The Online Booking Engine (OBE) generates bookings directly from your website and helps increase occupancy at your property. There are numerous must haves when it comes to a successful Online Booking Engine.
A well designed OBE should have a high conversion rate. In order to generate more bookings through your website it’s vital to drive traffic to your site. This can be done via various marketing channels or word of mouth. Once the prospective guest lands on your website, the OBE acts as your front desk clerk. Here are some keys to a highly functional OBE that drives more conversions & generate more cost effective bookings:
- Easy to navigate-helps with conversions
- Matches the look and feel of your website
- Mobile friendly-it must adapt to your guest’s device (smart phone, tablet etc)
- Secure and reliable- real time inventory minimizes booking errors and over booking
- Integrated with your GDS or Direct Connects such as Expedia or Booking.com
- Group Login-Group coordinators will appreciate ease of usage
- No Transactions Fees- hotels already lose $ when choosing to work with OTA’s. Don’t solely depend on OTA’s. Additional Fees for your direct booking’s on your site are not cost effective.
One final tip is to make sure to attach Google Analytics to your website to determine how much traffic is driven to your OBE. This will allow you to understand conversation rates. The OBE is your online employee. Make sure to thoroughly understand how your OBE can be a cost effective way to increase occupancy at your property.
