2019 in a nutshell
For a solution to be truly innovative, it needs to constantly improve and evolve. As 2019 comes to a close, we want to recap the improvements we introduced this year to help you succeed even further. Together we’ve raised the bar for guest experience — do you remember everything we released this year?
If not, let's get scrollin'!
January
We kicked off the year with some improvements to our guest-facing applications. Your guests can now scan their passports to pre-fill their details in Operator, and we also applied a brand new design to Distributor, Navigator, and Operator, so your guests can enjoy a cohesive experience from booking their stay to checking out!
2019 was also key for the security of our payment services— we integrated PCI Proxy (a secure credit card storage platform), and obtained our PCI-DSS level 1 certification. Rest assured, credit card data is safe with Mews.
To make sure we support your global needs, we added support for Spanish fiscalization and the Italian tourist export.
With the addition of the new group detail on the timeline, it’s never been easier to track group reservations. January also saw us connect to even more integration partners, including the VingCard Vision keycutter integration.
February
In February, we couldn’t count the number of people who wanted to add a Booker to your reservations— we heard your requests, and now you can! We also knew that making a new reservation in Commander left a lot to be desired, so we revamped the whole process (great news for chains!).
We know that to enable great service, we need to be as transparent as possible so you can always be in the driver's seat. Our SLAs, support times, and satisfaction scores are all public (we'd like to see another PMS provider do the same!), and our status page keeps you in the loop.
When we watched Mewsers at reception, we saw how often you need to switch users. With our hi-tech face unlocking feature, we streamlined that for you!
Finally, we closed out the month by making your finances even more transparent with the Merchant Balance Report.
March
Join the revolution! Say goodbye to confusing interfaces and on-premises solutions— with Mews Marketplace you can hit connect and try out a new integration within 30 minutes.
Need a little extra? Since March, guests can chat with your staff through Navigator to ask for whatever they need. On-site check-ins also got streamlined with a better and more intuitive Operator check-in flow.
We also added support for even more exports (like the Basel Police Report and the Product Report), and made it clearer exactly which emails are being sent from Commander with the Mail Queue.
March also saw us introduce our new Release Notes page, so you can have a clear overview of our brand-new releases.
April
You trust us to make sure your legal requirements are always met, and we take that seriously. To support French legal requirements, we developed functionality to comply with Infocert’s NF525, and added support for Italian fiscalization.
We know that good connectivity is hugely important for you— in April we made it easier to create connections between Commander and your channel managers, and developed our own direct connection with Booking.com. What does that mean for you? Richer data, faster (and fewer overbookings).
May
A fully digital hospitality experience is the dream, and in May we got one step closer to it. Guests can now unlock their doors with mobile keys (if you use Onity locks).
Taxation works in completely different ways around the world, and in order to offer global support we made some changes. Mews can now be used in countries with multiple taxes on a single item (here’s looking at you, USA).
Dark themes are so in vogue these days, and Mews never wants to miss a trend—if it matches your website, switch on Distributor’s dark theme for more consistency. We also introduced a facelift for both the light and dark themes!
To keep up with our growing Iberian presence, we introduced the INE Report for Spain and the ISTAT Occupancy Report for Gran Canaria.
June
Want to go big? No problem! We built a direct connection with SynXis. We also rolled out support for net pricing across all of our platforms.
Sometimes the smallest fixes can have the biggest impact. We heard your suggestions, and made it possible to edit your restrictions (so you won’t need to delete a restriction and recreate it if it just needs a small tweak).
The majority of guests arrive for their reservation with a phone in their hands. We added support for Messerschmitt mobile keys so guests can get into their rooms even faster!
July
When the authorities come in for an audit, you need to be ready. To support GDPR, we added automation so you no longer need to manually remove data from old customer profiles. We also improved city tax reporting, and made it possible to export batches of bills to PDF.
When traveling, guests are overwhelmed with information—so now there's a handy overview of all their reservation details in Navigator!
Repetitive manual work is annoying; that’s why we try to minimize it every day! New companies and travel agencies can now be created automatically when they arrive through a channel manager. Switching another property to Mews? For many channel managers, as soon as you connect we’ll import all of your future bookings!
August
To run your business more effectively, you need to understand exactly how all your metrics are moving, so in August we released a private beta of Mews Analytics.
Check-in needs to be fast so you can spend more time talking to your guests, and less time tapping at a computer. Guests can get a pass straight into their Apple Wallet, and access their reservation details on the morning they check in without even unlocking their phone.
Remember when you had to use an OTA’s extranet to update credit card details? No? Good! With Mews, changes to credit card information are automatically pushed to your channels. With our improved API functionality, all of your integrations can get availability and price updates in real time.
To create a consistent experience, Operator can also be switched to dark theme (just like Distributor).
September
New legislation can be scary. Worried about PSD2 and 3DS 2.0? Don’t be—we’ve got you covered.
Mobile support isn’t just for guest-facing applications! If your staff wants to go mobile too, they can enjoy the new and improved Commander app for iOS or Android.
The optimization of the performance, stability, and reliability of our system means that you can sleep easy knowing that we won’t let you down.
Running a business in Zug or Geneva? We've got police exports sorted for you.
October
We’re always making sure that your data is safe with us. All our applications only work with HTTPS TLS 1.2, to make sure we offer premium security. We were graded A+ in a Qualys SSL Labs test, and even hired a company to perform continuous penetration testing of the Mews platform.
Check-in is even speedier, with a streamlined Operator check-in flow. To make things even easier, we started piloting online check-out with some of you (and we can’t wait to make it available for everyone!).
You rock! Every day, you submit an impressive amount of feedback to us. Thanks to that, we knew how important it was for you to have multiple images for each space category in Distributor, and to be able to add pictures for your products. Thanks!
November
Want to grab a tablet to check your guests in while walking, or sitting on a comfortable sofa? Get in touch and we’ll enable Co-Operator mode on your Operator tablet so you can try it yourself.
With so many restrictions, it can be difficult to understand the impact they’ll have on your availability with one glance. Our new restrictions calendar view shows you exactly what restrictions you’re applying, and when they’re available!
To keep things simple, we used to post per-night products at the end of the stay— but sometimes you need to get more detailed. We’ve started rolling out support for the daily posting of per-night products.
December
2019 is coming to an end, but we’ve got a few more tricks up our sleeves; for example, we sped up reservation synchronization with channels to minimize the chance of receiving overbookings.
We wouldn’t have made this many improvements without you. You told us you want to track inquiries in Commander, and we heard you. Booking inquiries can now be created and updated, and further improvements are coming soon!
Processing payments is error-prone and time-consuming. When it’s available, your guests will be able to pay their bills during online check-out!
Finding it difficult to see if guests have checked in or out online? Not anymore. Online check-ins and check-outs will be visible everywhere they should be (like on the Dashboard!).
Get ready for 2020!
2019 was a ball, and we’re just getting started. This year our product development team grew from 30 people to 110. 15 product development teams support over 1200 of you in 55 countries around the world, 24/7, with zero downtime.
So what’s coming next? Well, we’re introducing improved payment processing, so you’ll be able to fully integrate payment terminals with your PMS. If you’re in a region where you can charge guests for card transaction fees, you’ll be able to surcharge guests before the end of the year!
We’re also working on some features that will give you key insights into your business. Mews Leaderboard will show you how your performance compares with other businesses like it, and Product Radar will keep you informed about what features are coming next from our developers. So stay tuned!