What to Look for In a Hotel Management Software

In today’s day and age, people are always looking to travel to new locations for work and play. Today’s traveler is also looking for the ease that modern technology has provided us in many other areas of our lives to be present in their hotel experience as well.

In addition to the guest’s desires, hotel owners and staff are working in an increasingly competitive market. Prospective guests can easily search the Internet to find everything they need to know about your hotel. That’s why it’s critical to ensure your hotel is providing a top-notch experience, from check-in to check-out, for each guest.

Managing so many moving parts all at once can make even the day-to-day operations of a hotel stressful. Hotel management software (otherwise known as a PMS, or property management system) can help you centralize all hotel operations, giving your staff important tools to improve their performance and providing your guests with a much more seamless experience at your hotel.

Investing in a hotel management software system for your hotel can increase revenue, decrease customer dissatisfaction, and optimize everyday operations.

What Is Hotel Management Software?

Hotel management software helps centralize and facilitate the function of many essential hotel operations. Hospitality management software can centralize and automate many tasks across several departments, including online bookings, check-in and check-out procedures, guest information, housekeeping tasks, accounts billable and payable, and much more.

For example, one of the benefits of PMS in hotels is that housekeeping can clean more efficiently. With remotely accessible hotel PMS software, housekeepers can mark rooms that are being cleaned in real-time, which updates throughout the system. This means the staff member at the front desk can easily see what rooms are being cleaned and which are done, without needing to get a hold of housekeeping. This enables housekeepers to work more efficiently and allows the front desk staff to provide a better experience for guests.

The hospitality property management system also tracks key data of your hotel over time, creating KPIs that management can use to assess the business performance and set new goals. Hotel PMS systems can create reports from this data for your use!

Overall, there is no department in a hotel business that wouldn’t benefit from hospitality management software.

Differences between Legacy and Cloud-Based Software

When deciding which kind of hotel management software to invest in, you’ll have three options presented to you. Some PMS advantages can only be found with cloud-based software, so it’s important to understand your options.

The three kinds of hotel management systems currently available are:

On-premise (server based) PMS. This type of PMS is typically installed using a local server at the hotel level and can be accessed by staff using desktop computers that are hooked up to the main server. This is considered a legacy system.
Web-native cloud-based hotel PMS. This kind of PMS can be accessed from anywhere, anytime using the web or mobile phone. It is hosted on a cloud (no server necessary). As compared to the others, this offers much more room for remote access and other features.

Legacy systems offer certain perks, the licensing is the hotel owners to keep, and they do have a stake in their software. However, legacy systems can be expensive to maintain. Without the robust power of cloud-based technology, hotel owners will need to pay for fees, updates, and licensing with legacy systems, as well as hire and compensate a dedicated IT person for this.

These systems run using servers that must be on the premises, so the hotel management will also need to pay for a server to be installed and maintained. The cost of ownership here is high and comes with few benefits other than being able to say you own your servers and systems.

With a cloud-based hotel PMS, you do not have to worry about the cost of ownership. There are no servers involved as this type of hotel management system is all powered by the cloud. Servers take up money and space, so this is attractive to most.

Plus, you will not need to hire a dedicated IT professional for a cloud-based PMS. The updates for cloud-based PMS typically are completely free to hotel ownership, too. Without needing to rely on a server, this PMS also allows you and your staff to access it from many devices, like a phone or a tablet, reducing the need for costly desktops and allowing your staff to work while on the move throughout the property!

Why Do Hotels Need a Cloud-Based PMS Software?

Web-based hotel management has many perks. Apart from the low ongoing costs explained in the previous paragraph, cloud-based hospitality systems offer a lot more than money saved. Cloud-based PMS software allows total freedom for guests and employees.

Labor is one of the most expensive parts of running a successful hotel, and you want to make sure your employees’ time and workload are being optimized. With a cloud-based hotel management system, your employees can access the software from their smartphones, tablet, or laptop. This allows for faster and more efficient internal communications. Housekeepers can be marking down what rooms are ready and the front desk can see this in real-time. Conversely, the front desk can mark who has checked in and who has not, enabling housekeeping to prioritize new tasks as needed.

Apart from maximizing your on-site team, the cloud-based property management system allows your guests to have a more pleasurable experience. Cloud-based hotel management systems can allow your guests to sign in digitally – either via kiosks in-house or even on their mobile devices. The freedom to check in when convenient for the guest will boost their satisfaction. Plus, it lowers the workload expected from the front desk staff.

Cloud-based PMS software simultaneously improves the guest and employee experience, while maximizing operating efficiency and creating revenue. You save on the costs that are typically associated with legacy programs by picking cloud-based PMS as well.

Features and Benefits of a Good PMS

Looking for the right PMS for your hotel? From large hotels to small hotels, hospitality management software can help you reach your goals and improve daily operations.

When looking for an outstanding PMS software, you should look for the following:

Cross-functionality features that can integrate with online listings through OTAs and update listings on third-party OTAs in real-time. This is also known as a channel manager.
Can integrate with multiple POS systems on property (such as restaurants, bars, shops, spas, etc.) and add these purchases to the guest’s main hotel invoice for seamless billing
Sync the accounting system and automate billing. Ensure no errors with POS outlet integration and seamless automation of billing.
Provides mobile accessibility for on-site staff so they can access this integral software wherever they are on the property, from their phone or tablet.
Provides real-time information flow between all departments, from management and housekeeping to marketing and sales.
Aggregates data to provide reports and KPIs about the hotel’s performance.

How Hotelogix Fits the Bill

At Hotelogix, we provide a fully capable and cloud-based PMS software to fit all your hotel’s unique needs.

Some of the key features of our robust cloud-based hotel management software at Hotelogix are:

‘Front desk’ management – This portion of our software lets front desk staff multitask between many different tasks with ease. Check-ins and check-outs, group bookings, confirmation emails for new bookings, and follow-ups for pending arrivals or deposits can all be managed and automated here. This reduces the risk of human error and ultimately improves the guest experience!
Unlimited POS outlets – Hotelogix’s cloud-based POS software system lets you manage and bill guests for a wide variety of purchasable items or services at your property, such as shops or restaurants, by letting you integrate unlimited ‘point of sale’ outlets. These POS outlets are integrated into one invoice for the guest.
Housekeeping – Hotelogix housekeeping software works in synchronization with our ‘front desk’ management. With this integration, you can improve efficiency and communication between internal departments and have better insight into housekeeping operations. This function also allows you to assign certain rooms or tasks to staff members of your choice, making it easier to manage these teams.
KPIs and reports – Hotelogix PMS can generate over 100 management system reports. These reports are based on unique data about your property and can give management better insight into trends and the ability to plan future goals backed by real data.
Hotelogix Mobile PMS– Allow your staff to go mobile with our app designed for remote use. With this app, all the robust information on the PMS can be accessed from a phone, tablet, or laptop.

Conclusion

Investing in multifaceted PMS software for your property has never been more important! It can help your property save time and money, satisfy guests, and keep employees on task. Interested in learning more about Hotelogix PMS software solutions? Contact us for a demonstration.