The banquet business is a dynamic and potentially profitable endeavor. Building or running a banquet business requires being attuned to a number of things. There are the given business basics such as making sure that the market is ripe for your services, that the clientele can afford to support your price point, that the health department standards have been met, and that your staffing is appropriate for the size of your venue. Staffing will forever be a business area that requires a certain level of finesse. Where personalities are concerned, there always exists the possibility for conflict, missed expectations, and errors.

In a hotel setting where banquet services are offered, for example, the hotel is given the task of meeting the expectations of the client, yet the expectations are not always clearly defined or communicated. This is one area where a wireless communication system such as those by JTECH can be a business saver. For example, if the hotel banquet area is equipped with a wireless device within reach of the client, the client can then, in effect, have their needs met with the press of a button. Whether for more water glasses or to address a lighting preference, JTECH’s wireless communication devices are great for connecting staff and client without intrusion. It’s not always practical to have a staff member standing post at all times to cater to every wish and need, so JTECH’s wireless paging devices provide immediate access when desired or required. In addition, having a wireless call button in the banquet room affords the client a level of privacy that might not otherwise be obtainable. Further, it’s certainly more cost effective for the banquet operator to have a wireless device on-call as opposed to a staff member.

One unique aspect of running a hotel is the need to keep a several different “businesses” running smoothly and simultaneously. For example, hotels are in the business of running a hotel accommodating overnight guests, running a restaurant(s), running a valet business, perhaps running a spa, running a retail establishment, and the list goes on and on. Keeping track of all the various moving pieces can be very difficult. Equally difficult is managing the level of communication between departments and these various business “enterprises.” TITAN by JTECH is exactly the tool needed to keep all the balls in the air. TITAN integrates all the various communication systems and devices in use and packages them nicely into one single system. This aggregation of tools will enable you to maximize efficiency and manage communication needs across the entire business. This includes integrating all email, cell phone, business phone (PBX and/or Wi-Fi phones) and local and wide area pager communications. TITAN also tracks and logs all incoming and outgoing communication which is a very valuable tool for assessing where communication lapses are occurring and where efficiency might be increased.

Improved communication between staff members enables your employees to provide the highest level of customer care and guest service. This smooth-running,cooperative team that is created by using TITAN will increase guest satisfaction and customer loyalty, positively impacting revenues and profitability. Your guests will feel like they are king or queen for a day, with every need more-readily obtainable thanks to the team that exists behind the scenes. Specific messages can be sent directly to the staff members who need to receive that communication. Gone are the frustrating days of trying to track someone down within the building or over the grounds of a large hotel. Similarly, overhead paging is disruptive to guests, and can be eliminated when you use TITAN for all your communication needs. Every day is something new, and TITAN is ready to help you tackle whatever is thrown your way.

Wouldn’t it be nice to eliminate fragmented communication lines and replace them with one master communication hub? You can, with TITAN for Hotels, by JTECH. Whether you are working with cell phones, DECT or Wi-Fi phones, a traditional PBXwide area or on-site pagers, you can integrate virtually all your mobile devices into the TITAN system creating a one source communication solution. TITAN can also integrate other electronic systems including HVAC, security, fire and others using standard protocols to normalize communications. TITAN also logs and tracks your communication events between staff members to allow management to analyze if and where efficiency can be increased and training implemented. Gone are the days of “he said/she said.” Simply refer to the log and examine the facts. TITAN brings together all areas of your operation. to the improved communications enable everyone to provide a higher level of service. Not only will your guests be happier, but so will your staff given that they are better equipped to do their jobs well.

Whether connecting security, bell staff, food and beverage, or concierge, TITAN is the tool to get the job done. Because TITAN is scalable, all systems are customizable to the size and needs of your hotel, whether you are operating a small boutique hotel or a five-star destination resort. You won’t be paying for more than you can use and you won’t be left with less than you need. Tourism is a volatile business, even when the economy is doing well. There are always peaks and valleys in the traffic flow, which is why it’s extremely important to offer the best service all the time. TITAN gives you the tools you need to wow your guests from the moment they arrive to the moment they leave!

Banquets and catering services are a lucrative part of a hotel’s operation if managed properly and marketed well. Clearly, in the hospitality industry, service is everything. One way to add that noteworthy extra bit of service is to empower your guests with instant access to key staff. JTECH’s StaffComm wireless transmitters can be strategically placed in the banquet rooms so that the meeting, group or event coordinators can immediately request the presence of staff with the discreet and simple press of a button. This is a great sales tool that can be used to attract business meetings and conferences. Having StaffComm transmitters available for your guests to use also makes your operation look that much more attentive, professional and well-run. If a sales conference, for example, is taking place and the organizer of the meeting recognizes that beverages need to be replenished and perhaps some snacks would help keep everyone awake and engaged for the afternoon session, the organizer can simply press a button and hotel staff will immediately respond to those needs. In the end it makes everyone look better, but better yet it pleases the guests, which is the number one priority.

In addition, from the hotel’s perspective, JTECH’s wireless paging devices reduce costs by alleviating the need for staff to wait idle at the perimeter of a banquet room in the event they are needed. Instead, they can be productive elsewhere on property, yet fully accessible when needed. JTECH has taken the guesswork out of service. Now the same number of staff members can serve multiple conference rooms or hospitality suites, depending on YOUR needs. This also increases the privacy afforded to your guests by not requiring that staff be waiting in the banquet room. Doors can be closed, privacy honored, and staff still readily available as needed. Banquets and Catering is already a profit center and with JTECH, you can capitalize on every service opportunity to ensure your continued success.

Hotel operators can find themselves in the mix of a lot of different businesses all under one roof. Many hotels have restaurants, some offer spa services, laundry cleaning, retail boutiques, auto detailing, recreational activities like golfing, tennis and swimming, but the core business remains hospitality. Managing all these moving pieces can be overwhelming and requires quite the master planning. All the planning in the world, however, cannot prepare for every detail that might arise. For this reason, having good solid communication tools is imperative for dealing with unplanned situations in the most professional and hospitable manner. JTECH offers a full range of Motorola radio products which are useful in both security and coordinator situations. For example, maintenance staff is probably the most mobile staff on the hotel grounds. Their expertise and assistance is needed all throughout the day and from one place to the next, usually without much advanced notice. It is imperative that they be accessible at all times. JTECH’s Motorola radio offerings make these “go-to” guys reachable for when the unexpected occurs. Whether it’s a plumbing emergency or a heavy lifting need, these valuable employees are only as valuable as they are reachable.

Running a hotel is certainly a teamwork enterprise. By equipping your employees with the tools needed to communicate well, you are setting them up for success. And the more success they have, the better the stay will be for your guests, and the better the stay, the greater the likelihood they will either return or recommend your hotel to family and friends. And, with the popularity of social media, trends can go viral and reputations enhanced or destroyed at the blink of an eye. Superior communication with pagers and Motorola two-way radios will place you on the "enhanced" side of things, keeping your guests happy and their needs met. Don’t let the unexpected throw off your game; make it an opportunity to wow your guests.

The support staff at a hotel is often the most overlooked, but in reality includes some of the most important players. Part of making the most of these employees involves being able to summon them as needed to meet specific concerns. JTECH InstaCall™ alphanumeric pagers allow for immediate response to guest needs using specific alerts. Take for example the bellhop, or formerly referred to as the bellboy because this was literally a position filled by a boy or adolescent male. The bellhop is the first and last person your guests are going to see at your hotel. Silent pagers give management the ability to request the presence of a bellhop as needed. No one wants to be left waiting at the curb outside the hotel for luggage assistance. JTECH pagers are a quick and discreet way to make sure guests are tended to in a very timely fashion. Maybe one of your bellhops is busy giving driving directions or performing basic concierge work but another guest party has arrived and needs attention. Pagers are ideal for situations such as these where additional staff is needed. At the touch of a button, other staff members can be contacted immediately to address the need. And since these service personnel are often tipped employees, the better service they are able to provide often translates to better tips. Business owners know that happier employees make for happy guests.

JTECH alphanumeric pagers are also appropriate, useful and cost-effective in other departments such as housekeeping and landscaping. Perhaps furniture is blowing around the pool deck, and additional staff is needed to come help tie down the umbrellas and move in the chairs before a storm. Pagers make everyone accessible, which adds immeasurable efficiency to unpredictable situations. While it would be nice to be able to plan in advance for every scenario, that’s just not realistic. So, be as prepared as possible with the right communication tools.

A lot of things can go wrong when expectations are high and humans are involved. Success comes not from never making a mistake but from being able to resolve such problems in a swift and efficient manner. Hotel managers are dealing with people in a relatively vulnerable state of being. They are away from home, without the comfort of their things, without their normal routines, and really at the mercy of your hotel staff. Therefore it is that much more important that matters be resolved quickly or else they can escalate into larger and more emotionally charged problems. For example, if a guest requests additional towels, the next actionable step is to get them additional towels. While this might not seem like rocket science, the skill comes in being able to coordinate needs and wants with appropriate service personnel.

JTECH alphanumeric pagers allow for actionable messages to immediately be sent to the appropriate staff member. The last thing you want is for your guest to be waiting to take a shower and the only person you have to take them additional towels is also manning the front desk. Being able to communicate with support staff is so important for meeting the seemingly minute needs of your guests. The ironic part is that it’s the little things that tend to add up to make or break a great experience. JTECH pagers allow for exceptional responsiveness to meeting the needs of your guests. Getting more towels to someone should not be a big deal on your end, but not getting them towels would be a very big deal on their end!

We have to wonder these days about the effectiveness of sales interactions that take place on the phone versus over e-mail, and then the added role of social networking. Do we do a better job on the phone in making a sale or can we do better by using other means? New electronic devices keep coming up that try to do the work for sales people by making contact with prospects for business with very little actual human interaction. How much difference is there between personal contact and electronic contact for effective selling? Albert Mehrabion, a researcher of mid-20th-century communication, found that in any communication, the components of the communicated message are: 7 percent words, 38 percent tone of voice and 55 percent body language. While it’s true that the telephone strips off the body language component, e-mail takes away even more.
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Hospitality education is as old as inns and hotels, travel and tourism. While formalized hospitality training is primarily a product of the 20th century, the oldest hotel in the world is Japan’s Hōshi Ryokan, founded in 718 A.D. and owned and operated by the same family for 46 generations. It has thrived on its services and reputation. In Europe, there are hotels dating back a millennium and many more hotels that are centuries old. Their survival, too, has depended on accommodations and service. While the tools of the trade have changed over the years to include innovations such as JTECH’s TITAN enterprise communication system, the demand for superior service has persisted.

Delmonico’s restaurant in New York opened in 1837 ushering in a new American age. As the century wore on and travel became easier thanks to the railroad expansion, hotels, taverns and inns flourished creating an increased need for qualified staff. Previously people were simply hired and trained for various hospitality positions. With the changing of the times, came a change in training. Cornell University’s School of Hotel Administration was founded in 1922 and the University of Denver’s School of Hotel, Restaurant and Tourism Management was founded in 1946. In the 1960s, academic hospitality education came to the forefront. For example, the University of Houston’s College of Hotel and Restaurant Management was established in 1969 thanks to a gift from Conrad N. Hilton. Today, there are scores of colleges and universities offering hospitality education including resort management and event planning. Nevertheless, some things just can’t be taught in a classroom, but rather require on-the-job learning the hard way. For example, the efficiency gained by having a wireless communication system in place to more efficiently direct staff members cannot be fully appreciated until experienced in person. TITAN for Hotels and its unique Task Assignment Module get staff where they need to be and when.

There are now many forums for travelers to express their pleasures and their distastes. Travel websites have equipped travelers with log-in accounts and rating systems, and as a result people are vocalizing their experiences online for millions of other travelers to read. According to USA Today, TripAdvisor has more than 30 million reviews. This presents countless opportunities to either have guests write raving reviews, or for guests to share less than flattering comments. According to TripAdvisor, less than 4% of negative reviews get a response from management. This doesn’t mean though that hotel managers aren’t or shouldn’t be paying attention to what is being reported online. In fact, TripAdvisor saw a 203% explosion in hotel management responses last year. The website allows management to respond to reviews written about their property so long as their response meets some very reasonable criteria such as being void of profanity, being professional, and being relevant to the TripAdvisor audience.

With more and more travelers going online to do preliminary research about hotel accommodations, it has become ever more important to wow guests. JTECH’s integrated alerts and enterprise messaging systems help you ensure a seamless, responsive environment for your guests and staff. This is an advantageous way to increase the likelihood of receiving positive customer reviews online. While sites such as TripAdvisor prohibit companies from rewarding customers for writing reviews, companies can ask their guests to share their experience just so long as they are not being compensated for doing so. From banquet rooms, to room service, to housekeeping, to security, to concierge, there are many communication needs to manage and JTECH’s integrated pager systems are versatile enough to meet the needs of your hotel and help you get those raving reviews.