Room type mapping is the process of aligning different room categories across various systems, such as a hotel’s Property Management System (PMS), Channel Manager, OTAs, Global Distribution Systems (GDS), and market intelligence tools like rate shoppers.
NB: This is an article from Lighthouse
Subscribe to our weekly newsletter and stay up to date
Since different platforms use their own naming conventions and classifications for room types (e.g., “Deluxe Room” in the PMS might be referred to as “Standard Room” on an OTA), room type mapping ensures that these descriptions and categories are correctly synchronized.
This helps prevent messy data, and inventory mismatches when rooms are sold across multiple channels. Misleading bookers about room types, even unintentionally, can lead to dissatisfaction.
When implementing a room-type mapping strategy, or auditing your existing room type mapping you must consider any affected distribution channels and market intelligence tools you may utilize, including:
- Brand website
- OTAs
- Travel companies
- Bed banks
- Tour operators
- Wholesale suppliers
- Rate Shopping tools
Some systems allow for automation when undergoing a room-type mapping process. This often involves some level of machine learning where an algorithm can quickly automate this process for you, minimizing the manual labor involved so you can return your attention to other operative tasks.
Automation can be especially helpful when you consider how many room types a property can have.
Now, you might be saying to yourself – that’s great and all, but why should I undergo this process?
Benefits of hotel room type mapping
When you list a room on multiple OTAs, there can be different naming conventions, which can cause a single room type to have different names, and classifications on those various channels. Room type mapping allows you to match these differently named rooms back to your hotel’s own categories.
This is critical for effective inventory management and pricing. It prevents overbookings, ensures accurate availability across platforms, and simplifies rate adjustments.
By producing an accurate representation of your hotel’s room type inventory (such as your available rooms) you can more effectively forecast occupancy, implement tailored rate strategies across different room types and make more informed business decisions.
Accurate room type mapping at your hotel further enhances your revenue management strategy, enabling clear, strategic control over the visibility and pricing of each room category.
Manually completing this task would take an excessive amount of time. Automating this process not only saves you valuable time to focus on other tasks but also reduces costs by eliminating the need for guesswork in managing your room inventory.
Let’s look at a few more benefits of room type mapping for your lodging business.
