The earlier blogs focused on Google’s first two stages of the travel; dreaming and researching. These are the stages where your travelers have heard about a destination and are in the researching phase. The blogs highlighted the importance of attracting these travelers through various online channels.
Moving ahead to the third stage – where the traveler starts planning his stay and is looking on all online channels to make a booking. This is stage where hotels should use the power of technology in reaching out to travelers through online channels and eventually make them book your hotel.
Travelers are comparing hotels… are you there?
Once the travelers have finalized on a destination, they look at comparing hotel prices before booking the room. So, are you present where your traveler is booking and giving them all the reasons to book?
Since the guest experience first begins from the time the traveler comes across your hotel information through online search, review sites or online travel agents, what matters is -how your hotel information is presented, the ease of accessing information and booking. All these factors contribute to guest experience and go a long way in attracting and acquiring more guests.
1. How technology helps in attracting more guests
a. Makes you available where travelers are searching
New-age technology such as cloud based property management system play a large role in attracting and acquiring guests from all geographies. It helps hotels by offering a seamless process and eliminating errors and friction
A PMS with distribution technology lets you be available where the travelers are researching. With various Channel Managers available to integrate with, such a system will help your hotel be available on maximum online channels where the traveler is looking – OTAs, TripAdvisor, Social Media and more.
b. Aids image distribution
While the traveler is browsing through the hotel information; visuals play a big role and can have an immediate impact on the travelers’ decision-making process. 67% travelers feel they consider clear, detailed images than simple room description and guest reviews. (Source: IcePortal).
Optimized and high-resolution images are advisable and with the help of Channel Manager with a PMS, hotels can seamlessly distribute images across all channels. TripAdvisor’s research reveals that travelers are 150% more engaged with listings that have more than 20 photos than with properties that have only a few.
Refer to this hotel that has filled it up its profile with pictures of the hotel, rooms and nearby attractions to attract maximum travelers.
c. Helps in influencing new travelers
Technology can again contribute in keeping the guest engaged and gathering feedback and reviews. This can be possible if a PMS is integrated with email marketing and review collection services. Technology allows hotels to create customized emails to promote offers and other deals that can again attract an existing guest to return or help them refer friends. Reviews collected from existing guests using technology like Review Express helps in building online reputation and credibility for the hotel, and influencing the travelers who are about to book.
2. How technology helps in acquiring more guests
a. Provides booking on every source
It’s important to not only make your hotel discoverable by travelers but also bookable. A cloud based property management system acts as a catalyst in this phase of acquiring guests. It provides a complete ecosystem that lets travelers make bookings on every source – direct website, mobile website, Facebook, OTAs and even TripAdvisor.
b. Enhances direct bookings
52% travelers visit your hotel’s website after going through the OTAs. Hotels can get more direct conversions with a booking engine integration on their website and Facebook pages. A booking engine can increase conversions and reduce dropouts, so that your hotel can decrease the dependency on OTAs. (Also Read: 8 must-haves in a hotel’s web booking engine)
c. Caters to demands of the smart generation
Smartphones are gaining momentum and with statistics showing more and more travelers planning travel on mobile, technology gives an edge to the hoteliers by allowing direct mobile bookings through mobile-friendly booking engine on the hotel website.(Also read: 5 things your hotel should not ignore about mobile bookings)
3. How technology helps in setting the right room price
Price is one of the key factors that decides whether the traveler chooses your hotel or the competitor’s. With the help of a Revenue management system integrated into your PMS, hotels can set their pricing strategies based on market and competitor analysis.
Also, a Unified Distribution Solution will help hoteliers manage prices in real-time, thereby, avoiding issues like rate parity, double bookings and delay in booking confirmation.
Technology like cloud-based PMS not only helps hotels in attracting and acquiring guests but can also plays a role in providing a satisfying guest experience, automating crucial operations, reducing dependency on staff, and increasing revenue.
Learn more about how your hotel can optimize all sources of acquiring guests