// MARRIOTT BELLHOP_
// OVERVIEW
FOR PEOPLE WITH SPECIAL NEEDS OR HANDICAPS, TRAVELING WITHOUT A RELIABLE COMPANION CAN BE VERY DIFFICULT. TO HELP MAKE TRAVEL MORE ACCESSIBLE FOR EVERYONE, WE CREATED “BELLHOP,” A VOICE-ACTIVATED, IN-ROOM CONCIERGE BUILT ON THE AMAZON ALEXA PLATFORM. BELLHOP LETS GUESTS VERBALLY CONTROL THEIR ROOM & GET THE MOST OUT OF THEIR STAY. THEY CAN MAKE RESTAURANT RESERVATIONS, CONTROL THE ROOM’S TEMPERATURE, CHANGE THE LIGHTING, SET WAKE-UP CALLS, ACCESS ENTERTAINMENT, RETRIEVE HOTEL INFORMATION & MORE. MOST IMPORTANTLY, BELLHOP LETS GUESTS REPORT EMERGENCIES & CALL FOR HELP WHENEVER THEY NEED IT.
— BELLHOP EXPERIENCE WALKTHROUGH —
// BACKGROUND
IN LATE 2016, THE CM INNOVATION GROUP STARTED EXPERIMENTING WITH VOICE & AI PLATFORMS. AS A RESULT, OUR TEAM DEVELOPED BELLHOP DURING OUR DOWN TIME OF THAT HOLIDAY SEASON. AMAZON HAD JUST MADE A SERIES OF UPDATES TO THE ECHO & ALEXA. SO WE TOOK THAT MOMENT AS AN OPPORTUNITY TO BEGIN EXPLORING VOICE-INTERACTION, SPEECH RECOGNITION & NATURAL LANGUAGE PROCESSING. OUR GOAL WAS TO BUILD A WORKING PROTOTYPE SPECIFICALLY FOR OUR MARRIOTT CLIENT, DEMONSTRATING HOW VOICE & AI COULD HELP IMPROVE A VISUALLY IMPAIRED GUEST'S HOTEL EXPERIENCE. WE HAD 6 WEEKS TO BUILD A FULLY FUNCTIONAL PROTOTYPED EXPERIENCE AS A FINAL DELIVERABLE.
I ASSISTED THE EXEC TEAM TO DEFINE THE CREATIVE BRIEF, CONCEPT & EXPERIENCE, ALSO LED A SMALL IN-HOUSE TEAM CONSISTING OF UX, DESIGN & DEVELOPMENT.
// DESIGN
WE DEVELOPED A MINIMAL TV INTERFACE TO COMPLIMENT & SUPPORT THE VOICE-LED INTERACTIONS. THIS SERVED AS AN ONBOARDING TOOL & ALSO AS A FAIL-SAFE METHOD TO ENSURE THE GUEST WOULD ALWAYS HAVE A VISUAL REFERENCE TO REMAIN ENGAGED THROUGHOUT.
— BELLHOP SCREENS —
// BEYOND THE PROTOTYPE
IN EARLY 2017, WE SUCCESSFULLY DEMONSTRATED OUR BELLHOP EXPERIENCE PROTOTYPE TO A GROUP OF KEY STAKEHOLDERS WITHIN THE MARRIOTT & STARWOOD HOTELS TEAM. IT GAINED ENOUGH INTEREST & TRACTION WITHIN THE ORGANIZATION THAT THEY DECIDED TO MOVE FURTHER DEVELOPMENT IN-HOUSE. A YEAR LATER, MARRIOTT ANNOUNCED A PARTNERSHIP WITH AMAZON TO ROLLING OUT AN INTEGRATION OF ALEXA WITHIN A SELECT ROSTER OF THEIR HOTEL PROPERTIES.
THE MOST GRATIFYING MOMENT FOR US WAS KNOWING THAT BELLHOP WAS THE CATALYST OF THIS MOVEMENT WITHIN THE MARRIOTT ORGANIZATION. PROVING PROTOTYPES AS INVALUABLE & ESSENTIAL TO GET THE RIGHT PEOPLE ON BOARD & MAKE THINGS HAPPEN.
// PROJECT DETAILS
CLIENT_
MARRIOTT/STARWOOD
AGENCY_
CRITICAL MASS
TIMELINE_
6 WEEKS
// CREDITS
EXEC TEAM_
CONOR BRADY, CCO
GRANT OWENS, CSO
CREATIVE DIRECTION_
PRISCILLA GOMEZ
RICKY BACON
CONCEPT & STRATEGY_
RICKY BACON
SEAN KELLY
PRISCILLA GOMEZ
AD, DESIGN, MOTION_
PRISCILLA GOMEZ
SEAN KELLY
DEVELOPMENT_
ANTHONY TERRUSO
JOSHUA JAFFE
COPY_
GEOFF ROECKER