February 2024 Newsletter
February 2024 Newsletter
Step into the February 2024 issue of the GuestPoint Newsletter! Join us as we delve into the latest market trends and unravel the shifts in travel preferences among millennials and Gen Z. Explore diverse management styles and the transformative impact of effective leadership on organisational culture. Unlock invaluable tips for optimising your booking engine and dive into a step-by-step guide on using GuestPoint. Be inspired by our Property of the Month and do not miss an exclusive limited time offer crafted just for our esteemed GuestPoint customers. Cap it off with this month’s intriguing “Did You Know?” segment.
Industry News
New travel trends, Millennials and Gen Z are more likely to travel than purchase a home.
In the wake of the current housing crisis, many millennials and Gen Z are opting out of incurring the debt of a mortgage and spending their money on travelling. Many believe they gain more value from paying for an experience and memories than through the value of ‘things’. So, how can you as a property owner take advantage of this? What channels should you be advertising in to target this ever-growing pool of young travellers?
Converting lookers into bookers
Now more than ever there is a variety of accommodation choices for travellers ranging from traditional hotels to Airbnb. To convert this young target audience there are some non-negotiables that you should be using for your property’s marketing.
The development of a strong online presence is vital. No longer is having a website enough, many travellers when searching for their ideal accommodation take to social media to investigate further detail about a property. This means a frequent and strong online presence is necessary, with up-to-date photos and content. Remember, don’t let low engagement on posts discourage you. Social media isn’t just about accumulating likes and comments. Its true value shines when prospective guests are exploring your property and seeking current snapshots. Many websites feature outdated photos, making your social media a crucial window into the present.
Another non-negotiable that most if not all modern travellers look at before booking, is your online reviews. Having positive and recent reviews is incredibly important to secure more bookings. Struggling to get people to leave helpful reviews? To get more reviews there are a few processes you could partake in. For example, offering free tea or coffee for guests who leave a review. Or after your guest’s stay send them a follow-up email thanking them for their stay and encouraging them to leave a review if they enjoyed their stay. Also making sure to stay on top of any negative reviews. By contacting guests who leave negative reviews discussing why they were unhappy and potentially offering them a package for their next stay which may convince them to remove their review.
With an experience-first mindset, you need to market what makes your property unique and what you can offer to the modern traveller that can give them an experience like no other. Even the most niche unique feature can be the difference for someone to book your property. This should be advertised through all channels, including social media, your website, and third-party booking sites.
Building a New Customer Base
These current trends present a unique opportunity to build a new customer base for many properties. The suggestions given are all easy to achieve and only require time. All these processes have the potential to increase your bottom line through penetrating new channels tailored toward this target audience.
Additional Industry News
Attention all Booking.com users! There has been an increase in scams on the platform Booking.com to be more informed, read below:
Blog Article
Effective Hotel Management Styles
When analysing a hotel’s culture and values, there are various contributing factors and leadership/management styles that create that culture. A hotel should be considered an ecosystem with many contributing factors that portray strength and good health when well managed. This will lead to an enhanced customer experience and increased demand for your property.
What is Hotel management?
Hotel management is the oversight of every facet of the business. However, there are many intricacies involved in managing a property. It requires an acquired knowledge of areas such as marketing, administration, asset management, staff management, customer service and distribution management just to name a few.
In an industry that is always changing with different technologies and trends a manager needs to be agile in their approach. Another valuable insight is to not be afraid to learn new skills. As the requirements for hotel management are extremely broad, new and even long-term managers are expected to have skills they could always improve on. Especially when taking into consideration that every property has its own unique identity that attracts several types of guests.
Effective Hotel Management styles
Considering the unique nature of many different properties, there is no one way that a property should be managed. However, there are a variety of different management styles that have been proven to be effective within the hospitality management space. Depending on your skill set and the variables your property should determine which one of these styles you should favour more. It is important to note that due to the dynamic behaviour of the industry, not one leadership style should be used, however a combination of a few if not all should be seen and used.
Servant leadership
Servant leadership maintains a focus on serving the needs and interests of others, rather than ruling with an iron fist by imposing authority and control. Servant leaders possess the traits of being humble, empathetic, and compassionate, and seek to create a positive and supportive environment for both their staff and guests. They understand their team and know their strengths and weaknesses delegating tasks according to those skills. Feedback is encouraged, always wanting to improve finding new and innovative ways to do things. This style of leadership is greatly beneficial within the hotel management space, as it can foster a culture of trust, respect, and loyalty among the staff and guests. Enhancing the quality of service and customer satisfaction.
Transformational leadership
Transformation leadership has the aim to inspire and motivate others to achieve a shared vision/mission and to transform themselves and the organisation for the better. The key traits a transformational leader possesses are charisma, visionary, and passionate, and they communicate their goals and values clearly and persuasively. They challenge staff to grow and develop their skills and potential also recognising the good they do support their achievements. This style of leadership can be effective for hotel management, as it creates a sense of purpose, commitment and enthusiasm among staff and guests, driving performance, innovation, and competitiveness of the property.
GuestPoint Guide to:
How to Change Rates for Channel Manager and Direct Booking in PMS
A big reason to split rates is it gives you more control over your rates and availability. A good example of this would be during the festive season you know no matter what you will be busy. Having your rates split would allow you to take yourself offline or increase your prices to a remarkably high amount on external websites such as booking.com, Expedia and any other OTA’s. But keep yourself online and at a reasonable rate on your website so clients can cut out or get fewer bookings via platforms that charge commission.
* Shut off availability to OTA platforms while maintaining booking engine presence
* Increase Rates to OTA platforms while keeping direct booking at a lower rate.
* You can set up rules for the External rate such as minimum nights, close to arrival, and close to departure.
- click on management tab > setup >Standard Rates, Extras & Promotions
- Inside of rates locate ‘ New Rates and Packages
- Fill out the required information; Description, Room Type, Publish To, Web Description, Room Rate, Min Nights, Guest Included
Management Tips & Tricks
Enhancing Your Booking Engine
Through your PMS you can improve your Book Now page linked to your website. This is important for people looking for direct bookings. You could be missing potential bookings by not providing photos of what different rooms look like. Also, by not giving an in-depth description of what is included within a room. How to access the Book Now page within PMS:
- Click on ‘Management’ on the left-hand side.
- Then on ‘Setup’ at the top
- Under ‘Configuration’ click ‘Rooms & Room Types’
- Then go into ‘Room Types’ up the top.
From here you can access a variety of options, including room details and gallery. Giving you the ability to display what the room looks like. It also allows you to write a compelling description of what is included within the room.
Property of the Month
Union Hotel Tumbarumba
Located at the heart of Tumbarumba, the Union Hotel is a staple of this ever-growing community. It is a property known for bringing people together. Tumbarumba has something for everyone and is well known for its exquisite wine and festivals. However, if getting out and exploring what nature has to offer then there is plenty to explore, with a diverse range of landscapes you can discover bushwalking tracks to mountain peaks, through bushland, or across lush pastures. In addition, Tumbarumba is a popular fly-fishing town with many illustrious streams for fly fishing.
Aiding in all these many activities in the Union Hotel, with a variety of rooms tailored to host you with your stay. After a long day of either wine tasting or outdoor activities feel the full effects of in-house dining convenience. With a dining area, and bar and bistro located on site.
After the team at Union Hotel decided to take their books online with a PMS, they opted to utilise an all-in-one solution using Guestpoint Pay and Channel Manager. Describing the system as “easy to use, even for those in the team who aren’t the best with technology.” With high praise, our Channel Manager was considered a must-have for any property, due to a significant increase in bookings since opting into the solution.
This newfound management efficiency has allowed for the booking process to run seamlessly for guests. This has been topped off by the addition of GuestPoint pay which has created maximum efficiency for the front end of Union Hotels operations. Allowing them to focus more on the guest experience side of the business. Due to having to spend fewer hours on admin issues.
Special Deal
Card Reader
Want to maximise front desk efficiency whilst reducing the risk of error. With a card reader for your front desk, this device will copy any card details straight into the GuestPoint Credit Card vault. Saving both time and chance of error. For a limited time only, this device can be yours for $250 including postage, this device can enhance your front desk creating optimal efficiency.
Contact – Info@GuestPoint.com for more information.
GuestPoint Did You Know
The Great Ocean Road is the world’s largest war memorial.
The Great Ocean Road is one of the most famous drives in Australia with stunning views and scenic vistas along the route. Built by returning soldiers after World War One, the road was dedicated as a memorial to those who died fighting and was designed to connect the isolated communities that clung to the edge of Victoria’s rugged coastline.
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