Boathouse Waterfront Lodging
Discover how rezStream's guest messaging integration helped Boathouse Waterfront Lodging save time and boost guest satisfaction.
Background
Boathouse Waterfront Lodging is a cozy 7-room B&B located in Bolton Landing, NY. Operated by Joe and Patti Silipigno, they’ve been in business for over 25 years, providing a welcoming, personal experience for guests. However, the increasing demands of managing day-to-day tasks led them to explore new tools to streamline their operations.
Challenge: Managing Reservations + Guest Communication
With only three staff members managing a 7-room property, day-to-day tasks became overwhelming. Email communications, in particular, were not efficient for time-sensitive guest interactions. Patti found that guests were not reading emails as promptly as needed, often leading to delays in communication. The team needed a faster, more reliable way to communicate with guests, reduce manual tasks, and enhance overall guest experience.
Being a small, seasonal property, the team needed the solution to be easy to implement and use, but also affordable. rezStream and Akia’s seasonal discount provided the perfect solution.
Solutions
Boathouse Waterfront Lodging implemented rezStream’s Akia Guest Experience text messaging integration to:
- Automate pre-arrival texts with key information.
- Set up auto-answering features for common guest questions, like Wi-Fi passwords.
- Implement a post-checkout satisfaction survey allowing guests to make comments and suggestions directly to Patti and her team, giving them an opportunity to resolve any issues before directing the guest to review platforms like Google and TripAdvisor.
- Use mini-apps for self-check-in, registration cards, late arrival letters, and a local guidebook.
This system has been a game-changer for guest communication and task automation.
Results
- Patti’s team immediately noticed a reduction in the time spent responding to guests, saving approximately 1 to 1.5 hours daily.
- The automated texting improved guest satisfaction, with many guests now leaving reviews thanks to the integrated survey links.
- Tasks like answering FAQs and managing pre-arrival information are now handled automatically, allowing the small team to focus on enhancing the guest experience.
Long-Term Vision
Looking forward, Boathouse Waterfront Lodging plans to further integrate rezStream's guest experience text messaging features, including upsell opportunities and expanding their use of mini-apps during the 2025 season. They also intend to upgrade to a higher service tier, confident that rezStream's solutions will continue to support their operations and help them scale as their business grows.