Inside Integrations is Hostfully’s ongoing series, featuring a range of tools to help property managers build a custom tech stack to boost their businesses.
Advanced pricing technology platforms such as Wheelhouse have transformed the landscape of managing, marketing, and pricing vacation rental properties. In our series, Inside Integrations, we delve into the role of Wheelhouse in vacation rental management and the features it offers hosts and managers alike.
About Wheelhouse
As the vacation rental industry becomes increasingly tech-driven, property managers need a comprehensive tech stack to stay competitive. Wheelhouse plays a pivotal role in this tech ecosystem by addressing a critical aspect of property management—revenue management. Let’s explore how Wheelhouse contributes to building a robust tech stack for property managers.
As Wheelhouse Founder and CEO Andrew Kitchell informs us, “Wheelhouse is an award-winning Revenue Management platform, having won the Industry’s “Innovation of the Year” in 2021 & 2023 from DARM.” He goes on to explain, “We partner with leading property managers on four core products — dynamic pricing, market intelligence, portfolio intelligence, and CompSets.” For more on dynamic pricing, venture over here.
Wheelhouse has a large global reach as well. Kitchell reports that, “Today, we serve the majority of the largest North American short-term rental and vacation rental operators, while serving customers in 100+ countries, worldwide.” And while Wheelhouse is known for its software and data science accomplishments, Kitchell is, “MOST proud of our incredible support team, that serves our customers 24/7 with an average response time of <70 seconds.”
Top 4 Wheelhouse features
Curious what bulk editing or booking insights can do for you? Looking to jump aboard the in-context pricing and CompSets train? Let’s take a look at some of Wheelhouse’s top features and how they work.
1. Portfolio Bulk Editing
Portfolio Bulk Editing offers a practical solution for managing vacation rental portfolios with efficiency and ease. This tool allows customers to swiftly create, evaluate, and modify their entire portfolio, optimizing their pricing strategies and revenue management. By minimizing manual tasks, users can devote more time to maximizing their earnings’ potential.
2. Booking Insights
Wheelhouse’s Booking Insights offers a valuable resource for vacation rental managers seeking to enhance their performance. With this tool, users can easily comprehend and analyze their listing’s bookings and revenue, enabling informed decision-making. The ability to swiftly compare performance to budget greatly aids managers in identifying areas for improvement. Additionally, the option to set up A/B testing provides valuable insights into the effectiveness of various pricing strategies.
3. In-Context Pricing
Wheelhouse’s In-context Pricing feature further helps property managers refine their pricing strategies. The functionality lets users gauge how their listing’s pricing aligns with competitors, previous years’ rates, and local demand patterns based on market data. This comprehensive comparison pricing tool enables informed adjustments and facilitates effective communication of pricing strategies.
4. CompSets
Wheelhouse’s CompSets feature offers a valuable tool for vacation rental managers seeking to stay informed about their competitive landscape. With CompSets, users can effortlessly monitor a diverse range of potential competitors, enabling them to build their own customized set based on various criteria (quality, pricing, occupancy, location, seasonality or specific competitors).
Wheelhouse also provides auto-detected CompSets, which automatically generate a set of listings that employ different strategies within the user’s market, offering valuable insights for learning and strategy optimization. This feature streamlines the process of creating and analyzing nearby competitive listings and facilitating more effective property management.
Benefits of Wheelhouse for vacation rental businesses
With these functionalities at hand, it’s evident why Wheelhouse remains a preferred integration for property management teams. Let’s explore how these features seamlessly translate into practical business advantages to truly understand the tangible value that Wheelhouse delivers.
AI-powered price recommendations
Wheelhouse’s advanced artificial intelligence (AI) algorithm crunches vast amounts of data to provide property managers with optimal price recommendations. The result is a pricing strategy that adapts to the nuances of the market, ensuring that each property is priced for maximum profitability.
Real-time market insights
Wheelhouse provides property managers with a real-time set of dashboards that offer insights into market trends and competitor pricing. These functionalities empower property managers to make informed decisions, allowing them to adjust their pricing strategy on the fly. By staying abreast of market dynamics, managers can capitalize on emerging opportunities and mitigate risks associated with sudden shifts in demand.
Automated (and customizable) pricing adjustments
Wheelhouse understands that time is of the essence in the fast-paced world of short-term rentals. Short-term rental managers can set parameters and let the software handle the day-to-day adjustments, ensuring that their properties are always competitively priced. This automation not only saves time but also reduces the likelihood of human error, providing a reliable and efficient dynamic pricing solution.
Channel integration
Wheelhouse seamlessly integrates with various distribution channels, including popular vacation rental platforms and property management systems, so that pricing changes maintain consistency and avoid potential discrepancies that could lead to customer dissatisfaction or lost revenue.
Our Integration: Wheelhouse and Hostfully
Wheelhouse smoothly integrates with a range of distribution channels, such as Hostfully’s PMS. This ensures that pricing adjustments remain consistent, preventing any discrepancies that might result in customer dissatisfaction or revenue loss.
Unified property management
The API integration of Wheelhouse with Hostfully creates a unified environment for property managers. From property listings and bookings to dynamic pricing adjustments, property managers can manage everything seamlessly within the Hostfully platform. This consolidation simplifies workflows, reducing the need for property managers to toggle between different tools.
Real-time synchronization
The integration ensures real-time synchronization between Hostfully and Wheelhouse. Any listing changes in one platform are instantly reflected in the other. This real-time synchronization eliminates potential discrepancies, ensuring that property information is consistently accurate across both platforms.
Enhanced guest experience
By leveraging the combined power of Hostfully and Wheelhouse, property managers can enhance the overall guest experience. Accurate and competitive pricing, coupled with seamless booking processes, contribute to positive guest satisfaction.
Scalability and growth
For property managers looking to grow their operations, the Hostfully-Wheelhouse integration provides a scalable solution. As the number of properties in a portfolio grows, the unified tech stack remains cohesive and adaptable. This scalability is crucial for property managers seeking to expand their businesses without encountering technological roadblocks.
Conclusion
With its AI-powered algorithms, real-time market insights, and seamless API integration with platforms like Hostfully, Wheelhouse empowers property managers to unlock their revenue potential. The integration of Wheelhouse with Hostfully creates a symbiotic relationship that streamlines property management processes, enhances the guest experience, and provides a comprehensive solution for property managers. This strategic investment in revenue optimization through dynamic pricing sets the stage for property managers to thrive in the evolving landscape of vacation rentals.
To learn about an alternate revenue management solution, check out our article on Pricelabs.
