The Intertwined Intricacies of the Hospitality Industry

Self-service technology has been increasingly important in the evolution of the hospitality industry while improving services and customer experiences. The COVID pandemic was consequential to many businesses – some had to close while others are now just rebounding back. As brands begin their rebound, it is technologies like self-service kiosks the are helping in the post-COVID environment.

The ability to improve and create better customer experiences while also having a positive impact on the “back-of-house” is equally important with technology and the hospitality industry. Technology is very important moving forward.

5 Different areas of Hospitality

The hospitality industry mainly contains five different sectors that have a distinct services and some of which can overlap with each other. One common factor within the hospitality industry is that each has guest or customers that you are serving and engaging with daily.

The overlap does occur very often to where you can have food and beverage within lodging, recreation and entertainment. There can also be many different experiences that are created when there is an overlap. The customer should be front and center for all experiences – a customer first approach in which kiosks enable that approach.

Below we will get into each area and offer a couple examples of services within each sector.

1) Food and beverage (restaurants & bars)
The food and beverage industry is considered the most visible sector that crosses over into all the other areas. To understand how big the food and beverage industry is, just drive down any street in your town and you will get an idea – businesses that prepare meals & beverages for consumption on and off premises.

Examples of the most common food and beverage businesses:

• Restaurants
• Bars, Taverns and Pubs
• Cafes and Delis
• Cafeterias
• Fast Food Restaurants
• Catering

2) Lodging (Hotels, resorts)
The lodging industry that providers overnight accommodations to guest and ranges from a hotel to a bed and breakfast and even resorts. Depending on the business, food and beverages may also be part of the offerings. There is a wide variety within the lodging industry where you may focus on one person or hundreds.

Examples of the most common lodging businesses:

• Hotels
• Motels
• Vacation Rentals
• Resorts
• Bed and Breakfasts
• Campgrounds

3) Recreation & Entertainment
The recreation and entertainment industry is what people do for rest, relaxation and of course enjoyment. These experiences can last a couple hours or for the entire day. These are places of interest and usually require on a ticketed admission that provides concessions, experiences and activities that are for the customers or audience.

Examples of the most common recreation & entertainment businesses:

• Zoos
• Museums
• Spectator Sports
• Amusement Parks
• Theaters – Movie or Arts
• Festivals
• Concerts

4) Meetings and Events
The meetings and events industry took a huge hit during the COVID pandemic and as of 2023, has it begun to start it’s rebound and more people has begun to travel. These events can be something as small as a local networking event or as large as an industry conference (Think SalesForce Dreamforce). Many of these types of events are drawing people to a certain city/state, which also has a positive impact on the entire hospitality industry.

Examples of the most common meetings and events businesses:

• Weddings
• Networking/Business Events
• Trade Shows
• Conferences
• Sporting Events

5) Travel and Tourism
One of the largest sectors of the hospitality industry is travel and tourism – where people are enticed and encouraged to visit a destination (and to spend their money at that destination). When someone chooses to travel, they interact with all the different hospitality industries which includes all part of the trip.

Examples of self-service kiosks

• Table-side ordering/payment
• Self-Serve Concierge
• Check-In
• Check-Out
• Internet & browser services
• Boarding Pass Printing
• Loyalty Programs
• Event Management/Scheduling
• Event Registration

Benefits of self-service kiosks*

• Increased Revenue
• Decreased labor and time cost
• Improved customer experiences
• Order accuracy
• Reduced wait times
• Upsell amenities, extras and services.

(*Click here to reference our article on the benefits of Kiosks)

As you can see, there are many benefits to self-service kiosks in the Hospitality Industry that improves the experience for both the staff and the customers and you can also see how the entire industry overlaps with each sector.

Over the next couple weeks, we will get into the specific areas of the hospitality industry and how self-service kiosks can be implemented…up next, Food and Beverage.

EZ-Chow has solutions such as an Online Ordering Solutions and Self-Ordering Kiosk Solutions that integrate into your existing POS systems. To learn how EZ-Chow can help you with these initiatives and more, get started by contacting us here.

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