Concierge mobile app is a kind of personal assistant that facilitates a lot many things concerning the travel and hospitality sector. It allows the customer to make bookings and provides easy access to information. Software for concierge services leverages artificial intelligence and chat interfaces for a seamless flow of information.
Using a digital concierge app, customers can make bookings, fetch information related to their favorite activities, get directions to different venues, and much more. There are basically three kinds of Software for Concierge services:
- Front-Desk Concierge Apps
- Conference Managers
- Travel Assistant
Market of Concierge Services: How big exactly it is?
Before discussing the development of any project, it is vital to analyse its market bandwidth. Here are some of the facts explaining the width of concierge app market-
- The market for concierge services is continually flourishing. As per a report by Grand View Research, concierge services worth is expected to hit $773.3 million by 2025.
- The implementation of the same in the Mobile market is essential with the rising market of mobile apps. As shared by Business Insider, App Store would alone host more than 5 million mobile apps by 2022.
- As per a research, the estimated growth of concierge software services will be around 8.52% in 2020-24 period.
Looking at above mentioned facts, the impact of concierge services is quite visible. So whether you’re a mobile developer with a new venture idea or you own a hotel owner and wish to gain another competitive advantage- Concierge apps are a thing for you.
Leading Market Players in this Arena
Must-have features of a Concierge Software
1. Customer Panel
- Registration
The first thing a customer is supposed to do after downloading the application is to get themselves registered. Input the basic details required by the software and you are all ready to have your personal concierge assistant.
- Make Bookings
Customers can make several bookings such as hotel reservations, flight booking, and much more for making your whole experience easy.
- In-App Search
A concierge application is very much suitable for the chain of hotels. If an owner has several properties in possession, then as a user you can select the one of your choice. A search system facilitates this option.
- Check In & Check Out
A software for concierge service helps you to not only pay for your food but it also assists in checking in and out the premises. You can simply get inside your hotel room without being available at the front desk. They don’t even have to give the keys back to the staff member while checking out. The concierge app completely automates the process.
- Reminder & Suggestions
A concierge service app powered by timely reminders and personalized suggestions. The former is very useful for reminding the scheduled services like movies, spa, restaurant, office meetings, and more. The later will attract the customer with recommendations tailored to their needs such as discounts, promotional content, packages, etc.
- Destination Map
It is one of the most important features in a concierge application especially considering the tourism department. With a smart phone in hand, global tourists can easily search the places they wish to visit.
A concierge app has a navigating feature which will help in discovering areas. Customizing the map for providing you with a list of best restaurants, attraction spots, parks, night clubs, or gym facilities comes very handy especially when it’s your first time in the land.
- Review & Feedback
Upon the completion of the journey, users can leave feedback and reviews matching their experience. This feature also helps the owner to work upon the areas that were very not very much appreciated by customers.
2. Staff Panel
- Registration
Staff members have to login to the application using the staff panel account. They would be asked to input their basic details such as employee Id, employer name, designation, and much more. Only after registration, they can make use of other features present in the application.
- Customer Management
Staff members can have an overall view of the customers logged into the application. Their check in-out timings, payment options, room numbers, and other such non-confidential data can be viewed by the app. This helps in an easy management process.
- Easy Room Service
A digital concierge service provides an easy replacement to room services. Customers can avail the in-app services instead of calling to a reception. This eases the work for the staff members especially the ones attending calls. By a couple of swaps, your guest can order for the towel set without disturbing the employees with calls.
- Monitor Requests
Using the centralized databases, all the requests sent by clients can be managed at one place. The responses to these requests may be generic, i.e. require the automated reply generated by the system or may advance, i.e. required to be catered by a staff member. In any case, the centralized database comes very handy.
- Customer Support
Customer support is a non-tech feature and it is very essential to maintain in the system. This option is available to solve the queries/ non-standard requests of the customers whose responses are not already saved in the application.
- In-App Chat
In the era of WhatsApp, Messenger, telegram; people have gone comfort zones. They can instantly communicate their requirements using the fast messaging services. A concierge app facilitates the same. Users can contact the service provider, and vice versa using the software. The chatting system is secured and encrypted ensuring the confidentiality of information.
3. Admin Panel
- Login
For making the use of app for managing your venture, it is important to log the app using the credentials provided by developers. Input them, and then leverage the functionality of this concierge software.
- User Management
With an app, you can have an overall view of all the incoming requests and keep a track of the staff’s productivity. By directly accessing the customers feedback, you can easily find out the loopholes in the performance of your staff. This way optimizing the internal processes becomes very easy.
- Push Notifications
The digital concierge mobile app allows you to directly contact the users using the notification system. Admin can easily send alerts and notifications about upcoming promotional offers, updated services, payment dues, or some other urgent information using the application.
- Database Management
As an admin, it becomes your responsibility to provide all the information regarding your venture. Keep your customers updated about all the facilities that your hotel provides, and the rules & regulations related to the same. Input all the information in the form of texts, graphics, videos, images in the concierge app. For instance, you can input a video giving a sneak peek into the local tourist spots or how to use AC. This will reduce the time of staff as they don’t have to answer basic questions of guests.
- Build your Brand
Delivering an enhanced customer experience is the key to success of any business. It is the easy pathway for promoting loyalty and trust within your users. Build your brand and make it more recognizable by offering different services. Complete insights into your app will help you in that.
Also, you can consider connecting with the local events happening in the tourists’ places, provide all the information and build a wider and loyal customer base.
- 3rd Party Integration
As an admin, you can even make the app much more useful by adding the services that your software doesn’t offer. Integrate third party apps for making the whole experience smooth. For instance, guests can rent a car using local cab booking software etc.
- Payment Gateway
Integrate the app with multiple payment gateways so as to allow the guests to purchase services of their choice. Provide an option of debit/credit cards, UPI mode, and others for seamless transactions.
What are the must-have features of a Concierge app?
Development of Software for Concierge services is a multi-stage journey; here are the following:
- Know your Feature Set
It is crucial to select the right toolkit for your development. What is suitable for a solo traveler may not do justice with a business person travelling for a social event. Though every concierge app has some basic set of features which are shared in the read (don’t forget to check them).
- Creation of Database
Undoubtedly, without a database there is no application. In the travel and hospitality business, information like hotel room availability, flights booking, airport weather, nearby tourist spots, and much more. We can’t provide all the information, but here are couple of database examples that can be accessed using APIs for integrating in your app-
- Developer.ean.com is useful for search and booking services.
- Flightstats.com offers information regarding flights, status, flight scheduling, airport weather, and much more.
- Technology Stack
Now since we have finalized the feature-kit, and database, it is time to decide upon the technologies-
Android Apps
- Java
- MySQL database
- Proximity Beacon API
- Google Maps API
- Google Location Services API
- Kotlin
iOS App
- Swift
- MySQL database
- Apple MapKit
- Core Location API
- Google Maps API
- Core NFC API
- Embrace AI Components
AI is no longer an expensive technology. Many software services have embraced this technology with open hands. A concierge software wholly depended upon API technology serves no purpose. It is much more reasonable to use AI for automating repetitive tasks. A combination of human intellect with reliable bots possessing huge databases is the sure shot ladder to success in the business.
- Intuitive Designing
Don’t forget to pay attention to designing an intuitive interface. The interface is a panel which your user is going to interact with. It should be concise, expressive, noticeable, and simple. The task may look strenuous, but hire an experienced team for easing this task. They know all the trends of the field and will provide you with an efficient interface.
- Consider Outsourcing
Whether you’re a software development company, or somebody starting a venture into the hospitality sector- outsourcing the development is easy and bears less costs in comparison to taking the task in your hand. If you’re not a techie, and wish to develop a concierge service app, consider hiring an experienced software service vendor for the development.
- Don’t Forget the Human Touch
No matter how much technology eases everything, there is always some place for human beings. Travel and hospitality business can’t be monitored without qualified personnel. A guest house would attract more customers with a human staff. So, it’s important to hire a qualified team (who know this niche well) for your services.
How can Matellio help?
The era of digitization has transformed everything. Companies are heavily investing in intelligent automation to give what customers seek most- Satisfaction. Concierge apps are gaining a lot of popularity, but they still are not present everywhere. And, this is why it is the best time to get your hands into it.
Matellio is a double-decade experienced software development studio with projects of every range and arena. Give your hospitality business a digitized touch with www.Matellio.com and build a concierge app tailored as per your needs.
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