The ***** Les Roches Blanches hotel is an exceptional site located on the coast of Cassis, successfully blending the magic of the natural elements with French-style luxury. Offering breathtaking views of the majestic Calanques cliffs, this 45-room hotel boasts a unique environment and uses Bowo solutions to enhance the guest experience as well as achieve additional sales.
This video features an interview with Thomas Molfessis, who is in charge of the hotel's development, and who kindly agreed to answer some of our questions.
“The application helps me grow all the hotel's secondary points of sale, whether it's the SPA, catering, or even concierge activities. It also enables us to incorporate additional external services that we wouldn't have been able to implement without Bowo.”
Thomas Molfessis, Development Manager, Les Roches Blanches
The Challenge(s)
After a complete refurbishment, Les Roches Blanches reopened in 2018 with a second infinity pool, a spa, three Mediterranean cuisine restaurants and a fifth star.
The owner was aware of the clients' new digital habits and wanted to provide a digital experience. However, the idea was not to go overboard and all-digital, given the surrounding environment.
In addition to wanting to modernise, there was a desire to anticipate the low season, when stays are shorter. So starting in June, the challenge was to develop activities and suggestions to keep guests occupied at the hotel, extend their stay and secure loyalty.
Also, it was also important for Les Roches Blanches to attract local customers to the points of sale that the restaurants represent.
Given these multiple challenges, Les Roches Blanches chose Bowo to develop 2 digital solutions
- a webapp, accessible from any device and download-free, to which hotel and restaurant customers have access as soon as they make their reservation.
All the hotel's activities and services are presented in the custom-developed webapp, which can be used to book them directly. An entertainment section with access to Netflix, Spotify and Press Reader is included. The hotelier can also manage the application independently and monitor sales thanks to the back office.
2. the supply of several tablets for clients to use the application. These tablets are strategically placed in certain rooms, at the exit from the SPA and on the restaurant tables.
Les Roches Blanches hotel optimises its sales methods thanks to the webapp and the tablets
According to Thomas, the main benefit of the application is that it makes it possible to develop concierge activities and all the secondary points of sale at the hotel, whether it is the SPA or the restaurants. The possibility of booking these activities directly has been shown to facilitate and boost reservations.
Over the past 3 months, for example, the hotel has logged 93 room service orders and 191 activity reservations via the app.
And the hotel does not only promote its in-house activities. External activities have been included, allowing the hotel to attract local customers.
Another advantage that Les Roches Blanches has gained from Bowo solutions is the streamlining of its processes. Order automation allows switchboard operators to spend less time on the phone. The hotel can therefore provide a more qualitative customer service, because the tasks that can be automated are taken care of by Bowo and the staff can devote themselves to tasks with higher added value.
Thomas also admits that he uses the argument of in-room tablets as an indirect method of upselling on room categories.
"When you're looking to market higher category rooms, the tablets allow you to promote an additional service that is only available with the higher category room".
The benefits in terms of upselling and optimising sales methods are undeniable, but that's not all.
Something more in the guest experience
For Les Roches Blanches, Bowo “is something more in the guest experience”.
With Bowo, the hotel has developed a tailor-made city guide for example, showing places where their clients can go for a walk, visit museums, etc. The hotel can therefore help customers organise their stay - customers who can be a bit short of inspiration when they arrive, because they don't know the area.
The city guide is in fact the second most popular item in the application.
Extract from the Bowo app dashboard for Les Roches Blanches - in green, the most 'clicked on' features in the app.
Why Bowo?
“What Bowo does, what no one else provides, is the development of a tailor-made application that meets the hotel's requirements and where you can really ask for what you want." This is what Thomas Molfessis appreciates.
The responsiveness of the staff, the personalised support service and the “problem-solving” approach by the Bowo team are also highly appreciated by Les Roches Blanches.
To end the interview, Thomas emphasises the solidarity between Bowo customers.
“I like to look at what Bowo does at other hotels. There is no competition between hoteliers who use Bowo. It is a kind of collective solidarity because, ultimately we can pick up good ideas from other hoteliers, without there being any cannibalisation.
Looking for more upsell and a way to enhance your customer experience, like Les Roches Blanches? Ask for a demo!
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