As technology develops so do your guests’ expectations.
Smart Messaging
In the last 5 years messaging apps have flourished and
entered our everyday lives. This has again accelerated in the last few months as
we’ve have had to find ways to communicate with loved ones that we can’t visit.
Family and work WhatsApp and Messenger groups have really come into their own.
These tools all have two things in common – they are conversational, less formal and richer in content. Adding images, links and other attachments means you’re able to share so much with so little effort. That sharing helps create stronger bonds and brings us all closer.
So how does that fit on a business level? Well, for starters it means our guests are
familiar and comfortable with messaging as a technology. With such a big part of the service you offer
guests driven by communication, why wouldn’t you take every opportunity to
finesse that communication?
That’s why we built Smart Messaging.
How you communicate with your guests before, during and after their stay is changing. The ease with which you can schedule key messages for your guests makes Smart Messaging invaluable. And those automatic messages can be rich in content, so attaching images and links makes them not just interesting but also very useful to guests. We know this because the guest replies say it all.
Get Better Replies
What’s also fascinating is that guests respond quickly (because it’s easy) and they become more engaged with the host. So building that relationship is a natural process. Guests even use emojis in their responses, who doesn’t love seeing a 😊 in a response! 👍
There’s lots and lots more on offer, so click here for more… We have built Smart Messaging from the ground up ourselves so it’s fully integratedwith all your bookings and continually being added to. It’s also why we can offer it at such a low price of just £4/month (£49/yr + VAT)…. ridiculous value yet again from a family business that enjoys building things that make your life easier.
Every business is currently faced with some tough decisions, not least how to maintain quality and still save money in difficult times. Some very recent customers have shared their feedback on freetobook. As a family business we really know how to keep those budgets down and satisfaction up.
Even during these terrible times all of our service is running at full capacity developing new features and servicing all customers.
Wildercombe House
Having recently joined freetobook, I wish I’d done it ages ago. The set up was straightforward, and together with the great help and useful tips from Heather, along with Sandra on the Help Desk with the integration of bookings from an OTA, I couldn’t be happier. Nothing to pay unless you want to, so with the added bonus of only having to pay for the services that you need, what’s not to like. So what are you waiting for? Join freetobook today!
Lochinver Guest House
I returned to freetobook from ev***vo just a few months before the lockdown, and I am so glad I did – they simply provide the very best customer service I’ve experienced from a channel manager, and are always available to assist, especially during the dark days of the lock-down. No hanging on the phone for ages before you can speak to a real person who actually understands your issue and gets it resolved in no time! I can always get advice or answers to questions very quickly either via the online support, via phone or on the Facebook group. The fees are very reasonable and the team continues, even now during Covid-19, to work on great new features on their system. I can’t recommend them highly enough – this family-run company has good morals and ethics.
Tyndale Boutique B&B
We were using ev***vo as our channel manager but were let down by the lack of customer support despite the high monthly costs. Since we switched to freetobook we have seen a noticeable reduction in our outgoings and yet their support, both online and over the phone, is incredible. We highly recommend FTB.
Birklands Guest House
Just wanted to drop you a line to thank you for your recent advice which has certainly just saved us a considerable amount of money!
We also wanted to let you know how glad we are that we made the decision to join freetobook. As ‘newbies’ to all of this we were finding the system that we ‘inherited’ so very frustrating and confusing – not to mention expensive! We found FTB so easy to set up, simple to work round, and extremely user friendly. Without exception, any query we had was dealt with quickly and efficiently by your knowledgeable and friendly team, and the continued support in these highly unusual circumstance is just brilliant. When we then take into account the clear and, in our view extremely reasonable charges, we believe we’ve found the best and couldn’t rate FTB more highly.
Foxhills of Shanklin
The process of changing over from our previous online booking system to freetobook was a breeze. We were up and running on the system within just a couple of days. The system is intuitive and easy to use, but great support is there if needed. The customer service is available online or by phone and the responses are received so quickly. Not only is this a great system, but as a small B&B I appreciate not having to pay extortionate monthly fees, particularly when we are closed over winter!
I wholeheartedly recommend freetobook to anyone looking for a system which provides all the functionality, and better service, at a very reasonable price.
At freetobook we know we can do more and do better.. so we’ll keep working hard for our customers to ensure we all come out of this stronger.
Stay safe and well
New additions coming very soon:
Updated hotel style diary with extra functionality, split billing so guests can share parts of the same bill, new attachment types for smart messaging, cobooking for a new way to find and book direct.
So much is beyond the control of accommodation owners in this difficult time. Yet we hear so many inspiring stories of owners using their extra time to help their community while others offer accommodation to key workers or get on with renovations and tidy ups, ready for a return to business.
We are positive, inspired and continually asking – What can we do to make a difference?
All working
“… the very best customer service…fees are very reasonable. … this family-run company has good morals and ethics.” (Lochinver GH)
You will be pleased to know that freetobook has ALL our customer service staff working from home helping your businesses where and when you need it.
Just as importantly, ALL of our developers are working from home creating the next generation of technology to make freetobook even better value with even more smart functionality.
Pay-as-you-go
“…we only pay for what we use nothing more, what could be fairer? Thank you freetobook for first class caring support.” (Drinkstone Park B&B)
Our unique pay-as-you-go cost structure means that many customers are paying nothing whilst business is low. We have no monthly charges and all costs are optional, so not only are we keeping going at full pace we are also literally sharing the financial pain in these difficult times.
Offering real, honest value for money service and technology is at the core of any family business. We will never waver from supporting you to grow your accommodation business at the lowest possible cost.
“Changing over was breeze… up & running in a couple of days. … I appreciate not having to pay extortionate monthly fees.” (Foxhills)
“…very satisfied with their amazing service, and much lower costs. …their support, both online and over the phone, is incredible.” (Tyndale Boutique B&B)
New additions coming soon:
Updated hotel style diary with extra functionality, ability to create unit specific smart messages, split billing so guests can share parts of the same bill, new attachment types for smart messages, cobooking for a new way to find and book direct.
“…so easy to set-up, simple to work round and extremely user friendly. … we believe we’ve found the best and couldn’t rate freetobook more highly.” (Birklands GH)
Diversity is security. Relying on just one source of bookings is a risk to any business.
Your first priority is maximising direct bookings and it’s what we do best at freetobook. You simply can’t ever have too many direct bookings!
Channel Manager
Next in importance, if you need more bookings than just your direct ones, is your channel bookings and your meta bookings**. Freetobook does the whole range of channels: Bookingcom, Expedia, Airbnb, Hotelscom, Agoda, HostelWorld, HRS, Pitchup and a few others in the wings.
For Meta you can use Google Ads (UK only, world-wide by summer) and TripAdvisor (worldwide).
The 3 biggest channels are Bookingcom, Expedia and Airbnb. If you only work with one then you’re in danger of that source being too dominant, one channel is not a healthy spread. Some customers prefer to only book with certain sites (like Airbnb) so you may just not be reaching them if you’re not on that channel. Also a specific channel may do something you disagree with (it’s not unheard of!), so having alternatives will help in these situations by providing resilience.
High Connection Quality
Freetobook is regarded as one of the most reliable and high service channel managers in the world. There’s a lot of high tech in action, making sure it works all of the time. On the service side, unlike most, we do all your rate plan mapping and pro-actively manage connections once in place. This hands-on human support and advice makes the all difference. We also provide you with tools to ensure your direct rates and direct availability are the best they can be.
A good healthy business mix includes a majority of direct bookings alongside a diversified strategy with Bookingcom, Expedia and Airbnb.
Google Ads in the UK
OTAs are not for everyone, some properties can manage to fill up without them and we support those efforts. If you want more exposure but at a lower cost than the OTAs we suggest Google Ads at 7% advertising. In our experience TripAdvisor advertising works best if you are not with any OTAs, if you are with OTAs then TripAdvisor is too high a cost.
If Google Ads and direct are not enough to fill up your property we would suggest a diversified selection of OTAs. These channels can be managed in a way that prioritises your direct bookings, you would expect nothing less of a family company like freetobook.
This is what Google Hotel Ads looks like – we call this **meta search
**Meta is a source of direct bookings from rate comparison systems. Examples are Google and TripAdvisor – They are NOT Online Travel Agents (OTAs) and you pay for advertising rather than commission. Your direct rates are shown alongside the OTAs (only if you are with the OTAs). Meta is most powerful when you are not with any OTAs – your direct rates then become the only rate Google shows !!
In the 21 years since our birth in 1998 we’ve learnt a thing or two about making, managing and servicing accommodation bookings but the one thing we often get asked is:
… “what makes freetobook different ?”
freetobook is committed to:
build booking technology that maximises direct bookings above all other bookings
continually develop, upgrade and improve for your business
listen, care about, support and advise you whilst building things to the highest standards both morally and technically
be the best booking system possible, to study and learn from other booking systems
protect you from powerful corporations that seek to manipulate and plunder your revenue
never prevent you from leaving (by tie-in contract or any obstruction), instead we’ll learn why you left and improve to get you back
continue to make all paid services optional, clearly priced and listed publicly on our website, ensuring we advise honestly and openly as to their value and use to your business
These aren’t some corporate bull, they are part of our DNA, developed from those that work with us and for us, those that support us to grow and all those that used to work with us, they are our history and our future.
The significant success of freetobook in business provides us with the luxury to always put your interests first with fierce independence and a long term outlook typical of family values that no corporate can afford. That’s what makes freetobook different.
One of the winning valentine poems…
One valentines day a hotelier had the blues, “Which channel manager should I choose?” The OTA’s were leading them to booze! But they were cheered up when they heard the news,
“freetobook” said a friend with cheer! “they are really good, I have used them for more than a year!” They are the best by far, never fear. “they are there to help you, they are sincere”
Have you ever thought about how easy it would be for a guest to simply click a reply button to get in touch with you ? In the freetobook labs we have 🙂
Today’s guests expect so much and easy communication is now a given, looking for emails to reply to just isn’t good enough anymore. That’s essentially why we have upgraded the freetobook email system.
With the new smart messaging upgrade (which replaces emails) you can:
Send guests automated messages as soon as they book or a set number of days before arrival or after stay.
You can add gorgeous images to show off and boost your brand
Increases your read and reply rate because its so easy to use.
Quickly spot any failed messages and fix them instantly.
Works with all bookings including OTA fake email addresses.
Conversation thread keeps your chat together.
Boost your Guest replies
Smart messaging is getting even better. In the next few weeks we will be adding “guest actions” where guests can interact with their booking through their smart message.
You can send them a guest action and they will be able to change it, the first one will be “arrival time” – guests will be able to click to re-confirm their arrival time and it will change automatically in their booking, no need for you to do any more work.
Smart messaging will keep getting better, just let us know what you want it to do for you. There are so many ideas just a taster includes Stripe payments from smart messages, branding for the messaging page so guests connect with your brand setting the scene for their stay.
We asked you to prioritise these 7 Pledges, to re-order them according to your needs and your ambitions. That was no easy task… as many of you said, but that forced focus is what every good business requires if it is to improve.
So here’s how it unfolded, drum roll please…
Maximise direct bookings above all other bookings (35% of
the vote)
This is music to our ears, we created freetobook to enable direct bookings on websites. We wanted to build a booking engine so any accommodation anywhere in world could get an account, set up and take direct bookings in under an hour – for free. That was case in January 2011 and it’s still very much the case now, indeed that’s why we called it “Freetobook”. But there is so much more to do and we’re working on it. (some free direct booking images for you)
Continually develop, upgrade and improve functionality
came second (with 26% of the vote)
keep developing never stop
We are here 21 years down the line simply because we’ve
always believed we can do it better, we must do it better. Our “creative” drive demands that we look for
solutions to difficult problems. We also enjoy that process, it’s terribly
rewarding. This means that we don’t accept and settle in a comfort zone but
continually look around appraising the changes to your environment.
Listen, care about, support and advise your business
(17%)
This is the “easy” bit for us, as a family business we find
it a very natural function yet we value the importance of it. Our support team
have an amazing record only because they care. We are not here to serve
ourselves so it’s important that we listen and feel confident to advise when
required. Having the commercial freedom
(of a family business) means we don’t compromise in our service and advice we
offer.
Keep learning to be the best booking system possible (9%)
everyday is a school day !
We will. Aiming to do your best is always a great place to
start and we are fortunate to work with 1000s of customers who believe the
same. Over the 21 years we’ve seen a lot of changes so we’ve had to keep
learning new things. We have always
looked for and admired great technology.
Protect you, keep things optional for you and not tying
you in (altogether got 13%)
Our independence is a choice, just like yours. We have seen
enough stuff that does not impress us to know that we must always be clear,
open and genuine in what we do and what we offer.
Protecting independence results in more money staying local
and being re-invested locally in businesses. We live in times where technology
is enabling money to move across oceans far far away from where it was
generated and without any chance of businesses or governments being rewarded
for their investments.
So where do we go
from here?
smart stiff to boost your connection with customers
The great news is that we are already working on some new
technology to help increase direct booking, this includes better measurement
and analysis of the current situation. Other developments will become clearer
next year and we trust we can count on your support to get them moving. There is much work to do!
Thank you again for voting and for your many appended
comments. As usual there were masses of amazingly supportive ones, as well as
some great suggestions.
Here’s a small selection of what people said against the
various votes….
“We know you are the best out there, you have been amazing for us. Helpful and progressive.”
“All of the above are highly important. Thank you for giving them focus.”
“… really excellent customer service, feel like I’m contacting someone in my own company!”
“Would love it if freetobook was more mobile friendly or had a full App.”
“Good to see an honest and ethical organisation.”
“Still love freetobook and even more so since I joined stripe.”
“Thanks so much for your amazing service you have revolutionised the way we do business…”
“More reports, like annual and monthly.”
“Get the OTAs out of the booking loop as the charges are criminal.”
When you are looking to stand out in your guests mind then get messaging. Smart Messaging will take your communication with guests to the next level, making messages and stays memorable.
Freetobook Smart Messaging is your work horse taking the hassle and bore out of email communications. It replaces the old email system with a simple and intuitive interface that your guests can engage with, whilst making your administrative work quicker and simpler.
First up: you can set automated messages to go out before and after the guests stay. No need to worry about sending critical information.
Add images: spice up your message with gorgeous images that show off and boost your brand.
Communicate: a smart message thread is available to the guest making replies so easy and your interaction so natural.
Emojis: it’s brilliant when guests start sending emojis, it means you have connected in a fun and friendly way.
Spot any fails: you’ll see a failed message immediately so you can fix the email address that notifies your guest of a new message.
All channels: you can Smart Message all of your bookings as long as they have an email address (even to the fake emails from the OTAs).
Freetobook customers can setup Smart Messaging in matter of seconds in the “PLUS”tab. For properties not yet using freetobook, why not signup today and enjoy all the marvelous solutions we provide for accommodation owners worldwide.
The Smart messaging system is getting massive investment from us, there are already over twenty new features waiting to be implemented. These include “guest actions” where the guest can change their arrival time or other interactions with their booking.
We really believe the freetobook messenger will help you communicate better and save time… so we will continue to make it even better.
Not sure about freetobook ? Read our 7 pledges to see what makes us so different.
In the 21 years since our birth in 1998 we’ve learnt a thing or two about making, managing and servicing accommodation bookings but the one thing we often get asked is:
… “what makes freetobook different ?”
It is a tough question (if you really care about it) and after this long in business we had better have a good answer! In a perverse kind of way it’s actually taken 21 years to really find out who and what we are.
Some soul searching and chat in the office led us to seven key points that we would love to share with you as “pledges”. We believe what makes us a great company to work with is that we genuinely (and always) pledge to:
listen, care about, support and advise you whilst building things to the highest standards both morally and technically
continually develop, upgrade and improve for your business
build booking technology that maximises direct bookings above all other bookings
protect you from powerful corporations that seek to manipulate and plunder your revenue
be the best booking system possible, to study and learn from other booking systems
never prevent you from leaving (by tie-in contract or any obstruction), instead we’ll learn why you left and improve to get you back
continue to make all paid services optional, clearly priced and listed publicly on our website, ensuring we advise honestly and openly as to their value and use to your business
Note: the order of these pledges are as they came to us, we’ll shortly be asking our customers which are the most important to them then re-order accordingly.
These aren’t some corporate bull, in fact they have always been guiding us we just haven’t really thought much about it. They are part of our DNA, developed from those that work with us and for us, those that support us to grow and all those that used to work with us, they are our history and our future.
The significant success of freetobook in business provides us with the luxury to always put your interests first with fierce independence and a long term outlook typical of family values that no corporate can afford. That’s what makes freetobook different.
Because we know that in the current financial climate getting extra online sales is more important than anything else (and because we know that everyone likes something for free!), we’ve created a free e-book, titled “How to BOOST your online bookings,” written by freetobook’s directors, Iain & Craig Stewart.
