Viewpoint

Squeeze More Money Out of Your Hotel Website

Vivek Nayak explains how hotels can transform their basic showcase websites into effective marketing tools.

Were you ever in a situation where you bought a top-of-the-line, feature-loaded, expensive DVD player? And then ended up using it only to watch VCDs on your little 14-inch TV - just because you were too busy (or lazy) to read the instruction manual to find out and try out all the wonderful things that this expensive baby could do? Well, it is just one of those irrational things we humans do. Just as most Indian hoteliers do with their branded hotel website.

Most hoteliers who have put up a basic website haven't realised that with a little effort, it could easily transform from being a mere showcase into a powerful marketing channel which could make a real difference to the bottom line.

This transformation of the website into an online sales channel involves three steps:

• Adding an online inventory management system.
• Linking it to an online credit card processing system.
• n Formulating a process to create a steady stream of guests who purchase inventory from your hotel website directly.

The good news is that you can avail of services of specialised third-party partners to take care of Steps 1 & 2 quite cost effectively. The third step is the one which requires some work.

Converting your 'information only' hotel website into an effective online sales channel is a task that needs vision, perseverance and commitment - both logistical and financial. In my experience, the senior management team of the hotel are the best people to drive this initiative. Most line managers have the tendency to stay with the tried and tested and it will need a determined general manager+ personality to push through this initial roadblock. Once you break though the reluctance, most line managers marvel at the simplicity of the process and take ownership of the project rather quickly.

The Internet carries tremendous influence as a research tool. Internationally, most travel guests do a lot of research before booking. Technology research firm Jupiter projects that for every dollar generated online, another US$5 is generated offline as a result of online sales leads. Many consumers opt to call the hotel operator directly to book options researched online. Some expert projections say that "in a couple of years, 80 or 90 per cent of the sales will come from the Internet." Despite this surge in demand, the Internet's potential as a marketing tool has barely been tapped.

There are broadly three areas of expertise required to successfully take your hotel online.

Brand and Product Management:

Work out and implement sound strategies for positioning the hotel brand, product packaging, inventory and pricing management. Some third-party solutions can offer a one-window access to all your marketing channels such as offsite sales offices, agents, GDS and IDS systems. This helps you manage your distribution strategy very effectively.

Explore opportunity areas such as destination marketing, local culture marketing or even local skill marketing (Kerala ayurvedic massage is a good example).

Run a forward looking CRM programme and work out a proactive policy to track online customer behaviour. Set up a dialogue and create packages to suit their special requirements. Reward loyal online customers with sops like free room upgrades. This could prove to be beneficial in the long run.

Just as a bookstore which doesn't encourage browsing will always suffer from poor sales, a website which doesn't welcome the customer and compel him to browse through and experience the hotel brand cannot hope to be very successful. Content relevance, information presentation, easy navigability, quality of resources on destination and shopping guides are some of the content areas you can focus on to increase the attractiveness of your hotel website.

Website Popularity Management:

The most open secret about running a successful commercial website is getting the right traffic. Only a steady stream of serious guests will make the entire exercise worthwhile. The good news is that unlike the traditional media where you shoot arrows in the dark, on the Internet you can shoot your arrows very accurately and cost effectively. The key difference on the Internet is that your target audience is traceable and you can catch their attention when they are looking for you. All it needs is a little expertise.

Estimated indicate that 85 per cent of Internet users use search engines to hunt for what they require. Search Engine Optimisation campaigns are a must. Your entire hotel website needs to be optimised so that finding and getting to your website, navigating and interacting with it is easy. The world of website optimisation with terms like keyword research, algorithm tracking, link creation and exchange can be mind boggling to the uninitiated. Partnering strong website brand building companies can help the hotel management team navigate the transient world of website optimisation and continue focusing on its core competency, which is creating and selling a hospitality product.

Technology and Logistics Management:

The progress of commerce goes hand-in-hand with the progress of technology. That's a nice lofty statement to read in conceptual terms. But it is a nightmare for those who have to live with the nuts and bolts of technology. The myriad logistics involved and cost of empowering your hotel website to work as an independent commercial channel can be both intimidating and prohibitive.

The good news is that once again, you can partner an online service provider who will take care of all these daunting tasks for a small fee. But it is important to select the right provider i.e. a full service partner who can manage both the reservation software as well as the payment processing is the bare minimum requirement.

All in all, by signing on the right partners, your hotel website can get a head start over the competition and give you the vital edge in the long run. With cheap broadband access already a reality in India, the penetration of Internet access into the Indian household is likely to increase dramatically. Today, on the Internet, the second question that most travellers are likely to ask after, ‘How do I get there?’ is ‘Where do I stay?’ Any hotel which can provide that answer at that point in time and can deliver instantly will get the cream of the business.

The author is chief information officer at Avenues, the company that has launched ResAvenue: the Internet reservation engine and online payment gateway solution with GDS and IDS listing for the hospitality industry.