Source: Monetate
NB: This is an article by Mystifly
Hotels will be aware that, dollar for dollar, it is easier to get additional revenues from existing customers than it is to acquire new ones.
And a recent report noted that add-ons are a great way to upsell and cross-sell to guests during the reservations process.
This is precisely one of the reasons that airlines today have worked with hotels and successfully created opaque fares which apply only when bundled with a room booking. Airlines offering “flights + hotels” have become the norm and most airlines offer this to their customers.
Leveraging this model of ancillary services, airlines are driving new revenues streams, creating a differentiation for themselves in a highly commoditized market while reinforcing brand equity.
Unfortunately, hotels have not been able to capitalize fully on this opportunity, as the best air deals are always from the guests’ departure point rather than the hotel’s location which is the point of arrival.
Identifying a hotel’s most loyal guests, or creating closed user groups, are effective ways to segment a hotel’s customer base.
Offering special promotions to specific groups of people is a great way to directly influence a traveller’s planning process.
We predict that 2016 will belong to those who can bring in more opportunities to increase revenues from existing customers.
Increase direct conversion – more customers with your hotel marketplace
Hotels do not like the idea of discounting but when direct discounts are compared to the margins that hotels share with third parties, it makes great sense to use discounts to drive demand direct.
Read rest of the article at Tnooz
