07 · The back office — for a first-time hotel owner
Everything behind the front desk,
set up once, set up right.
Running a hotel is a business with paperwork, licenses, insurance, and software. This is the complete setup map — what exists, why it matters, and the order to do it in. We coordinate it; licensed professionals (CPA, attorney, insurance broker) sign off where the law requires one.
🏛
Company & Banking
Week 1–2 · The foundation
- LLC for the hotel (Colorado Secretary of State) + EIN (IRS tax ID, free)
- Trade name registration: “The Viewpoint Hotel”
- Operating agreement — who owns what, on paper
- Business bank account + card; bookkeeping (QuickBooks) from day one
📋
Registrations & Taxes
Week 2–4 · Stay legal
- Colorado sales tax license + City of Colorado Springs license
- Lodging tax registration (city LART + county/state lodging taxes on stays)
- Property + employment tax accounts if hiring staff
- CPA engaged — files it all on a calendar, not from memory
🛡
Insurance
Week 2–4 · Before anything else changes
- Commercial property + general liability (hospitality package)
- Workers' compensation — required in Colorado with employees
- Business interruption (a burst pipe shouldn't kill a season)
- Umbrella + cyber (guests' card data) — quoted by a hospitality broker
💻
Booking Software
Week 3–5 · The money system
- Property Management System (PMS): Cloudbeds or Little Hotelier class
- Channel manager → Booking.com, Expedia, Google Hotels from ONE calendar (no double-bookings)
- Booking engine on the new website — commission-free direct reservations
- Card payments (PMS-integrated), deposits, and no-show charges automated
📜
Policies
Week 4–5 · Decided once, printed everywhere
- Check-in/out, cancellation, no-show, quiet hours
- Pets, smoking (state law inside), damage & incidentals deposit
- Refunds and early-departure rules
- Posted on the website, the booking engine, and the front desk — identical everywhere
✍️
Agreements & Paper
Week 4–6 · The signatures that protect you
- Guest registration card (the form every guest signs at check-in)
- OTA contracts reviewed before renewal — know the commission you pay
- Vendor agreements: linen, waste, snow removal, pool/maintenance
- If hiring: offer letters, handbook, payroll service
🔑
Keys & Security
Week 5–6 · Guests notice this first
- RFID key-card locks replacing metal keys — branded cards, per-stay codes
- Master-key policy + housekeeping access rules
- Cameras at entry/lot, safe for the office, guest-data privacy basics
- Self check-in option for late arrivals
🧭
Day-One Operations
Week 6 · Open as The Viewpoint
- Housekeeping + maintenance checklists (simple, laminated, followed)
- Google Business Profile claimed, rebranded, review-reply playbook
- Review engine: every checkout gets one polite review ask
- Monthly owner report: occupancy, rate, direct vs OTA mix
| When | What happens | Who moves |
|---|
| Weeks 1–2 | LLC + EIN + bank account + trade name; CPA and insurance broker engaged | Owner signs · we prepare everything |
| Weeks 2–4 | Licenses and tax registrations filed; insurance bound | CPA/broker execute · we coordinate |
| Weeks 3–5 | PMS + channel manager live; website booking engine connected | OnBrand builds · owner approves rates |
| Weeks 4–6 | Policies locked, agreements printed, key-card system installed | We draft · owner approves · vendor installs |
| Week 6 | Rebrand goes public: sign, site, Google profile, socials — same day | Everyone · one launch |
This is a setup checklist prepared by OnBrand AI Studio, not legal, tax, or insurance advice — final filings and coverage are confirmed with a licensed Colorado CPA, attorney, and insurance broker. Costs (state filings, licenses, premiums, software subscriptions) are itemized in the engagement worksheet before anything is spent.
A feed that sells the view,
not the room rate.
Instagram + Google Business Profile, run as one system. Three posts a week from four content pillars — every asset generated from the property's own photography and the brand system.
VIEWPOINT
HOTEL
a greater
perspective”
→
AFTER
Launch-grid concept using the makeover renders.