The Tariffs May Be Gone—But the Warning Was Loud and Clear

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If you’re in hospitality, you already know: the past few weeks were chaotic. Import tariffs on essential hotel hardware—including phone systems and telephones—surged up to 75% seemingly overnight. Pricing shot up. Inventory became unpredictable. And for the first time in a long time, many hotels had to hit pause on routine upgrades.

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Now that the dust is settling and tariffs are (for the moment) back to normal, there’s one clear takeaway: This isn’t over.

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Much like COVID revealed cracks in supply chains and staffing models, this tariff spike exposed something deeper: too many hotels are still dependent on outdated, hardware-heavy phone systems—and too few have a real plan for what happens when those costs explode.

If that sounds familiar, this is your window to act—before the next spike hits.

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What Just Happened—and Why It Hit Hotels So Hard

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Let’s break it down quickly:

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• A tariff is a tax on imported goods, and these recent hikes affected tech hardware.
• That meant a sudden and severe spike in prices for any property buying IT hardware, expanding, or replacing aging systems.
• Hotels were hit hard because many vendors have to pass those increases directly onto clients.

If your system depends on imported hardware with no backup plan, or a PBX infrastructure that’s costly to maintain, your budget is exposed. Even if prices seem “back to normal” now, there’s no guarantee they’ll stay that way.

3 Signs Your Vendor May Raise Prices Again

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Even if you didn’t feel this round of price hikes, here’s what to watch for:

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• Your hotel’s hardware is not maintained and supported by the vendor
  If your PBX vendor controls the equipment but the hotel is responsible for replacements or upgrades, you’re stuck when things break or prices spike. ‍
• Your system still relies on traditional PBX gear
  These parts are some of the hardest hit by tariffs and delays. ‍
• Your contract includes variable or “cost-plus” pricing
  That gives vendors permission to adjust your rates when their costs rise.

If you’re not in control of the system—or your pricing—you’re vulnerable.  

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Is Your Hotel's Phone System Putting You at Risk?

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Audit your hotel's current PBX. Before you make a change, here’s how to quickly assess your current setup. Use this checklist as a conversation starter with your team—or your hotel phone vendor:

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• Is the hardware provided, maintained and supported by the vendor?
  If not—you may be locked into rising costs or replacement delays. ‍

• Do you pay license or interface fees?
  ‍These hidden costs can stack up fast.

• ‍What happens when hardware breaks?
  Are backups available? Is support fast and helpful?

• Does your system depend on imported PBX hardware?
  If yes, you’re exposed to tariff shocks.

• Do you have cloud-based PMS integration?‍
  If not, your tech stack may be costing you more in efficiency.

• How easy is it to scale or update your setup?
  Does it take days—or minutes?

• Who do you call when something goes wrong?
  A support ticket queue? Or a real person with real answers?

 Pro Tip: Want this checklist in a printable version? Click here to download the free PDF.

What Makes Cloud-Based Systems More Stable

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Switching to a Think Simplicity VoIP phone system isn’t just a tech upgrade—it’s a strategy for resilience.  

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• No reliance on tariff-sensitive PBX hardware
  We provide, maintain and support the required hardware so if something breaks in 5 years, you’re not going to have to pay the 5-year inflated price to replace it. We take care of it.  ‍
• Flat-fee pricing for predictable budgets
  No license fees. No surprise markups. Just one flat-fee, fully managed service. ‍
• Faster installs and smart support
  We ship required hardware directly to your site, and one of our techs will switch everything over for you—quickly and smoothly, and WE support it before, during, and after the installation.  

If something breaks? We have backups ready to go and we handle all maintenance for you. (Most problems come from accidental unplugging—we’ve seen it all.)

Think Simplicity = No Surprises, Just Simplicity

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We own the hardware.

We support it.

We back it up.

And we show up when you need us.

Whether you run a single hotel or 15, Think Simplicity was built to give hoteliers more control—with no surprises.

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You deserve a phone system that seamlessly integrates with your tools—like your PMS—without extra costs or clunky workarounds.

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You deserve a fully managed phone system that just works.

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Here's How Hotels Are Locking in Stability (Before Costs Spike Again)

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Protect your hotel—now, not later:

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• Download the free checklist to audit your current PBX system
• Book a quick call with our team—we’ll walk through your audit and share how other hotels are locking in stability now

This isn’t a sales pitch. It’s a wake-up call—and a smarter way forward.

If you’re still relying on outdated PBX infrastructure, now is the time to explore a communication system built specifically for hotels—backed by a partner who owns, manages, and maintains it all.

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