One word sums up the modern digital world – convenience.
We have information at our fingertips; we have apps for everything we can think of; and we can order / book / purchase anything online —flights and hotels, classes and camps— at a button click.
Online travel booking software are the preferred option for around 83% of adults looking to arrange their vacations. But not just travel and tourism depends on bookings. Numerous other businesses, such as restaurants or hair salons, gyms ,educational institutions, are moving to online booking platforms to make their daily routines easier.
Efficient booking software can help you keep track of important customer information, avoid the risk of double booking, and maintain a profitable business calendar. However, finding the right system for your booking needs can be a complicated and time-consuming task.
To make the choice easier, here are the three critical features your booking software should have to perform properly.
#1. Simple Booking Flows and User-Friendly Navigation
Any good online booking system should be easy to use. The right solution should be clear and intuitive for your customer on the front end, and easy for you to control on the back end. It is advisable to look for a solution with a neat, streamlined user interface, that gives you access to all the information and guidance you need in one place.
Mobile support is also vital. While around 64% of customers make bookings on the web, another 44% expect to have the same functionality on their mobile devices. As mobile demand continues to grow, you should make sure your booking systems are not only mobile-compatible, but also adapted for smaller screens.
#2. Effective Supplier Connectivity
A modern feature of booking engines is reliable connection to 3rd-party sources of travel data. This group of entities includes various types of travel distribution platforms – GDSs, bedbanks, flight consolidators, OTAs, etc. They are convenient to work with as they deliver content and confirm bookings almost fully automatically via specialized travel booking engine api. You don’t need to do a lot of manual work as you would with your own travel inventory.
Many travel companies have started to use travel API aggregators extensively in recent years. This is a great opportunity to drastically reduce your API integration efforts by combining multiple travel suppliers under a common product-based API. For example, a single Hotel API integration can connect you to Hotelbeds, Ratehawk, Webbeds and many other suppliers all at once in real-time. This is something really worth exploring while planning the architecture for your upcoming booking engine installation.
#3. Customer Management and CRM
Integrating a powerful CRM solution for handling incoming customers and booking requests is very important. Systems of this type are designed to provide valuable insights into customers, their behavior and sales data. They help you identify the most promising segments of your audience and indicate opportunities to generate even better financial returns from current customers.
Some of the other key benefits of using travel CRM software are:
Improved internal productivity
A good travel CRM solution improves your internal efficiency by automating workflows, tasks and processes. Features such as workflow templates, dependencies, notifications and project management make you more flexible and prepared for various business challenges.
Targeted and personalized sales initiatives
By segmenting customers based on different factors, travel businesses can create personalized offers that increase their sales.
Effective and smart marketing campaigns
A travel CRM helps businesses design, implement and evaluate marketing campaigns across various channels, such as email, social media, online ads, etc.
Enhanced customer loyalty
A quality travel CRM software enables you to establish lasting relationships with your customers by offering excellent customer service and support. You can use features such as feedback surveys, reviews and ratings, loyalty programs and rewards to assess and improve your customer satisfaction and loyalty.
Real-time data and insights
CRM solutions provide a range of tools for generating up-to-date data and insights into every aspect of your business performance.
Make a Wise and Aware Choice
An online booking system can be a vital tool in your ecosystem in case you are managing a hospitality service or a travel company. A booking system with the right tools will help to keep proper track of the information required to keep up profits and provide a good level of service to your customers.
Choosing an appropriate booking system will ensure outstanding experience to your customers, improve your efficiency, and reduce the risk of errors. It will also increse your profits.
Be sure you test before you invest! Compare the plans and prices of different booking and scheduling platforms. There are some booking platforms that offer you a free plan to explore their features. By signing up to the free plans these platforms offer you can make informed decisions without spending your money on a platform that doesn’t suit your needs.
Make sure you evaluate your booking management options carefully and ask yourself which features are most important for you before you make your purchase.