Working primarily in the hospitality sector, technology has had a huge impact on our work as quantity surveyors over the past few years. For example, our client Premier Inn, is now installing an increasing number of self check-in hubs when it refurbishes its reception areas and we are also quoting for more power points in the pubs and restaurants we are working with.
After a day out and about with our mobile phone battery ebbing away, most of us have probably done that scan of skirting boards in a pub, restaurant or cafe for a charging point, even before we’ve asked for the all-important wifi code. It wasn’t so long ago that we’d do this slightly secretly – hoping the establishment wouldn’t catch up doing it! Nowadays though, it’s fairly common practice and a facility which customers expect to be provided with.
According to a new report released from Chargifi, a market leader in the cloud management of wireless charging technology, the hospitality industry has an opportunity to benefit from consumers’ insatiable desire to stay connected. Chargifi surveyed over 2,000 consumers to explore how access to power has the ability to transform the guest experience and increase footfall and consumer spend for businesses.
The company says that we now live in an age of digital dependency. By 2020, almost 75% of the global population will be connected by mobile and on average, users touch their phones 2617 times a day. However, connected devices with multiple apps running have one problem in common – they drain power. On a daily basis, almost two-thirds of smartphone users run out of battery before 5pm.
According to the research, 15% of people claim they have walked out of a food and beverage establishment because they could not charge their device. For millennials, power is even more of a priority – with one quarter admitting to doing the same – meaning a potential loss of revenue, as well as a potentially negative experience of the brand.
Nearly half (46%) of people surveyed claim they are more likely to stay longer and order more at a hotel, café, restaurant or bar if they can charge their device and almost one-in-five (17%) say they have spent money at a food and beverage establishment just so they can power up. The access to power combined with positive guest experience is impacting on ROI with increased spend and guest loyalty.
These findings are supported by the results of a six-week pilot Chargifi ran with a major global hotel brand: charging spots were installed in the bar area and this resulted in more guests coming to the bar and staying longer than normal, with a projected 64% return on investment and 10% revenue increase per bar seat.
Dan Bladen, CEO and co-founder, Chargifi says: “In 2019 access to power is a deal-breaker for guests and customers who are looking to stay connected 24/7. Easy access to power is no longer a luxury, it is a basic need and the hospitality industry is now quickly recognising this. Our research reveals that power has the potential to make or break a guest experience – and can positively enhance it.”
Bladen continues: “Guests will choose venues based on whether they provide convenient access to power and we will start to see the provision of wireless charging having a huge impact on reviews.”
PSE Associates provides traditional professional Quantity Surveying and Project Management services to many brand leaders in the leisure, retail and commercial sectors.