What stops guests booking on your website
What stops guests booking on your website is rarely the place itself. Most people who land there already want to stay somewhere nearby, and whether they book with you, or go back to a booking site, usually comes down to a few small things. Here are the five we see most often, and how to check each one in about a minute on your phone.
1. The book button is hard to find
Most guests look you up on their phone. If the booking button sits at the bottom of a long page, or only appears on one page, many won't go looking for it.
Check: open your site on your phone. Can you see a way to book without scrolling? Is it still in reach as you move down the page?
Fix: one clear button, on every page, that stays on screen as you scroll.
2. Photos that load slowly
Your rooms are what you're selling. Photos straight from a camera can take seconds to appear on mobile data, and a guest checking you out on the go won't wait.
Check: turn off Wi-Fi and open your homepage. How long before the first photo appears?
Fix: photos resized and compressed for the web, so they stay large on screen but light to load.
3. Prices and dates that are out of date
If next season's dates aren't up, or last year's prices are still showing, guests assume you're full or closed, and book with whoever looks ready.
Check: pick a date three months from now. Can a guest see a price and whether you're free?
Fix: rates and dates kept current, including seasonal changes, well ahead of time.
4. Booking sends guests somewhere else
Many small sites hand guests over to a different website to book, with different branding and a new form to fill in. Every extra step is a chance to leave, and some guests go straight back to the booking platform.
Check: press your own book button. Does the guest stay on your site all the way to payment?
Fix: booking and payments on your own site, with the money going straight to your account.
5. No easy way to ask a question
Some guests want to check one thing first: bringing a dog, a ground-floor room, a late arrival. If the only option is hunting for an email address, they move on.
Check: from any page, can a guest reach your phone number or email in one tap?
Fix: contact details on every page, and a short form that actually reaches you.
Small fixes, real difference
None of these needs a new website on its own. But if several of them apply, it usually means the site was built a while ago, for a computer screen rather than a phone, and it's worth looking at the whole thing.
You can see all five done properly on our sample sites: Nithbank (a hotel), Craigend (a guest house) and Fell Byre (a holiday let). They're fictional businesses; the websites are real.
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