Booking a Software Demonstration

Part of the the evaluation process is to book demonstrations with system vendors, so you may review the products that you are interested in, learn more about them, and see if the software is a good fit for your business.  

I would highly recommend that your team plans to spend the extra time necessary to get a thorough demonstration with someone that is very familiar with the product.  

You can then spend time further evaluating the software on your own after-wards.  If a brief overview video is available on the vendor's web site, by all means watch it first. 

Be prepared to provide as much information as possible to the vendor about your business needs and items that your team have determined are important to your hotel, staff and guests.  Have your list of needs prepared prior to the product demo and provide it to the vendor about a week prior to your scheduled demo so they can focus on your needs.  At the end of the demo, be ready with any questions that may not have been answered during the demonstration.

If you are able to get an evaluation copy of the software after the demonstration, use it for your team to run through the entire process of a guest stay at your hotel, from reservation to checkout, not to forget housekeeping functionality, accounting, reports, guest history and groups.  Running through this process although time consuming, will ensure that you do not miss anything.  Questions often come after the fact, so using this process will also provide you with confirmation that the software meets your needs and works as expected.  

If you are in the vicinity of a hotel or resort that is using one of the property management systems that you are interested in, you may even be able to arrange a site visit, it never hurts to ask.

This is also the time to firm up your budget.  As you evaluate products that meet your needs now is the time to start requesting quotes as you evaluate products on your short list.  It is also time to start asking for references.  When  speaking with the vendor's current clients, ask specific questions that are of interest to your operation.  Find how the vendor respond to issues, how do they rate the training and support they receive from the vendor?

Recap

1. If possible, review a feature summary or  perhaps watch a brief video overview on the product, check out the vendor's web site, you should be able to find this information there. 

2. Book a product demonstration with the vendor, someone that is familiar with the product. They will walk you through a demonstration either on-line, using software you download or view via the Internet, or an in person meeting. 

3. Involve your team to ensure you get the most out of the property management software demonstration.  Having a team makes it easier to remember items that were covered in the demonstration.  Items that one team member missed may be recalled by another team member.

4. Ask for an evaluation copy or access to a demonstration hotel that you can use to further evaluate the product after your demonstration. Run through the entire process of a guest's stay.

Good luck and enjoy the demonstration process.

Jeff Sefton

property management system evaluation