28 Jun B&B Technology: 4 basic functions your property needs
As progress is being made, the hotel industry comes repeatedly under “attacks” of innovative technologies. As a hotel/B&B owner you need therefore to know your way around amongst the several options available and invest in the best tools for your business.
So, here are 4 focal technologies for managing your B&B:
1. Home automation door unlocking app.
There are commercial applications for smartphones and other mobile devices that allow users to check in bypassing the hotel reception and then opening the door to their room by simply pressing an icon on their device. An example if this is the recent app for smartphones called OpenWays: a real key on your mobile phone. The system, after having confirmed the reservation validity, provides the customer with a virtual key that is encrypted to enter the room.
2. Design responsive and user-friendly site
Your website is a fundamental tool in your online marketing plan. Any marketing or advertising effort is useless if you don’t have an easy-to-use website that encourages visits and bookings. With a responsive and optimized site, you can also accept bookings from “mobile” users, boosting your chances of being reached and increasing your hotel occupancy.
Consider offering to your users a 360° view of your property through a neat layout and high definitions images or videos. At last, remember that SEO strategies must be used to make your website visible to the final target, but it’s also necessary to embed such functions as call-to-action and landing pages which may transform visitors into customers.
3. Channel Manager
As you know, a proper hotel management also includes updating hotel information, rates and room availability across all distribution channels such as hotel websites, third party (OTA, IDS, ADS) and CRS / GDS.
Using a Channel Manager will simplify your task, allowing you to control multiple channels at a time.
But also Channel Managers don’t look all the same…
Those with basic functions, for example, do not allow the management of online channels in real time, and, in any case, require manual loading on some OTAs.
Parity Rate Channel Manager solves all the booking problems you may encounter daily on your online booking system in a permanent and instant way.
4. Booking engine system
Well yes, the days when guests were willing to call you to book a room or wait for a confirmation email from your staff have passed.
In 2017, you have to think about investing in a booking engine system that will manage your resources effectively and automatically incorporate the latest reservations for your rooms.
A booking engine will also allow you receive direct bookings from your website, immediately updating your system with the latest information regarding its bookings.
It’s an on-line booking tool that eliminates agency costs and maximizes the number of direct bookings on the official website.
As you surely know, a significant percentage of visitors on your site have booked rooms through online distribution and sale channels. But don’t you know that they could have booked directly on your website if just they had been allowed to do so? You wouldn’t even have to pay the commission for each booking!
Using Parity Rate booking engine is the ideal solution. It is available as a fully functional and integrated online service directly on your homepage: this allows you to break down commissions managing your bookings automatically.
Easy, isn’t it?
No Comments