AI Innovation
Unlocking new opportunities to drive operational efficiency and personalize the guest experience
The landscape
Travelers have evolved, but for the most part, the booking journey hasn’t. 60% of travelers don’t have a specific hotel or destination in mind when they begin planning their trips. Travelers are searching across more sites and devices than ever before trying to find the best fit for their needs. It’s time to evolve. That’s where AI comes in.
1. What is AI and how can it help my hotel?
AI, or artificial intelligence, is technology that enables computers to simulate human learning, comprehension, problem solving, creativity, and autonomy. There are two main types of AI: Traditional AI and Generative AI.
Traditional AI is better for making decisions or predictions based on structured data, while Generative AI (or GenAI) can create original text, images, and other content. In basic terms, traditional AI excels at pattern recognition, while generative excels at pattern creation.
AI presents a significant opportunity to automate routine tasks for greater efficiency and drive hyper-personalization by anticipating guests’ needs. This could involve personalized recommendations or utilizing a virtual concierge to curate plans and build a perfect stay.
The future of AI will help drive guest satisfaction, boost revenue, and solve operational efficiencies through guest-centric innovation.
How are we currently using AI?
Machine learning
Powers SynXis Retailing’s Recommendation Engine. The Recommendation Engine optimizes the offers shown based on which offers have been converting at the highest rate for travelers with similar search parameters. For instance, a search for a long weekend family stay might present tailored offers that enhance the guest experience, such as private pool cabana rentals, a family cooking class, and an extended late checkout.
Generative AI
We have a chatbot we’ve named SynXis Concierge.AI which harnesses the power of generative AI to transform customer service for hoteliers. It has been used by Sabre Hospitality’s Customer Care & Delivery team since June 2024 to provide faster, more accurate support to our customers. Coming soon: We’ll make SynXis Concierge.AI available to our customers on the Community Portal.
What future applications of AI are we exploring?
Our innovation & AI team is partnering with our customers to understand which use cases would be most impactful for their businesses. Those include:
Booking engine concierge:
An AI agent that embeds in SynXis Booking Engine to assist with inquiries, provide recommendations, and convert lookers to bookers. It could deliver room recommendations based on the party’s preferences and needs, including room photos to help guests make booking decisions.
The chatbot also makes it easy to communicate with potential bookers regardless of their language. Booking Engine Concierge provides operational efficiencies to the hotel staff and gives hotel leaders a dashboard to make data-driven decisions.
Email automation:
Generative AI designed to streamline the management of high volumes of travel-related emails. This tool would retrieve key information from the emails and generate personalized offers in response, with links to complete the booking in your booking engine.
Did you know 16-20% of hotel reservations are still handled via email? A solution like email automation could free up your staff for more personalized or complex guest interactions.
System health checks:
Ensure your hotel’s connectivity is optimized for maximum performance. Our AI-driven audit would analyze your CRS configurations, identify potential issues, and provide actionable recommendations to enhance distribution efficiency and revenue potential.
Curious to know more about our AI initiatives?
Stay tuned for updates!