Can better payment processes help lower hotel staff turnover?

While hotel event business continues to strengthen, high rates of staff turnover are hurting many properties.  In a new research report, The blueprint for stronger hotel performance, 73% of hotel GMs and Event Directors said that turnover of back-office staff is a critical problem, and that it’s having lasting effects on customer satisfaction and property performance.

The report, which is based on a survey of executives at 300+ major hotel properties in the U.S., also revealed a surprising contributor to that turnover: inefficient payment processes.

75% of hotel executives in the survey cited the need for their back-office teams to chase payments manually, costing them as much as 20 extra hours every week. Event staff are also losing valuable time to reconciliation and chargebacks (74%), processing fee calculations (68%), and communication issues across teams (61%).

Every respondent noted revenue loss – some as much as 10% – due to payment inefficiencies. And nine out of ten felt that if they could reduce staff turnover, they could increase revenue by at least 5%.

Hotel leaders also know their teams, and their event customers, deserve better. Nearly every executive surveyed (94%) believes they need a better way to streamline payments, noting specifically better automation, integration and security as key opportunities. And those goals are within reach. With some simple payment processing improvements, hotel leaders can help staff feel more fulfilled and empowered to have a meaningful impact on customer experience and revenue growth.

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1. Better payments help staff focus on high-value activities

Hotel leaders are hungry for efficiency. 69%believe there are too many steps in their current payment processes.

• 67% want a faster way to capture deposits after a contract is signed, with 21% believing it takes too long to secure a deposit after signing.
• 65% say their staff has to manually input customer payment information across systems due to a lack of payment integration with their PMS and sales and catering systems.

With a higher risk of delays and missed steps in the payment process, payment inefficiencies take as much of a toll on revenue streams as they do employees’ time and job satisfaction. Every respondent in the survey noted revenue loss. Some as much as 10% due to payment inefficiencies. In particular, 77% of property sales teams are losing revenue due to uncollected deposits.

By automating and integrating workflows, back-office staff can secure more revenue faster with less effort, gaining more time to focus on additional revenue-generating activities.

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2. Better payments help staff take better care of event customers

All this manual effort doesn’t just hurt staff; it affects customers, too. Hotel execs see a clear link between their event payment processes and customer satisfaction. 79%  worry they’re losing customers because of payment inefficiencies. 57% cite a decreased level of service quality. 49% cite increased delays for customers. And 41% cite decreased customer loyalty.  83% worry about the security of their customers’ information when they make payments.

97% agree digitizing the payment process would elevate the customer experience. Respondents noted improved user friendliness, flexibility, transparency and security as the top benefits. And with an easier process, staff would not only free up time from chasing down payments but also minimize the need to manage customer inquiries and frustrations.

89% of hotel leaders also agree that if they could reduce staff turnover, they could also increase revenue — by at least 5%.Whether it's inefficient payments or another pain point, addressing those issues exacerbating staff turnover can boost revenue generation by negating the direct impact turnover has on customer satisfaction and engagement.

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3. Better payments help staff protect hard-earned revenue

With fraudsters getting smarter, chargebacks are taking a significant toll on the health and performance of properties and their staff. 83% of hotel leaders find chargebacks for event fees to be a big problem for their property, and 58% have given up fighting chargebacks altogether because of how challenging it is.

80% of hotel leaders believe staff turnover would be lower if they could find a better way to handle chargebacks. Every respondent across the 300+ properties reported having to manage at least one chargeback per month, with 18% of properties managing 26 or more chargebacks per month, translating to thousands of dollars in revenue lost.

Secure digital payment processes provide built-in protections that help hotels reduce chargebacks and retain hard-earned revenue.

Addressing payment inefficiencies enables hotel leaders to better equip their event staff to better serve customers and the business. Streamlined processes lead to happier staff and curb the pain of knowledge loss and lack of resourcing that comes with higher turnover. This creates the necessary space for staff to take better care of customers and generate more revenue for the hotel business.

For more insights, read the full research report: The blueprint for stronger hotel performance.