In this article we will discuss the main issues faced by hoteliers when creating a website. Indeed, the development of a site for a hotel is an important and responsible work, since very often the guest’s acquaintance with the hotel begins with the site.
Before the development of the site for the hotel begins, it is necessary to carry out thorough preparatory work. They include a discussion of the main conceptual points of the site with people from the company who will somehow participate in the organization. But regardless of the wishes of the participants in the process, there are basic things that are relevant to all. Regardless of the category of hotel site should be intuitive and easy to use. The more additional services the hotel provides, the more information you need to show the client. And not just to show, but at first glance at the description and photos to cause the desire to certainly use them. You should not save on a good copywriter and photographer – in the best light they will show all the advantages of living in your hotel. Since at least half of the visitors will come to the site from a mobile phone, it is imperative to develop a high-quality and convenient mobile version.
High-quality website development for a hotel is impossible without good design. After all, the better and more thoughtful the design, the more likely it is to interest the client in choosing exactly your hotel. In the design you need to build on the concept of the hotel, its location, the main advantages. It is important to keep the balance of the elements in order not to load the client with superfluous graphics, keep it concise. In the choice of colors, you can build on the current design of the hotel building and its rooms, to maximize the effect of being present on the site. If the hotel’s pronounced colors are missing, then there is much more room for imagination. The site structure needs to be made logically correct, depriving the user of the need to think in which tabs the information he needs is found. After all, we all like when it is convenient and understandable? When site layouts are ready to look at them from the user’s point of view: do you like the design, is it nothing annoying, is everything clear? Do not be afraid to make changes to the layout, if they are really needed – it is better to publish a high-quality and decent product. The functionality of the site largely determines the usability of its use. Often the visitor comes to not only see photos and read the description, but also to make certain active actions. The main of these actions is, of course, room reservation. Give the customer the opportunity to do it conveniently on your website:
- Show in clear view available room categories.
- Add photos to each room category.
- Specify the moments significant for the client (for example, a room with a panoramic view).
- Tell me, is it possible to stay with children in your hotel, and if so, for example, a cot is provided in the room.
- Give in an understandable form information about the cost of rooms depending on the dates and period of stay. Also provide the opportunity to send an online application without booking and be sure to quickly and efficiently process such applications. To make your hotel easy to find, add a convenient map with a designated location and write a few words about how best to travel by private or public transport.
Website development for hotels is not simple and only professionals can afford. The site is your face on the Internet and you should only trust it to trusted companies. When you choose a contractor, be sure to pay attention to his experience in creating websites in the field of hospitality and tourism. In such a company you will get a very great value – expertise. And you will save money and nerves as a result – it’s better to do it once with professionals than to use low-quality services several times. In the company with which you decide to work, there should be staff specialists – designers, layout designers, programmers, project managers. Pay attention to an integrated approach and interest in cooperation. All this in the complex will be the key to successful and long-term cooperation.
Carefully choose a site development technology. One of the most popular platforms is CMS WordPress. With its choice, you will have a guarantee that there are a sufficient number of specialists on the market that work with WordPress. If you plan synchronization with third-party systems or the integration of different modules on the site – you need to study this issue in advance. Be sure to think about the future, because today you need to do a project that will be good tomorrow and the day after tomorrow. You should not save, but at the same time you need to approach the costs wisely and do the most necessary things. Approve the work plan and deadlines with contractors. The plan must be real – many things can not be accelerated just like that, allocating a week instead of two to fulfill a certain item. It is also important to remember that no matter how beautiful the initial plan in the process of its implementation will be changes and this is normal: new ideas, improvement, optimization of the invented earlier and so on. When the entire site is ready, you need to look at it again for errors or inconsistencies and only then publish it. It is better to set aside time for this so that, after publication, do not make edits in the «yesterday» mode.
Thus, we can determine the main points with which the development of the site for the hotel will bring pleasure and result:
- Qualitative preliminary discussion of the project.
- Good design.
- Clear interface.
- Convenient functionality.
- Professional performers of works.
And remember that free cheese is only in a mousetrap and you need to be sympathetic to the fact that a good site cannot be cheap – the best minds are working on it.