We're pleased at ProMedia.travel to have hired a new reporter,
Lauren Darson, who is covering lodging. Lauren received a nice welcome as her first article garnered praise and some commentary from a travel buyer down under ...
Re:
Wanted: Further Advancement In Hotel Rate Loading"Thank you for bringing to attention a key issue for buyers of accommodation. The issues you list are prevalent here in Australia as well. Despite giving hotels four weeks lead time to have rates loaded, [more] we still found that over 50 percent of hoteliers were not showing either (a) correct rates or (b) any rates at all. All claim that they have loaded them, but then off it goes into cyberspace never to be seen again. Rate loading companies don’t seem to care and no one bothers to check.
"As this is a core business requirement for the hoteliers (and they have been doing this for so long) how can it be they can't get something as basic as this to happen? What’s the prognosis for dynamic pricing when prices change and are loaded and reloaded and loaded again day after day? We have tried to seek recompense for those bookings that occur under a "wrong" rate, but it hardly covers those bookings that never get recorded in our monthly figures as they were never coded correctly. And then to be told we never met our productivity targets when we have our quarterly reviews is all too much! One of the most frustrating elements of this business I’m afraid."
~ Dorina Santos, senior business manager, corporate travel
Cyberlynx Procurement Services