What is an Invitation Email?
Invitation emails are auto-generated from GEMS and can be sent to each guest as an invitation to download your mobile app. The template of this email is configurable by your property to include your branding as well as text that promotes the benefits of downloading. Also included in these emails are links to your app within Apple and Google app stores, along with a unique invitation code that will allow the guest to manually upload their reservation should it not appear automatically. These emails play an important role in your promotional strategy to increase the adoption of your mobile app.
Below is an example of the default INTELITY invitation email before any branding or additional text is added;
Configuring your Invitation Email
During your initial onboarding and deployment journey, it’s likely that someone on your team has completed a template for INTELITY to configure for invitation emails. To see how yours looks, you can send a test email to yourself by following the instructions below;
- Go to GEMS > Guests Tab.
- In this area you will see the “invitations” column - manually clicking “Invite” will send an invite email to the email address within the “Contact Details” area on that specific reservation. In order to send one to yourself, click “Edit” in the “Contact Details” column and insert or replace the email with your own.
- Tip: It’s recommended to copy the existing guest’ email to your clipboard and replace after testing, although the email may be updated automatically by your PMS integration later on.
- Click “Save” in the “Add / Edit Contact Details” section and then click “Invite” on that guest.
- Check your email for the invitation.
Should you like to make changes to your existing email, please send the request to support@intelity.com. A template will be provided and INTELITY will make the required changes once the completed template is returned.
Email Send Options
In general, you have two options for sending these emails. You can manually invite each guest via the “Invite” button on the “Guests” tab in GEMS (useful for properties that want control over who uses the application), or you can send them automatically. If you’d like to send the emails automatically, you have the following options;
- Send immediately upon booking (sends the email as soon as the reservation is booked)
- Send based on a lead time prior to the guest's arrival date (recommended)
INTELITY typically recommends sending these emails no earlier than 48 hours before arrival. This ensures that while the guest prepares for their travels, the email is timed appropriately to fit the pre-arrival period of the guest journey. Alternatively, sending the email immediately after the booking is made may be lost in the volume of emails the guest receives on a daily basis, particularly if the booking date for their reservation is weeks or months away from their arrival date.
Should you have questions about how your property is currently configured, or would like to define a number of hours before arrival at which time your email should be sent, contact your CSM or open a case with support by emailing support@intelity.com.
Email Best Practices
An invitation email should act as a call to action and present enough valuable information that would entice a guest to download your app. Below are a few best practices when configuring your invitation email.
Be informative, but brief
Reader drop-off for emails tend to increase the longer a message is. While a hotel will want to highlight the value-adds of the application and communicate how it will enhance a guest’s stay, it’s important to do so with brevity and a clear focus on the benefits.
For example;
Good Day Mr. Doe,
We look forward to welcoming you to The Grand Hotel. In preparation for your visit, we cordially invite you to download The Grand Hotel’s mobile application for a richer experience throughout your stay.
With the The Grand Hotel app, you can;
- Place Pre-Arrival Requests
- Check-In and Access Mobile Key
- Order In-Room Dining
- Request Amenities and Services
To download, click the Apple or Google icons below.
See you soon,
The Grand Hotel Staff
Call attention to your “sticky” features
In the example above, we visually called attention to the value-adding features that are meant to enhance the guests' stay by utilizing bullet points. Bullet points are a great way to ensure these features do not get lost in the wordiness of a paragraph, and draw the guests' eyes to the most valuable areas of your app. By doing so, you take advantage of their initial engagement and immediately highlight what may very well convince the guest to download. While bullet points are by no means necessary, at a minimum we recommend including mention of these features somewhere within your email.
Timing is Key
As mentioned earlier, INTELITY recommends setting your emails to automatically send no more than 48 hours prior to arrival. This ensures that the email is at the top of a guest’s inbox as they’re preparing for their travels, adding relevancy to the communication and a higher likelihood of the guest opening the email.