How Digital Compendiums Are Different

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Digital compendiums open new possibilities for the accommodation industry, overcoming the limitations of traditional printed compendiums.

You may have heard the term digital compendium, but defining it clearly can be challenging.

So, what are the essential features that make a compendium digital?

Fundamental Components

To start, let's go over the 3 fundamentals that need to be included in every digital compendium solution.

1. Digital Devices

Digital compendiums are accessible on various devices, including in-room TVs, hotel tablets, and guests' own devices (such as smartphones, tablets, and laptops).

Each device supports different input methods:

• Touchscreens: Every smartphone and tablet uses a touchscreen as the primary form of interaction. With multi-touch displays being the core technology, this allows people to scroll, pinch to zoom, swipe and even type with the on-screen keyboard when needed.

• TV Remote Buttons: In-room TVs rely on directional buttons on the remote for navigation. Some Smart TVs even include voice search, but these are typically limited to media content only.

• Voice Control: Many smart devices support voice commands, though this feature often requires microphone permission for each guest and is still an emerging technology for use beyond basic functions.

• Keyboard & Mouse: For BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) options, guests using laptops, such as MacBooks, can access compendium services with a keyboard and mouse.

2. Interactive Solution

The next fundamental, is a user interface that is:

• Inviting,
• Familiar and
• Best designed to take full advantage of each respective device type and size.

The word interactive is defined as:

"interacting with a human user, often in a conversational way, to obtain data or commands and to give immediate results or updated information."

A digital compendium should have a familiar, easy-to-use interface tailored to each type of device.

This is achieved by following design standards for each platform. For example, Apple and Google provide guidelines to help developers create consistent and user-friendly apps across all device sizes, from 4.7-inch smartphones to 13-inch tablets.

For TV based interfaces, which use remote control buttons for navigation, enlarged tiles, highlights or outlines indicate the selected item, guiding users on which button to press next.

3. Information Updates

Most properties decide to upgrade to a digital solution, at the very least for the ability to update and publish details in real time.

A true digital compendium includes a Content Management System (CMS) that allows property managers to update compendium details instantly, for all guests.

Printed hotel compendiums are rarely updated due to the high cost, time and effort involved, with printed information quickly becoming outdated.

Unlike reprinting and distributing pages to each guest room — a process that can take hours — digital compendiums can be updated in just minutes, reaching all guests immediately.

These features are the minimum requirements for a digital compendium, but an ideal solution should offer even more.

Additional Features and Benefits

Here are some unique features of digital compendiums that set them apart, with many only being viable with a mobile solution:

• Fully Contactless: Allowing guests to access your property and local area details on their own devices removes the need for any shared hardware/resources, making it fully contactless and reducing equipment costs.

• Individual Guest Access: Guests can view compendium details on their own devices, giving everyone in the room access after check-in, without sharing a single printed compendium.

• Guest Messaging: With direct messaging between guests and reception, conversations are clearer, more flexible than having to visit reception and secure without needing to share personal contact details.
  This is only viable on mobile devices with their on-screen keyboards.

• Multi-Language Support: Digital compendiums can easily support multiple languages.
  To make this viable for all property types and sizes, Hinfo offers a built-in Auto Translate service, saving time and cost while ensuring accuracy.

• Offline Access via Our Mobile App: Our Hinfo mobile app includes offline functionality, allowing guests to stay informed, even without an internet connection, enhancing convenience.

• Keyword Search: A search bar allows guests to find information quickly, which is a significant upgrade from paper compendiums with no search function.
  Many in-room TV compendium solutions that have search functionality are slow and tedious to use and are often limited to only searching for media content, limiting its usefulness.

• Instant Access: Guests can instantly dial numbers, get directions, or visit web pages, streamlining tasks such as finding restaurant menus, all within the same interface on your guests mobile devices.

• Guest Usage Analytics: Unlike printed compendiums, digital solutions can provide insights into usage patterns, with some providers not tracking individual guests to maintain their privacy.

Decision-Making Factors

Now that you know the key differences between traditional and digital compendiums, here are the six most important factors to consider before upgrading:

1. Contactless Solution

By letting guests use their own devices, you eliminate the need for in-room hardware or resources that require cleaning and charging after each guest changeover, making it a safer, more cost effective and a time saving solution.

2. Long Term Maintenance

Digital compendiums accessible on guest devices reduce ongoing maintenance, as there's no in-room hardware to repair or replace. After setup, you only need to focus on updating the compendium content online via your CMS account.

3. Environmental Factors

Letting guests use their own energy-efficient devices is more eco-friendly than relying on dedicated, power-consuming hardware in each room.

The average smartphone achieves 5-7 hours of screen on time on a single charge, compared to the same amount of electricity being used in just 7 minutes on a standard LED HDTV.

4. Guest Experience

Digital compendiums on mobile devices enhance the guest experience by offering:

• Access beyond your guest rooms, allowing guests to stay connected wherever they go.

• Instant access to webpages, directions, phone numbers and booking engines with just a tap.

• Keyword Search, with touchscreen keyboards for fast input.

• Details automatically loading in your guests preferred language, without the need for any language selection screen.

• Support for various accessibility settings which your guests may have pre-set on their devices, including dynamic font size and Dark Mode support.

These will all contribute to improved reviews and overall guest satisfaction.

5. Protecting Guests Privacy

Check each digital solution's privacy practices to ensure guest privacy.

Look for options that provide usage stats, without tracking individual guests.

For app-based solutions, you can review privacy details in the Apple or Google Play App Stores.

6. Cost Effectiveness

Evaluate the costs of each digital solution in both the short and long term.

Subscription-based apps often require less upfront investment and no in-room hardware, which can save money over time, compared to hardware-based solutions.

Our Hinfo Guest Digital Compendium covers all the essential and unique features listed above, which all property managers should be considering.

Hinfo delivers a flexible, budget-friendly digital compendium that works on any device, requires no extra hardware and allows you to update at your own pace — and that's just the beginning.

To get started with our Hinfo service, please contact us via the form below to request access to our demo or copy of our beginner's guide.

Date of Publishing: 22nd April 2021

Date Last Updated: 15th November 2024

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