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August 27th, 2010

umi builds online booking engine for small accommodation providers

BY Simon

Umi hotels and web agency 2am have released a new accommodation booking engine which enables users to book a room from their smart phone and helps independent hotels compete against larger industry players with greater online visibility.

BookItWith is a secure online booking system that has been seven months in the making and is now available for “white-label” license inclusive of office-hours technical support.  The PHP-built software is a dynamic system, with plans to add a new feature every six weeks so that it remains the most capable booking software on the market.  The online engine can be found independently of the accommodation provider’s website through a sub-domain of BookItWith.com, on any device with web browsing capability.

Hotel owners will be able to access a conversion report showing exactly which keywords people have used to find and book their hotel.  This knowledge will allow them to adopt a better seo strategy, targeting keywords that provide a better conversion ratio.  The cost of the software is calculated on an individual basis, with commissions and support levels taken into account.

An online survey conducted by umi found that the top two “most off-putting aspects of making a purchase online” were security levels and complexity.  When testing the new BookItWith software, 97% of respondents rated the booking engine as “easy or “very easy” and 90% said the amount of room features available to choose from were “good” or “great”.

Founder of umi hotels and originator of the concept, Steve Lowy, said “It’s been a long and difficult project but working with 2am and thoroughly researching the market from all points of view will make it a success.  We have designed the software to be individually branded and assist independent hotels with their online sales strategies. This platform will also allow us to advance our franchise expansion plans by giving our member hotels a comprehensive sales tool that can drive their direct business.

He went on to say, “this product is not just aimed at hotels but all accommodation providers and very much aligned with the ethos of umi, we aim to offer a five star service to companies without breaking the bank”.

Designed with both customers and owners in mind, usability testing has led to increased page load speeds, optimum layout designs and the integration of Yahoo Money to give users an accurate estimation of their local currency rates.  The software also has intelligent features such as offering all available room types relevant to the number of guests and taking a payment pre-authorisation if guests would rather pay in person at the time of their stay.  BookItWith can be integrated into existing websites, be adapted for alternative languages and currencies and be used with a wide selection of payment gateways.

Whether your existing booking engine is slow and lacks performance or you are only just considering the right model for you make sure you contact Steve Lowy at steve@umihotels.co.uk for more information and make sure your guests Book It With your hotel.

August 2nd, 2010

Accommodating Business Success

BY Simon

London businessman, Steve Lowy, is in the running to be crowned Entrepreneur of the Year in the nationwide Nectar Business Small Business Awards, which will be judged by one of the stars of hit BBC TV show Dragon’s Den, James Caan.

Steve, who set up umi hotels, has been short-listed to the last five entrepreneurs and is now in with a chance of winning the award and scooping the final prize of £2,000 cash, £2,000 to spend at Viking Direct and 50,000 Nectar points.

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June 16th, 2010

umi London’s new complimentary walking tour is the best medicine for jet lag

BY Simon

umi Hotel London, a budget hotel in the heart of London, is continuing to expand their numerous guest services. Thanks to the work of an intern, they have recently added a self-guided audio walking tour of the beautiful and historic Notting Hill and Bayswater area.

Keeping up with founder Steve Lowy’s goal of providing students with opportunities within the brand, Caroline, an intern from the Maastricht Hospitality School, is responsible for creating this new service for guests. This project has helped her to learn more about the popular locations in the area around the umi hotel. It also allowed her to conduct research on the services that guests want the hotel to offer. In the first two weeks of the tours launch Caroline has enjoyed seeing her hard work pay off when guests return with positive feedback.

Although this tour may be taken at any point during a guests stay, it can also serve as a valuable solution to hotel check in wait times. Guests, especially ones travelling from outside of the EU, often arrive to their destination before their hotel’s check in time. This situation can leave jet-lagged visitors with no where to go or to store their belongings. Umi’s walking tour is able to fill this period of time and give guests the opportunity to begin their visit to London right away. Travellers can store their suitcases in umi’s convenient luggage storage area, and then they may begin on the journey to learn about the remarkable area surrounding the hotel.

The umi walking tour includes a map marked with fifteen popular locations in the region, such as Westbourne Grove, Jimi Hendrix’ House, Portobello Road, Kensington Palace and Hyde Park. It also consists of an mp3-player which serves as the tour guide, giving information and explaining the significance of each site listed on the map. Guests have the choice of listening to the full tour, or skipping to the places in which they are most interested. They are also able to explore at their own pace and still have time to take a break, shop, or stop for lunch.

Whether travelling for business or for pleasure, the complimentary umi walking tour is an excellent way to learn about the trendy Notting Hill and Bayswater area. And, it is an innovative idea from the mind of yet another driven intern at umi London.

umi hotels are made up of umi Hotel London, umi Hotel Brighton and Petrovka Loft Hotel Moscow

Contact Steve at steve@umihotels.co.uk

June 8th, 2010

umi Grill Competition Winner Announced

BY Simon

Congratulations to Pauline McGee who was selected at random from the entrants to the May umi Grill competition.

Pauline guessed correctly that Simon Cowell was the famous TV Judge hailing from Brighton.

Pauline is from Ireland and goes to London around 4 times a year, often with her daughter to see her son and shop, regularly staying at umi Hotel London.

Visit umi’s competition page at http://umihotels.com/competitions our June competition is for a staycation at umi Hotel Brighton for 4, as well a railcard giving the winner the opportunity to explore the local area.

April 22nd, 2010

umi’s April iPod Nano Competition Winner Announced

BY Simon

HollyAcamon

Congratulations to Holly Acamon who was selected at random from the entrants to the April iPod competition.

Holly guessed correctly that Jimi Hendrix was the famous guitar legend that lived minutes away from umi Hotel London.

Holly is a Professional Make-up Artist from Gorelston on sea in Norfolk and was selected from the thousands of correct entrants of umi’s April iPod competition.

Visit umi’s competition page at http://umihotels.com/competitions our May competition is for a free 3 course meal for 4 and a bottle of house champagne at umi Grill in Brighton.

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