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Most people own at least one mobile device, and a large percentage have two or even more. People quickly access high-speed Wi-Fi solutions at their homes, workplaces, bars and restaurants. Cellular subscription plans also include mobile internet access, and expectations are higher than ever.
High-speed internet access (HSIA) is a must-have for hotels worldwide. Failing to provide such services for hotel guests results in poor guest experience and negative online reviews. In today’s article, we’ll discuss what HSIA is and expand your understanding of hotel high-speed internet access.
What is HSIA?
HSIA is the abbreviation for high-speed internet access. It is the guest internet platform that hotels incorporate throughout their premises to keep their customers connected and happy while complying with specific usage policies.
Many providers offer HSIA as a service and take care of wired and wireless networks in hotels. Their platforms often offer guest portals, various authentication methods for authorized users and different business models.
Hotels that choose HSIA services need scalable solutions that increase overall guest satisfaction and brand loyalty. These factors result in positive feedback and good online reviews, bringing new customers to the premises and growing revenues.
Turn-key HSIA & end-to-end services
One of the best possibilities for businesses in the hospitality industry is to find providers who offer turn-key HSIA and end-to-end services. What we mean by this is that the hotel gets a complete solution ready to use. The provider will take care of everything from equipment setup and installation to maintenance, updates and service support.
High-speed access anytime, anywhere
Why do hotels need it?
Many people wonder if it’s that necessary to provide HSIA in hotels. After all, almost everybody today uses PSTN and has a subscription plan with included mobile internet.
Most of the time, the available internet connection is quite fast if you have a good network signal. And that’s why hotels need to implement high-quality HSIA solutions for their guests.
Cell companies simply cannot afford to offer unlimited network reception at every location the user might be at a specific time. The location’s elevation and certain weather conditions also affect cellular coverage.
In those cases, the user loses connectivity to the network and the internet. And what happens to foreign guests who don’t have international roaming or face sky-high charges and taxes? The hotel should provide their customers with a reliable, free or reasonably priced solution they need.
Where do hotels need it?
Coverage is absolutely critical to achieving business efficiency and guest satisfaction through high-speed internet. Hotels need to ensure that their guests and staff members can stay connected at all times from any point of the property.
Designing a strong Wi-Fi network with multiple access points is essential in peak season when the hotel is at its total capacity or during days of special events and large crowds.
Leisure and business guests need fast and reliable internet connectivity at all hotel parts despite the property’s location or the weather forecast, and so do your business operations.
Guest rooms & public spaces
As obvious as it might seem, it’s necessary to highlight that guest rooms and public spaces are the first spots that deserve HSIA attention. A hotel room is a sanctuary for the traveler and a place where they can enjoy complete privacy and the activities they prefer.
They might want to stream their favorite TV show, listen to relaxing podcasts and music before going to sleep or send an important business email early in the morning.
It’s also essential to provide good coverage and connectivity for public spaces within the hotel. Such places greatly vary depending on the property but often include lobby and lounge areas, front desks, indoor recreation centers, elevators and the floor areas between rooms.
Guests often spend time in these spaces, so it’s natural to provide them with the opportunity to browse the web or check on their social media accounts.
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What do guests say?
Providing HSIA in guest rooms and public spaces accounts for increased customer satisfaction, brand loyalty and better online reviews. Guests share a common opinion that free hotel internet access should meet certain expectations regarding speed and security.
It’s also essential for guests to not have to enter a new Wi-Fi password or reauthenticate to access the network when moving from their room to the elevator or lobby.
Outdoor areas & points of sale
Providing your guests high-speed access anywhere means you also need to consider outdoor areas such as poolsides, golf courses, parking areas and rooftop bars. If your hotel is near a beach, you’d probably want to cover your guests even when they’re relaxing near the seaside.
If your staff members are trained to work with mobile points of sale (mPOS) instead of room billing, providing HSIA at all possible sale points will ensure that your hotel won’t miss sales and payments.
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Conference areas & events
Preparing for full-capacity situations and rare events with fluctuating numbers of visitors is essential to meet guest expectations. In such cases, hotels need sophisticated bandwidth management capabilities to improve both guest satisfaction and business operations.
Imagine you need high-speed internet access for hundreds of people attending a business conference who also need to stream a live virtual event for their colleagues who participate remotely.
Or a wedding is taking place at your hotel, and restaurants, bars and rooms are at their full capacity. The number of people should never compromise the guest experience.
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Back-of-house operations
HSIA is an essential investment not only on the guest services side but also to keep each hospitality technology on your premises up and to run. A well-designed network infrastructure with high-speed internet access is often critical to hotel systems such as PMS, POS, HVAC and IoT.
Staff members’ including front desk agents, revenue managers, office workers and housekeepers, have specific tasks and schedules often synchronized by collaboration software for maximum efficiency that also depends on a wired or wireless network.
Smart hotel rooms
Even if hotel guests receive full network reception and fast mobile internet at your premises, using innovative technologies for in-room features and capabilities requires adopting HSIA solutions.
Smart room systems such as the Internet of Things and energy management run over IP and use multiple devices (smart TVs, smart sensors, etc.), which require high-speed and reliable internet. After all, no hotel owner wants to offer smart in-room controls which don’t work correctly.
Tiered services: fee or free
Regarding HSIA, hotels have a few options to choose from as their preferred business model. Studies show that although guests would prefer free Wi-Fi on their hotel’s premises, they won’t accept a compromise with the quality or speed.
Consequently, many would choose to pay for the service and, in turn, receive a high-speed internet connection. Hoteliers can choose to provide guests who checked in with entirely free HSIA or limit the internet speed to enable simple web browsing.
If customers want to access Netflix, stream content, video conference or game online, they can pay a fee to subscribe for higher-speed internet service within the hotel. Hoteliers can also offer free Wi-Fi to anyone within the premises or implement loyalty memberships and programs.
Guest portal page
HSIA solutions offer hotels a personalized and branded guest portal page where guests can sign in and use the network connection. The page may require signing in via social media accounts, vouchers, entering Wi-Fi passwords or PMS authentication.
Besides logging in, hoteliers can use the guest portal page to keep guests informed or execute their marketing strategy. You can place advertisements to upsell or cross-sell, share details about current promotions and offers, add FAQs, property maps or even a welcome video.
Imagine the guest portal as a custom landing page that your guests visit before connecting to the internet. User-friendliness and responsive designs are essential to guests’ experience, and adding multiple language options will enable guests from all over the world to enjoy their stay at your hotel.
Analytics and reports
HSIA solutions allow hotels to track and analyze their guests’ interactions with the network to gain insight and increase revenue. You can get regular reports on your network’s performance, user engagement, campaign performance and current trends.
That way, you can understand your customers better and anticipate their needs depending on seasonality or ongoing marketing campaigns.
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FAQs
What is HSIA Internet?
HSIA stands for high-speed internet access, and it is a solution for hotels that provides guests with an internet platform and aims to increase guest satisfaction.
What is HSIA in a hotel bill?
Hotels can offer a free basic plan for hotel internet access that allows web browsing with a predetermined internet speed. However, the hotel can also choose a different business model, charge users who need more bandwidth, and add the fee to their room bill.
What is an HSIA gateway?
The HSIA gateway allows guests to connect to the hotel’s high-speed internet and networks.