In 2015, when the Royal St Andrews Hotel, Port Alfred, South Africa opened its doors, it was clear that the owners wanted to receive feedback from their guests as soon as possible. Difford Louw was the Sales Manager of the hotel at the time, and is now the General Manager. He pushed for GuestRevu implementation before the first guests checked in. Difford had experienced its benefits in a prior role and knew that it was essential to deliver the high-quality experience they wanted.
But more recently, Difford played another important role — helping to shape GuestRevu’s new AI-Powered Management Responses You can be one of the beta test participants.
Royal St Andrews values guest feedback
Royal St Andrews takes pride in offering guests an exceptional experience. The hotel caters to travellers of all kinds with its luxury wing, spa and conference facilities. But providing great service isn’t just about amenities — it’s about understanding what guests expect and continuously improving.
People’s expectations are constantly changing. says Difford. “They don’t just want a place to sleep anymore — they want an experience. GuestRevu lets us know what our guests expect, so we can deliver.
Watch the full Royal St Andrews case study
Royal St Andrews was able to gather clear and actionable feedback with GuestRevu’s tailored surveys. This allowed them to respond to guest concerns and improve their services — from refining breakfast service to upgrading their Wi-Fi setup after feedback showed guests were frustrated with passwords and slow speeds.
AI-based Reputation Management: How it is Made Easier
Royal St Andrews had already been very successful in collecting guest feedback and acting on it, but responding to online reviews still took a lot of time. GuestRevu’s AI-based management response feature was the answer.
Difford was impressed with the AI generated responses, especially the personalisation.
Difford says, “We’ve sat with it together and I have absolutely loved it.” “The responses were spot on. What I like most is that they take out the specifics of the review, and then mention them in the reply to the guest. And I really like the way it acknowledges negative reviews as well and addresses them — it’s quite spot on.”
The AI feature creates thoughtful, personal responses that reflect the guests’ sentiments and experiences. Instead of spending hours carefully wording responses, Difford and his team can now review and approve responses faster — ensuring they keep their online reputation strong without sacrificing the personal touch.
Difford says that the app can save her up to an hour and a quarter of time in thinking about what to say. “Especially when it comes to the not-so-positive reviews — you have to think carefully about how you address the guest, how you approach the issue with them, and assure them that it will be looked into. This takes a lot more brainpower and time.”
Difford highlighted the AI feature’s ability to ensure that negative feedback is not overlooked. If you ignore negative feedback, you’ll appear uncaring. The AI tool can help by suggesting thoughtful replies that demonstrate we have taken the time to fully understand and address the complaint. It’s not just about writing something — it’s about showing the guest that you care about their experience.”
The New Features Offer More Customisation
GuestRevu has developed its AI management response tool to allow for even greater customisation since Difford was involved as a beta-tester. Hoteliers can add their own instructions to the AI so that it responds in a way that is consistent with the tone, branding and messaging of each property.
The Royal St Andrews team requested this flexibility in beta testing because they knew that the responses to guest reviews would not only be for the guest who left the review but also read by potential customers. Mikhail Andrews is the Revenue Manager at Royal St Andrews. He says, “We can use them for marketing. We can add in special offers or packages.”
The Secret to Long-Term Success
Royal St Andrews, on South Africa’s Sunshine Coast, has become a destination of choice by combining AI-driven reputation management, proactive guest feedback collection and a dedication to marketing their town.
Difford says, “We could not manage our guest feedback with GuestRevu.” “It’s a great tool that saves time and increases productivity. It also ensures we engage with our guests in a meaningful way.”
And with the addition of AI management responses — now with enhanced customisation — the team now has even more time to focus on what they do best: delivering exceptional guest experiences from day one.
GuestRevu helps hoteliers worldwide to listen to, learn and earn from their guests by enabling them to leverage the power of guest intelligence to build lasting loyalty and drive revenue. GuestRevu’s mission is to give hoteliers tools they can use every day to develop a guest-centric culture in their hotels, enhance guest experience, optimise operations, and ultimately, to drive revenue using online surveys and reputation management. With their headquarters in the UK, GuestRevu is a TripAdvisor Platinum Review Collection Partner. Visit the website for more information. www.guestrevu.com
Sarah Came
GuestRevu
+27 (0)87 231 0125
GuestRevu
