Hotels attempting to modernize their phone systems are in a bit of a bind these days. On the one hand, their customers mostly use their own cell phones, so many hoteliers don’t think their hotel phone systems are particularly important. On the other hand, hotels rely on their internal communication systems for every aspect of their business, and customers still expect a full suite of features when they do use the in-room phone.
The solution is a digital PBX system, powered by VoIP technology and using SIP trunking to create a powerful, flexible, high-tech solution that integrates all the hotel’s departments for the best possible guest experience. Here are just a few of the benefits that SIP trunking can bring to your hotel.
1. Cost
SIP trunking systems over VoIP can offer significant savings over traditional phone systems in several areas. Long-distance calling is significantly less expensive since your phone system isn’t using the copper wires of the PSTN. Your employees and management can call between locations at virtually no cost, since you’re using your own network. You’ll also benefit from added features and increased flexibility that you simply can’t get from an analog system. In one analysis, we were able to save a group of properties over $4500 per month!
2. Flexibility
An analog trunk — one single phone line that can make or receive calls — is tied to a particular piece of copper wire that emerges from the wall. If you want that number to ring somewhere else, you either need to talk to the phone company or rewire your hotel entirely. Your building is also limited in the number of calls it can make or receive by the amount of physical wire running to it.
With a VoIP system and SIP trunking, those restrictions completely disappear. The only limit on the number of calls in and out of the building is the total bandwidth of your internet, which shouldn’t be a concern as voice calls use very little data and you can always upgrade.
With a simple browser interface, you can add, remove, and relocate any phone number you want. If your hotel adds new facilities like a business center, conference rooms, or additional customer service staff, you can instantly generate fully functional phone numbers that can be answered anywhere with an internet connection.
3. Call Quality
On an analog trunk, call quality is affected by a huge number of environmental factors — the distance between callers, the quality of the copper wire, nearby electrical activity, and even the behavior of the sun itself can result in garbled or deteriorated voice calls.
On a digital system, the variability of call quality is very nearly a thing of the past. As long as the internet connection at both ends is strong, it shouldn’t matter if you’re across the room or across the globe. Call quality will be clear regardless.
4. Continuity
Call forwarding on analog systems was an irritating process, requiring careful setup and resulting in a choppy experience for the caller while they waited for switchboards to move their calls. With digital phone systems, there’s no difference to the caller between calling a number directly and being forwarded through a phone system. In fact, the caller doesn’t even need to know the difference! If your employees are working off-site or you have a different call center to field calls 24 hours a day, you can arrange for the same phone number to ring at any location in the world.
The flexibility afforded by this continuity is endless. You can forward calls to any location, including a roaming manager, at any time of day or on a set schedule. If you decide to transition some of your employees to remote work, you can easily set them up to answer phones from home as though they were in the hotel.
5. Unified Communications
Modern hotel guests don’t just call on the phone anymore — they send emails, text messages, and interactions through your website. In order to avoid annoying your guests by asking them the same questions over and over, you can integrate all your communications systems through the CRM attached to your digital phone system.
A CRM can keep track of all your guest information from any source, no matter when or how the information was sent to you. With more knowledge about your guests, you can provide them with a more personalized experience that will keep them coming back.
In today’s modern world, guests expect more and more advanced technology from the hotels they visit. A SIP trunking system allows you to update the way you communicate and interact with your guests for a more personalized, contemporary experience.
