The questions people actually ask us.
The ones that reach us by phone and by email, gathered by topic and answered in full.
How it answers
What is a digital concierge?
It is a virtual assistant that takes the place of the printed guide in the room and of the question at the desk. The guest writes to it in their own language, it answers with your property's own information, and when a request needs a person it sends it to the right team. You get there from the QR code in the room, in the phone's browser.
What is the difference between ConSergio and a chatbot?
A chatbot answers and stops there. ConSergio sees things through: it books the transfer, sends the late check-out request to the team that handles it, and shows the guest the status moving along until it is done. And the answers come from the content you loaded, plus the outside sources you decide to switch on.
If the assistant gives out wrong information, who is responsible?
The answers are written by an artificial intelligence model working from your content, and like any system of this kind it can get things wrong: the terms of service say so, and they also say what we guarantee and what we do not. In practice two things stay with you. Keeping the content up to date, because a wrong time in the dashboard becomes a wrong time in the chat, and that is where you fix it. And not handing it the information someone's health depends on, such as allergens, intolerances and medication: for those, the guest needs to talk to a person.
When does the assistant look beyond my content?
Only if you switch it on, in the settings, under search across outside sources. There you choose what for: restaurants, attractions, transport, events, shops. You also set the radius and which websites to allow or leave out. And even when it is on, the assistant only uses it when the answer is not in your content. When an answer uses an outside result, the link it comes from sits right next to it, so the guest knows you did not write it and can check it.
How does it know how my place works?
With what you gave it: your unit's instructions, the timings, the places you recommend. On how the house works it does not improvise, so it will not tell your guests about things your place does not have. For what lies beyond the front door it can also look up restaurants and events nearby, if you switch on the search across outside sources, and next to the answer the guest finds the link it came from.
And if a guest asks something it cannot answer?
It does not make anything up: it says so and passes the request to you, with what was asked and which unit it came from. Those questions also land in the history, so you can see what your guide is missing and add it once and for all.
Do I have to stay glued to my phone?
No, it is the other way round. The recurring questions close in chat without reaching you, and a notification comes only for what needs a person: a leak, a code that will not work, a change of time.
What happens to requests that come in at night?
They stay on the board until somebody picks them up. Whoever comes in the next morning finds the new column already full, with the room, the language and the time of each request, instead of piecing the night together from scraps of paper.
When a guest books in the chat, who confirms?
Your staff. The assistant first asks the guest whether to go ahead, then sends the request to the board and tells them the property will get back to them. If the restaurant is outside, the phone call is made by whoever picks up the request, as it is today. The guest follows the status in the app until it is done, so they know when the table is theirs.
The entertainment programme changes every day: can I update it myself?
Yes, and it updates at the source. The assistant answers with the content you loaded, so you change the programme in the dashboard and from that moment it is what guests are told, in whatever language they ask. Anyone with the chat already open reads the new version from their next message.
Can I correct an answer I am not happy with?
Yes, and you correct it at the source: the assistant answers with the content you gave it, so you change the information in the dashboard and from then on it answers the new way. The history also shows you the questions that went unanswered, which are the gaps to fill.
From the guest's side
Does the guest have to pay or sign up?
Never. The guest pays nothing in the system and does not have to register or hand over personal data. The price you give a service is what the guest sees before asking for it, and once the request is done it goes into your statistics and onto the room's bill you see at check-out. Collecting the money stays with you, the way you do it today.
Can someone who took a photo of the QR code still use it after check-out?
If you switch nothing on, yes: the QR code is an address, and whoever has it can open the chat. That is what guest access protection is for, in the guest app settings: chat and requests then ask for the confirmation code of the current stay, which you give the guest, changes with every stay and expires a few hours after check-out. After five wrong attempts it locks for a while. The information pages stay open, so if your entrance code changes with every guest, save it as an “assistant only” document: the chat uses it, and it never shows on the pages. And no single person can burn through your messages: the chat stops anyone writing in bursts, and you can lower the monthly ceiling whenever you like.
Can the guest book a room from the chat?
It depends on which chat. In the app, during the stay, no: there the guest asks questions and books the services, from the spa to the transfer. From the widget on the property's website, visitors see the free rooms for their dates and send a booking request, which lands in the dashboard for your staff to confirm. The widget comes with Reservations on the Plus and Premium plans.
Doesn't it take away the relationship with guests?
It takes away the questions you answer on autopilot, the ones that keep you on the phone while your guests are at the table. The time that frees up goes back where it belongs, which is with them.
Does the QR code work on the pitch too, where the Wi-Fi does not reach?
Yes. The chat is a web page that opens in the phone's browser, so it works over the campsite Wi-Fi just as it does over the guest's own data: one of the two is enough. If your Wi-Fi only covers the common areas, the QR code on the pitch post is still worth having.
And if there is no phone signal at the hut?
Then ConSergio is not for you, and we would rather say so now. The guest scans the QR code after check-in and opens a page in the phone's browser, so a connection is needed: the hut's Wi-Fi is enough, and where there is mobile signal that is enough. Where there is neither, there is nothing to run, and the subscription would just sit there.
How many languages does the assistant answer in?
In whatever language the guest writes in, and that is more than fifty: it translates your content on its own as it answers. Six, on the other hand, are the languages of the guest app's interface and of the content you can upload: Italian, English, German, French, Spanish and Dutch.
Does the guest have to download anything?
No. They scan the QR code and the chat opens in the phone's browser, the same way on iPhone and on Android.
And if the guest does not scan the QR code?
The QR code is a shortcut to a web address, and you can also write that address on a card or send it by message at check-in. Anyone who would rather ask in person carries on doing exactly that.
Setting your property up
I have more than one flat: do I have to set them up one by one?
Whatever holds for every unit you write once. For each flat, what is left is only what genuinely differs: the entrance code, where to park, how the heating comes on. The house guide, if you have it written down, you upload, and the assistant searches inside it when a guest asks.
Do I have to write all the local recommendations myself?
Write the ones you actually give: the winery you send guests to, the path that starts behind the house, the market times. You write them once in your own language and they are told to each arriving guest in theirs, without you translating anything.
Where do I put the QR code if I have no rooms?
Wherever the guest goes: on the pitch post, at reception by the entrance, on the bar counter, inside the mobile homes. You generate them from the dashboard, one per pitch or common area, and print them however you like. It is still one property, because the fee is per property and not per pitch.
How long before my property is up and running?
The account opens in 5 minutes. The rest depends on how much you want the assistant to know: you can add services, timings and information a bit at a time. The documents you already have you upload from the dashboard, and the assistant indexes them to answer.
Who prepares the room QR codes?
You generate them from the dashboard, one per room or common area, and print them however you like. Some put them on a card on the bedside table, others have them engraved on a plate by the door.
Do I need somebody technical to set it up?
No. You open the account, fill in your property's details and print the first QR code. There is nothing to install, in the rooms or on the front-desk computer.
Can the app the guest sees carry my logo and my colours?
Yes. Among the styling settings you pick the one closest to your property, and you preview them before deciding. Then you upload your logo, which appears in the header in place of the name alone, and a cover image for the opening screen. The choice applies to every room and you can change it whenever you want.
Are there properties this makes no sense for?
Yes. If your guests ask few questions and ask them in person without it weighing on you, a digital concierge only adds one more thing to think about. It earns its place when the same questions come back every day, arrive out of hours, or arrive in a language you do not speak.
Can I see it working before I sign up?
Yes, and without asking anybody: the demo is open and you get in from your browser, exactly as one of your guests would. To see the property side as well, the board and the statistics, twenty minutes with us is enough. There is no free trial on your own property, though: when you sign up you pay for the first year, and you can cancel the renewal whenever you like.
Staff, systems and numbers
Do I have to change the property management system we use?
No. ConSergio works alongside what you already have: it takes care of the conversation with the guest and the requests that come out of it, while rooms and rates stay in your system. Where the integration provides for it, the two systems exchange the information they need, and we tell you what connects in your case as soon as we know which one you use. If you have no system at all, you can keep everything in ConSergio with Reservations, the bookings module.
Which of the staff can see the requests?
Whoever you decide. Roles separate what the owner sees from what the front desk sees, so whoever is at the desk has the requests to deal with in front of them without also getting at the financial figures.
How do I get notified about a request?
As a browser push notification, on the phone or computer where you switched it on from the dashboard, which you can also install as an app. It arrives even with the dashboard closed, to everyone who would see that request on their board, team by team. On iPhone and iPad the dashboard has to be added to the Home Screen first. Text messages and phone calls, no: if you want to be woken up at night for a leak, put your number among the contacts in the guest app, and the guest can call you with one tap.
Do requests also come in from WhatsApp or email?
No, they come from the guest app: from the chat with the assistant and from the service catalogue, which the guest opens from the QR code. With Reservations you also get booking requests from the widget on your website, which reach you by email as well. Your property's WhatsApp number and phone can go among the contacts in the app: the guest finds them there, and those messages stay off the board.
How do I know whether the extras are paying off?
Every offer leaves a trace: how many the guest saw and how many they accepted. At the end of the month you see what the transfer brought in, what the spa brought in, and which services nobody asks for. Those are the numbers for deciding what to push and what to drop.
Could I end up taking two bookings for the same room?
Inside ConSergio, no: there is one availability, and a taken room shows as taken to anyone looking at the dashboard. The risk sits between ConSergio and the portals. Dates sold on the portals come in via iCal once an hour, and if in the meantime you had already sold that night yourself, the booking does not go in: it shows up as a conflict in the dashboard, and you decide which one to keep. In the other direction iCal carries nothing, so the nights you sell in ConSergio you close by hand on the portals.
Does it work for a farm stay as well?
Yes. Out in the country the questions belong to the season and the place: what time dinner is, where to park the van, whether the path behind the house takes a pushchair. The digital concierge tells them in the language of whoever is asking, even while you are among the tables.
I run a bed and breakfast with four rooms: isn't this too much for me?
No, it is the size it was built for. A small B&B has no front desk, so the questions all land on your phone, at any hour. ConSergio takes them: you write the breakfast times and the places you recommend once, and from there it answers in the language of whoever asks. The smallest plan covers properties with up to 5 rooms.
How do you end up selling more services during the stay?
By offering them at the moment they are actually wanted. The guest asks what time breakfast is and hears that there is a shuttle to the centre at nine: the booking starts there, inside the conversation. It is the upselling you would do out loud at the desk, done with every guest and at any hour.
Can I give all the staff access?
Yes. Each person signs in with their own account and the role you give them, Owner or Front desk, and on top of the role they can be assigned to a team, so the kitchen's requests do not end up mixed in with maintenance.
What it costs, and for how long
What does a digital concierge cost, and what do I commit to?
The fee is yearly, one per property, with the AI concierge in every plan. The amount depends on the country your property is in, and the pricing page shows it for yours. The commitment is one year: you pay for it when you start, and you can cancel the renewal whenever you want.
Does the price change if I have more rooms?
The fee is per property, not per room: you do not pay per room. The number of rooms does decide which plan you can activate, though (up to 5 rooms Essential, up to 20 Plus, above that Premium), so with 8 rooms the smallest plan is Plus.
What counts as a message?
Each question the assistant answers counts as one, question and answer together. So does every request sent from the service catalogue, which is never turned down, not even at the ceiling. A search across outside sources (restaurants, events, things to do nearby) counts as three, because it costs more. There is a single counter, and messages from the widget on your website go through it too, if you use it.
What happens if I run out of messages for the month?
We email you when you get close to the ceiling, and again when you reach it. From then on the assistant pauses until the monthly count starts again, and tells the guest so, pointing them to the reception and to the service catalogue, which always stays on. If you would rather not wait, you can move up a plan, and the new ceiling applies straight away. On Premium you can instead authorise paid extra usage in blocks and carry on in the rooms, with a spending cap you set yourself (the widget on your website stops at the included ceiling, though).
How long do conversations stay available?
It depends on the plan: 30 days on Essential, 12 months on Plus, 24 months on Premium. The history is there to show you what your guests ask, and which questions went unanswered. Conversations stay without the guest's name: your staff records the stay with room and dates, Reservations or not, and a few hours after check-out the name is deleted. If you do not record the stay, the chat stays tied to the room and there is no name to delete.
Can I change plan later?
Yes, at any time and in both directions. Start on Essential and move up when you need more messages, more rooms or a longer history.
What does + Reservations add to a plan?
Reservations is the bookings module: the room-by-room calendar, rates by period, stay restrictions and booked dates from the portals, imported via iCal. It adds on to the Concierge on any plan and only changes the yearly fee, which the pricing page shows when you pick “Concierge + Reservations”. Rooms, messages and history stay those of the plan. If you already have a booking system and it suits you, you can do without it.
Is the booking widget in every plan?
No. The booking widget and the AI assistant for your website come with Reservations on the Plus and Premium plans. On Essential + Reservations you get the calendar, rates and availability, without bookings from your website.
I have a restaurant, a beach and a pool: do they count as separate properties?
No, a holiday park is one property and the fee is per property. The service points become entries in the catalogue and teams to route requests to. What changes as you move up a plan is how much you use it: the messages included each month and the features that come with it.
I have a single hut: does the fee make sense?
The Essential plan is meant for properties with up to 5 rooms and includes the multilingual concierge. The fee is yearly, and the pricing page shows the amount for your country. If you only open for a few months, do the sums on the whole year: the fee does not pause while you are closed.
What happens if I want to stop?
You cancel the renewal whenever you like, from your own area. The year you have paid for is still yours: the service runs until it expires, and from then on we charge you nothing more. There is no upfront investment to write off, and whatever you loaded you export from the dashboard before you leave.
My property closes for the winter: can I pause the subscription?
No: the fee is yearly, and it covers the months the property is closed as well. In the meantime the content stays where it is: when you reopen you find services, timings, answers and QR codes as you left them, and the first guest of the season finds everything ready. If you only open for a few months a year, set the fee for the whole year against your season before you start.
How is the fee paid?
By card, charged automatically when you start and then at each yearly renewal. The invoice arrives by email, made out to your property.
I have two properties: do I need two subscriptions?
Yes, the fee is per property, so two properties are two subscriptions. Since you run both, one login switches you between them.
Us and your guests' data
Who is behind ConSergio?
DevInterface SRL, a software house in Bussolengo, in the province of Verona. It is not somebody else's product that we resell: we write it and maintain it here, so whoever answers the phone works at the same company that built the software.
Where does my guests' data live?
On servers in the European Union. Three providers based in the United States sit outside the Union: OpenAI's model, which receives the question and the extracts it needs to answer, the service that sends the emails for Reservations and online check-in, and the network that protects the traffic to the platform. With the Concierge, we collect no personal data about your guests at all: opening the chat takes a scan of the QR code, with no sign-up and no contact details left behind. With online check-in the identity details are there, encrypted, and they are deleted within two hours of Alloggiati Web accepting the record.
If something goes wrong, who do I talk to?
With us. Support comes from the people who build the product, not from a third party: write to info@consergio.ai or call the number below. The Premium plan also includes hands-on help with setup.
Does my property's content train the artificial intelligence?
No. The model receives the guest's question and the extracts of your content needed to answer it, and uses them to compose that one answer. The business APIs we work with rule out using that data for training, and that is what the contract provides for, not a box somebody here has to remember to tick.
I need the DPA for my record of processing activities. Where do I find it?
It is public, with the list of sub-processors and security measures at the end: you can read it and download it at app.consergio.ai/legal/dpa, and it is the same document you accept when you register the property. If you need a signed copy write to info@consergio.ai.
Who is the data controller for my guests' data?
Your property. The content you upload and the conversations your guests have with the assistant stay yours, and we process them to make the service work for you: in GDPR terms you are the controller and we are the processor. The data processing agreement is what puts that in writing.
If your question is not here, ask us.
Write to info@consergio.ai or call the number at the foot of the page. The questions that reach us end up in here, so yours helps whoever reads after you.
A good many of the questions come down to price: see the three plans