Keep your hospitality business thriving with Meraki Managed Wi-Fi

According to a new study conducted by Statista, most customers care about seamless Wi-Fi services when it comes to selecting hotels, with 80% of respondents saying that internet access is crucial to their stay. One of the best ways to optimize internet infrastructure in your hotel or resort to ensure high customer satisfaction is to choose managed Wi-Fi services. They incorporate all the essentials for a lightning-fast internet experience for your guests.

What is a Managed Wi-Fi Service?

If you outsource the management of your wireless network to a third-party vendor, you are subscribing to managed Wi-Fi services. These vendors offer advantages over unmanaged Wi-Fi services by providing custom and comprehensive solutions. Enterprises choose managed Wi-Fi services for their skilled human resources, infrastructure and industry certifications. 

Managed Wi-Fi services are cost-effective and offer comprehensive services such as:

• Site assessment that ensures optimal installation and equipment recommendations
• Configuration of settings and deployment process for wireless devices
• Continuous monitoring for security

What Managed Wi-Fi Services Offer for the Hotel Industry — A Case Study by Cisco Meraki*

The Problem Statement

Boutique Hotel Collection (BHC), located in San Luis Obispo County, California, oversees 13 properties that employ roughly 1,000 people. Despite picturesque ocean views and top-notch amenities, BHC found it challenging to bring customer satisfaction to its guests, due to poor wireless connectivity in rooms at their main hotels. 

This problem arose because the wireless was consumer-grade and BHC used different vendors from site to site, with no centralized management or reporting options. Troubleshooting was also time-consuming.

In addition to troubles with network deployment, The Cliffs Resort — built in the 1970s — also presented physical constraints: thick, concrete walls and metal walls absorbed RF signals emitted from the wireless access points (APs). These issues resulting from equipment failure often invited guest complaints that could only be solved with expert IT help.

The Right Solution

Chris, the IT Team Leader, started looking for solutions and investigating the options available in the market. CISCO Meraki's managed Wi-Fi services caught his attention, owing to incredible benefits such as scalability, simplicity and centralized control. Soon, Meraki MR access points were installed across BHC’s property. 

A small team of three IT professionals quickly deployed 200 Meraki APs across 13 sites, thanks to the excellent plug-and-play capability. 

How CISCO Meraki changes wireless connectivity for your hospitality business

CISCO Meraki APs are built from high-grade components that are carefully optimized to deliver a seamless user experience for hotel guests. The high-quality APs provide faster connections, greater user capacity, more coverage and fewer support calls.

Specific benefits of CISCO Meraki services include:

• Unlimited personalized experience: Cisco Meraki solutions come with a wall-plate access point, the MR30H, which enables great features such as out-of-the-box location analytics, integrated Bluetooth and full-stack offerings. These features will allow your IT team to manage all of the network components from a single, web-based dashboard with highly scalable Meraki cloud management.
• Location analytics: Integrated location analytics allows you to quickly gauge guest traffic, dwell time and repeat visits across hotel chains or even in specific areas within buildings. This gives you vital insights into:
  • Number of guests using facilities daily
  • Popular amenities across your hotel
  • Time spent by the guests at the lobby bar, restaurant, etc. every week or on a specific day of the week
  • Number of guests returning to the same property on a weekly or monthly basis
  • Guests that could be targeted for VIP offers or promotions
• Heat Maps: You can visualize guest density over time and leverage trends to make informed staffing for your front desk and other facilities.
• Bluetooth: The MR30H AP comes with an integrated Bluetooth radio that receives and advertises Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) beacon. This allows seamless integration with third-party applications designed to interact with battery-powered or wearable Bluetooth tags. 
• High-quality Wi-Fi
  • Speedier, with gigabit throughout
  • Multi-user MIMO architecture to support multiple devices at once
  • Slim and svelte aesthetics
  • Isolated, secure guest Wi-Fi accessible by just three dashboard clicks
  • Enterprise-grade security and authentication
  • Layer 7 traffic shaping to easily throttle, block or prioritize applications and prevent bandwidth hogs.

Harness the full potential of CISCO MERAKI with Telekom

Telco operators from “T” family offer expert support to hotels looking for technological and digitization support. Our services enable the entire hotel group to leverage fast WLAN internet services to provide guests with a seamless internet surfing experience. Guests will be able to enjoy smooth check-in and check-out, along with digital door lock control, mobile invoice accessibility and much more. Take your hospitality business to the next level with us. To learn more and inquire about our services, please reach out to Martin Jurca

*Case Study: https://meraki.cisco.com/customers/boutique-hotel-collection-the-cliffs-resort/