If you have arrived here wondering what a PMS is, you are in the right place. PMS stands for Property Management System, or in other words, a hotel management system.
More and more hotels are going digital and deciding to put an end to paper sheets and notebooks, welcoming a PMS or hotel management system that facilitates day-to-day tasks. If you don't want to stay in the Iron Age, it's time to get down to work and start using a PMS.
As we already mentioned, a PMS is a software that helps in the management of a hotel or a property and allows the organization, administration and management of tasks in a simple and efficient way. Whether you have a hotel, a rural house or rental apartments, knowing what a PMS is will make your life easier.
What is a PMS for?
Although it may seem difficult to remember, a PMS is nothing more than a software adapted to the management of a hotel. Therefore, its main functionality will be to help you with the management of your accommodation.
These are some of the tasks that a PMS can be used for
- Reservation management: Confirm reservations, cancel them or check-in. Issue invoices and manage payments for completed reservations. Access and modify the booking calendar.
- Synchronization of bookings and prices: No matter where they come from: Booking, phone, directly from your door... The PMS system should take care of updating availability and conditions automatically.
- Control of room status: Know at all times whether a room is available, occupied, ready to clean or clean.
- Active communication with customers: Through your PMS you should be able to communicate with the customer from the time of booking, through the days prior to the guest's arrival, during the stay and post stay; In addition, a good PMS will be in charge of getting the information and valuation of the guest's experience.
And these are some more tasks
- Control of customer needs: With a PMS you can control customer requests and needs, such as extra beds, cribs, breakfast service or other required services.
- Access control: If you use an efficient PMS, you will no longer be tied to schedules and delays in the arrival of your customers. You will be able to manage check-ins and check-outs remotely, since all check-in information will be available before they enter the hotel door.
- Billing, cash and payments: A hotel management software or PMS allows you to manage your customers' sensitive data and collections in a secure and 100% legally covered way, without leaving the system. With your hotel management system you will be able to control pending payments, extra charges to a room, different payment methods according to the client. In the same way, ideally, a PMS can send invoices automatically to your manager.
- Alerts and notifications: A hotel management system can generate alerts and notifications related to pending tasks: customers to be responded to, reservations to be assigned, accounts to be paid....
- Customer database: If your PMS database is efficient, you will be able to store personalized details for future stays. A good management system not only serves the hotel manager and his employees, but also takes care of the customers, offering them a perfect experience.
I have a small hotel, do I need a PMS?
As they say, size doesn't matter. Having a small hotel does not exempt you from the tasks of check-in, reception or housekeeping, which should be easily managed and organized with the help of your PMS.
The same is true if you have a holiday apartment. In both large and small properties you have to manage reservations, take care of check-in and guests' needs, do invoicing, send customer data to the authorities... For this reason, knowing what a PMS is and what it is for is key.
Starting to use a hotel management software as soon as possible will not only make your day-to-day life easier, but will also help you in the organization of your property and in a much more efficient management.
What functionalities should a hotel management system have?
The first thing to consider is your particular situation. A PMS designed for a large hotel chain is not the same as a PMS designed for a small hotel or a rural house. The most important thing about a hotel management software is that it meets the needs of your hotel and helps you in the organization of the most important daily tasks.
So that you can decide for yourself which PMS is right for you, we have prepared this downloadable checklist with all the features that a hotel management system can have so that you can evaluate which ones you need to cover in your particular case.
Basic functionalities of a PMS
- Simple application, on your computer, on your phone or on your tablet. The most important thing about a PMS is that it is intuitive and easy to use. Cumbersome desktop programs are history.
- Easy to install and customize.
- Intuitive calendar: Allows you to quickly manage the status and availability of rooms.
- CLOUD Synchronization: Allows your bookings and prices to always be updated in the cloud, wherever they come from.
- Paperless: Forget about filling out forms when a guest arrives, all check-in information will be available before they walk through the hotel door.
- Security: Your customers' data will be safe, complying with all GRPD regulations. In addition, you will never have the risk of losing them again because they will be in a cloud server.
- Automatic sending of customer files to authorities
- Payment and financial management
- Efficiency
Extra functionalities of a PMS
- Integrated Channel Manager: The PMS will allow you to connect with Booking and other room booking platforms. If you don't know what a Channel Manager is, you can read about it here.
- Web page for your hosting: Some management systems offer pre-designed templates to create your hosting web page.
- Booking engine: Along with the accommodation website, a complete PMS will include a booking engine for customers to book directly without having to pay commissions to Booking or other platforms.
Now that you know what a PMS is and what it is for, it is time to get down to work and start using the system that best suits your needs.
