Introduction
Research Proposal on adopting advanced technologies in hospitality sector will be presented in this blog with all aspects of a proposal. The world has been moving to the Fifth Generation of Information Technology which is powered by technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI). Yet, the hospitality industry is far lagging behind the industry standard in terms of using advanced technologies and systems compared to how efficiently other industries adopted advanced technologies (Legrand, Sloan, & Chen, 2016). This research intends to investigate the impact of adopting advanced technologies to enhance customer service excellence in the UK based hotel named Travelodge UK.
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Research Background:
The use of information technologies, AI, digital technologies have become common among companies to make their customers have more positive customer experience and make the business operation more efficient. The hospitality industry severely lacks the adoption of advanced technologies such as digital booking, use of Artificial Intelligence in hotel management, digital keys management, application of AI to manage inside room amenities. This research aims to investigate the impact of using advanced technologies and AI in hospitality management.
Statement of Research Problems:
A survey conducted by Oracle Hospitality found that 66% of potential and regular hospitality customers said that they highly value the use of AI, mobile application-based services in hotels (Yasuda, 2017). Yet, only a few hospitality companies adopt advanced technologies such as face recognition based lock, digital keys, light, and air conditioner management, mobile-application based services such as asking room services or an extra piece of towel or booking a vehicle, etc. Customer service experience at Travelodge UK is severely poor by most of the customers [Trustpilot Inc., 2020 & Facebook, 2020 (Official Facebook Page of Travelodge)]. The research problem is it is not known how the application of the above digital technologies would enhance pleasant customer experience at Travelodge.
Research Aims:
The research aims at exploring the impact of adopting advanced digital technologies at Travelodge and how it could enhance the customer service experience.
Research objectives
- To critically evaluate the role that advanced technologies and digital applications play in hospitality management
- To investigate how a hospitality organization can enhance customer service excellence through optimizing services
- To analyze the impact of adopting advanced technologies and digital applications on customer service excellence
- To recommend some potentially sustainable approaches of technology management for Travelodge UK
Research Questions:
- How do advanced technologies and digital applications play a role in hospitality management?
- How can a hospitality organization enhance customer service excellence through optimizing services?
- How do adopting advanced technologies and digital applications impact on customer service excellence?
- What are some potentially sustainable approaches to technology management for Travelodge UK?
Research Rationale:
Brown, Thomas, & Bosselman (2015) revealed that the hospitality industry ruthlessly lacks the skills, technologies, and applications that have become quite fundamental in other contemporary industries. This research aims to evaluate the pros and cons of the application of technologies such as face recognition based lock system, digital keys, light, and air conditioner management, mobile-application based services such as asking room services or an extra piece of towel or booking a vehicle, etc. The synthesis of this research will play an important role to reveal the importance of technologies for Hospitality Industries.
Research Limitations:
Conducting physical interviews with potential samples to collect primary data could be a major research limitation due to the restrictions of physically meeting unknown people. However, this problem can be overcome by conducting online interviews. Finding authentic secondary research, avoiding cultural biases during interviews could be other potential research limitations.
Literature Review
Introduction
Rotman (2013) revealed that use of advanced technologies and applications in the hospitality industry is relatively a new phenomenon. Some major hospitality companies have adopted using such technologies in late decade of 2010. Voice search and voice control, contactless payment, use of robotics technology, virtual reality, application of Artificial Intelligence in chatbots and customer engagement programs, Augmented Reality, mobile check-in, and Internet of Things (IoT) are some of the advanced technologies used by major global hospitality companies.
The concept of advanced information technologies in the hospitality industry
The concept of stated advanced technologies have become common after 2010 and afterwards when the use of internet technologies, mobile communications, and smartphone revolutions happened in the last decade (Awate, Larsen, & Mudambi, 2012). Adopting technologies in the hospitality industry implies application of Voice search and voice control, contactless payment, use of robotics technology, virtual reality, application of Artificial Intelligence in chatbots and customer engagement programs, Augmented Reality, mobile check-in, and Internet of Things (IoT). All these technologies aim to increase operational efficiency, increase customer satisfaction through creating an excellent impression among customers in unique manners.
How Travelodge adopted advanced information technologies in their service operation
Shaw, Bailey, & Williams (2011) found that hospitality industry is far lagging behind the adoption of advanced technologies compared to other industries. The same has happened in case of Travelodge UK. The hotel group has some basic and primitive technologies such as online booking through their mobile application only (Travelodge UK, 2020). It implies that Travelodge UK is far away from being a really high-tech savvy technology based hospitality company. Yet, some globally reputed hotel groups such as Hilton, Marriott, Ali Baba’s keyless and cashless future hotel called Fly Zoo Hotel have started adopting advanced technologies (McLean et al., 2020).
The concept of customer service experience at the Hospitality Industry
Figure 1: Customer Journey Map (Ali, Amin, & Cobanoglu, 2016)
The theory of customer service experience is closely associated with the model called Customer Journey Map (Ali, Amin, & Cobanoglu, 2016). The model Customer Journey Map is illustrated at Figure 1; the model shows the customer journey and the touch points through which customers come across while having experience of the services at a hospitality organization. Hospitality industry is completely based on personalized services and care; thus customers come across numerous touch points in the organization. This has signified the importance of optimizing the customer service experience.
2.3.1 Customer service experience at Travelodge
Customer service experience at Travelodge is severely poor as illustrated in figure 2, 3 and 4. Trustpilot reveals that Travelodge has only a score 2.1 out of 5 reviewed by 1,039 customers (Trustpilot Inc., 2020). Most of the past customers complained about its cleanliness, dirty and noisy environment as illustrated at appendix 2 and 3. The official Facebook page of Travelodge reveals the same where the company scored only 1.8 out of 5 reviewed by 1424 people (Facebook, 2020).
Above data clearly shows that customer service experience at Travelodge is heavily damaged. The company needs to renovate its service design and customer journey touch points with the help of technologies and service oriented approaches.
How the hospitality industry can appreciate advanced information and technologies
Ivanov, Webster, & Berezina (2017) revealed that hospitality industries should understand that though adopting technologies cost them a lot; the return of the investment is rewarding. For example, application of keyless hotel services can enhance customer satisfaction through creating a good impression among them. Application of Augmented Reality (AR) will enable customers to be in anywhere (deserts, sea-beaches, forests or anything) in the room. All these will cost companies primarily, but the impact is sustainable.
Impact of advanced information and technologies on customer service experience at Travelodge
This could be tough for Travelodge to appreciate all the advanced technologies. Yet, the company can effectively implement and maintain technologies such as cashless payment, mobile application based check-ins and room services for quick support. These basic technologies are less expensive, but these can significantly improve customer service experience.
Research Methodology
Introduction:
The research methodology section will mainly cover the approaches, methodologies, designs which will be applied in the research. This research aims to apply positivist research philosophy followed by deductive research approach. The purpose of the research will be explanatory and research method will be hybrid. Additionally, survey questionnaire will be used to collect the primary data.
Research Philosophy:
Research philosophy refers to the framework by which different issues, perspectives are viewed (Chilisa, 2019). The most widely used types of research philosophies are positivism, interpretive, and realism. This research will use positivism research philosophy. Chilisa (2019) argued that positivist research philosophy is most suitable when a research topic has a clearly defined background. Title of this research is “Impact of adopting advanced technologies on customer service experience in the hotel management” which has a clear background. Moreover, positivist philosophy goes with quantitative research which is also a methodology of this research.
Research Approach:
Research approach outlines the styles of conducting the research (Coleman, 2013). Research approaches can be categorized as inductive, deductive, and realism research approaches. This research aims to use deductive research approach because it is used when the objectives of the research are outlined at the beginning (Terrell, 2012). This research already has a set of defined objectives which the research will meet. Moreover, deductive research approach is most suitable in line with deductive philosophy and quantitative research (Case & Light, 2011).
Research Design:
This research will use quantitative research method and data will be collected from sample population through survey questionnaire. Quantitative research is most suitable here because it will allow the researcher to reveal the outcome in quantitative manner. This will also allow to collect data from a large number of potential respondents (Saldanha & O’Brien, 2014). This is important to have insights of customers on Travelodge UK.
All the customers of Travelodge UK and other potential customers of the hospitality industry are the population of this research. This research will randomly select 100 samples from the whole population. Random sampling method will remove any biases and will create even chances for all population to be included in the survey. Secondary data will be collected from hospitality industry journals and articles, renowned books and magazines of hospitality because they provide authentic information. Website of Travelodge is also a authentic source of primary information for this research.
The research aims to follow mixed research method because it will help to reveal mainly quantitative data and again qualitative data. The insights and findings of the research will be presented using MS Excel packages using tools such as tables, graphs, charts, and analytical framework.
Ethical Consideration:
Removing cultural biases, being neutral while collecting data and restringing information will be highly prioritized while conducting the research.
Project Timeline:
References
Awate, S., Larsen, M. M., & Mudambi, R. (2012). EMNE catch‐up strategies in the wind turbine industry: Is there a trade‐off between output and innovation capabilities?. Global Strategy Journal, 2(3), 205-223.
Brown, E. A., Thomas, N. J., & Bosselman, R. H. (2015). Are they leaving or staying: A qualitative analysis of turnover issues for Generation Y hospitality employees with a hospitality education. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 46, 130-137.
Chilisa, B. (2019). Indigenous research methodologies. Sage Publications, Incorporated.
Facebook, (2020). Travelodge. [Online] Available at: https://www.facebook.com/travelodgeuk/reviews/ [Assessed on 01 October 2020]
McLean, G., Osei-Frimpong, K., Al-Nabhani, K., & Marriott, H. (2020). Examining consumer attitudes towards retailers’m-commerce mobile applications–An initial adoption vs. continuous use perspective. Journal of Business Research, 106, 139-157.
Saldanha, G., & O’Brien, S. (2014). Research methodologies in translation studies. Routledge.
Travelodge UK, (2020). Super Rooms: Super Value. [Online] Available at: https://www.travelodge.co.uk/about/super-rooms/ [Assessed on 29 September 2020]
Trustpilot Inc., (2020). Travelodge Reviews. [Online] Available at: https://www.trustpilot.com/review/www.travelodge.co.uk [Assessed on 30 September 2020]
Yasuda, (2017). New Report from Oracle Hospitality: Creating the Coveted Hotel Guest Experience. Oracle Content Marketing. [Online] Available at: https://blogs.oracle.com/hospitality/oracle-hospitality-hotel-guest-experience-research-report [Assessed on 28 September 2020]