As weather cools, smart hoteliers prepare to stoke demand and welcome winter guests. From cleaning fireplaces and spicing up menus to creating irresistible packages and promoting winter experiences online, there’s a lot to do to fill rooms this season. Is your online booking engine (OBE) ready?
NB: This is an article from WebRezPro
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Your OBE doesn’t just capture bookings – it plays a significant role in convincing lookers to book. Take full advantage of its conversion-boosting features to maximize direct reservations and make this winter your best yet.
Here are some impactful ways to get your booking engine winter ready to drive holiday bookings.
How to Boost Winter Bookings with Your OBE
Promos & packages
Make sure your cool winter deals don’t go unnoticed! Use display priority settings to highlight special rates and packages so they appear first, drawing attention to seasonal offers.
As well, strikethrough pricing clearly shows discounts, and room and rate availability calendars help guests find the best deal when their dates are flexible. Together, these features make your winter value proposition obvious at a glance.
Close matches & urgency signals
Once school’s out and demand surges, your OBE helps guests avoid disappointment by displaying alternative options and urgency messaging when availability is low.
For example, a rate with a minimum length of stay can be set to appear as a close match for room searches that don’t meet the minimum requirement, giving guests additional options (and encouraging longer stays!).
To help guests make faster decisions so they don’t miss out, the booking engine can be configured to show the number of rooms left for each unit type once availability drops below a set threshold (e.g., when five or fewer units remain).
Custom room amenities
Shine a spotlight on the amenities that set your property apart. Seasonal touches like heated towel racks, humidifiers, and holiday décor can be included in your OBE within room amenity lists and as search filters.
Custom amenities not only ensure guests are as informed as possible and make room comparisons clearer – they draw attention to your property’s unique selling points.
Add-ons
Offer extras like late check-out, ski passes, or winter welcome baskets during the booking process to let guests customize their stay while driving ancillary revenue.
