Onefinestay has launched a digital portal that will allow travel agents to access and create “seamless” bookings for their clients.
Open to all advisors that work with the rental brand, which is part of Accor, the Partner Portal grants exclusive, direct access to the high-end homestay company’s 3,000 properties across 40 destinations globally.
Agents will also be able to initiate or check bookings, see their commission, and send inquiries to their clients about properties, either branded or unbranded.
“Some travel agents are a bit more old school, and like to do things by communicating with people,” said Sophie Howse, chief commercial officer at Onefinestay.
“But then you have this new generation of travel advisors, especially since Covid, who are definitely more digital-first and want to be self-sufficient. They want to be able to work wherever they are in the world and they want to be able to self-manage their clients. We’ve known for a while that we’ve needed to bring something like this along for our travel advisors.”
The portal eliminates time zone concerns when it comes to communication and getting the information agents need, with advisors able to get instant access to home availability and pricing no matter where in the world they are.
Beyond descriptions and images of the accommodations, the portal also allows agents to check if they have specific amenities, as well as to confirm if a villa is part of hotel or resort.
Agents can also filter properties in major cities by neighbourhood, allowing them to only see specific places like Chelsea or Knightsbridge in London, for example. The portal has been created without using a third party, allowing Onefinestay to tailor it to its exact needs and those of agents.
“It was kind of serendipitous. We knew there was a gap in the market, and we knew we needed to have this for travel advisors,” said Howse.
“Obviously, we’re also still around for the advisors,” said Howse, who has been with Onefinestay for almost 10 years. “If they want to talk to their account managers or destination specialists, everyone is still here. Those things aren’t changing, but the portal is really there for the people who want to be a bit more self-sufficient, or who want to move quicker, or who are on the phone to a client and want to quickly look at this information for themselves.”
Howse added that this is just the beginning for the portal – plans are already in motion to enhance its features: “Phase one is done, we have phase two and phase three that we want to put into the portal that we definitely think will be the creme de la creme.”
