Improving the customer experience will always be one of the biggest objectives and challenges of any holiday accommodation manager, so we must be at the forefront in each and every phase of a guest’s stay. Two of the most important phases where we have to make the best impression is, the booking and payment. So how do we manage to give the customer speed, security and comfort during these phases?
The first thing we must do is, once the user has decided to formalise the reservation at the establishment, we must make sure that they have options, for which they can do so, mainly through two channels: the so-called OTAs (Online Travel Agencies), or directly from the website of the hotel chain or establishment in question. In this sense, it is important to carry out a strategy of omnichannel experience and unified commerce, offering the best conditions and services, regardless of the channel through which the reservation or purchase of the good is made.
Flexibility with bookings and cancellations.
When making reservations, some of the issues most valued by users are the fact of having several booking options (cancellable, mixed or non-refundable).
Normally, in cancellable bookings up to a specific date and payment at the establishment, the user is asked for their card details, and although no charge is made to the card, the hotel or OTA stores this information securely, through tokenisation, so that in the event of cancelling the booking after the established deadline or not showing up at the establishment, the corresponding charge can be made.
In the case of mixed bookings, where cancellation is not free of charge, payment is made partially, i.e. a part at the time of booking (storing the card details for future charges if necessary) and the rest once the guest has enjoyed their stay.
Finally, non-refundable bookings, which usually have a lower price, although payment can be made on arrival at the accommodation, must provide the card details at the time of booking so that the hotel has the guarantee of payment, even if the guest does not attend the booking, thus carrying out the well-known concept in the industry of “no show”. This is a problem for hotels if they do not have the technology to recover at least part of the amount of the reservation.
Once the customer has made the booking, the experience continues with their arrival at the hotel and enjoyment of their stay, which will end with the completion of the payment if it has not been made online. If the establishment has an integrated payment solution, it avoids cashier errors and errors in the manual allocation of the amount to be charged. The process will therefore be automatic and fast, and errors will be avoided.
Improve the payment phase and avoid customer abandonment.
At this stage of the process, personalisation and a wide variety of options are essential. Offering users different payment methods with which to pay for their booking allows them to choose the one they feel most comfortable and secure with. In addition, being able to send messages reminding the user that they have a booking to finalise increases the conversion rate.
There are a multitude of online or remote payment methods that improve the guest’s journey through our accommodation, if you want to know them, click here, get to know them and apply them now.
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