Motels are a temporary resort and they often run on last minute walk-ins. Due to this, there are often circumstances where the rooms remain unoccupied during nights. Some of the common problems they face are:
– No shows: There are times when people book online or call to book their rooms but don’t turn up. This results in loss of revenues as the room remains vacant.
– Payment issues: When it comes to motels, travelers are skeptical to share their credit card details due to security reasons. This leads to uncertainty of the inventories.
Hotel reservation software for simplifying motel management
It is indeed evident that technology is widespread in the hospitality industry as it simplifies crucial processes due to its nature of automation. It brings in efficiency to the processes and eliminates dependency on manpower. Hotel reservation software for small motels helps them carry out their daily tasks with ease and transparency. Here’s looking at how it helps:
Front desk: The front desk module of the software will help the front desk executive get an instant overview of all the reservation status, pricing and available inventories. The information will be displayed in real-time as all the bookings via walk-ins, website and third party sites will be available in one screen. This process will bring in efficiency thus simplifying inventory management. It will reduce the time and effort taken by the executive that manages inventories.
Booking engine: A growing breed of motel visitors are booking online, hence it is recommended to have a booking engine integrated on your website. The software will help you receive direct bookings thereby reducing the dependency. It also gives your guests the convenience of booking online at their own liberty sans depending on travel agents or third party sites. The guests can book their preferred room before arrival and also see the rooms online. This maintains transparency for both the motel and travelers.
A mobile optimized booking engine will suit the travelers who usually stay at motels as they can make a reservation on-the-move.
Payment gateway: The booking engine comes with a secured payment gateway that ensures less uncertainty in security issues attached to making a credit card payment online. This will also help contain no-shows to some extent as you will receive confirmed bookings. You can also add an option of charging the guest an advance booking amount of 10-20% via the booking engine, thus eliminating the chances of your rooms remaining unoccupied.
Integration to send emails: Upon booking, you can configure the software to directly send confirmation mails to the guests. You can also set post departure mails for guests to take their feedback or request them for reviews.
Investing in property management software for your motel will help you handle the entire reservation process of the guests before, during and after their stay.