DECEMBER 2020CIOAPPLICATIONSEUROPE.COM 19connect it with other workflows. This leads to discrepancies as customers, upon logging in, fail to see their booking status," says van Roon. He goes on to mention that in their attempt to create an efficient booking engine that supports mobile-based reservations, hotels employ modern web agencies. However, the outdated APIs and legacy server interfaces obstruct the implementation of latest website-building tools, leading to an increase in costs and complicated certification processes. Ireckonu puts such issues to rest. "Unlike PMS suppliers that often come without mobile check-in/check-out options, Ireckonu changes this narrative with robust APIs that open the door for newer scenarios that amplify guest experiences," remarks van Roon. Ireckonu provides a middleware solution that streamlines workflows,drives deeper guest engagement, and reduces operational costs. Data-Driven at the CoreWith enriched information, consolidated guest profiles, and live operational overviews, Ireckonu successfully creates a "single source of truth" across all the existing hotel databases and offers a one-of-a-kind, distinctly personalised ecosystem that enhances business continuity and interoperability. "We offer an integrated experience from beginning to end, at every step of a hotel's customer experience journey. Be it the reservation systems, check-in/check-out, or the stay, we are unique in the way we add a modern touch to everything we do," affirms van Roon. Ireckonu's robust APIs act as the gateway between hotel brands and its guests by answering the queries (room rates and availability) of customers in real-time. van Roon cites that Ireckonu seamlessly integrates silos and offers a transparent experience. Highlighting yet another important area for transformation, van Roon reveals that consumers today prefer auto-fill features rather than manually entering the particulars (like name, e-mail, DOB, and others). However, collecting this customer data accurately and presenting it online is easier said than done; most of this information available comes from disparate sources that fail to flow up to the hotel's central reservation systems. To that end, hotels need to ensure that all operational processes are connected and updated with information gathered before making it available online. "As such, these aspects that hotels often overlook play an important role in conversions. We have done a lot of work at the back-end, and this allows us to present the right data to customers," says van Roon.Innovations that Bolster HospitalityWith that being said, van Roon stresses that the higher conversion rates also call for a guest recognition program. To take the process further, Ireckonu offers the advanced recency, frequency, and monetary (RFM) plus module, an advanced version of the conventional RFM systems. "We have added dimensions like including the duration of stay, number of times guests have stayed under the same hotel brands, and many others to make the entire process more guest-friendly," explains van Roon. He adds that using these indicators, hotels can recognise brand loyalists and value their ambassadors. van Roon suggests that hotels can also add these elements to their booking engine in real-time, empowering guests to choose personalized amenities, based on their preferences. In essence, along with being guest centric, Ireckonu is moving the needle in modernising hotels. "We want to create a hotel reservation experience similar to Uber booking," expresses van Roon. Ireckonu has devised a System of Record (SOR)for profiles that maintains and updates relevant guest information, proactively sending these updated profiles to each connected system. van Roon mentions that with Ireckonu's account functionality, the guests and make bookings according to their preferences, including choosing the same services from their previous stay. As the next step in their growth journey, Ireckonu intends to bring contactless experiences for guests into direct spotlight. "We are currently focused on becoming the singular data source for hotels and their guests by using the functionalities of our customer data platform(CDP)," says van Roon. Using CDP as the base, Ireckonu plans to draw insights into customer behaviour and predict the likes and dislikes of guests. van Roon feels that the hospitality industry has to become more creative and proactive in catering to their guests. With innovation at its core, Ireckonu is positioning itself as an eminent partner that offers limitless solutions to help the industry stride into the future of hospitality.
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