Introduction
Staying ahead of your competitors is not easy. You need to be on your toes and keep up with the ever-changing industry trends. With just one bad move, your business could spiral down. One of the major pitfalls that many hoteliers fall into is persisting with their on-premises hotel management software. The time and money you spend on maintaining your legacy system is something that your competitors can gain from.
What is an on-premises hotel management software?
As the name suggests, it is a desktop software that is installed on the premises of the hotel. It is operated from an in-house server and requires a licence for each server.
5 Pitfalls of on-premises software
Managing multiple properties
When you own multiple properties, it is tedious to install the hotel management software on each computer. The installation, maintenance, data management and integration with external systems costs a fortune. Added to that, you need to purchase a licence for each system. There is no centralised software to manage all your properties.
Downtime during software updates
From time to time, your on-premises software will release new updates. This takes up a lot of downtime and labour, as each system should be individually updated. Your system will be inaccessible during this period and can keep your customers waiting during working hours.
Hardware cost
The hardware maintenance cost of on-premises software is expensive. It is not just limited to the time of installation. Every time there is an update or hardware malfunction, you will either have to repair the existing hardware or get a new one. There is no way of escaping this expenditure.
Data breach
Since the data is stored within your property on a remote server, data security is solely your responsibility. You must spend money on installing firewalls and anti-virus software. A data breach can release confidential information like your customers’ personal details, bank details, passwords etc. This will severely affect your hotel’s reputation. In worst case scenarios, you can attract legal action against your property.
Workload
Most of the on-premises software lack automation. Automation can range anywhere from updating inventory rates and house-keeping tasks, to downloading insightful business reports and managing reservations. This saves time and the workload of your staff will decrease significantly, as they don’t have to update the information manually.