On July 19th, a flawed update from the company CrowdStrike caused one of the largest IT outages in history that affected nearly 8.5 million Windows devices. This affected banks, airlines, hospitals, and train networks, etc. Hotels from major brands like Marriott and Hilton were greatly affected, from not being able to process credit cards to having to walk guests personally to their room. We are seeing both guests’ and staff’s reaction in real-time on the internet, from keeping everyone updated to venting about their poor experiences. Property managers are pulling their hair out trying to complete operations that are dependent on the internet.

Outages like this are rare, but when they happen, it can greatly derail hotel operations and your customer service will matter more than ever before. Especially when we rely on technology so heavily in our work lives as well in our personal lives, it's crucial to have a back up plan that is easily accessible and to be prepared if a similar situation happens again down the road. Guest messaging can be the tool that provides that critical communication and service your guests(and staff) need during an outage. 

Guest messaging is great when used daily to communicate with guests, but it's also tremendously useful in crisis communication. If there is a message that you want to communicate to all of your guests, a mass text is the easiest and quickest way to get that information out. Using guest messaging features like Kipsu’s Broadcast Outreach feature, you are able to send one text that reaches every guest where you know they will see it. Most guests will have their phone on hand waiting to hear any updates, so this is an effective use of communication. Send them any updates on the outage, any protocol for credit card processing, or how rooms and services will be handled. 

And once you’ve sent the text, all guests will have your phone number and they can text you their questions. Now you have most communication streamlined into one channel, making service recovery easier for you and your staff. Kipsu’s guest messaging is able to operate on a manager’s phone, so there is no need for your work computers or PMS to interact with guests. Being able to independently communicate beyond systems that rely on the internet will bring the needed reassurance in unplanned situations.

The CrowdStrike outage serves as a big lesson to instill these backup plans for tech emergencies, ideally before you NEED them. Guest messaging could be your hotel’s vital line of communication if another major outage were to strike again. 

Learn more about Kipsu’s guest messaging and broadcasting features, or schedule a conversation with us to see how texting can set your hotel up for success.

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