Assignment – Individual Case Study

The assessment for this module (TLH 342 Digital Technologies in the Visitor Economy) will be based on an individual case study that is worth 100% of the overall module mark. You must submit a report of 4,500 words.

Purpose of the Assignment

The pandemic accelerated the use of digital technology through the introduction of digital health passports for travel, increasing the use of service robots in hotels and restaurants, and contact tracing tools in shopping and events. Additionally, virtual and augmented reality technology has been touted as a way to conserve cultural and heritage resources and endangered natural attractions in a sustainable manner. Tourism organizations can use of digital technology to improve productivity, profitability, and customer satisfaction levels.

Growth in mobile technologies have a significant effect on hospitality and tourism businesses, as well as on the end user’s motivations and experiences. Advances in the Internet of Things (IoT), the advent and popularity of digital platforms, and the adoption of smart devices have led in the production of an enormous volume of data by service providers and customers, as well as the developing trend of big data. However, when large amounts of data are acquired to personalize products and services in tourism and hospitality, the potential of data breaches increases.

Digital marketing through social media platforms and websites allows individuals, businesses, and other organizations to interact with one another and build relationships and communities online.

That interaction can be more personal to users than traditional marketing. Visitors interact with an organisaiton’s technological platforms before the visit, during the visit, and after the visit.

Understanding the role of technology in creating a meaningful user experiences is important for tourism organisations.

Topic: Critically evaluate the role and effect of digital technology in visitor experience management. Use a participant study to demonstrate your understanding.

Instructions:

1. Select a Singapore-based tourist organization. As a customer, you may observe, record, and analyse your experience using the organization’s technologies. Critically analyse the user experience at any/all stages of the guest life cycle model. (Please note that this research should not include Quick Service Restaurants.)

2. Provide a literature review (1000 words) on the role of the digital technology in visitor experience that had emerged in the last few years that changed how the tourism business is conducted. Ensure, a minimum of 5 journal articles published since 2018.

3. Analyse the data from your user experience of technology to identify the effect of technology on user experience.

4. Reflect on your findings in the context of the literature review.

5. Provide a comprehensive introduction and conclusion

6. Make relevant recommendations to improve user experience of the technology.

Introduction

When travelers are making vacation plans and making hotel reservations, they frequently look for hotels they have never visited before. Getting hotel information might help you make better decisions. Word of mouth (WOM) from friends has historically been used to lower risks, and as the internet has gained in popularity, electronic word of mouth (eWOM) is starting to become more significant, as consumers start to trust WOM shared online. Consumers frequently use digital tools to voice or share their ideas and look for information. At the time of travel planning, 7000 of Filieri and McLeay’s respondents (96.4%) used the internet as a source of information, with 90% turning to user evaluations.

According to what Mr. Robert Urban(CMO of BirdSeed) said, three things visitors expect to see when visiting a website are trust, engagement, and information that is easily findable. When visiting a website, visitors are hoping to learn more about the company or hotel. That is why a clean design of the webpage and strong engagement are important when a visitor clicks on the website.

The goal of this report is to investigate digital technology and the user experience in the smart hotel industry. This report will mainly focus on the user experience with the hotel website, which is Yotel, Singapore.

Yotel is a hotel chain based in the United Kingdom. The company has a few shareholders, such as Al-Bahar Group, Starwood Capital Group, Unitel Investment Portugal, and Kuwait Real Estate Company. Airports and places where Yotel is active include Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport, London Gatwick Airport, and London Heathrow Airport. Also, there are hotels in Orchard Road in Singapore, Seaport in South Boston, and New York City’s Times Square.           The chain most recently revealed two new hotels at Singapore Changi Airport and Istanbul New Airport, as well as new downtown hotels in San Francisco, London Clerkenwell, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Amsterdam, Miami, Dubai, Geneva, and Park City. Yotel Air, Yotel, and Yotel Pad are the three brands under which the company operates.

Gatwick Airport’s first Yotel debuted in 2007, and Heathrow Airport’s followed quickly. Yotel launched a location at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport in 2009, and the business went on to win the Business Travel World Awards’ prize for Best Business Accommodation of the Year. Yotel opened a hotel in New York City on June 13, 2011, at 570 10th Avenue, as part of the $300 million MiMA complex, including residential units. The 669 rooms, each measuring 16 square meters (170 square feet), were designed by Rockwell Group and Softroom. Terrace, a 4,000 square foot (370 m2) multi-bar balcony, is available at the Yotel New York.