From hotels to hospitals, the first impression of any location starts with parking. If your hotel’s event can turn the valet experience from a headache to a pleasure, your visitors will start and end the night in the best possible mood. Integrating wireless technology into your valet system can streamline the experience for both clients and drivers. That means more efficiency, shorter wait times, and no more keeping track of small, pesky valet tickets.
One of the biggest causes of long wait times at the valet is the delay between a visitor requesting their car and the driver retrieving it from the garage. A more tech-friendly approach empowers visitors to request their cars in advance, using only their cell phones. That reduces their personal wait time, as well as the wait time of the visitors behind them. Not to mention that simply tapping a button on a cell phone is far simpler and more convenient than digging a ticket stub from your pocket.
At many events, visitors arrive and depart on a similar schedule. That means your valet system must be able to handle sharp upticks in traffic in a short amount of time. Having a reliable system in place will reduce the chaos of rush hour into a manageable flow. Many visitors are hesitant to download an app devoted entirely to their valet service, being wary of data usage as well as privacy, but utilizing an entirely cloud-based system will eliminate these concerns. SMS systems, for example, require only a phone number from the visitor. A text with a hyperlink is sent to their phone, where the rest of the transaction is completed. No app is necessary! This simplicity means you can work rapidly through a large volume of visitors.
Though technology is an essential means of streamlining the valet experience for both yourself and your visitors, pairing it with other amenities can make valet the highlight of your visitor’s night. Consider offering complimentary drinks while visitors wait, leave small treats like chocolates or bottled water behind in their cars, and consider offering shade, fans, or heaters if the weather isn’t cooperative.1 When the logistics align and you provide these amenities, visitors will have only a brief wait time that they’ll remember positively.
Whether you’re looking to enhance the visitor experience at a hotel, hospital, office building, or even a church, integrating technology can be the linchpin for taking it to the next level. Utilizing a cloud-based service like SMS Valet eliminates the need to scan barcodes or download apps, which can hinder your efficiency. What’s more, SMS offers Android-based phones on lease for valets and drivers to use to ensure compatibility across the board. To ensure security for visitor’s payment information, SMS Valet is PCI Level 1 compliant and takes advantage of tokenization to encrypt information as it verifies payment. Ease of use and visitor-friendliness are priorities at every step of the process.
To learn more about how SMS Valet’s cloud-based system can make your next event a night to remember just visit: https://smsvalet.com/features/
