What is an Internet Booking Engine (IBE)?

What is an Internet Booking Engine (IBE)?

2020, May 01    

The power of the internet combined with the ever-increasing popularity and usage of social media is drastically changing the way things worked previously. Almost no industry is left untouched from the grasp of technological advancement and digitisation. 

And what’s the outcome? As our world converges towards a more technology-oriented lifestyle, an increasing number of people are compelled into becoming tech-savvy. Even the most conventional industries that prioritised manual operations over digital ones are now turning towards technologically geared practices. Such is the case of hotel industries.  

There are many subsidiary operations that are working round the clock to facilitate smooth and running operations in hotels. Yes, a large part of hotel services are still comprised of services that essentially involve operations conducted manually, but technological advancements are shaping things up differently now. 

Furthermore, the power of social media has brought about new ways to conduct business activities. The hotel industry by itself has innovated new mediums of business with the introduction of online travel agencies (OTAs) and internet or online booking engine (IBE). 

What is Internet Booking Engine (IBE)?

Internet booking engine, which is also known as the online booking engine, is simply a new travel technology that focuses on simplifying the process of hotel bookings and reservations for both the customers and hotels. It works by creating an application on the hotel’s official website and social media pages using which customers and clients can get linked directly with the hotel. 

It is a fast and efficient system and makes online reservations of hotels easy for both parties, eliminating all the intermediary hassle. Fundamentally, the internet booking engine is a system used for arranging hotel reservations for customers and provides a way to better handle and manage customers.  

The History of Hotel Reservations

In the past during the 20th century, hotel booking and reservations consisted of bureaucratic and manual procedures that would often take up a lot of time to execute. This involved providing travel-related information to potential travelers over the telephone. 

The demand for an advanced system or method was still latent as the number of travelers was meager. This was during a time when the world was initially being introduced to the idea of smart traveling as we see it today; in a sense that they were merely testing the water. 

However, after some years, this system was rather proving to be delayed and inefficient, reducing the productivity of ticket booking systems. Due to the gradual rise in the number of travelers worldwide, airlines were finding it increasingly difficult to keep track of and assist potential clients. This scenario needed a solution and this is what saw the introduction of Internet Booking Engines, or IBEs.

Fast forward to 1946, in search of a solution to this problem, American Airlines was the first airline company to introduce a system that was somewhat able to reduce these existing problems. American Airlines during this time successfully implemented an automated booking framework. 

While it eliminated some of the manual work, two problems persisted - aircraft administrators still needed to conduct the original queries, and operators were not able to question this framework. 

To tackle these problems, a new system was established after 1953. This novel system, known as Computer Reservation System (CRS), was a semi-automatic booking system and computer reservation system that allowed travel agents to ask the queries by themselves as aided by the use of technological equipment. 

Later during the 1980s, more functions were added to computer reservation systems such as providing users with the opportunity to book and sell tickets for several aircraft as opposed to the introductory system that allowed this feature for only one single airline. 

This advanced version of the computer reservation system can be called the first prototype of the Global Distribution System (GDS), which transcended the ordinary operations to include information search as well.    

Despite all this, travelers still required a more advanced and better version that would give them ease of usage and eliminate the steps and manual interactions involved as the number of global travelers continued to soar upwards. This is what brought about the online booking engine that gave end-users one exclusive platform to make their flight bookings without any hassle and obtain all necessary information as well.

Although they were initially used by airline companies only, hotels soon started to put them to their own use seeing the major benefits it offered.

The Benefits of Using IBEs

The introduction of internet booking engines worked as a catalyst to drive operations in bookings and reservations productively and efficiently. And why not? Booking engines come with a plethora of benefits, both for the business and their customers. 

How Hotels Can Benefit Using IBEs

  1. Database Warehouse
    The online procedure of booking hotel rooms requires the seeker to input various relevant information to confirm their booking. This includes flight information, class of travel, any present medical condition, food preferences, and seat preferences in case of airline seat bookings. 

    On the other hand, hotel owners get access to information such as the type of trip whether their customers are on, whether business or family vacation, their room preferences, personalised room services, frequency of travel, and more such data. Such data are recorded and stored in the booking engine’s database which can later be utilised to keep in touch.

    Hotel companies can now send out offers and provide customized services on their customer’s next visit, leaving a great impression and building a better relationship. As you can see, all this information can tell a lot about a customer’s preferences. This enables hotel companies to secure repeat customers. 

  2. Attract More People
    Using internet booking engines gives businesses the scope to attract more people, broadening their target. This surpasses the conventional booking hours which are often not available during the night, losing a great chunk of potential customers. 

    You’d see a lot of people browsing through hotel listings and airline tickets after work hours when they have idle time to themselves. But unfortunately, they cannot attain their desired services at that time because it’s past working hours. Frustrating, isn’t it?

    IMEs allow the scope for attracting more people by eradicating time limitations. The different time zones also play a crucial role here. Additionally, many people do not find it comfortable to speak with real operators due to language barriers and the cost of making international calls. Booking engines take care of all these problems.    

  3. Gain Competitive Advantage
    Hotels and airlines who use booking engines are entitled to a set of added benefits that others in the industry do not have, giving them a competitive edge. Firstly, more exposure is created when the name of the company is listed on additional websites and has an online presence. This increases the number of potential clients. 

    This is more logical as well because nowadays people look up information online rather than going to physical sources.  Secondly, plenty of time is saved by switching to online operations. Bureaucratic paperwork is eliminated as would be the case for manually inputting and recording information, thus increasing efficiency. 

    In fact, online tools can do this even better by integrating data and filtering information.   

How Customers Can Benefit Using IBEs

  1. Experience Lesser Hassle
    Using booking systems substantially reduces the hassle for end customers. To elaborate, people will require fewer steps to book a hotel room. They do not need to make several calls to the hotel’s hotline number before finally being able to speak to someone from the administration. Even then, it could take up plenty of time. 

    Hotel room seekers do not have to interact with several people down the line when trying to book a room and verbally explain their requirements and preferences. Rather, they can just type in their information and book rooms with a few simple clicks.  

  2. Easy Mode of Payment
    Traditionally, making payment of a large sum of money was a stressful procedure that involved taking rounds of the bank to pay and clear a check or moving around with huge sums of cash. This was not just a time-consuming process, but an unsafe one too. 

    Internet booking engines have classified and simplified this process by large by managing the payment procedure on behalf of their customers. Travelers can make payments of large sums from the comfort of their own homes using a secured credit card. It is a transaction done totally by digital means and is a promise to the end customer of providing the demanded services. 

    Not to mention, this sort of transaction is very safe as a receipt is provided as proof of payment that can be presented later or stored for reference.    

Overview

Internet or online booking systems come with a lot of benefits for both the customers and clients stretching from the airline industry to the hotel industry. The digitization of such procedures has proven quite profitable for businesses and end customers at large. Next time you’re planning a trip, give IBEs a go and spot the difference for yourself.