Every successful hotel manager has a well-developed distribution strategy that allows them to sell as many rooms as possible and keep revenue at high levels at all times. But without an efficient channel manager, which removes the need for manual work and reduces the number of double bookings, this is hardly possible. This means that increasing the positive influence of your channel manager is essential to your business. Here’s how you can do it.
Make use of automatic availability updates
No matter what kind of channel manager you use, it has to be connected to a property management system >that shows the availability of your property in real time. Otherwise, you will often have to deal with double bookings and you know what a mess they can be. In addition the chances of dealing with unhappy and outright upset customers are significantly increased. If your channel manager or PMS does not come with this functionality, then maybe it is time to consider a change.
Increase the number of channels
More is not always better but in the hospitality industry this is exactly the case. Just like with OTAs, you cannot limit yourself to having only a few channels, through which to sell rooms. Increasing the number of channels you work with should be a major point in your growth strategy. This will eliminate dependencies, increase the number of bookings you get, allow you to have a better view on your performance and discover new ways to attract more guests at your property. The end effect will be higher revenue, growth and tons of happy guests that will spread the word about you.
Show flexibility in bookings
Your property will be visited by all kinds of people - retirees, young couples, lone travellers, businessmen, families with kids, adventurers, etc. They all have different preferences so you should offer flexibility when it comes to bookings. To meet demand in the best way possible you should study the habits of visitors and then keep some of your rooms in reserve to answer specific requirements, which are sure to occur. Next, use your channel manager to make these rooms known to the world.
Ensure great system integration
This is perhaps the most important thing you can do about your property. The channel manager you use should be fully integrated with your property management system. On the other hand your PMS should be rich in useful features that will allow you to run your hotel most efficiently. Lack of integration is not to be allowed since this will lead to
- Ineffective use of resources
- Wasted time
- Worse customer service
- Loss of money
What needs to be done is to ensure that all features of your PMS work in synchrony, which will lead to excellent long-term results.
Having an efficient channel manager is of great importance to you and your hotel business. It will allow you to increase the number of bookings you get and help you sell more rooms, raise your revenue, discover more market segments and ultimately take your property to an entirely new level. In other words an efficient channel manager is your fast lane to success.