Online travel platform ReadyRooms has had a sparkling makeover for a new era in booking travel. So what do advisors need to know? We asked Viva Holidays GM of sales, Steve Brady to share the details.
Tell us a little bit about what travel advisors can expect from the new platform?
Travel advisors can expect an easy to use interface that will be familiar to many already.
Time and again, agents told us how much they’d love to have a Search Anywhere function, advanced map search capability, and a broad range of products. It’s all there.
We know that customers are looking online at a broad range of hotel products, sometimes in-store at the same time as they are talking to their travel advisor.
ReadyRooms is there to provide global hotel content for travel advisers to meet that need, and it’s not available for the travel consumer to access.
How many accommodation options are there on the new platform?
We have over 193,000 hotels, over 9,000 activities, and over 69 million transfer routes at launch.
Is the pricing fully dynamic?
Any hotel rate available in ReadyRooms can be instantly confirmed, taking away any need to wait for confirmations and saving agents’ time.
Broadly, we have two rate types: instant Purchase and Available rates.
Both rates can be dynamic and change based on exchange rates and demand; they are also supplemented with static contracted rates in some destinations.
Instant Purchase rates are precisely that and require payment at the time of booking.
Available rates can be booked and held without a deposit until the due date for final payment.
What is your favourite feature of the new ReadyRooms platform?
My favourite feature is Search Anywhere which allows an agent to search for a hotel by city, a locality within a city, by point of interest or directly to a specific hotel.
This gives the agent the flexibility to search for hotels broadly or as narrowly as they need, based on the situation. Supplemented by the advanced mapping tool, it’s easier than ever for agents to find a hotel that suits their client’s needs.
Why do you think travel advisors should head to your platform before others?
Our goals with ReadyRooms are to save advisors time, give them flexibility, make their work easier and put money in their tills.
We’re saving agent time with the advanced Search Anywhere functionality and instant confirmation on all hotels.
Advisors have the flexibility to book instant purchase rates or book and hold without a deposit, allowing the agent to make free of charge cancellations and changes online until the time of full payment.
The broad product range makes advisors’ lives easier because they don’t need to visit multiple sites to find the right property for their clients.
Lastly, advisors retain commission at the point of sale rather than being paid after departure, helping improve their cash flow.
Can travel advisors use the sliding commission tool?
ReadyRooms has always had Name Your Own Price (NYOP) functionality, which also exists in the new platform.
Advisors can use the NYOP slider to adjust commission and the final sell price to suit their business and client needs.
Tell us about your advisor reward program
We’re revamping our reward programs now, with some announcements due soon.
We’ve always had strong loyalty and reward programs, and as we come out of Covid, we’ll continue to support advisors in this regard.
ReadyRooms bookings will count toward all our programs for both agencies and advisors, so everyone can be assured that their booking counts.
What message would you like to give travel advisors right now?
The world is reopening, and we’re here to support you as customers increasingly travel again.
We know that each customer has differing needs, so rather than focus on a small number of packages, our goal with ReadyRooms is to give agents a broad selection of products to deliver the perfect offering for their customers.
We also know that flexibility is key; ReadyRooms allows agents to choose between instant purchase pricing or booking without a deposit and make free of charge amendments until the hotel payment is due.
Since all hotels can be instantly confirmed, we’re confident we’ll be saving advisors time.
When will the new booking platform be live?
The platform is live now and has rolled out to agents over the last ten days. If advisors haven’t received logins yet, they can email rragents@readyrooms.com.au and we’ll get them set up asap.
For more, head to www.readyrooms.com.au