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Category: Channel Manager

Channel Manager – A crucial technology solution for hotels

Posted on by adminBooking

A Channel Manager is a crucial technology solution for hotels, especially in the context of managing online distribution across various booking channels. Here are the benefits of using a Channel Manager in the hotel industry:

1. Real-Time Inventory Management:

  • Prevents Overbookings: A Channel Manager ensures that room availability is automatically updated across all connected channels in real-time, reducing the risk of overbooking.

2. Efficient Rate Management:

  • Dynamic Pricing: Allows hotels to implement dynamic pricing strategies, adjusting rates based on demand, seasons, and other factors to optimize revenue.
  • Rate Parity: Ensures consistent room rates across different online channels to maintain rate parity.

3. Broad Distribution Network:

  • Wider Reach: Enables hotels to expand their reach by connecting to various online travel agencies (OTAs), global distribution systems (GDS), and other booking platforms.

4. Time and Cost Efficiency:

  • Automation of Updates: Saves time by automating the distribution of rates and inventory updates to multiple channels simultaneously.
  • Reduces Manual Errors: Minimizes the risk of manual errors associated with manual updates across multiple platforms.

5. Centralized Control:

  • Single Dashboard: Provides a centralized dashboard for managing rates, availability, and bookings across all connected channels.
  • Consistent Information: Ensures consistency in information displayed on different booking platforms.

6. Optimized Occupancy and Revenue:

  • Maximizes Revenue: Helps hotels optimize room occupancy and revenue by efficiently managing inventory and pricing across channels.
  • Strategic Allocation: Allocates rooms strategically to various channels based on demand and revenue goals.

7. Easy Integration with Other Systems:

  • PMS Integration: Integrates seamlessly with Property Management Systems (PMS) to ensure smooth flow of information between reservations and front-office operations.
  • CRM Integration: Supports integration with Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems for a more holistic view of guest interactions.

8. Flexibility and Adaptability:

  • Adjusts to Market Changes: Allows hotels to quickly adapt to changes in market conditions, competitor actions, or unforeseen events by adjusting rates and availability in real-time.

9. Improved Guest Experience:

  • Instant Confirmation: Enables faster confirmation of bookings, contributing to a positive guest experience.
  • Accurate Availability: Helps prevent situations where guests may think a room is available when it is not.

10. Performance Analytics:

  • Data Reporting: Provides performance analytics and insights into booking patterns, channel performance, and revenue metrics, aiding in strategic decision-making.
  • Market Intelligence: Offers valuable data on market trends and competitor pricing to stay competitive.

11. Rate Management for Special Events:

  • Event Pricing: Allows hotels to easily manage and optimize rates during special events or peak seasons, ensuring maximum revenue during high-demand periods.

12. Compliance with Distribution Agreements:

  • Contractual Agreements: Helps hotels adhere to contractual agreements with OTAs and other distribution partners regarding pricing and inventory management.

13. Enhanced Accountability:

  • Audit Trail: Provides an audit trail of rate changes and updates, offering transparency and accountability in managing distribution strategies.

14. Cost-Effective Marketing:

  • Cost of Acquisition: Enables hotels to manage the cost of acquisition by adjusting commission rates and optimizing the use of various distribution channels.

In conclusion, a Channel Manager is a valuable tool that empowers hotels to efficiently manage their online distribution, optimize revenue, and enhance overall operational efficiency in the dynamic and competitive landscape of the hotel industry.

BENEFITS OF BOOKING MASTER’S CHANNEL MANAGER

Posted on by adminBooking

A ‘Channel’ is a third-party website. It is often referred to as an Online Travel Agent (OTA). These third-party websites allow users to search and book Hotel Rooms and Flights. These channels get into an Agreement with the Hotelier. As per this Agreement, they charge a fee for marketing your Hotel/ Resort and processing bookings on your behalf. In return, they charge a commission that was agreed upon. This Commission is usually a fixed percentage of the booking value, typically 10-20%.

Importance of Channels

OTAs can significantly increase distribution and therefore potential Hotel bookings. OTAs like Booking.com and Expedia control a huge proportion of all online hotel bookings. Even if your Hotel is a well-established brand with deep pockets, it is quite difficult to attract direct bookings through your Hotel’s Website. OTAs on the other hand, invest huge amounts of money just to attract large numbers of visitors to their websites. Since these OTAs show multiple properties visitors prefer these websites for their research as they do cross-comparisons before booking their accomodation. All you have to do as a Hotelier is to stand apart from other Hotels in this list of properties in terms of Ratings, Reviews and Services. OTAs play a major role in converting ‘lookers’ to ‘bookers’.

Decoding Channel Manager

Booking Master’s Channel Manager is a cloud-based application, that distributes your Hotel rooms, rates, and availability to all connected channels. For instance, your booking engine and OTAs.

When a customer makes a booking on any channel the channel manager updates rates and room availability across the rest of the channels automatically and on a real-time basis.

Working of the Channel Manager

When a room is booked by a channel manager pass this information in the form of Booking Data to the Hotel’s PMS i.e. Booking Master’s PMS. Once the reservation data is saved, the room is blocked. This particular information is now picked up by Booking Master’s Channel Manager who removes the room from the inventory across all channels on a real-time basis. This drastically reduces double bookings and unwanted overbookings for the hotel. At the same time, this allows the hotel to advertise its entire available inventory on all relevant portals.

Channel Managers give hotels some massive advantages. Your hotel’s reach is hugely increased through its presence on multiple platforms. This gives the Hotelier a greater opportunity of filling all the rooms. Channel managers also save an enormous amount of time and effort.

Thus, the benefits of using Booking Master’s Channel Manager are as follows:

  • Hotel Rooms can be sold online across major online channels
  • Inventory & rates are updated in real-time across multiple OTAs
  • No more manual errors
  • Minimize overbookings
  • Reduce price parity issues
  • Increase visibility
  • Increase sales capacity
  • Saves time
  • Maximize profits

Why choose Booking Master?

A channel manager could significantly boost your Hotel revenues and enhance the occupancy rate. Booking Master’s Channel Manager helps you track multiple channels from a single point. It helps you update multiple listings simultaneously through its two-way synchronization. A lot of time is lost in making adjustments to the listings one by one manually. Booking Master’s Channel Manager saves crucial time of the Hotelier that she can spend in other important things like Business Development. Double Bookings have a negative impact on Hotels’ revenue. Booking Master’s Channel Manager helps prevent overbookings and Double Bookings by updating the channels on a real-time basis. In a nutshell, Booking Master’s Channel Manager saves time and money by eliminating routine operations. Also, Booking Master’s channel manager increases the visibility of the Hotel on a national level.

Grow your Hotel Sales and Productivity with Booking Master’s Channel Manager Integration.

BENEFITS OF BOOKING MASTER’S CHANNEL MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

Posted on by adminBooking

Distribution Channel in the Hotel Industry

In the Hotel Industry, a Distribution Channel refers to a chain of intermediaries involved in getting the product, in this case, a hotel room or service from the Hotelier to the customer. This can be done via a number of platforms through the Hotelier can sell hotel rooms. Possible methods include Booking Engines, Global Distribution Systems, Travel Management Companies, Tour Operators, Online Travel Agents (OTAs), Retail Travel Agents or Online Websites.

Using a variety of channels allows the Hotel owner to create a strategy that will drive bookings and positively contribute to revenue.

Types of Hotel Distribution Channels

There are various types of channels your hotel can use to reach its desired audience.

Direct

Direct channels include Hotelier’swebsite, phone, or social media. It’s important that the Hotel Owner has a website with the provision of direct booking and the website must have an in built hotel booking engine. Its important to note that Direct Bookings are the most profitable as the Hotekiers can avoid paying commission to third parties.

Indirect Channels 

These include Tour operators, Online Travel Agencies (OTAs), wholesalers, tour operators etc. 
Online Travel Agencies and Metasearch Engines invest in advertising with the commission hotels pay them. Thus, they have the ability to target a wider audience. 

Offline

Offline is becoming less significant due to digitization . It basically includes phone, direct email, offline advertising, and walk-ins. 

What is Distribution Strategy?

Channel Distribution Strategy helps in creating a method for selling hotel rooms, which Hoteliers determine by analyzing the costs of each distribution channel for selling hotel rooms. Finding and choosing the right distribution channel that are the most cost-effective ones at high-demand times will help Hoteliers determine when to sell rooms and through which channels to improve profits.

How can Booking Master’s Distribution Channel Manager help you in generating more revenue?

Booking Master’s Distribution Channel Manager can help you in managing each distribution channel. This can involve managing your rates and booking restrictions, ensuring your hotel’s inventory is continually updated across all channels, etc. An effective hotel channel management strategy is imperative for optimizing sales and maximizing revenue. Booking Master’s Distribution Channel Manager is a technology solution that helps hoteliers simultaneously manage their inventory, and room rates and maximize the room sales across multiple platforms such as Booking.com, Agoda, Expedia, Trip Advisor, and so on. This is more effective than manually updating each booking channel. In this way, hotel owners can invest their valuable time in more important tasks such as Hotel Marketing, Client Engagement, and on-site services.

Key Features of Booking Master’s Channel Manager Software

  • A centralized view of all channels.
  • Automated sharing of information about new bookings across numerous sales channels.
  • Interface with the Hotel’s Booking Engine to prevent overbookings.
  • An always-Updated Portal View.
  • Real-Time Inventory Adjustments.
  • Available on Cloud.
  • Pooled Inventory Method: The Distribution will always show the maximum number of available rooms on all online channels without risking double bookings.

[Note:When a hotel has multiple distribution channels and enlists the same room across those various channels, there is a possibility that the same room gets booked by multiple channels.]

  • It provides analytics and reporting: Reports such as Reservation Earnings, Booking Volume, and Detailed Data on which Online Travel Agency booked the reservation helps Hoteliers in making informed decisions when marketing to future guests.
  • It can push rates and inventory across all channels.
  • Customizes and sets room rates, plans, availability, and restriction. 
  • Integrates with new booking sites to grow sales.
  • Allows hotels to customize their listings on OTAs.
  • Allows hotels to easily set up automated rate rules, such as discounts, early bird discounts, and last-minute discounts.
  • Automatically sends out booking confirmations.
  • Sends out automated cancellation notifications to guests.
  • Allows hotels to easily offer room upgrades to guests.

Benefits of using Booking Master’s Channel Manager

  • Helps in reducinglabour costs.
  • Saves substantial time on general administration.
  • Helps in consolidating selling rates of rooms/services so that Hoteliers don’t miss out on potential bookings.
  • Helps avoid errors with names, dates, occupancy, check-in times, room type, etcthat can easily occur.
  • Customizationof listings on OTAshelps hotels better promote their brand and increases their visibility.
  • Helps hotels maximize their revenue by offering discounts to guests.
  • Room upgrades to guests, help inincreasing revenue.
  • Helps hotels optimize their pricing strategy, thereby maximizing their revenue.
  • Reduces the chance of missed opportunities as the automated distribution system gets updated in real-time if a reservation gets cancelled and another guest is searching for travel at the same time.
  • Automated reports, help in making data-driven decisions.
  • Enhanced transparency and up-to-date availability solve human error issues, such as over-booking.
  • Key data and metrics help hotel owners in identifying notable trends.
  • Improve hotel visibility, potentially increasing demand, occupancy rates, and the amount that can be charged.
  • Properties can join more distribution channels which are critical in the low season.
  • Opens up the opportunity in niche marketplaces.
  • Helps improve revenue and business performance.