Use these Beds24 tools and settings when exceptional circumstances such as Covid-19 disrupt your business: adjust to changed demand, manage cancellations and existing bookings, adjust your channels, and close temporarily if you have to. Links to OTA and partner resources are at the end.
Table of Contents
- Adjust to changed demand
- Manage cancellations and existing bookings
- Adjust the channel manager
- If you are forced to close
- Changes in the VAT rate
- Resources
Adjust to changed demand
Block days between bookings
Use Block Dates after Check-out in Settings > Properties > Rooms > Setup to block days between a departure and the next arrival, for example for cleaning.
Warning: This option only works for rooms with a quantity of one. The logic doesn't work correctly for room types with a quantity greater than one.
Accept requests instead of confirmed direct bookings
In Settings > Booking Engine, set Booking Type to Request. Guests then send an enquiry, and you confirm or decline each booking manually.
Note: This setting only applies to direct online bookings.
Offer cancellable bookings
If your bookings are normally not cancellable, add an extra offer with a cancellable price. See Offers.
Offer refund protection for non-refundable bookings
Activate Refund Protect in Settings > Booking Engine > Upsell Items. Guests can then buy optional refund protection that covers them if they need to cancel a non-refundable booking. See Refund Protect.
Attract last-minute and long-stay guests
If tourist demand is low, consider:
- removing or reducing the minimum days until check-in in your Daily Prices and Fixed Prices, and the same day booking cut-off in Settings > Properties > Booking Rules, to allow last-minute bookings
- attracting long stays with long-stay discounts
Let guests book for next year
Many guests who cancel their next trips already book ahead, even for next year. Open your rooms for sale more than a year ahead: add prices, and with Fixed Prices increase Max Days in Advance. If you set Export data = 2 years in Settings > Channel Manager, Beds24 sends data as far ahead as each channel allows.
Update your website, booking page and listings
Update the headlines and descriptions on your booking page and OTAs, so guests know which measures you take and what you offer at the moment.
Tip: Airbnb, Booking.com, Expedia, Tripadvisor, Vrbo and many other platforms have created special features you can add and programmes you can join. Taking part can significantly increase bookings.
Offer self check-in
Set up Auto Action emails in Settings > Guest Management > Auto Actions that tell guests how to get their keys or entry codes. Beds24 also integrates with several partners who offer self check-in solutions.
Use Google free booking links
Google has launched free booking links as a permanent option, after an experiment Beds24 took part in. As an official Google Hotel Ads partner, Beds24 can distribute your direct rates and inventory on Hotel Search by Google:
- You get a direct connection to Google with the best rate coverage and real-time prices.
- Your direct rates and availability show on Google Search and Maps.
To use free booking links, go to Settings > Channel Manager > Google Hotel Ads and set Notify = Notify for your most economical double room. To increase your visibility further, add a commission bid. Google has lowered the limit on commission bids: if few OTAs bid against you, you can get bookings for a 4% bid. See Google Hotel Ads & Google for Vacation Rentals.
Contact previous guests
Use the Mailchimp integration in Settings > Marketplace > Mailchimp to update your mailing list automatically, see INTUIT mailchimp. Or download your bookings as a .csv file to use in another system.
Adjust prices automatically
If you don't use dynamic pricing through Pricelabs or RoomPriceGenie, use the Yield Optimiser in Prices > Yield Optimizer to adjust prices automatically based on availability.
Consider other rental options
In many areas there is still demand for accommodation that normally might not be worthwhile, but now helps cover costs:
- Attract guests who need longer-term temporary accommodation: extend maximum stays and offer discounts for longer stays.
- Offer day use with limited service as a home office for people who need a place to work.
- Offer accommodation to guests who want to isolate themselves.
- Offer accommodation to people who normally live together but need somewhere else to stay at the moment.
Manage cancellations and existing bookings
Encourage rebookings with vouchers
If cancellations can't be avoided, issue gift or deposit vouchers that let guests who cancelled, or whose booking you had to cancel, book future dates with a discount. See Voucher Codes.
Keep guests informed
Use Auto Actions to keep guests informed about their booking and reassure them about the measures you have taken.
Report on cancelled bookings
Use the Cancel Date column in Reports > Custom Reports to create reports on cancelled bookings. See Custom-Reports.
Use automation to reduce contact
Automated messaging and self check-in can make your processes contactless. See How to use Automation.
Adjust the channel manager
Close or reduce availability at channels
If you accept direct bookings or requests but don't want to sell some or all rooms at OTAs at the moment, reduce or close availability at the channels in Settings > Channel Manager > Channel Inventory. See Channel Inventory. Check on the channel websites that the inventory is actually closed.
Disconnect channels completely
- Close the availability in Beds24.
- Check at the channels that the rooms are closed.
- Disconnect at the channel. The channel help pages explain how, for example for Booking.com go to Settings > Channel Manager > Booking.com and click Help at the top right.
Warning: Disconnecting a channel in Beds24 first doesn't close the property or rooms at the channel.
If you are forced to close
Close your property for new bookings
Set a Blackout in the Calendar to close your property for new bookings for a period. For other methods, see Close Rooms.
Cancel existing bookings
- Direct bookings: it's best to deal with every guest individually. If you can't, set up an Auto Action that changes the booking status to Cancelled and sends the guest an email. See Auto Actions.
- OTA bookings: for most OTAs, cancellations have to be made at the OTA. Check each OTA's current conditions.
Reduce Beds24 fees while you are closed
Lower the number of rooms and, if you have them, remove sub accounts and disconnect channels. Deactivate optional extras such as integrations, SMS booking notifications and private label booking pages.
Note: If you keep the channels open after disconnecting them, you need to manage your bookings and availability manually.
Changes in the VAT rate
Change the VAT rate in Settings > Properties > Descriptions > General. Also check the VAT for your upsell items in Settings > Booking Engine > Upsell Items. You can also change VAT through the API (JSON propertyContent).
Warning: Changes take effect immediately for all bookings made after you change the tax rate.
Resources
Beds24 partner Pricelabs provides data on recovery trends in the Pricelabs recovery trends video. Many OTAs have launched programmes and provide help and advice:
- Airbnb Corona Virus Resource Center
- Download Airbnb Corona Toolkit
- Booking.com Recovery
- Booking.com information regarding the Coronavirus
- VRBO/Homeaway Rise and Shine Webinar
- VRBO/Homeaway FAQ
- VRBO/Homeaway Health and Safety Guidelines
- Stripe dispute guideline