I've worked with Cilento and Campania hospitality for years. I know the fatigue of hotel and resort owners who've bought yet another "management software" that nobody actually uses. I know the frustration of paying 18-25% commission to Booking.com because "there's no other way".
There is another way. But it doesn't go through random digitalization: it goes through three precise levers, and ignoring even one makes the rest pointless.
The three levers that move revenue
1. Direct booking (cut OTA dependency)
OTAs (Booking, Expedia, Airbnb) are useful for discovery, but their commissions eat your margin. Growing properties work to convert the OTA guest into a direct guest by the second stay.
What you actually need:
- Fast mobile-first site with integrated booking engine
- Pricing strategy that rewards direct booking (5-10% discount vs OTA)
- Post-stay email inviting them back with an exclusive offer
- WhatsApp Business for pre-booking questions (3x form conversion)
Real case: a 4-star Cilento hotel went from 12% to 38% direct bookings in 14 months. Saved commissions covered the entire investment in 7 months.
2. Operational software (stop invisible losses)
A well-configured PMS isn't just "the software that shows the room calendar". It's the property's brain.
PMSes that work cover:
- Channel manager syncing availability across all channels (no overbooking)
- Mobile housekeeping for room attendants (clean room = iPad check, not paper)
