Hotel groups are missing out on 20% of guests due to data silos, new Ireckonu data shows. | News
Ireckonu, a leading provider of hospitality middleware and Customer Data Platform (CDP) for hotel groups, today reported that siled guest data across hotels’ operational areas (including restaurants, spas, golf facilities and other ancillary points of sale) is preventing hotel groups from capturing up to 20% of the opportunity to re-engage guests, improve recognition and ultimately drive stronger loyalty and revenue growth.
While hotel groups typically rely solely on room-stay data to understand guest value, Ireckonu’s findings show that a significant portion of guest activity occurs outside the PMS and often remains disconnected from the data platforms hotels use to analyze and optimize the customer experience.
These insights come from customers of major hotel groups using Ireckonu’s Venues product feature, a breakthrough CDP enhancement that has helped shed light on one of the hospitality industry’s longest-standing challenges: the fragmentation of guest data across systems outside the hotel’s PMS.
The analysis also found that only about half of guest profiles include both a room stay and an interaction at an outlet such as a restaurant or spa. Meanwhile, 28% of profiles reflect room-only activities, and up to 22% belong to guests who contact only through locations, meaning they never appear in the hotel’s PMS.
“The findings indicate that hotel groups may be missing 1 in 5 guests, while also assigning incomplete loyalty and RFM scores to a significant portion of their customer database. The consequences are significant: frequent restaurant or spa visitors may be treated as first-time guests, marketing teams struggle to measure campaigns that increase venue revenue, and loyalty programs may overlook valuable guests beyond overnight stays. These gaps result in weaker personalization and limit the ability of hotels to build long-lasting guest relationships,” says Felix Dreizehnter, head of the department. Product at Ireckonu.
Venues is designed to efficiently integrate all internal and external guest data into one centralized platform, giving hotel operators and marketing professionals access to complete and up-to-date guest profiles. This allows hotels to recognize each guest and personalize communications at scale, improving marketing campaign performance and ROI.
By unifying guest data, the platform also enables hotels to deliver personalized experiences at every touchpoint. Additionally, it provides hoteliers with a clear view of each guest’s lifetime value by tracking spend across all areas of the brand. This makes it possible to identify the most valuable guests and create customized experiences that drive loyalty and unlock new revenue opportunities for hotels.
Redefining loyalty that goes beyond traditional points programs
One of Venues’ most impactful outcomes is its ability to drive loyalty in a holistic way. “Driving loyalty isn’t about collecting points, but rather about knowing your guests’ preferences and adjusting hotel operations accordingly. For example, if a guest prefers still water over sparkling water in the restaurant, carrying that insight into the in-room experience by keeping only still water in the minibar can make all the difference in building loyalty,” said Dreizehnter. With Venues, hotels can tailor guest communications throughout the entire journey, recognize returning guests even when they’re not staying at the hotel, and deliver personalized offers that strengthen brand affinity and make guests feel truly known.
The platform also gives hoteliers more direct control over guest data, even for guests who booked through OTAs. “Booking through an OTA does not mean a guest is not loyal. When the venue’s behavior is connected, hotels discover deeper engagement and can foster direct relationships in the future,” Dreizehnter concluded.
With this innovation, Ireckonu enables hotel operators and marketers to unlock the full potential of their guest data, balance OTA influence with direct marketing strategies, strengthen loyalty beyond points, and redefine the hospitality experience at every touchpoint.
