Sheraton Grand Mirage, Port Douglas
“Online F&B ordering through IRIS has had a huge impact on top-line revenue and our F&B operations are more profitable than ever before. Revenue has increased by 51% over the last year and order volumes are up by 27%.”
Hotel Overview
This stunning five-star beachfront resort in Tropical North Queensland offers serenely styled guest rooms, suites and villas, 147 hectares of lush tropical gardens, sparkling saltwater lagoon pools, an 18-hole golf course and six vibrant restaurants and bars.
Guests can enjoy the very best in locally sourced, authentic dining options, tropical cocktails, light bites, and local seafood, available to order online for room service or poolside dining.
“It’s a great platform for Food & Beverage. It provides a seamless digital experience for our guests and our team, from ordering to delivery. It allows guests to have more flexibility and convenience. The upside to this has been a higher average spend as guests tend to order more.
The platform is also easy to use from the back end where changes can be made easily without disrupting any guest experience.
This has been a great addition to the hotel and I look forward to seeing the system advance with more features in the future.”
Hotel Requirements
As part of Marriott’s approved mobile dining program, IRIS was an obvious choice when the hotel wanted to implement an online ordering platform.
The hotel required a true integration with Micros POS which IRIS had.
Solution Installed
Mobile dining at the Lagoon House (poolside area) and In-room dining
Benefits
Revenue Boost
Online F&B ordering has had a huge impact on top-line revenue and the hotel’s F&B operations are more profitable than ever before. Due to the popularity of online ordering and the hotel processing more orders with the same number of staff, revenue has surged by 51% over the last year and order volumes have increased by 27%.
Guest spending has also grown by an average of $10 per order as guests have access to more items and add-ons online, all with tempting descriptions and images.
Eases Staff Shortages
The platform has streamlined and improved operations and processes - by passing on some of the transactional processes to guests and reducing phone traffic, it has eased staff pressures and enabled the hotel to become more resourceful. The hotel can still provide an impeccable guest experience with limited staff, which is particularly advantageous when there are staff shortages.
Seamlessly Covers Large Footprint of Hotel
With the scale of such a large property (over 300 bedrooms and villas and a large poolside area), the app eliminates the need for staff to be always present in all areas of the hotel. The hotel can serve guests more efficiently online and effectively cover the expanse of the hotel without having to increase staff numbers.
Successful Poolside Dining
The hotel implemented poolside dining in its cabanas and sun loungers first and then introduced in-room dining. With simple ordering via QR codes (or via the Bonvoy app), guests can easily access and peruse the digital menus and order online.
With all the sun loungers and cabanas numbered, staff are provided with an accurate delivery location which helps streamline processes, reduce delivery times and avoid any delays.
Heightened Guest Satisfaction
Guests enjoy using the app and appreciate the quick turnaround times (compared to staff or phone orders) and sleek ordering features. The IRIS app has simplified F&B ordering and has optimised the guest journey which enhances the overall guest experience and boosts loyalty.
Improved Sustainability
Online ordering enables the hotel to operate more sustainably - with digital menus they have minimised the amount of printing they do, thereby saving paper (especially with the poolside menus which often got ruined and had to be thrown away) and reducing costs.
Service & Support
The hotel worked closely with the Marriott corporate team and IRIS to implement the platform as it was the first in the region. From setting up the menus, uploading images and descriptions to staff log-ins and training, they worked as a team to ensure the hotel maximised results from day one.
Easy to Edit
The hotel has the flexibility to easily change and update items on the menu (as and when they have specials or seasonal/ingredient changes) on the backend to ensure their menus are up-to-date and accurate.
“The sales we generate online at the pool bar is insane! The hotel has enjoyed a big uplift in revenue, and F&B operations are more profitable.
People are familiar with using technology to manage orders and processes, so it was an obvious and easy transition for us to implement mobile dining around the poolside and in guest rooms.
By optimising the digital experience and enabling guests to self-serve, the hotel has become smarter and more resourceful with staffing, especially in today’s current labour market, and they can still meet and exceed guest’s expectations.”
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