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An image speaks a thousand words. And when it comes to securing guest attention, visuals give hotels the power to tell their property’s story. Whether potential guests are searching for a property on metasearch, OTA, Google or on social media – the first thing they are going to notice is the visual content. It’s what they can see and can greatly influence their booking decisions.
Hence visuals are crucial to the success of a hotel’s online presence. To start with, visual media makes potential guests to see and comprehend information which helps them to develop their own perception of the property and make an informed decision.
Where a high-quality image clicked from a proper angle can attract the guests, a flawed image clicked in dark from a poor angle might skip the traveler’s eyes and discourage them to book a room in your hotel. The photos you upload can make or break your reputation affecting your business, yet many hoteliers overlook the importance of hotel photography.
Photos attract the eyes faster than any other detail of the hotel. It’s a proven fact that the human brain can process an entire image within 13 milliseconds. So, is the same with the hospitality industry. The guests start imagining how the hotel will be and how their vacation will precede just by seeing the images of the hotel.
However, adding, editing and managing media content can be tricky. Thanks to Photo API though, content management has become easier for hoteliers.
What is Photo API in Hotels
Photo API is a means of communication between the system and the front-end website. In the hospitality industry, it is a way for the flow of photos from the dashboard to multiple distribution channels. All you need to do is integrate the API with the hotel channel manager or CRS for it to work. Most of hotel channel managers already have this feature integrated for you to showcase the best view of your hotel.
On a photography level, you need to click images that appeal to the guests and they start visualizing their stay. On a technical level, you need an API for the channels to seamlessly talk to each other and share visuals.
Key point: Highlight the best areas and features of your hotel on your profiles on OTAs, GDS, and others. Property media like images of the lobby, recreational areas, reception, entrance, garden, and conference hall. Under “room media” upload the images of the different rooms belonging to the respective room types.
Steps to Upload Media to the API
- Open the dashboard of the channel manager you are using
- Click on the property name on your left side
- Click “Media” under “Property Settings”
- Go to Room Media to add images of the rooms
- Go to property Media to add images of the hotel
- Click on the “Add Caption” button under every image to add the name of the area the picture belongs to or add the room type and give a small description to it.
To edit or replace any image click on the edit button corresponding to that image. Hotel photos can be managed under the head “Property Media”. Room media can be managed under the head “Room Type”.
Deleting any image removes it permanently from the dashboard and you need to follow the above steps again to reuse it.
Image Format: PNG, JPG, JPEG, GIF
Takeaway
With hotel bookings transforming from the traditional to the digital method, technology is a major part of the hospitality industry. Speaking of technology software like Hotel Channel Manager, Booking Engine, PMS, Rate Shopper and APIs (Application Program Interface) like Photo API, Content API, Room Rate API are the foundation stones of the hotel industry.
