Are free websites from PMS companies any good?

Are free websites from PMS companies any good? 

When you're choosing a direct booking website, there are a number of options to choose from.

Bookster property management software (PMS) is a holiday rental software that provides tools and services to holiday rental owners and managers. These tools are designed with three goals in mind; to help attract guests, manage guests' needs, and manage their bookings. 

As part of attracting guests, Bookster PMS provides free instant websites, with the option of hosting on their own domain, Bookster-made custom websites, and non Bookster websites. 

The non Bookster websites can be made by the client or by a web developer or designer, and include Wix, Wordpress and Squarespace. The bookings are taken using one of the Bookster booking engines or online booking calendars. 

Insights for Holiday Rental Owners

Following a discussion that all free PMS websites are poor, we decided to take a deep look at our free instant websites, and compare their performance to non PMS free websites. 

Were our free websites delivering good value for our clients? 

Or were they falling short of expectations and failing to provide the necessary tools for successful holiday rental management?

But the evaluation was complex, and we had to overcome some hurdles and seek outside advice.

Here's how we got on.

Hurdle 1. Different PMS companies offer different services.

The first hurdle we came across was recognising that not all free PMS websites are the same.

Free websites from other property management software (PMS) will be very different to Bookster free instant sites. 

The websites from each PMS can have very different booking processes, the look and feel is different to the user (the guest), and they are technically different behind the scenes. 

The result?

Each PMS website will provide different results for the holiday rental owner.

Can we do anything about that? 

No. 

Do we have insider information on competitors websites? 

No.

So we focused on looking at Bookster instant and custom websites and non Bookster websites that our clients use. 

What does this mean?

Well it means that when you're looking at different PMS free websites you need to be conscious that they're all different, and do some of your own research too. 

Our data only looks at Bookster data.

Hurdle 2. Promotion of the website.

The next hurdle came once we got the bookings and revenue data. 

There were significant differences in the data across every website type.

But why? 

We sampled the data and looked into the promotion of the instant, custom and non Bookster websites.

It became very, very clear that some short let owners and managers dedicate resources to promote their websites and drive traffic to their website.

For websites with high results, we could see active social media channels, discussion on forums, and newsletters and automated emails to guests. 

These linked back to their website... resulting in more people visiting their site.

And in contrast, those websites with low bookings had very little promotion of their website.

The website exists. 

But existing is not enough. 

If you have a website, no matter how you build it or host it, your website needs promotion. This is true of all industries, not just holiday rentals.

So this created a problem for our evaluation. What could we do with this variation in website promotion? 

We could include all data, but this would mean including websites that were not being promoted. That wouldn't fairly represent the potential of the website. 

So, we made a decision to focus on the top performers of each website type.

This means that the data reflects the potential performance of each website type, for holiday rental owners who promote it. 

Hurdle 3. The holiday home type.

Onto the next hurdle. The property type. 

When we extracted the data for 2023 of total bookings numbers and total income, it was clear that the data compared apples to pears. 

Some websites attracted huge volumes of bookings but for lower cost bookings.

Other websites attracted lower volumes of bookings but for higher value bookings. 

Which would we consider more successful?

The websites with higher bookings?

Or websites with higher income? 

And then to make life more complex, when we added in number of properties per website, the bookings per property and value per property created further complications.

Some websites had higher volumes of bookings but with many properties on the books, creating a lower bookings per property ratio, compared to websites with lower volumes of bookings but for fewer properties. 

So which demonstrates a greater success? 

The websites with higher volumes of bookings? 

Or the websites with higher bookings per property?

The data was greatly distorted by this variation, so it made it difficult to compare booking volumes and booking value with any level of confidence.

So what next? 

We called an external expert.

We got in contact Damian Sheridan to ask his views. After all, he has vast experience in website and Search Engine Optimisation (SEO), and he was the catalyst for this research :) 

What did we discuss? 

We discussed the overarching results from the research, and how the variables in promotion of the website, value of the bookings, and property type make this incredibly complex.

After long discussion, we decided that it's hard to provide a single, hard metric that evaluates the success of holiday rental websites. 

So what should we evaluate?

We came up with a few metrics that could provide interesting data, but, and this is critical, the data is just the first step in deciding what type of website to use. The success of a website has a lot to do with website promotion too.

Some key metrics for website evaluation

To assess the effectiveness of a website, we suggest considering several crucial metrics and comparing them to your expectations:

1. Number of visitors: The traffic your website attracts.
2. Ability to update: Ease of making changes on your website and updating content.
3. Number of bookings: Total bookings made through the website.
4. Bookings value per property: The revenue generated per property listed.
5. Bookings process: Ease and speed of the guest bookings process.
6. Measurement: Ability to connect the website to Google Analytics and Google Search Console.

Why a free PMS website can be a great option

Cost-effectiveness:

Free websites eliminate the initial financial barrier, making them an attractive option for new or small-scale holiday rental owners.

Compared to the upfront costs of custom websites, especially those created by a web developer, a free option offers direct booking opportunities for no cost.

Solid performance:

For Bookster clients actively promoting their instant website (both on their own domain, and those using the Bookster domain), in 2023 there was an average of 153 bookings and an average total bookings value of around £80,000.

We view this as evidence that Bookster Instant Websites demonstrate their capability to generate substantial traffic and bookings.

Numbers of properties per website averaged at 11 properties, however this amount ranged from 1 to 50.

Comparing all website types (Bookster free instant websites, Bookster custom websites, Non-Bookster websites, eg Wordpress), the highest number of bookings per property were on Instant Websites hosted on their own domain.

The highest value per property and highest overall revenue were created on Bookster Custom Websites.

This demonstrated Bookster Instant Websites are particularly beneficial for those starting with single or multiple properties, and the option of Bookster custom websites provides options for a holiday rental owner to take their business to the next level.

Ease of updates:

Integrated with a PMS like Bookster, free websites offer streamlined updates and management.

In Bookster this integration ensures your availability, rates, and property details are always up-to-date, enhancing the guest experience and reducing administrative work.

Bookster instant websites are streamlined to providing property and booking pages. We do this to focus your visitors' attention on your property/properties and remove the temptation to wander off into other pages and not make the booking.

They don't provide additional features, such as a blog or detailed local area pages, so these pages don't need to be regularly updated. 

Competitive edge by hosting on your own domain:

Bookster data demonstrated that a free website hosted on your own domain can perform even better than those not hosted on their own domain.

This equated to higher bookings per property (40 bookings per property for instant websites on their own domain compared to 28 for instant websites not on their own domain).

Hosting on your own domain boosts your credibility and online presence without substantial investment.

However, remember there are variations in property types and this can and does affect bookings value per property.

Scalability:

Free PMS websites provide a scalable solution.

As your business grows, these platforms can handle increased traffic and more properties, making them a sustainable long-term choice.

If you decide at a later point to invest in a Bookster custom website, or another website created on Wix, Wordpress etc, then that option is open to you.

What makes a good website?

A good holiday rental website should excel in the following areas:

• Created to perform well in search engines:
  It should be well-optimised for search engines like Google and Bing.
• Created to consider visitor needs:
  Visually and functionally appealing to potential guests, for example with videos and fast page speed.
• Ease of updates:
  Regular updates on availability, rates, and property details are crucial.
• Booking efficiency:
  A seamless booking process to maximise conversions.
• Revenue generation:
  High booking value per property or high booking volumes enable better profitability.

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While there are various website options available, a free Bookster PMS website stands out as a strong choice for holiday rental owners. 

It combines cost-effectiveness with solid performance, ease of management, and scalability. 

For those seeking to enhance their online presence without a substantial financial commitment, starting with a Bookster PMS free website, and hosting on your own domain, is highly recommended. 

This approach allows you to attract more visitors, manage bookings efficiently, and ultimately increase your revenue per property.