What's new from Seekom
New Features & Functionality
Here at Seekom, we continue to work hard to provide you with a Property Management System that makes your day-to-day operations as easy as possible.
Our Product and customer team are currently working through a total revamp of all screens to make them more intuitive, fully mobile friendly and higher performing.
Below are some of the screens that have been revamped and some that are due to be released in the near future
Upcoming Features:
1. New Booking Engine
Our new front booking engine is almost ready for testing. With it’s modern UX design, and ease of use for customers, higher website conversions and more direct bookings are just around the corner.
2. Unpaid Bookings Report
Generate a list of all unpaid bookings in an instant - this highly requested feature means you will never forget to charge a Booking.com or Expedia virtual card again!
Delivered Features:
1. Version 5 Photo Management
Upload and rearrange photos in bulk to save you and your staff time. Drag and drop photos between different room types and import higher resolution files.
Released: September 2021
2. Google Hotel Ads
The much anticipated integration to MyHotelShop, which will increase your direct bookings through Google Hotel Ads. Learn more about it by clicking here
Released: July 2021
3. Average Daily Rate and RevPar Pace Analysis
Many of you will already be using our Dashboard Advanced Pace Reports to track your performance of occupancy and revenue compared to previous years. Average Daily Rate and RevPar pace will also be added to this page.
Released: May 2021
Check out our blog on Seekom Pace Reports here https://www.seekom.com/pace-reports
4. Sales Report
The Version 5 Sales Report will allow you to gain better insight into your year to year financial performance. Easier to use, with more filters and graphs.
Released: May 2021
5. Dashboard
The Version 5 Sales Report will allow you to gain better insight into your year to year financial performance. Easier to use, with more filters and graphs.
Released: February 2021
Get in touch with us
If you have any questions, or want any further information on any of the soon to be released features listed above, don’t hesitate to contact one of the team at: support@seekom.com.
We also keep a regular list of the latest releases if you are interested in keeping up to date with what we have been working on. Click the button below or look for the link in our menu under the about section.
One of our amazing business development managers will be in touch to showcase our product to you and talk you through how we can help grow your business.
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How to increase direct bookings as an accommodation provider
How to increase direct bookings as an accommodation provider
Increasing direct bookings as an accommodation provider is extremely important whatever type of accommodation you offer to guests. With online travel agents taking more in commission each year, the power to drive guests and returning guests to your website or call you direct is where you can get the biggest slice of the revenue pie.
In this article Seekom are giving you the tips and tricks you need to increase your direct bookings in 2021.
1. Offer the best price by booking direct
Now this first tip should hopefully be a no-brainer to you as an accommodation provider. If your accommodation's direct rate is the lowest rate that a guest can find for your accommodation - you're instantly more likely to secure that guests bookings with you directly. A guests nature is to book the accommodation type they're after for the best price. If your price is the best and you're offering what they are looking for - you'll get that booking. Now offering the direct rate, whether it be on your website or elsewhere, comes with some action points in itself which we'll list below.
2. Make sure your website has been optimised and performs well
If you have a website for your accommodation business (if you don't you should look at getting one) you hopefully have your rates on your website lower than other channels. As mentioned above - this way you can secure more direct bookings.
However if the potential guest comes to your website and it doesn't perform to the expectation levels - then they are likely to leave and book elsewhere - even book your exact property but on another channel which we have seen happen here at Seekom.
Below are some common website tips that providers don't do, or don't do well enough, when not using our website services.
- Mobile responsive website - if your website isn't mobile responsive, you're instantly losing bookings. Google states that 63% of it's search traffic originates from mobile devices. With the percentage increasing every year - it's pivotal to have your website optimized for mobile. Google also indexes your website from your mobile version.
- Photos of your accommodation - great photos lead to more bookings. The better your photos are of your property or properties, the more bookings you get. It pays to use a professional photographer to make sure your rooms and units are engaging and inviting, enticing the guest to book with you.
- Video - Why scroll through an entire website when you get an idea of the room types, property and surrounding area all in a 30 second video? That's the thinking of the market at the moment. Instant answers is what the new generation wants, and a video provides that for them quickly and efficiently. (you can also add it to social media and other platforms too).
- SEO - Search Engine Optimisation. If you haven't heard this term before - you need too. Google (the biggest search engine in the world) has a number of factors that rank your website against other websites in order to figure out what to show first to the user for their search term / query. In simple terms, the better your SEO for your website, the better you rank in Google, the higher you are shown for queries such as "Accommodation in New Zealand" and the more direct bookings you get. There are many SEO tools out there, but we would suggest at first try using one for free such as UberSuggest.
- Deals - Incentivize the user to book direct and promote repeat customers by promoting a deal when they do. This can be done in many ways but simple methods are ones such as "get 5% off when you book direct" or "get a free bottle of wine when you book direct" etc. We'll leave this part up to your imagination and what you can offer - but think outside the box. Local tour guides, restaurant discounts and gift baskets and free shuttle from their drop-off location are always popular. You can also promote this on social media as well!
3. Digital Marketing
So you've got the lowest price on your website compared to other channels, you've done work on your website and have started offering incentives to book direct, but what's next?
Promoting your business online is all about ROI (Return on Investment), or in the sphere of Digital Marketing - ROAS (Return on Ad Spend). First off, lets list the basics;
- Google Ads
The above four are the most commonly used platforms to promote your business. Each platform works differently for each business and also industry. It's always best to trial each one out using similar objectives to make sure you are using the best stack of platforms to get results.
It's also really important to have Google Analytics installed on your website. This will allow you to gather data and metrics about what is happening on your website, it will also allow you to track the different marketing campaigns and make decisions on what to do next based on the data you get. (You can also see the revenue made on your website through the booking screens if you turn on the eCommerce module and link it to Seekom!) There is a bit to learn in terms of navigating Google Analytics and what the output of data actually means, but once you get a hold of the basics through some tutorials you will be able to advertise more efficiently and effectively.
Often we see that operators want to use marketing methods, but don't know where to start. We suggest either using an Agency (which can be expensive), a freelancer or learning it yourself (online courses, YouTube, and Google help, but you can also use your local commerce division or other areas to get assistance which can sometimes be free.)
The most important thing to note however is that if you are paying someone else to do this for you, you should learn the basics and common terminology that is being used so that you can figure out if that particular agency or person is doing a good job.
Marketing definitely works if it's done correctly in terms of generating revenue, it's just a matter of finding out which methods work best for your business to give you the highest ROAS.
If you'd like to learn more about how to can better market yourself online, feel free to get in touch with Seekom and we can point you in the right direction, or give you some handy tips.
4. Connect with Local Businesses
A simple method of improving your direct bookings is to connect with some local businesses in your area.
For example, you could promote a certain restaurant on your website and other platforms, and they return the favour as well. This can lead to a few extra bookings a month - as often most people would have already booked accommodation before they are in the area - but you never know and it really costs you nothing (as long as the businesses you're referring are reputable).
5. Google Hotel Ads
Relatively new to the New Zealand accommodation market, Google Hotel Ads has been causing quite a stir. Here at Seekom we've recently partnered with myhotelshop to provides this service, so that we can get our customers more direct bookings.
Google Hotel Ads is seperate to the Google Ads platform - it displays your accommodation to a person when they are in the "discovery" phase of planning their accommodation. The ads show in a number of different places, such as Google Maps, Google My Business and more, but the important thing to note is that the OTA's are already using this service. They are actively promoting your property via their channel to secure those bookings.
Statistics from myhotelshop - state that the average accommodation provider can increase their revenue somewhere between 10-30% in a single year using this service.
If you would like to learn more about the benefits of Google Hotel Ads, please click here to read more info on our website.
Below is also a webinar we held on the subject with Matea from myhotelshop.
6. Google My Business
Our last tip for this article is to be active on Google My Business. For those readers who aren't aware of what this is, it's your business profile on Google (who would've thought?)
Here you can manage your operational hours (an important query often asked by guests), reviews, photos, business information such as location. Google My Business also provides a role in where your website ranks - with some data suggesting that the more reviews, the better for your website ranking.
If you have a guest that has had an awesome stay and communicates this to you or your staff, suggest to them to leave you a nice google review, or even better yet put it in your post departure email.
Responding to reviews in a professional manner and making sure each one is personalized actually correlates to an increase in bookings and repeat guests - your business comes across as sincere and genuine and that you've taken time out of your day to reply to them.
As well as the reviews and information management, it also works in tandem with Google Hotel Ads, as mentioned above in the previous tip.
7. Conclusion
With so much going on often it can seem like too much to handle alongside running an accommodation business. But if you take each action point listed here, as well as employ your own methods and do your own research, you will be on a sure path to engaging more potential guests, getting more direct bookings, and making more revenue.
One of our amazing business development managers will be in touch to showcase our product to you and talk you through how we can help grow your business.
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How to save time with a Property Management System (PMS)
How to save time with a Property Management System (PMS)
In this blog we will cover how to save time with a Property Management System.
A PMS is the most effective investment an accommodation business could make to save time. If you’re looking for a way to reduce your time spent managing your accommodation business, the first thing to look at is a cloud-based PMS. There are many available on the market, to suit all shapes and sizes of business.
Here’s where you’ll save valuable time;
1. Accounts
With money coming from several directions at once - guests, companies, OTAs - you need a tidy way to keep track of who has paid what. An efficient accounts system will also make sure no bookings slip through unpaid or underpaid. A good PMS will highlight which bookings are unpaid as you view them on a bookings calendar. It will also keep track of unpaid and overdue invoices, and allow easy reconciliation with direct payments from OTAs. You should also be able to use your PMS to store credit cards safely - something that is exceptionally difficult to do without a PCI certified credit card storage program.
If you have a number of regular companies booking your property, a PMS is essential for keeping track of what your regular companies owe. Easily invoice multiple bookings at once, and be confident no bookings are going accidentally uninvoiced.
2. Company and Agent management
Speaking of regular companies, a PMS will allow you to set a special company rate, so your regulars will always get the rate they’re used to. An advanced PMS will also provide your regular companies with a login page, so they can make their own bookings at their own special rate! For those with frequent corporate bookings, this is easily one of the best ways to save time. Think of all the times spent taking phone calls from agents to check your availability and make bookings - all time saved when the job is handled entirely by the PMS for you.
3. Rates Management
If you have multiple OTAs, your rates are likely handled by a channel manager. These send rates from a central location (the channel manager) out to all the channels you are connected to (e.g. Booking.com, Expedia, Agoda). A PMS will either come with a channel manager included, or connect to another provider’s PMS. If saving time is your goal, look for combined PMS and channel manager software. (which Seekom offer!) Managing your property through one application is much easier than through two, and you’ll usually save money on one bill instead of two!
A key feature to look out for in a PMS/channel manager is automatic rates management. These are tools which price your rooms for you using parameters you’ve set and the availability of your rooms. A sophisticated automated rates management will even take market data into account, and automatically charge more for busy periods. This is a great way to both save you time (no more checking the prices of your competitors manually!) and increase your revenue.
4. Reporting
Now that your rates and accounts are handled, you probably want to take a look at how your property is actually performing. This is next to impossible to do effectively without a PMS, but is undoubtedly vital information for your business. If you ever want to take out a business loan, apply for government assistance for the business, or sell the business, then you’ll need well presented data. A PMS can give you all sorts of statistics;
- Your revenue this year as compared to last year
- Which countries guests are coming from
- Which booking sources are providing your biggest revenue (e.g. are you making more from Booking.com or from your own website?)
An advanced PMS can even give you the statistics that top performing hotels use for their revenue management; Pace reports, ADR and RevPAR. These are essential for working out when you should be offering specials and discounts, and when you should be increasing rates and changing minimum night stay restrictions.
5. Customer relationship management
With all the time saved on taking care of the financial aspects of the business, you can now focus on the important things - keeping your customers happy!
A PMS can help you automate contacting your guests; through email or sometimes SMS. Set up templates with whatever you need your guests to know, and you’ll spend a lot less time dealing with frequently asked questions (“when is check in?”, “are pets allowed?”, you’ve heard them all!).
Most bookings that come through a PMS will have an email address attached. This gives you an easy way to collect addresses and set up marketing campaigns in the future. For busy periods like annual festivals and events, it’s great to be able to contact the guests from previous year’s festival and invite them to book the first rooms for the next year.
Return guests should also be visible in a PMS, so it’s easy to spot those bookings and leave them a “welcome back” note. Particularly valuable guests can also be marked as a VIP, to make sure all your staff know to treat them well.
6. Housekeeping
For properties with more than a few rooms, or those using an external housekeeping service, a PMS can save a lot of time just in the management of housekeeping. Most PMS will include a housekeeping report or feature which you can pass on to your housekeepers daily. Some will even include an app, allowing staff to enter updates as they go. With good housekeeping functionality, you can confidently hand over the management of your daily cleaning jobs to staff or an external service, saving yourself a lot of management time.
One of our amazing business development managers will be in touch to showcase our product to you and talk you through how we can help grow your business.
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Accommodation Automation: The Power of Automation as an Accommodation Provider
The Power of Automation as an Accommodation Provider
Accommodation automation is more important than ever. You will probably agree that few things are more valuable than spare time at present as an accommodation owner and operator in 2021.
Many accommodation providers are being forced to cut overheads in the midst of a global pandemic and owners are now spending more time in the office, manning the front desks and cleaning rooms than ever before. With this in mind, it’s not surprising to learn that automation technology - that takes the manual labour out of many day to day procedures, is gaining a huge amount of popularity in the accommodation industry right now.
What is automation in accommodation?
Automation Technology can be defined as any electronic product or system that is set up based on a set of rules, to run free from human intervention. These rules will normally be used to process a set of incoming live data, and respond to this data by completing a certain task. For example - an automatic payment set up with a bank is a piece of automation technology, where the rules set up are the amount of money sent each week, the day of the week the payment is sent on, and the bank account in which it is to be sent. The set of incoming live data that triggers the payment to process to occur is the date and time.
How does automation help me run my accommodation business?
Accommodation-specific automation technology can save property owner operators a great deal of time in various different facets of their day to day operation. Today we're going to list some of the most popular automated features used in the accommodation industry today. So read on for a deep insight into how Seekom can help you spend more time doing what you with automation in the accommodation industry.
Automation Tool #1: Express Check-In
In the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, there has been a huge increase in the use of contactless check in systems. Express Check-In automation allows an online form to be automatically sent to your guests via email prior to arrival. This lets the guest complete the check in process ahead of time so they can skip the visit to the front desk on the day of arrival. Not only does this avoid the need for face to face contact, but it also significantly decreases the workload for your reception staff.
Automation Tool #2: Credit Card and Payment Gateway Functionality
Gone are the days of having to swipe your guests cards through your EFTPOS machine every time you want to take payment for a booking. Many property management systems now offer built in payment gateway integrations which allow you to capture and charge the card automatically at the time of booking. Some properties also set up rules to automatically take a deposit or hold funds. This is a far safer way of taking credit card payments and will save you a ton of time.
Automation Tool #3: Scheduled Emails and Upselling Automation
If you are running an accommodation based business, you are probably no stranger to scheduled email automation. This technology allows you to automatically send booking and payment confirmations, plus any additional information your guest may need prior to arrival. What many properties haven’t used however, is automated emails for upselling purposes. Products such as UpsellGuru allow properties to send emails prior to arrival offering guests the chance to upgrade their room and add any extras. This has proved to boost revenue significantly and can be fully automated.
Automation Tool #4: Revenue Management Systems
Automated revenue management systems update room rates based on market demand and fluctuations in occupancy. The systems are configured based on a set of minimum and maximum price limitations for each room and check your own price against your competitors every 2 hours. This ultimately leads to far higher revenue earnings, as well as the peace of mind of not having to worry about whether your prices are correct.
Automation Tool #6: Smart Locks and Gate Control
Properties that automate their room locks and gate controls save time and money on managing and replacing room keys. Many accommodation providers have implemented systems that generate and send unique room access codes to each guest. Not only does this add another step to the contactless check in process, but it also makes the check in process far easier. QR codes can also be generated via phone apps to access rooms.
Automation Tool #6: - Sign up for a Free Demo of our Property Management System with Automation tools to grow your business!
One of our amazing business development managers will be in touch to showcase our product to you and talk you through how we can help grow your business.
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Channel Manager benefits for Accommodation Providers
Channel Manager benefits for Accommodation Providers
In this blog we will outline five major reasons why using a Channel Manager benefits you as an accommodation provider.
What does a channel manager do for an accommodation business?
A channel manager connects you to online travel agents (OTAs) like Booking.com, Expedia and Airbnb. It tells them how many rooms you have available each day and what your prices are. When someone makes a booking through an OTA, a channel manager collects all the bookings together in one place.
Why should you be using a channel manager?
1. Connect to lots of channels
The best advantage a channel manager gives you is the ability to list with multiple online travel agents. The more channels you can connect to, the more people will see and book your property over others. A good channel manager will allow you to connect to all the big name channels, as well as many smaller channels. The goal is to get as many eyes on your property as possible.
2. Reduce overbookings
A channel manager will keep your availability consistent across OTAs and your website, greatly reducing the possibility of overbookings. Most channel managers also include availability managements tools so you can, for example;
- Prevent late night bookings after reception closes
- Block availability on OTAs on busy dates, and sell through your website only
- Easily adjust lead time availability - e.g. only receive bookings for arrival dates in the next 3 months
3. Keep consistent pricing across channels
If you’ve used big OTAs before, you may have noticed that they are very particular about properties displaying the same rate across all channels - they call this rates parity. Some will even incur punishments for not having rate parity - for example, they might place your property further down in their search results. If you are using a channel manager, it is very easy to send the exact same rate to all channels, and avoid these punishments
4. Give your website an edge
OTAs (Online Travel Agents) take commission from all bookings they receive for you. Ideally you want as many bookings as possible coming to your own website instead, so you pay out less commission. A channel manager not only provides a website booking screen for you to use, but will also let you set a lower price on your website to attract more direct bookings.
5. Easy rates management
One of the best things a channel manager can do for you is help manage your rates. Set minimum night restrictions on long weekends (to reduce your time spent cleaning!), link a non-refundable rate at -10% your normal rate, or set up an advance purchase rate. A channel manager makes all of these easy to do and easy to keep track of.
Seekom iBex Channel Manager is a great choice for accommodation providers looking to improve their businesses. Here’s why:
- iBex comes with its own Property Management System, so there is no need to integrate with another provider. This means bookings come in quicker, and your chance of accidental overbookings is greatly reduced.
- iBex is cloud-based, so you can access it from anywhere at any time. Check the day’s bookings on your phone before you’ve even got out of bed in the morning!
- iBex connects to hundreds of channels, so you can make sure your property is seen by everyone.
- Availability tools let you have full control over who can book your property and when.
- Allows easy management of rates being sent to different channels. Keep all channels at the same price, or have different modifiers on different channels.
- iBex comes with a free website booking screen to install on your website, to get you the most direct bookings. If you don’t have a website yet, or if it’s time for a new one, we also have in-house web designers ready to build you a custom website!
- We have a sophisticated rates management system which can automatically look at the data from your occupancy and current market trends, to adjust your rates for maximum profit. This is a delicate balance of having the rate low enough to entice enough bookings and high enough to make the most revenue possible - so you always want the best tool for this job.
- You could never touch your rates again, and be confident the best prices are being set each day for you.
One of our amazing business development managers will be in touch to showcase our product to you and talk you through how we can help grow your business.
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