LOC International

7 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 10, ISSUE 11 LOC INTERNAT IONAL current guest the opportunity to upgrade for a lesser amount. While you’re confirming that they’re staying in Room 304, and they’re going to get their mobile key, you can also send them a message: ‘You booked a one-bedroom suite; we can offer you the premium one-bedroom suite for tonight for an additional $40. That’s the extra revenue that the property can get.” “Also, the whole mobile application will be able to help ease that period of check-in where everybody gets to the property at the same time. It’s hard for the property to manage that. So, I see that evolving a lot, especially with the younger generation who will be very comfortable using it. I think it’s going to be big.” “One of the things you have to do as a property to be ready for that is you have to make sure that when you install an RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) door lock, you include the Bluetooth chip inside to be able to have that communication in the future,” Beaudet adds. “On the door lock side security is also a concern. Traditionally, a lot of the manufacturers were using the same type of encryption. Now, because of potential privacy, they’re changing to an extra level of security because being able to hack into a hotel door lock is a big problem. In a 500-room property, some kind of master key that can unlock any door would be a disaster.” “Some customers have existing door locks and we tell them they should upgrade the software for more security. Most of the time there’s a cost to that, but we need to make sure they understand the value and