The vacation rental industry is expected to become increasingly saturated over the next few years. With new players entering the market every single year and countless listings being created every day, the fact that many vacation rental businesses have recently experienced a drop in their occupancy rates comes as no surprise.

Two of the most popular vacation rental listing websites that show the fierce competition in this industry sector are Airbnb and VRBO, which currently share more than 8 million listings in hundreds of countries around the world. Additionally, Booking.com has almost 28 million reported listings, including over 6 million short-term vacation rentals.

Although competing in a saturated market isn’t an easy task, your rental business can still be profitable. The secret is to find a complete and intuitive lodging management software solution that allows you to manage all the aspects of your business, so you can offer a guest experience that’s superior to what your competitors provide. Because having the right lodging management software is an important part of any rental business strategy, this article presents a few aspects you should consider when selecting a property management solution for your business. 

Focus

Some lodging management software platforms only allow you to manage a few basic operations, such as availability, listings, bookings, and payment processing. Others do all these things but also provide a series of functions that enable you to streamline additional operations, including content management, housekeeping, revenue management, accounting, and reporting. If you’re looking for the best lodging management software for your business, make sure you select an all-in-one solution that can improve your operational efficiency, while also allowing you to identify new opportunities that could help you grow your bottom line. After all, the right lodging management software solution should help you work smarter, not harder.

Scalability

While 24/7/365 support is extremely important when selecting a lodging management platform, you’ll also want a “flexible” system that can meet current and future needs as your business evolves. In a nutshell, you need to look for scalability as a feature, which is particularly important if you’re planning on expanding your business.

That’s because only a scalable solution will be able to support your business in addressing two essential challenges: improving customer satisfaction and earning more revenue. Furthermore, opting for a reliable lodging management software solution that can be easily configured according to your business needs is key to managing different vacation rental properties and handling a wide range of operations without any constraints.

Security

A lodging management platform will store sensitive information about your properties and guests. Therefore, the software that you intend to choose must be able to keep this data safe from cybersecurity threats. Why is this important? In short, securing your data is one of the most essential aspects of maintaining credibility. Because a security breach may negatively impact your guests as well as your business, selecting lodging management software that goes above and beyond when it comes to securing sensitive information is the only way to keep everyone’s data safe.  

Integration

Guests rate their overall experience in a collective fashion. This means they desire to receive the same level of service from booking to check-out. To meet such expectations, it’s essential to use a software solution that seamlessly integrates different tools and features, which have been specifically developed to work together. This is the only way for a lodging management software solution to operate as one system that includes all the areas of property management. To make things easier, the solution you consider selecting should also provide an enhanced yet user-friendly interface that not only connects different parts of your business but also provides quick access to information for maximum efficiency and guest satisfaction.

Demo Videos

While you might be tempted to skip demo videos, watching demos is definitely worthwhile. That’s because they show you the interface and features in action, so you can better understand how the system works and whether it addresses your pain points or not. Allowing you to familiarize yourself with the software and providing most of the details you need, a demo can really help you make a well-informed decision quickly. Therefore, if you have the option to view or request a free demo, we strongly recommend watching the presentation. Not only will this help you eliminate the software solutions that won’t work for your business; it will also give you an opportunity to clarify specific aspects before your paid subscription starts.

Because selecting the right property management system will impact your business on a daily basis, be sure to consider the points listed above when shopping for lodging management software. Because the aforementioned points will help you narrow down your selection criteria, as well as, ease the decision-making process. Or even better, contact our professionals to book a free personal demo today and find out why so many vacation rental property owners and managers have already chosen JANIIS lodging management software as their PMS of choice.