New communication solution for hoteliers engages customers, lowers distribution costs, and manages complex bookings.
BERLIN, GERMANY – Instaroom, a messaging platform for managing complex customer journeys, transactions, and bookings, today announced the launch of its new communication solution, providing hoteliers with a simple, web-based concierge platform. Instaroom’s platform includes a customizable, white-label widget for hotel websites, analytics tools, and full messaging integration that enables hoteliers to establish a tether to new and returning guests, increase direct bookings, and lower distribution costs.
Instaroom engages prospective customers and supports in-house guests through one seamless, user-friendly platform. The solution offers a branded, automated website widget, localization and personalization that greets all customers in their native language. Instaroom also centralizes all communications across different messaging platforms, including Facebook, WeChat, Email, and more.
The platform is mobile optimized, offers hoteliers URL tracking so management can see what guests were browsing before and after messaging the hotel, and provides hoteliers with a full analytics dashboard, which includes average response time, geolocation, engagements, conversions, leads, revenue, and other metrics. Instaroom also securely manages payments, providing a user-friendly confirmation process.
Niklas Pettersson, CEO and co-founder of Instaroom, is a global business developer and entrepreneur with a background in building and managing high performing sales teams in the travel sector. Prior to Instaroom, Niklas was the Managing Director for the Nordics and Baltics for Tourico Holidays, one of the world’s fastest growing wholesale travel brokerage companies. Johan Hammer, CINO and co-founder, is a hospitality guru and author of Revenue Superstar. Johan previously managed a $25 million hotel portfolio for one of Scandinavia's largest hotel chains and built a new pricing structure for more than 60 hotels.
“The average hotel website only has a 2 percent conversation rate, in large part because hoteliers aren’t offering equal or better user experiences than big business-to-consumer travel sites,” said Pettersson. “Nearly 9 out of 10 millennials prefer messaging to other communication – and more than half of all travelers will be millennials by 2025. It’s time for hoteliers to embrace the next generation of travelers and connect with them using an intuitive, centralized messaging ecosystem that connects travelers directly with hoteliers and keeps consumers on your website.”
Instaroom has received government funding from Almi, a Swedish state venture capitalist group. The company is also backed by private investors, including Sven Wennhall, Founder and former CEO of Sembo AB, one of Scandinavia’s largest outbound travel agencies; Jonathan Tong, Head of Airline IT Solutions for Amadeus in APAC, Russia, Turkey and CIS region; Allan Tee, former Managing Director of PIAB Asia, with 40 years experience in industrial automation industry; and other leading hotel management executives.
First Hotels, Scandinavia’s leading collection of hotels with more than 90 unique properties throughout Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Iceland, and Spain, was one of the first hotel partners to utilize Instaroom’s beta technology.
“Since integrating Instaroom, our hotels are generating and capitalizing on more direct revenue opportunities, while also bringing us closer to our customers,” said Cecilia Mauritzson, General Manager of First Hotel Twentyseven. “The platform enhances the digital experience, leading to more engaged prospective consumers and happier in-house guests.”
Instaroom is currently developing artificial intelligence bots, designed to intuitively answer commonly asked customer questions and reduce hotel management costs. The AI bots will be integrated into the Instaroom platform later this summer, 2018.
Vicky is the co-founder of TravelDailyNews Media Network where she is the Editor-in Chief. She is also responsible for the daily operation and the financial policy. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Tourism Business Administration from the Technical University of Athens and a Master in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Wales.
She has many years of both academic and industrial experience within the travel industry. She has written/edited numerous articles in various tourism magazines.
