Automating group bookings

A clearer overview and less workload

In a hotel that receives group enquiries on a daily basis, maintaining an overview is essential. At Lumen Hotel & Events in Zwolle, Shiva Lohman and Jessey Huitink, as Front Office Supervisors, are responsible for processing these enquiries on a daily basis.

Together, they act as the point of contact for the front-office team and handle all aspects of group bookings: quotations, amendments, guest lists and communication with guests and other departments. With an average of more than 20 group enquiries per week – and sometimes more – this means constantly switching between enquiries, changes and deadlines.

Until recently, this process was largely carried out via email, notes in Opera and manual checks of email folders. It worked, but it was very time-consuming and often led to unnecessary communication and extra work. Since switching to Groupz, that process has changed completely: there is a clearer overview, less pressure and more peace of mind in our day-to-day work.

A lot of disjointed communication and unnecessary back-and-forth

Before Groupz was introduced, group enquiries were handled almost entirely via email. Quotations were drawn up and sent manually, often followed by a lengthy email exchange with the booker. According to Lohman and Huitink, a large part of the work involved communication between different departments. As well as direct enquiries, bookings also came in via, for example, the Banquet Sales department. “You’d email a colleague, who then had to forward it to the guest. Or the other way round,” explains Huitink. “There was always someone in the middle. That took a lot of time.”

In addition, processing changes requested by guests was often time-consuming. “If guests wanted changes, you first had to update them in Opera and then email them back,” explains Huitink. “You were actually spending all your time on communication. For example, we’d receive emails with an amended list of names, but without any explanation of exactly what had been changed. As a result, we had to go through entire lists – sometimes containing more than 100 guests – again to work out where the change was.”

To keep track of things, emails were pinned, notes were made in Opera and mailbox folders were created for different groups. Even so, it remained difficult to see at a glance what the status of a request was or which tasks were still outstanding. “The information was a bit scattered everywhere,” says Huitink. 

“If you wanted to know whether something had already been sorted out, you sometimes had to search through entire email threads.” That didn’t cause immediate stress, but it did create constant pressure at work. “There were definitely times when you were swamped with work and thought: where do I even start?” says Huitink.

The move to Groupz

When Lumen Hotel & Events decided to start working with Groupz, Lohman and Huitink were involved in the implementation from the very start. The transition went more quickly and smoothly than anticipated. “We were actually keen to get started straight away,” says Huitink. “When something new comes along, you want to get stuck in straight away. Innovation is great. Within a single day, we’d transferred all our groups and were ready to get started with Groupz.”

During the implementation, they received support from Jenneke in setting up the platform. “We were able to configure everything ourselves and tailor it to our internal working methods: rooms, extras and tasks,” says Huitink. “Jenneke helped us with that very effectively. And now, if we have a question, we usually get a reply within a day. That works really well.”

The first application via Groupz was a bit nerve-wracking. “We thought: OK… what now?” says Lohman. “But we just got on with it. And actually, it worked straight away.”

Other departments within the organisation also had to get used to the new way of working at first. “Sales found it a bit daunting at first,” says Huitink. “At Lumen, we all place great importance on personal contact with our guests, and at first it felt as though they had to let go of that bit of control.” A good working method has now been established: Sales has been given its own account through which they can view all bookings in Groupz. “They can now simply view the information in Groupz, but cannot make any changes,” adds Lohman. “This allows them to keep track of things without the process being unnecessarily interrupted.”

Calm and clarity in day-to-day work

Since making the switch, Lohman and Huitink have noticed a difference above all in the sense of calm during their working day. “Without even realising it, things have simply become much calmer,” says Huitink. “It’s only afterwards that you realise just how much of a difference it makes.”

One major difference lies in how group bookings are now received and finalised. “In the past, guests would often send an email listing all sorts of different dates on which they wanted to make a group booking,” explains Huitink. “It used to take a very long time to work out what was possible. Now, bookers can specify their preferred dates straight away when making the enquiry. That saves a huge amount of research.” The point at which a booking becomes final has also become clearer. “For me personally, the biggest difference is that a group booking becomes final as soon as the quote is accepted,” says Huitink. “In the past, options would sometimes remain open for a very long time, and it was all rather less clear.”

Whereas a lot of time used to be spent on communication and searching for information, the process is now much more straightforward. Tasks are visible, the status of a group is immediately clear, and all communication is in one place. Lohman: “I really like the tasks we’re assigned in Groupz. If something’s been done, or still needs doing, you can see that straight away. That reduces the chance of mistakes.” It also creates greater clarity within the team. Huitink: “We hardly ever have to ask each other anymore: ”Do you know anything about this?’ Everything’s simply in Groupz.”

Fewer emails and more control for guests

The new way of working also has advantages for guests. The first group to book via Groupz responded enthusiastically straight away. “That group comes back every year and used to send loads of emails,” says Huitink. “Now they could make changes themselves, such as name changes or cancellations. They actually found that much more convenient.”

According to Lohman, guests particularly appreciate the clear overview. “They can see for themselves who a room has been booked for and for how many nights. Guests like being able to check that everything is correct.” This also prevents mistakes that used to occur from time to time due to misinterpreted emails. “In the past, things would sometimes go wrong because an email was misread,” says Lohman. “That doesn’t happen anymore.”

In addition, the new approach is also generating new enquiries. “Since we’ve had Groupz on our website, we’ve been receiving far more enquiries via the website,” she explains. “Including from people who probably wouldn’t be so quick to book via email.”

More peace and quiet in day-to-day work

When Lohman and Huitink look back on the change, what strikes them most is the sense of calm in their day-to-day work. It is difficult to measure exactly how much time has been saved, but they say the difference is clearly noticeable. “It actually happened quite unconsciously,” says Huitink. “But looking back now, it simply saves a great deal of time.”

As there is less ad hoc communication and manual work, this frees up time for other tasks. The volume of emails has also decreased significantly. Lohman: “In the past, when handing over work, you’d sometimes have to say to a colleague: ”Sorry, my inbox is still full.’ That’s actually no longer the case. In fact, there are even days when we find ourselves thinking: ‘What shall we do now?’ because all our inboxes are empty.”

Highly recommended for other hotels

When Lohman and Huitink look back on the change, they don’t have to think long about their advice to other hotels that are still using email, Excel or disparate systems. “Just make the switch and get on with it!” they say, laughing in unison.

According to Lohman, the biggest benefit lies in the peace of mind and the clarity that the system provides. “It simply takes much less time and everything is in one place. That makes your work much more organised.”

Huitink, too, sees the main difference as being in clarity, both for the hotel and for the guest. “The system is very logical. Anyone can actually start using it straight away. And because everything is transparent, you also avoid mistakes.”

Ultimately, this also has an impact on the guest experience. “If you spend less time on admin, you have more time to devote to the guest,” says Huitink. “And that’s what a hotel is all about, after all.”

Want to see for yourself what Groupz can do?

Many hotels recognise the situation that Lumen Hotel & Events previously found itself in: group enquiries scattered across emails, separate documents and different systems. This often leads to unnecessary communication, error-prone processes and a heavier workload than is necessary.

With Groupz, the entire group booking process – from enquiry to guest list and communication – is brought together in a single, user-friendly platform. To let hotels experience the benefits for themselves, you can try Groupz for free for 4 to 8 weeks with our Proof of Value Pilot. During this pilot, your hotel can use Groupz in practice with real group enquiries, so you can see straight away how much time and clarity it saves your team. This allows you to discover, risk-free, whether Groupz can also bring greater clarity, reduce workload and free up more time for guests at your hotel.