Today, very few applications and digital solutions achieve their goals independently, without connecting to other systems for data exchange purposes.
Open systems crucial for optimization depend on the Application Program Interface (API). According to a Google Cloud report, API technology launched a digital transformation in 2020.
The importance of API will only grow. 🤖
Properly designed and managed, APIs provide access control to digital resources. It also combines old systems with new technologies and empowers developers to experiment and respond to changing user needs.
Lingua Franca
API is a communication tool between different program components, which allows the exchange of data between applications. It refers to a group of rules that can access information or actions.
Simply put, the API is the lingua franca – the software language.
Everyday hospitality tasks employ various internal programs to store and process data such as availability and pricing and external programs that enable safe payments.
For a fast and safe money transfer, the solution used must adequately communicate with the payment gateways.
Rentlio integration with Stripe and Monri payment gateway systems enables secure payment processes.
And it is a piece of cake to set up. 🍰
Different PMS providers handle data differently. A reservation can be stored differently in one PMS than in another. Some property management systems may need more information about reservations than others. Choosing a digital solution developed under the same umbrella should help avoid mentioned complications.
Rentlio is a PMS, channel manager, booking engine and mobile application. It is everything you need to keep your business in sync, regardless of the size (and number) of the objects managed.
Digital Glue
Offering a comfortable and unique holiday with complimentary quality service today means managing sales, marketing, design, and technology segments.
All this, while at the same time, the guest should remain a priority.
Being a hotelier or vacation rental today is much more complex than it was 20 years ago.
Considering the complexity of hospitality today, the variety of distribution and tasks, the need for intuitive technological solutions is not surprising.
With the property management system at the heart of hospitality, APIs enable connectivity, a collaboration of internal and external partners and resources, business optimization, and ultimately improve the guest experience. Like digital glue connecting applications, API communication provides successful access to required features and data in general, such as reservation data, guest and room lists.
Additional benefits of API communication imply significant savings in time and resources and reduced errors compared to manual updating.
API in action 👇
PMS ← → Channel Manager
The reservation arrives in the channel manager, followed by manual entry into the PMS system – without API.
With API, the reservation arrives in the channel manager. All data and details of the reservation are already automatically in the PMS.
The PMS – Channel Manager integration is almost irreplaceable for optimal sales.
Rentlio Channel Manager synchronizes and automatically updates bookings received from online booking portals such as Booking.com, Airbnb and Expedia. All reservations and details are visible in the Rentlio calendar and updated on all connected sales channels avoiding overbooking.
PMS ← → integration with restaurant software
When entering an order using restaurant software, it usually needs to be manually entered into the PMS to be appropriately billed, without API.
With one click and without additional manual input, API synchronizes guest orders in the PMS and restaurant software. This connection saves a significant amount of time and eliminates the possibility of mistakes.
PMS ← → revenue management integration
Pricelabs, a revenue management solution, forms the optimal accommodation price by an algorithm considering segments such as location and demand.
The optimal price estimated by Pricelabs, without API, is entered manually in the channel manager – each time, with every change, for each distribution channel.
With API, these prices are automatically visible in the channel manager.
It was what it was.
API openness and transparency are the norms today, but they have not always been.
Integrations and APIs were revenue sources in the not-so-distant past, and valuable data was kept behind closed doors. The introduction of open API forced providers to add value to the service rather than relying on system closure or openness and data exchange.
An excellent example of API importance is Airbnb.
Airbnb opened API relatively recently – in 2018. With the expansion of business, opportunities and needs, the Airbnb API documentation is publicly available to everyone.
Ultimately, this is a big win for hoteliers and vacation rentals.
Implementation of a cloud-based PMS enables a connection to guest service applications and many other applications. With the ability to adapt, grow, and integrate with third parties, where API is essential, you provide more growth opportunities to your business.
Knowing what API is and how it works is crucial for any hotelier and vacation rental who thinks ahead.
PMS integrations enable more bookings, fewer overbookings, better communication and increased business automation. The importance of API, connecting and exchanging data leads digital transformation towards digital excellence – not only in hospitality. With well-designed and managed APIs, companies can ensure business customization regardless of the (un)expected interruptions.
All Rentlio supported integrations are here.
If you have a proposal for cooperation or new integration, please contact us or look at our publicly available API documentation 🙂.
