Patrizia Glaser has been managing Hotel Palau Fugit in Girona, Spain, since it opened in July 2023. Located in the centre of town, the property was formerly an 18th century palace. Following renovations in 2022, it is now open to the world. Each guest room is unique, beautiful and authentic.
Naturally, one of the main challenges she faced was making the initial investment profitable as quickly as possible. From the beginning, the team worked with a software provider to help them automate the distribution and sale of their rooms. But they soon ran into problems.
As Patrizia told us, “Working with our previous software provider proved to be difficult from the beginning. Just connecting the tool to our PMS took several days, involving several phone calls and emails to complete the process.”
The first few months after opening a hotel are always difficult. But Patrizia found this process even more frustrating, as she had to keep switching back and forth within the interface to get some of her daily tasks done.
“I had to spend a lot of time on the basics of hotel management, like OTAs, rates and reporting. I am a hotel professional, not a technology specialist. Over time, it became clear that we could not go on like this. Once it was low season, I started looking for a new technology partner”, she explained.
Thanks to recommendations from colleagues in the industry, Patrizia decided to request a demo of SiteMinder’s platform. She soon realised it was the strategic tool she needed to simplify her work as a hotel manager.
“SiteMinder’s software makes my day-to-day life as a hotel manager so much easier. The interface has a very clean look and feel, and it’s very easy to use, very intuitive. I just have to open the dashboard and everything I need is right there.”
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The key to increased productivity
Since switching to SiteMinder, Patrizia has found that managing internal operations is much easier. Mapping rates, setting restrictions, creating packages and promotional codes, and accessing reports have become quick and simple tasks.
“With our previous software, performing any of these operations was very complicated. Plus, there were always availability issues when contacting support, which meant that getting a solution could take weeks.”
“Being able to use the dashboard in my native language, German, also makes my work much easier,” she added. “What’s more, with an international team like ours, the fact that each member can set their preferred language to use SiteMinder is a bonus that we really appreciate.”
SiteMinder delivers more visibility and more sales
Patrizia explained that shortly after introducing SiteMinder, she noticed a significant increase in sales. This was possible thanks to three factors brought about by the switch.
Firstly, increased hotel visibility. Connecting with OTAs and using the channel manager was now much simpler, and new sales channels could easily be opened.
Secondly, the booking engine’s functionality meant that direct bookings were gaining strength. And, thirdly, being able to monitor competitors’ rates and market presence within the tool itself, made it easier to design sales strategies to boost demand.
“SiteMinder has helped increase our hotel’s visibility considerably,” Patrizia said. “It also lets me rearrange the order of room types and promotions so that I can highlight the ones I’m most interested in selling at any given time.”
When asked about future plans for Hotel Palau Fugit, Patrizia is clear.
“SiteMinder has become a key strategic partner for our hotel. It’s a tool that allows me to manage all aspects of distribution and sales from a single place.”
Thank you Patrizia, for your time and trust in SiteMinder and we wish you all the best in the future!