Brand website nets 10% of overall bookings for Hablis

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Simplotel Booking Engine, Simplotel Website Builder Boosts Brand Visibility

For a hotel that began shop only in 2013, Hablis has come a long way in terms of growth — revenue, operations, and brand visibility. “If there is one word that is key to our strategy, it is adaptability,” says Rajesh Devarajan, Managing Partner at Hablis. “We learned that the only way to succeed is to adapt to the market and customer demands.”

The 120-room business hotel is situated in Guindy, Chennai. This location gives it a strategic advantage as the hotel is just 5 km from Chennai International Airport, 2.5 km from Chennai Trade Centre, and caters to the corporate community.

The area is also a hotel hub with various reputed brands located within a 2-km radius such as ITC Grand Chola, Hilton, Le Royal Méridien, Park Hyatt, Radisson Blu, Trident and Ramada Plaza, among others.

As industries began joining the digitalization bandwagon, the hotel industry also followed suit. Hablis needed a strong and aesthetically designed website to improve brand visibility. This is when Devarajan decided to onboard Simplotel.“We were looking for a platform that could help us custom-build the website. Simplotel's Hotel E-commerce provided us this flexibility. It added a lot of value as we could change content dynamically, create innovative packages and also provide us with a pay-as-you-use model.”

Pre-Simplotel, Hablis would hit a maximum of two bookings from its website. But after teaming up with the Bengaluru-based SaaS company, the business hotel started recording 10 direct bookings online each day, before COVID-19. This accounted for 10% of Hablis’ overall bookings, a 5X jump. “We have employees from other 5-star hotels, who had never seen this number of bookings through their website,” says Devarajan.

With Simplotel, Hablis recorded almost 400% growth in both revenue and bookings through its website. “We analyzed that Simplotel had great potential in its service and support. There was a lot of effort and thought put into designing the website and booking engine products. The features were readily available and Simplotel offered us more than we imagined. Our website went live within a couple of weeks, which left us in awe.”

COVID-19 then brought the entire world to a standstill. “Our review meetings with the Simplotel team helped us analyze data, market trends and booking patterns. We had brainstorming sessions which helped us identify the right opportunities. We came out with value-added packages such as a pick-up and drop service and meal plans, among many others. These seamless features helped us immensely to drive bookings via the website and booking engine.” Devarajan believes you cannot survive in the hotel industry without prioritizing digital marketing. “When Hablis began in 2013, we would display the accommodation prices on a rate card. Today, the price for the same room changes four times a day. Thanks to Simplotel, our website now accounts for 10% of overall online bookings from a negligible number.”