How to choose the best Channel Manager for you business

Manually feeding all channels periodically is a task that requires a lot of time and patience. For this reason, the use of a channel manager for optimized management is essential.

The channel manager allows you to centrally and automatically update the availability and rates of your hostel, hotel or inn, on the channels where it is being distributed, and to connect all these platforms to a single management tool, which is optimized by being linked to your property’s management system (PMS).

When you choose the right system, the channel manager can increase your bookings and help you generate more revenue for your property, and most importantly, avoid overbookings.

Why do I need a Channel Manager?

In our day-to-day lives we find ourselves involved by several functions. In addition to the concern with a good service and the satisfaction of guests, we also have the role of managers, and it is necessary to manage reservations, organize check-ins and check-outs, deal with unforeseen events and situations that arise when you least expect them, etc.

If you manage your reservations manually, updating all channels and room availability with each closed deal, you are wasting time. And time, my friend, is money. Your time spent on this task can be much better used for other management tasks.

You will have an increase in productivity and better assertiveness with the use of a channel manager.

So how do I choose the best system for my establishment?

The ideal is to choose a channel manager that is integrated with the property management system (PMS), so, the channel manager automatically updates the system whenever a reservation is made in any of the sales channels.

Likewise, when a direct sale takes place, both at the reception and by your booking engine, and this information is posted on the booking map, the channel manager updates the offer of rooms in the OTAs. Everything works automatically, which saves time and prevents human error.

There is currently a very wide range of products on the market. Understanding your needs and the perfect system for your establishment is not an easy task, but here are some tips on how to choose the best channel manager for your business:

1- Choose a Channel Manager integrated with a system fits your business

The main tip is to choose a system that has a connection to a PMS (property management system), because together, they work perfectly.

All closed sales, in addition to being synchronized across all of their platforms, will go straight to your management system, without having manual work, facilitating your routine and optimizing your management.

There are several PMS on the market, but choosing the ideal one for your business will make all the difference.

Hqbeds is a national system, developed by hostel owners, that has all the features your business needs. It has an integrated channel manager, preventing connection errors between different platforms and increasing efficiency. As it is developed by hostel owners, it is constantly updated, according to the demand of the market.

2- Analyze the number of channels available

A channel manager necessarily needs to be connected to as many channels as possible, because the more publicized your availability is, the greater the chances of sales happening. Digital platforms are your storefronts in the market, and the greater your advertising, the more reservations you will be able to receive.

In general, the best channel management systems available on the market provide access to a huge range of integrated channels, which can serve as a means to reach customers around the world.

And hqbeds is one of them! We offer more than 100 connection channels, so that your business has a very diversified showcase.

3- Have connection with your own booking engine

Many customers analyze the search engines just to make the choice of the hostel where they want to stay, and then get in direct contact with the property, closing the deal through the booking engine itself, without going through the OTAs.

In this way, the hostel pays less commissions to the platforms, and manages to have the connection and update of reservations in real time with all the channels used.

Hqbeds has a booking engine in all plans, with no commissions and no extra fees!

4- Rate the value of the investment

The value of the investment is one of the relevant factors in the final decision, but this should not be the most important point for your choice, especially because the channel manager is a sure return obtained in the long run.

Therefore, when choosing which tool to invest in, you need to analyze that, if you choose the cheapest one, you may lose the benefits provided by a more complete one, but with a higher value.

In this example, as in many others, the cheap can turn into really expensive!

Many of the cheaper systems do not have efficient support, in addition to a greater possibility of errors.

5- Check the automation

Manually updating prices on all partner sites is a very hard-working task, which takes at least a few hours of work, sometimes involving more than one person.

With the channel manager, you only need to update the rates on one platform: your PMS. In this scenario, choose a system that has an easy-to-use platform, where you can set up entire seasons quickly and easily.

There are also tools that perform Automatic Pricing, through Revenue Management, and automate your pricing strategy in order to maximize your revenue and occupation, taking into account the available offer and demand.

Investing in a channel manager can be a turning point for the business. Therefore, hiring a company specialized in technological solutions with a focus on hostels and inns makes all the difference.

Choose a company that develops its own technologies, based on the satisfaction and recommendation of its users, being a tool in constant update, such as hqbeds.

Hiring a channel manager is essential to increase productivity and, as a result, increase your company’s profits!

Want to know more? Schedule a free demo here.