With the ever-rising prevalence of online bookings, it is now more important than ever for hotels to ensure that their booking engine features are up to speed in order to ensure the smoothest booking process possible and avoid website abandonment.
The more intuitive and easier your booking process is, the easier it will be for hotels to compete with online travel agents (OTAs) for direct bookings. Booking engines must be optimised for users, allowing them to take care of all their needs in one place and have a secure and easy reservation process.
In this blog, we will look at the most important features a booking engine should have in order to ensure more direct reservations.
Essential booking engine features for securing more direct reservations
User experience
- Ensure the booking engine is fully optimised for mobile devices, offering a seamless experience across all screen sizes.
- An intuitive and easy-to-navigate interface helps users find information quickly and complete bookings with minimal effort.
- Optimise the booking engine for quick loading times to prevent potential guests from abandoning the process.
Booking process
- Display accurate, up-to-date information on room availability and pricing to avoid overbooking and ensure transparency.
- Ability to easily compare room types, entitlements and prices to help guests make informed decisions.
- Ability to offer guests offers, demand-led rates (dynamic pricing) and comparing rates with OTAs.
- Using the concept of pooled inventory to drive optimisation.
- Provide a secure and trusted payment process to enhance user confidence and ease for international guests.
- Integrate verified guest reviews and ratings to build trust and help potential guests make decisions.
Convenience and support
- Offer the booking engine in multiple languages to cater to an international audience.
- Provide access to customer support through chat, email, or phone to assist with any issues during the booking process.
- Allow guests to easily modify or cancel their bookings online.
Technology and integration
- Ensure the booking engine is integrated with the Property Management System (PMS) for seamless management of reservations and guest data.
- Sync with a channel manager to maintain rate parity and manage inventory across multiple distribution channels.
- Provide detailed analytics and reporting tools to track booking patterns, user behaviour, and the effectiveness of marketing campaigns.
Trust and security
- Use SSL certification to secure transactions and protect guest data.
- Clearly display cancellation policies, terms and conditions, and privacy policies to build trust and transparency.
- Implement PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard) compliance to ensure that all payment processes meet rigorous security standards, protecting sensitive guest information.
Language and currency converter
- Add a real-time currency converter so guests can see prices in their local currency, reducing uncertainty and increasing booking likelihood
- Support multiple languages in your booking engine to enhance user comfort and confidence with culturally relevant content.
By incorporating these features into a booking engine, accommodation providers can significantly enhance the direct booking experience, increase conversion rates and foster customer loyalty.
