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An efficient booking engine
The majority of travelers book their trip online by using a booking engine. A booking engine is represented by all the technical solutions that will allow a person to book its stay directly on the property’s website. Considered as a real intermediary between the hotelier and the traveler, it provides the inventory of rooms and all the prices available in the property management software to the customer. When the booking engine is connected to the PMS, it can automate numerous tasks such as managing availabilities, online payment, customers data recovery and others. Consequently, you will be able to optimize your traveler’s booking process to make it more intuitive, simple and secure and also to generate as many bookings as possible.
In addition, 52% of travelers visit your website after having found your establishment on OTAs’ website. So why not convert them directly through your own website?
The majority of travelers book their trip online by using a booking engine. A booking engine is represented by all the technical solutions that will allow a person to book its stay directly on the property’s website. Considered as a real intermediary between the hotelier and the traveler, it provides the inventory of rooms and all the prices available in the property management software to the customer. When the booking engine is connected to the PMS, it can automate numerous tasks such as managing availabilities, online payment, customers data recovery and others. Consequently, you will be able to optimize your traveler’s booking process to make it more intuitive, simple and secure and also to generate as many bookings as possible.
In addition, 52% of travelers visit your website after having found your establishment on OTAs’ website. So why not convert them directly through your own website?
What an efficient booking engine should offer to travelers
First, an efficient booking engine should be able to simplify a traveler’s booking. This tool is ergonomic, simple, fast and intuitive, which offers the best experience possible.
The ideal booking engine should allow a person to book a room but also other elements that can improve its stay, to give the opportunity to the hotelier to increase the REVPAC.
Moreover, it’s recommended to opt for a booking engine that can integrate itself with the best property’s comparator sites and that is adaptable to different devices to be efficient.
Secure online payment must also be provided by the booking engine. Indeed, it must comply with the PCI DSS standard which protects travelers’ data during the transaction, which reassures them and helps them to proceed to payment with confidence.
When choosing your booking engine, be sure that its booking itinerary is smooth and coherent. It has to respect your property’s brand image and to highlight your rooms’ pictures accompanied by a description. This will build travelers’ confidence while strengthening your e-reputation and favoring conversion.
Furthermore, an efficient booking engine must be accessible to all, it must be compatible with several languages and currencies so that individuals wishing to make a reservation can be sure of understanding all the information. Otherwise, your establishment will encounter difficulties concerning the attraction of international guests and therefore increasing its market.
Finally it would be relevant to check whether the tool chosen allows you to integrate a customer assistance as for example an integrated chat.
What an efficient booking engine should offer to hoteliers
A booking engine must meet the needs of each hotelier. It must be able to adapt itself to your sector and to the activities of your establishment as for example by offering a schedule which includes all the particularities of your property such as bedrooms, rooms and equipment.
It must have a user-friendly interface and must allow you to update your photos and texts, to create your packages or any other items that future guests could add to their reservation.
Thus, the ideal booking engine should be able to integrate with your property management software and channel manager. This allows distribution to be managed efficiently across all channels, avoids overbooking and allows the PMS to simplify daily operations and the reservation processing.
It would be appropriate to opt for a booking engine equipped with a dashboard that allows you to analyze the property’s performance specifically to statistics related to sales and bookings, the number of visits, the conversion rate and the turnover.
It would be appropriate to opt for a booking engine equipped with a dashboard that allows you to analyze the property’s performance specifically to statistics related to sales and bookings, the number of visits, the conversion rate and the turnover.
Moreover, the automatic sending of confirmation emails or a reminder sent by SMS are essential. It is a great mean to confirm all the information relating to the booking made by a customer and to avoid no show.
Having a booking engine on your own website will help you stay competitive and increase the number of direct bookings. However, it isn’t enough to only opt for a booking engine, this tool must be as optimized as possible in order to convert users. This conversion is possible by offering a simple, smooth and secure booking experience!
