Could September be the best time to switch PMS?

Summer is typically the peak season for short-term rentals. However, as with all economic sectors, success in this industry largely hinges on anticipation. That’s why, amid this busy summer period, we’ve chosen to discuss one of the tools that can help you grow your business efficiently and with ease, the Property Management Software (PMS). This is the tool that all multi-property owners and property management companies can no longer do without. So, now we have a question that will catch your attention: Why might September be the best time to switch PMS?

As a rental manager, you’re likely already using such software. However, you may be noticing that your current system is starting to show its limitations as the number of properties you manage continues to grow. It might be time to take things to the next level, which leads to the important decision to migrate to a more comprehensive and powerful tool.

In this article, we’ll weigh the pros and cons of making such a switch at the start of the new season. We’ll then guide you through the steps to ensure a smooth transition, and of course, we’ll inform you of the benefits you can gain by moving to a solution like RentalReady.

Switching PMS in September

The pros

First of all, it’s clear that after the peak tourist season, the workload for short-term rental managers like yourself significantly decreases. This much quieter period in many regions offers an ideal opportunity to make a smoother transition to a new property management system. With fewer bookings, you can focus more effectively on integrating and setting up your new PMS. This time of year also reduces the risk of irreparable negative impacts on your ongoing stays (such as loss of important guest information, technical bugs in your property availability, or other issues), since there are logically fewer bookings during this less busy period.

Moreover, if you decide to switch your PMS at the very start of the off-season, it gives you plenty of time to adapt to your new tool before diving into a busier phase of your activity. This time is particularly necessary for you and your team to fully train on any additional features included in your new software. By having the required time to grasp the specifics of your new tool, you’ll be fully equipped to make the most of it and reap the maximum benefits it’s designed to bring to your property management and guest services. Getting to grips with your new PMS might involve online tutorials or individual or group training sessions.

Additionally, migrating to a new PMS once the August holidaymakers have returned home minimises the risk of disrupting too many ongoing tasks inherent in short-term rental management. From welcoming guests to communicating with them and managing the cleaning between stays, the operational workload is generally quite heavy during the high season. In September, with the pressure on your management teams (and on yourself) tending to ease, any minor hiccups or potential technical issues due to this change in tools can be resolved more quickly and discreetly, having far less impact on your operations. In summary, switching PMS in September offers you a prime opportunity to optimise your operations and improve the guest experience without compromising your quality of service.

In addition to acquiring a new PMS, don’t hesitate to explore or revisit our tips for growing your property manageemnt business.

The cons

Even though, as we’ve explained, the workload is generally lighter in September, there is still a risk of operational disruptions. In fact, it could still be a busy period for certain tourist regions. Transitioning to a new PMS can lead to booking errors, synchronisation issues between the various platforms where your listings are present and other challenges (such as difficulties in managing payments and communications with your tenants). Some might argue that this is not the best time to switch PMS, as it could cause you to miss out on some bookings or negatively impact the experience of guests still enjoying your properties.

There is also the risk of underestimating the time required to complete the full migration to your new management solution. Several factors need to be considered, which can require more or less time to configure, depending on:

• The amount of data you need to transfer.
• The number of distribution channels to connect to your new tool.
• Whether you have a direct booking website with data that also needs migrating.
• Any special requests from guests.

It is therefore essential to allow sufficient time so that you can be fully engaged and as responsive as possible for:

• Transferring all your data to the new PMS.
• Organising necessary training sessions, check-ins, and team meetings to fully understand all the specific features of your new software.

Finally, depending on the scale of your migration, it’s certain that you will have many questions, doubts, and difficulties during the initial phase of using your PMS. It is crucial to have reliable and readily available technical support whenever you need it. Making your transition in September could mean reduced staffing in the support teams (as they too deserve a break after the high season). Keep this in mind when choosing your new PMS—you need to be able to rely on all the help you require, whenever you need it.

Once you find the best time to switch PMS: Why is RentalReady the perfect choice?

Simply put, for many property managers and property management businesses with a significant number of properties in their portfolio, we stand out as the best PMS for short-term rentals. This is due to our all-in-one approach, which we believe is the only way to avoid information loss and inefficiency—especially if you’re considering switching to our system. Here’s an overview of the key features of our PMS software: 

Channel manager

Our system integrates with all the major booking platforms, opening your properties to millions of potential guests worldwide. Our channel manager allows you to:

• Access our official API connections with Airbnb, Booking.com, Expedia and Vrbo.
• Synchronise and manage all your calendars in one place, in real-time. An invaluable tool for avoiding double bookings.
• Sync your prices across all platforms, taking into account each platform’s commission rates.
• Sync the content of your listings (photos, descriptions, amenities) and their updates.
• Access all incidents, resolutions, comments and notifications received on Airbnb directly through RentalReady.

Task automation

RentalReady was developed to meet the needs of its parent company, GuestReady, a leading property management company. As such, we understand better than any other Property Management Software how repetitive certain operations can be. That’s why we’ve designed fantastic tools to help you with your daily management, including:

• A check-in form that automatically collects guest contact details and all arrival information.
• A listing integration form that you can ask your property owners to fill out, saving you time.
• Programmable message templates that are automatically sent at key moments, such as booking confirmation, payments, or when requesting guest feedback on their stay.
• Automated invoicing generated for property owners (including your commission) and travellers.
• Automatic guest reviews posted on the booking platform (defaulted to five stars if everything went smoothly). You can, of course, disable this to leave more detailed feedback.

Unified messaging

A smart unified inbox that consolidates all communications with guests across all booking sites, emails, or SMS into a single thread. This feature allows you to:

• Pre-approve requests and send special offers to Airbnb guests.
• Filter your messages by various criteria (booking status, city, guest language).
• View all guest information at a glance.
• Save time with programmable messages.

Task management tool 

Includes: 

• A dashboard of operations to be performed across all properties and for all guests.
• Customisable task lists for your on-site teams.
• Automatic task assignment.
• Review and feedback on the quality of your team’s work.
• An incident resolution tool.
• A dedicated iOS and Android app for your operational agents.

Since our clients are the best advocates for our comprehensive offer, here are a few testimonials (source: Capterra):

Alexandra, property manager and user for 6 months 

“I’m delighted with this choice—a complete and easy-to-use software with excellent support and a friendly, efficient team. The hotline is responsive. This software is comprehensive, allowing calendar management without double bookings, manual or automatic communication with guests, an owner interface to track bookings and property accounting in real-time, and automatic payment for the concierge and the owner (no more payment delays), which greatly improves cash flow management.”

Laurent, property management company director, user for over 2 years 

“A channel manager that seemed complete in terms of services, especially the payment distribution between the concierge service and the owner.”

However, Laurent wasn’t keen on having to “handle the listing process for a new property.” We informed him that we’ve created the Self Onboarding feature specifically to eliminate this task. This feature allows managers like him to delegate the creation and configuration of each new listing directly to the property owner, providing greater flexibility and autonomy while saving valuable time.

How to transition to a new PMS

Steps for a successful migration

• Collect and organise all the information that needs to be integrated into the new PMS.
• Proper configuration of your new tool’s features: Set up automated messaging (including multilingual message templates), task automation (adding and assigning roles to all team members, downloading any dedicated apps), and communication with property owners (preparing their access).
• Data migration. Transfer all your data to the new system.
• Team training: Ensure that all team members are well-trained on the new PMS.
• Testing and verification. For example, check the space dedicated to your property owners by logging in as one. This will help you verify that it’s functioning correctly and that the information accessible to them is accurate.
• Reliable technical support: Make sure you have access to prompt technical support to quickly resolve any issues or challenges that arise during the transition.

The last three points are particularly important to minimise interruptions and errors, ensuring a smooth transition to your new PMS.

Available ressources at RentalReady to support your PMS transition

You can book a demonstration with one of our specialists to explore everything our software has to offer. Our blog is also an invaluable resource filled with information and advice to help you get to grips with all the features of this all-in-one PMS/channel manager. We also host webinars, which you can find on our YouTube channel, along with many other videos. Finally, our help section, featuring frequently asked questions and a contact form, is available to assist you.

Conclusion

In this article, we have covered:

• The advantages and disadvantages of switching your PMS in September.
• The reasons why RentalReady should be your new tool of choice.
• The best way to transition to a new property management software.

It is clear that before making the switch, it is essential to carefully assess the specific needs of your business, regardless of when the best time to switch PMS may be.

To learn more about what our solution can offer you, don’t hesitate to request a demonstration of RentalReady.