How AI-powered voice assistants can increase reservations for your casino
Even as the hospitality industry is experiencing an influx of personal, leisure, and corporate travel, businesses must re-evaluate their services and strive for better customer experiences at every touchpoint. According to a survey by the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA), over 80% of hotels are experiencing staffing shortages, with 26% severely affected, hindering the ability to operate effectively. The increase in demand paired with industry-wide staffing shortages have particularly challenged casinos, as their customers encounter longer wait times when trying to reach a representative to make a reservation.
The process of booking casino resort accommodations is complex and encompasses many components, such as different room types, loyalty club levels, membership statuses, and availability. This entire process is manual, time-consuming, and prone to errors. Consequently, staff members struggle to handle large volumes of calls, leading to long wait times and frustrated customers who may ultimately book elsewhere. The need for more staff also translates to increased hiring and training, which takes time and is not always a cost-effective solution. Moreover, having limited booking hours each day restricts customers to making phone reservations only during specific time windows – only adding to the overall issue.
How AI can help overcome challenges for casinos
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is one of the most exciting worldwide trends in business today. In the hospitality and casino industry, the growing call volumes for bookings and the need for cost optimizations have driven the adoption of AI-powered voice assistants in call center management.
By integrating AI-powered voice assistants with call center management solutions, casinos can enjoy numerous benefits, such as:
- Reducing wait times and creating a seamless booking experience for customers through AI-powered voice assistants.
- Minimizing labor costs and training requirements resulting from high staff turnover.
- The ability to operate your call center 24/7, 365 days a year. This service can extend booking opportunities beyond typical open hours, which previously necessitated an in-person team.
- Overcoming labor shortages by significantly reducing the required volume of representatives. This allows employees to focus on handling more complex reservations or other operational needs, while the AI-powered assistant addresses inquiries about parking fees, restaurant availability, and more.
- The AI-powered assistant facilitates seamless booking and member information access and identifies exclusive offers and complimentary services for qualifying loyal customers. This marks a significant development in the industry, as many current casino setups do not allow loyalty members to book these offers or comps independently.
Use cases for integrated call center and AI-powered voice assistant
- With a 360-degree view of your casino’s rates and inventory, the AI assistant can provide accurate answers to questions about your property.
- The AI assistant can quickly reserve the most suitable rooms for guests based on rate plans.
- The AI assistant can request loyalty member information and offer the best available deals to them.
- The AI assistant operates continuously without going offline, eliminating the need for casino call centers to adhere to specific open hours. Customers can make bookings at any time, day or night.
Cendyn’s partnership with Golden Nugget and how Poly AI & Cendyn empowered their call center
Golden Nugget was looking for a complete solution to meet the overwhelming reservations demand coming through their call center. Without the staff to handle the influx, they needed a way to automate the call booking process without compromising the guest experience.
Although online booking options were available, 70% of Golden Nugget hotel room reservations were made over the phone. Each reservation typically took around 4-5 minutes and required loyalty member or guest details, room types, dates, number of guests, and deposits.
The combination of PolyAI and Cendyn was selected by Golden Nugget for its human-like voice assistant and seamless, integrated reservation technology. This integration empowered the voice assistant to efficiently handle room reservations over the phone through natural and free-flowing conversations.
The AI-powered assistant significantly reduced the need for additional representatives and minimized wait times for guests. This allowed employees to dedicate their full attention to more complex reservations and other operational needs, while the voice assistant efficiently addressed inquiries about pool opening hours, restaurant availability, and more. The voice assistant also effortlessly guided customers through the booking process, taking into consideration the various factors involved, such as different room types, loyalty club levels, membership statuses, and availability.
The voice assistant now handles 34% of all calls to the Golden Nugget central reservations line, which is equivalent to saving three days of agent time every week. Furthermore, the voice assistant completes an average of over 300 reservations per week, including the collection of secure payment details over the phone.
To learn more about how an integrated call center and AI powered assistant can streamline the phone booking process and optimize costs for your casino’s call center, contact us today at [email protected].
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About Cendyn
Cendyn is a global hospitality cloud-based technology company that enables hotels to drive revenue, maximize profitability, and create deeper connections with guests through its integrated solutions.
Serving hoteliers for nearly 30 years, Cendyn drives commercial success for hotels through its Find, Book, Grow promise: find the right guests; drive them to book direct, and grow loyalty and revenue across the spectrum of digital guest interactions.
Cendyn has over 32,000 customers worldwide in more than 150 countries - including brands such as Outrigger Hospitality, Hyatt, IHG, Aman Resorts & Hotels, Relais & Châteaux, Highgate, TFE Hotels, Banyan Tree Hotels & Resorts, Coraltree Hospitality, and Onyx Hospitality Group - generating more than $20 billion in annual hotel revenue. The company supports its growing customer base from locations across the globe, including the United States, France, the United Kingdom, Singapore, Bangkok, and India.
To find out more, visit cendyn.com.
