Most of the people use the channels of the big online travel agencies (OTA) to book their hotel stays. This makes hotels slaves to their systems, especially when it comes to the commission they have to pay to OTAs. Investing in channel management software will help hotels continue to improve their rankings while saving significant amounts of money by not paying the OTA commission.
The market share of bookings generated by global distribution systems (GDS) is falling. The main premium channels require direct commercial agreements with hotel owners. US market estimates for premium OTA channels, including Expedia, Hotels.com, Booking.com, Priceline, Orbitz, Travelocity and Hotwire, account for over eighty percent of all online hotel bookings.
This means that for the best rankings and exposure, hotel owners need to contact these channels directly. These channels need direct business deals to get the best ranking. The regular GDS contract is not enough to be in a suitable position because it does not provide premium channel listings.
What is the point of all this? Central Reservation System (CRS) software will overcome this hurdle by offering hotel owners a direct interface with all major OTA networks. With CRS software, owners do not need a channel management interface or a GDS interface. Direct contact will be made through the CRS.
The best thing about this contact method is that there are no commissions when guests book via OTA. There is no pass through fee either, only direct commission only for the hotel. This can provide great savings for hotel owners. All OTA connections and promotions on these sites can be managed with the Front Desk Property Management System (PMS).
Properties that are heavily reliant on travel agency business or properties that want more exposure that is not being achieved through OTAs would be fine with a CRS. A CRS has direct connections to all the major GDSs that exist in the world. This includes Sabre, Galileo, Amadeus, Pegasus, Travelport, and TravelWeb.
With a CRS, there are no third-party intermediaries and the PMS interface charge by GDS companies is completely free. The normal fee paid to a PMS company is also free. This is a unique advantage that hotels will receive by registering with GDS. On average, this could mean nearly $2,000 a year in savings.
The excellent CRS software will offer the lowest commission structure in the industry for the GDS interface. The interface will connect hotels with thousands of travel agencies around the world. The GDS interface is directly connected to the reception PMS.
Some CRS software offers opaque sales, which is beneficial for major OTAs and GDSs. A CRS is an amazing interface that is developed for selling up-to-the-minute inventory. The interface is tightly integrated with performance management and you can trigger logic at specific time intervals. The opaque sale is highly integrated with the reception PMS.
CRS may also offer package sales. Hotels can combine their inventories into packages that can be linked to flight booking and car rental booking. A package discount and booking control restrictions can be set with the CRS. Package sales are also highly integrated with the reception PMS.
A CRS engine must provide a two-way interface, allowing both desktop and mobile reservations to be completed. Ways to book a room should be tightly integrated with the front desk software system to reduce booking errors due to technology glitches. This type of software is perfect for selling properties through multiple sources.