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Kigo Partner Q&A with YourWelcome

We are excited to announce YourWelcome as an official partner for our Kigo clients! Learn more about YourWelcome in our Q&A with CEO Henry Bennett below.

Tell us a bit about YourWelcome

YourWelcome is a smart tablet for vacation rentals. The tablet is left out for guests and acts as the transactional and informational portal during their stay. Property Managers are able to effectively up-sell services to guests and make money through connecting guests to local on-demand partners. The tablets are installed in 18,000+ properties and is currently the most used guest app globally.

What value do you bring to property managers who want to work with you?

There are quite a few key value points:

  • Reduce Guest Questions & Calls: Property Managers are able to leave video instructional guides on how the property works. A 10-minute video on how to operate the TV or air conditioning will hugely reduce the amount of guest calls.
  • Add a Service Layer: The tablet markets services to guests (eg late check-outs) and provides a frictionless way to transact with guests with no phone calls, emails etc.
  • Branding/Driving Direct Bookings: The tablet enables owners & property managers to market their brand to guests and demonstrate they are not “another Airbnb”. Guests need to understand the value of direct booking and this starts with marketing to guests while in the property.
  • Connecting guests to local area: Our product takes the hassle out of compiling local area guides and recommendations. Out of the box, the tablet is pre-loaded with content that your guests will find useful.

Property Managers are starting to see the importance of adding a service layer to their business. The cost of booking is growing as is the cost of acquiring properties due to increased competition; adding a service layer can help offset these changes in the market. YourWelcome is the most effective way to sell services directly to your guest, as well as making a percentage of revenue from guests using on-demand services such as food delivery.

How do you define a best-in-class guest experience, and how does YourWelcome contribute to it?

Best-in-class service is delivering a personalized experience that offers recommendations that the guest will want to experience. YourWelcome Tablets serve recommendations and services that we KNOW the guest will want as we are able to analyse previous guest search and purchase behaviour to optimize the offering. YourWelcome Tablet is a premium in-property guest tool that is optimized for your guests.

What do the guests want today and how can property managers adapt?

Guests want a seamless experience from booking to checkout that doesn’t involve multiple communications along the way. They want to show up and have an experience they were expecting. The challenge for property managers is that the accommodation is a private residence and often requires a level of communication to ensure they know how to operate everything in the property.

Property managers need to ensure the communications channels works for guests as well as themselves. In an ideal world guests would respond to emails and texts, but this often is not the case. The key is being versatile; some guests will want to use WhatsApp, some prefer email but offering high quality property guides is the key that guests can self-serve.

What are your key recommendations for property managers wanting to use YourWelcome?

The key is understanding the driver for wanting to modernize the in-property guest experience. Is it to streamline guest calls, to offer a contactless solution or to up-sell services to increase revenue? Our tablets act as an informational and transactional portal during the guest stay and the property manager can decide the hierarchy of what to promote – either property info or up-sell. The most successful property managers we work with have a clear KPI on updating their in-property guest experience.

How has YourWelcome adapted to the impacts of Covid-19 on the industry and travel trends?

YourWelcome is ultimately a communication screen that has strong visibility in property. Property managers can choose what to promote. We have seen a big switch from up-selling to communicating their Covid-19 cleaning & hygiene policy on the tablets and also using the check-in for track and trace compliance.

What do you think will be the top trends post-pandemic?

Ultimately, the pandemic will push innovation in the space to finally create a quality contactless check-in and in-stay experience. The vacation rental industry has struggled for years to get the contactless check-in seamless for the guest, but the pandemic will drive this change quicker than we would previously have seen.

How can I get started with YourWelcome?

Contact your Kigo Account Manager or send an email to [email protected] and we will get you up and running!

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