MURLIDHAR RAO,
COO, Araiya Hotels

In this crowded marketplace, a well-defined value proposition along with a clear roadmap leading the way are what will eventually set brands apart from their competitors.

Bearing this in mind, we at Araiya have established an agile digital ecosystem using off-the-shelf products which have been seamlessly integrated for intelligent data mining while also being cost effective. ‘Agility without overheads’ has been our guiding mantra while formulating our digital platform which started showing early results with a saving of over 35% in capital expenditure as part of the hotel development process and eventually over 25% in operations.

This blog elucidates the benefits of this sophisticated technology, which can be measured in improved productivity of staff and higher guest engagement and satisfaction and eventually translates into better revenues.

Website – The First Authentic Touchpoint

Our corporate and unit level websites are connected on a single backend platform and allow us to capture the behaviour of our website browsers through click insights, frequently visited pages and preferred content. All our websites have been created to resonate the brand via design and browsing experience with a focus on ease of navigation. The digital architecture also comprises a fully integrated AI based marketing engine which has helped us achieve a response rate of up to 15% on our marketing campaigns, higher than most Indian hospitality players as on date. We are socially listening while also benchmarking ourselves with global brands and industry trends where our KPIs are being closely monitored against theirs.

Social Media – For a feel of the experience from wherever you are

Our data mining expertise has been translated to a powerful social intelligence platform that helps us identify demographics of our guests and how they engage with content on social media. This insight then forms the foundation on which we plan our social media calendar and engage relevant guests across digital platforms. Over the last year, we have optimized these tools to create organic traction using backend intelligence and zero paid marketing. Edibbee Digital Agency brings us this tool in sync with our website which has also been designed and developed by them.

Hospitality Management Systems – Our ‘behind the scenes’ enabler

Our highly functional hybrid hospitality ERP is modular, scalable and has been customized for Araiya Hotels & Resorts, across all Araiya brands. A 360° easy-to-use Hotel Guest Service Management Software, this platform is quick, responsive and easy to navigate which empowers our artisans to accomplish more with lesser time and effort. Prologic First offers comprehensive support at affordable prices along with mobile tracking anywhere anytime, mobile updates on task completion, manages multiple services in one task, offers multi-level escalation till task completion and is easy to integrate with other software.

Guest Experience Data Platform – Your companion for the journey and beyond

A single platform which manages our booking confirmation emails, personal preference menus, upsells and internal feedback collection also provides us with analytics for our guest stays while identifying their sentiments and generating various reports based on desired metrices. Easy to use with improved UI/UX designed for the millennial workforce, this platform enables and manages hyper-personalization to maximize revenue opportunities which in turn helps us garner positive reviews on online. Experium by RepUp also helps us personalize guest experiences during their stays at scale & drive revenues through data intelligence. It is seamlessly integrated with our property management software and acts as a unified platform for automated marketing, upselling and feedback collection and analysis.

Scalable data cruncher – Keeps you connected during and after

Our guest wireless platform, integrated with AdTech, offers high-speed internet and presents hyperlocal advertising content to our guests during their stay. This dynamic cloud-based engine is managed & operated by Treya Wireless. As we expand our footprint across India and the globe and gather more data, the efficiency of this platform will grow multi-fold and will act as a data feeder to our AI based marketing engine.

IT Design & Technology Application – Our digital architecture

We pride ourselves on being eager learners constantly on the lookout for reinventing ourselves with a focus on adapting to changing times and evolving consumer needs. With this guiding principle, we drive the application of the latest tools and trends, in a cost effective manner to help us stay relevant and aligned to evolving consumer preferences and leverage the same to secure our position as a market leader. Our IT design & technology partner HATT Globally acts as the key architect of our partner ecosystem with the goal of ensuring all technologies are secure, efficient, seamlessly integrated and provide the relevant business intelligence for effective leadership to strategise hotel development, sales and marketing and hotel operations.

Three months into opening, Araiya Palampur secured its position as #2 destination in Palampur on TripAdvisor in the traveller ranked category. With the backing of our resilient and agile systems, we will continue to achieve operational excellence at Araiya Palampur and hope to achieve the same with Araiya Calicut and Éssence by Araiya Ahmedabad.