i...
A Warm Reception From the Hospitality Industry for Annette, the Virtual Hotel Agent
Travel Outlook | February 24, 2022
SANTA FE, NEW MEXICO (February 24, 2022): Travel Outlook Premium Hotel Call Center® continues its introduction of Annette TM, the hotel industry’s first AI-powered voice assistant. The difference between Annette and other voice bots such as Siri or Alexa lies in her power to more accurately understand the question being asked by a hotel guest. Annette has been programmed with a new model of Natural Language Understanding software based on human conversations, resulting in a powerful new way for her to understand what guests are requesting, and for her to provide the correct answer. “We are encouraged by the reception Annette ha...
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