As the hotel industry continues to figure out ways to reduce in-person contact during the COVID-19 pandemic, a major brand has reintroduced the check-in kiosk to see if now is the right time for them.

Marriott International announced earlier this week it’s piloting a contactless kiosk at a few of its properties, allowing guests to check in and get their room key without having to interact with front-desk staff. Hotel kiosks are not a new concept as several brand companies tried them on and off for years, but the response from owners and guests was generally lukewarm at best.

This time could be different, though.

In the news release announcing the pilot program, Marriott President Stephanie Linnartz said, “The pandemic has accelerated the demand for contactless services, and we continue to evolve to meet the changing needs of our guests.”

The question this pilot program — and any others that follow because of the pandemic — could answer is whether the check-in kiosks were simply ahead of their time.

Four to five years ago, HTNG Chief Information Officer Patrick Dunphy decided to try a hotel’s check-in kiosk because of the long line for the front desk. The onscreen process was sluggish, creating a poor user experience, he said. After checking in, the kiosk still sent him to the front desk to present his ID and payment method, which he had already done at the kiosk.

“So it was a complete waste of time,” he said, calling it the “epitome of how kiosks have been deployed or executed in the past.”

When people use a kiosk like this, they expect the entire process to be automated, he said. It’s still a problem, but many companies now are paying more attention to the how quickly the user interface responds, how everything is laid out and are having staff stand near the kiosks to guide guests through the process.

For kiosks to be in hotels everywhere, and there is potential for that, they need to address their problems, Dunphy said.

“They really need to solve the speed-of-service issue, and they need to make it so at least 75% of customers that go through the process don’t have to visit another place to actually get whatever outcome they’re trying to get,” he said.

Years ago, Hospitality Ventures Management Group acquired a portfolio of select-service hotels in which a major brand company was testing check-in kiosks, said Matt Woodruff, senior vice president of guest excellence and chief brand partner officer. A few of the properties already had them in place while others were undergoing preparations to add them. By the time the deal closed, the brand company had shelved the kiosks.

“When I reached out to the brand about that, they had said that they were not really going forward with that anymore, that it wasn't intuitive enough,” he said.

Before joining HP Hotels as senior vice president owner relations and development, Ed Robison worked on Hilton’s brand management team, acting as a conduit between owners and Hilton’s CEO. While there, he saw Hilton’s kiosks tested. The company looked at it in two different realms: as a convenience for guests and, in some cases, a way to reduce labor costs, he said. For owners, it came down to a choice between technology and the human touch.

The feedback owners gave indicated the kiosks made the check-in process feel more transactional. Guests found them to be an inconvenience, trying it out but ultimately choosing to go to the front desk instead.

Recalling a quote by Apple founder Steve Jobs, Robison said simple can be harder than complex because of the effort necessary to keep it so.

The kiosks were designed to be a guest enhancement, “but that’s a very expensive enhancement if it doesn’t get used,” he said.

People are more comfortable using these self-serve kiosks because of their use outside of the hotel industry, Woodruff said. More people are using them at grocery stores and other places, so when they see it in a hotel, they’ll be familiar with them and know how to use them.

“I also think people are finding that when they try it, they feel that it's safe and a secure method, and it also saves time,” he said. “I don't think everybody's going to use it all the time, but I think that if the technology's there for the people that want it, it'll really help them, help the experience.”

People talk about airlines’ use of kiosks as an example of how to use them well, Dunphy said. Kiosks can generally handle doing one or two things well, which for airlines would be checking in travelers and handling baggage. There are still problems, though, such as slow processing for travelers putting in information or complications with the baggage.

There will be a place for kiosks in hotels, particularly for business travelers who want to just check in and get to their rooms, he said.

The future of hotel check-in rests in the hands of guests through their phones, but mobile check-in and digital key technology take years to build, Robison said. These check-in kiosks could be the quick answer addressing guests’ desire for contactless check-ins to bridge hotels over until the mobile technology is ready.

“Long term, I think it's really got to rely on the technology of a mobile device [and] that a guest doesn't have to touch anything, it's just their phone,” he said.

If a hotel is going to add kiosks, they must be there as an enhancement and as an option, giving guests the choice and control over how they want to check in, he said.

“I think there's value in it right now,” he said. “It should be used as a bridge until they're able to figure out how they can do it touchless.”

After the pandemic ends, these kiosks could serve another purpose beyond helping guests avoid in-person contact while checking in.

If these kiosks can take over the technical aspects of the check-in process, that could free up the front-desk staff to become more of a hospitality ambassador, the person who welcomes guests as they arrive and make them feel appreciated, Woodruff said. The way the check-in process currently works is guests wait in line while the associates handle transactions, lessening the hospitality side of it.

Associates could come out from behind the front desk and move about, even meeting guests as they are getting out of their cars, he said.

“If you can automate these processes through technology, then it frees that associate up to offer suggestions for dinner or what to do in the area or give directions — having a personal conversation again,” he said.

One of the main issues hotels are facing now is staffing, and as demand returns, these kiosks could help hotels handle more guests checking in, Woodruff said. However, the use of kiosks in the check-in process shouldn’t be seen simply as a way to save on labor costs but as a way to improve the overall experience.

Hoteliers who look at kiosks only as a cost-saving measure will miss many opportunities to bring in more guests by streamlining the process and focusing on the hospitality, he said.

“The kiosk is not going to provide hospitality, it is not going to provide a warm welcome,” he said. “We absolutely believe that it’s important and it's critical for our associates to still have a presence there.”