Adopting an Online Booking System will:
- allow you to manage your inventory from one central point
- distribute & sell your product through multiple websites
- save time by automating tasks such as processing payment and confirming bookings
- remove the need for allocation to wholesalers, and
- eliminate the risk of overbooking forever
There are a number of systems already integrated with the Tourism Exchange of Australia (TXA) which are suitable for Tours, Accommodation, Events/Festivals and Attractions.
You’ll need to sit down and write out what you want your online system to do. When you’ve got the requirements then compare them to the systems available. In the right-hand column we’ve listed the systems that are currently integrated with the TXA. You can see a full list of booking system contacts here.
Follow the links to their websites and look at what they offer. Contact their sales representative from the systems you are interested in and find out what they can do for you. If you know other operators already using an online booking system, have a chat and see what works best for them.
Video Tutorial
Got five minutes? Watch this quick video tutorial on choosing an Online Booking System.
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ATDW have created the Tourism eKit which gives you information about becoming web enabled.
Watch this video tutorial about choosing an Online Booking System.
Download the PDF of this tutorial from the eKit webpage or by clicking here.
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Costs
When looking at the pricing consider the follow points;
Online Booking System Fees
This is the financial cost of the booking system. These range from charges for bookings only, sutiable for small or startup operators, to monthly or annual fees depending on the number of product bookable online, or number of sales. Booking systems may also have setup, support and training costs.
Online Merchant Facility
This is the fee to setup and recieve payment through your website. This service is provided by the NAB, ANZ, Westpac and CBA banks. Check with your current bank as to what they offer. You should also check with other banks to compare prices. Some banks will require equity as security to offset the risk of refunds. Some banks will set up the OMF for free for existing customers, others may charge.
Distribution & Distributor Commissions
A distribution commission of 2.8% is charged by the TXA. Distributor commissions from websites selling your product can range from zero to 30%. But you have the choice as to which travel websites you wish to be bookable through, and you can also negotiate. But good news for Northern Territory tourism businesses listed on www.TravelNT.com.au (which receives more than 1 million hits a year) - they are charged zero commission on sales!
Connecting to the TXA
Once you have your online booking system up and running you can distribute through the Tourism Exhange Australia (TXA). The TXA gives you access to present your product through many different online website and distribution channels including the commission free Tourism NT consumer website, www.TravelNT.com.au.
For more informaiton on the TXA and how to connect see our webpage Tourism Exchange Australia.
Need a Book Now button for your website?
Tourism NT helps accredited operators meet the financial cost of adopting an online booking system by offering up to $300 to your web designer for the actual work of designing and placing a booking button on every page of your website. In return, all that Tourism NT requests is a link back from your website to TravelNT.com, our consumer website. Backlinks don’t just help us – it helps you, in improving your SEO.
To apply, contact the Tourism NT TED Help Desk on (08) 8999 3819 or email edistribution@nt.gov.au
Using Siteminder? We can connect you to the TXA for free!
Accredited NT Tourism operators wishing to connect their Siteminder channel manager to the TXA and opt into the Travel NT channel are eligible for a full refund of the connection fee from Tourism NT e-Enablement.
To find out more and apply for the program, contact Carly Saunders, e-Enablement Assistant, Tourism NT tel.618 89993903 or carly.saunders@nt.gov.au
Tourism NT TED Contacts
If you have any questions about online bookings systems you can contact us at the Tourism NT TED team on: (08) 8999 3819 or email: eDistribution@nt.gov.au