The hospitality sector has been booming in recent years. According to the Independent, in 2017, spending from overseas visitors pumped 2.2 billion pounds into the economy. As well as this, the number of British people choosing to stay in the UK for their holiday is on the rise – in 2017 70% of people had taken a staycation that year or were planning one. With so much competition in this industry, it’s important you make your hospitality business stand out from the crowd in order to get bookings. But how do you do this? Through having excellent customer service and communication. To achieve this, you need the right phone system. Having the latest phone system can offer so many benefits to your business. However, if you’re still struggling along with the same phone system you’ve had for the last 10 years, you may be facing these issues:
- You feel that frequent engaged tones may be leading to frustrated clients and a loss of revenue.
- You want a phone system that can link to your booking system, so you can greet clients by their name and save time.
- You feel that your enquiries may not be dealt with in the best way so you want to monitor and improve the way your staff communicate with your clients.
- Your current phone system is outdated and not able to deal with the level of calls you receive.
If you answered yes to any of these questions, Yo Telecom are here to help! We’ve helped hundreds of businesses from the hospitality industry to successfully overcome these challenges and more! From hotels to restaurants, we have a solution to suit your needs. In this article, we will discuss the differences between the phone systems that are available to help you find the best choice for your hospitality business.
What is the Best Phone System for Hospitality Businesses?
There are three main types of phone system available:
- Digital phone systems
- Internet (VOIP – Voice Over Internet Protocol)
- Hybrid phone system
Digital Phone Systems for Hospitality Businesses
A digital phone system is a physical phone system that will be located in your building. It is a small box that is usually mounted on a wall or placed out of the way in a cabinet. They connect to your phone lines and all the handsets you have in your building. Digital phone systems do offer some reliability, as calls are routed in and out through fixed lines. However, this also means they aren’t that future proof.
Internet (VOIP) Phone Systems for Hospitality Businesses
An internet, or VoIP, phone system is a virtual phone system so it will not be located in your building. Instead, it will be located in a data centre somewhere in the world and your calls will be routed in and out via the internet. This can help to save money on call charges. But, if your internet cuts out, you will not be able to make calls at all. VoIP phone systems do not usually support the older types of cabling you may have in your building, so re-cabling is normally needed.
Hybrid Phone Systems for Hospitality Businesses
The hybrid phone system is a mixture of a digital phone system and an internet (VoIP) phone system. The system will be located in your building and offers you flexibility with your choice of fixed or cordless handsets. The main benefit of the hybrid phone system is its reliability. If one type of line fails for you, it can automatically route calls in and out through a backup line. Hybrid phone systems also support both old and new types of cabling. So if you want your clients to have in-room phones, there is no need to re-cable. There aren’t really any disadvantages with hybrid phone systems – they really are the best of both worlds.
The Hybrid Phone System is the Best Phone System for Hospitality Businesses
As well as being the most reliable phone system you can buy, hybrid phone systems also offer a range of other useful features for hospitality businesses. You can find these listed below:
+ Full Cordless Phone Coverage
Whether you own a B&B, hotel, holiday park, restaurant or bar – Yo Telecom can offer you 100% guaranteed phone coverage throughout your entire building. We know your line of work can be stressful and often you will be running around your building and away from your phones. With Yo Telecom’s full cordless phone coverage, you can speak to any member of staff from anywhere. So if you need to contact housekeeping, maintenance or your reception team while you are away from your desk, you are free to do so.
+ Call Logging
Never let an unanswered call turn into a missed opportunity, bad impression or upset client again. You may miss calls when you’re busy helping clients or when you’re closed. But these could be valuable calls from prospective clients wanting to make a booking. Call Logging works just like the call log on your mobile phone, alerting you as soon as you miss a call. So you can WOW your callers by calling them back. If a call is missed, it’s highly likely that the caller will head straight back to Google and call your competition instead. By calling back, not only are you showing a great level of service but your callers will also be more likely to use your services.
+ Call Recording
Your staff will often be the first impression your clients will get of your business when they call in to make an enquiry. So it’s important that your staff are polite and answer questions correctly and professionally. If they don’t it’s likely they will create a bad impression in your client’s eye and this may send them towards your competition. Call Recording will record all of your calls, both inbound and outbound, so you can listen to a few calls a week to monitor and improve the way your staff interact with your clients. This feature also comes in handy if you need to re-listen to any information that was given to you over the phone – such as booking information or any special requests.
+ Call Waiting
Rather than customers getting an engaged tone while you’re busy on the line, your phone system will automatically greet them, notify them that you are busy and then play them some marketing messages or music while they wait for you. This helps to keep your callers interested and on the line, rather than hanging up and heading straight back to Google to find an alternative.
+ On Hold Marketing/Music
Having this feature will allow you to tailor your voicemail message to what time of day it is. For example, for times you are closed: ‘Thank you for calling [name of your hospitality business]. We are currently closed at the moment. Our opening hours are [insert opening hours]. Please leave a message and we will call you back as soon as we open.’ This gives your clients peace of mind as they know why their call may not be answered and will make them more likely to call back at a different time.
+ Voicemail to Email
Never miss a voicemail message again! With the Yo Telecom hybrid phone system, you can have your voicemails emailed directly to your mobile phone so you can take action straight away.
3 Step Plan to Increase the Success of your Hospitality Business
1. Book a Demo
You can book in for a free demo of our phone systems by calling us on 02382 146115.
2. Sign up for the Option that Suits the Needs of your Hospitality Business
One of our specialist consultants will come to your building to discuss all of your options until we have found the perfect solution!
3. Let us Take Care of a Hassle Free Installation & Training
Your delivery and installation date will be booked on a day that suits you.
We’ll take care of the whole switch over and will train you to make the most of all the features on your new phone system.
