3 key tips for delivering flawless guest wifi
It’s no secret that quality wifi dominates the top of the non negotiable list for most when it comes to choosing the perfect resort for their holiday.
That sick feeling in their stomach at the thought of not being able to upload that postcard perfect image to Facebook or the looming post-holiday roaming bill is enough to make anyone look past a resort without access to good quality, high speed Internet.
Offering wifi will encourage guests to book, but once they’ve checked in what are they really expecting from your resort wifi system and how can you tick all the boxes to ensure happy, raving, returning guests?
You may already have access to fibre or this may still be years away. Below is some great ideas to ensure your guest experience when it comes to your wifi.
#1 Free wifi
“Do you offer free wifi?” is the dreaded question you’re asked more often than not and the reason you may dread it is because you’re not sure where the conversation might lead to if you don’t have all the answers. Guests call hotels and resorts before placing an online booking and ask that very question, you may have done the same.
There’s no such thing as free wifi, someone has to pay for it! “Free wifi” to a guest means that they personally don’t have to pay for some Internet during their stay. But how much do we expect as part of our booking?
During a recent survey, over 90 per cent managers agreed that offering a limited amount of free data per day was more than enough to meet their guests wifi needs. They also commented that allocating free wifi to cover a percentage of their guest’s booking met their expectations, so the first 24 hours to get them started or enough to cover 50 per cent stay.
“Guests generally don’t mind paying for additional data once they have exceeded their free allowance, if they feel they have been given a reasonable amount and if the price to top up is sensible,” says Mike Collins, director of Freedom Internet. “This means guests get an added service during their stay and resort managers can balance out or reduce the cost of their complimentary Internet service.”
About 300Mb a day would allow a guest to check their emails, keep in touch with friends and family on social media, book tours and transport and read their local newspaper, all in one day. What’s most important to guests is that they can easily access wifi anywhere in the resort and the connection is fast and consistent. Slow, buffering Internet is a no-no, which brings us to tip number 2 and 3.
#2 Simple to connect wifi
You’ve already checked in, found your room, dumped your bags and taken a snap of your kids with the amazing view from your balcony – what’s next? You want to connect to the wifi and share this with your friends on social media.
If this takes more than a couple of minutes due to bad connection or dropouts, this is seen as unacceptable to guests. Guests will tell Facebook they’re staying at your resort. You don’t want to miss out on your guests talking about you on social media as this will raise your online profile!
Most would argue that bad wifi is worse than no wifi, and they’d be right. When a guest sees you offer wifi they expect it to work everywhere they are in your resort, just like they expect the TV, air conditioning or hairdryer to work.
If you have a fantastic wifi service that works – great! Skip to expectation number three. If you don’t, here’s how to avoid a queue of frustrated customers shortly after check-in time.
There are companies that offer resort and apartment wifi solutions, some even offer the installation and scheduled maintenance at no charge. My one big tip here would be to do your homework when choosing a provider. Check their track record and references so you know you’re making an informed decision. Don’t forget to talk to your provider about covering your common areas – the lobby, the gym, the pool – people want to be connected everywhere.
#3 Ultra-fast wifi
In this day and age, slow Internet is one thing we shouldn’t have to tolerate. That little circle that appears in the middle of the computer screen when the Internet is loading must be one of the world’s fastest mood changers, sending today’s travellers (me included) from relaxed to raging in a matter of seconds.
Although I have some technical figures to follow, the exact Mbps is not what guests will be judging your wifi network on. Guests just want to surf the net with ease, without any buffering.
This can be achieved easily on a well-installed and correctly managed system and with fibre being rolled around the Gold Coast; the Internet in your area is only getting faster! Talk to your provider today about your buildings available speeds, you may be ready for an upgrade.
Fibre will get you and your guests 30-40Mbps upload and 30-40Mbps download over Wifi. To test your current provider’s speed, go to www.speedtest.net.
No-matter how many other boxes your resort may tick fast, quality wifi is something that people just cannot live without and why should they try? Happy, raving, returning guests – a resort managers dream come true.
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