In the early days, hotels drove sales via word-of-mouth recommendations from happy customers and personal relationships between hoteliers, travel agents, tour operators and corporate travel managers.
NB: This is an article from Canary Technologies
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Competition among hotels intensified with the rise of Global Distribution Systems (GDSs) in the 1960s, which allowed hotels to distribute their rooms to travel agents and websites in real time. Competition increased even more with the birth of Online Travel Agencies (OTAs) and the boom of the internet in the 1990s.
Fast forward to today, and technology is the critical driver shaping hotel sales strategies. While maintaining strong relationships is just as important today as it once was, the sales process has changed. And we must change with it if we have any hopes of capturing the hearts of today’s travelers. The hotels that embrace cutting-edge solutions and innovative strategies win.
20 Essential Hotel Sales Strategies
What follows is a comprehensive guide on hotel sales strategies. Here are 20 actionable tactics that you can implement to help boost revenue, drive growth and elevate your hotel sales game.
Upsells & Cross-sells
Research shows that over one-third of guests are willing to pay more to do things like choose their room, use fitness services and opt for early check-in/late checkout. With the right solution, you can digitally deliver room upgrade offers and other add-ons such as spa packages, parking passes, dining reservations and more at any point in the guest journey. You can even deliver offers at the precise moment a guest is most likely to buy.
An easy way to do this is by utilizing an upselling platform. Automated upselling tools can help hotels streamline and boost revenue by curating offers that are more likely to make guests’ stays more memorable. Even better, you can capture this ancillary revenue without putting any added pressure on your staff.
Personalized Promotions
Today’s travelers demand exclusivity and luxury, so it’s important to personalize their hotel stays wherever possible. By leveraging data analytics in hospitality you can use guest information to tailor offers and discounts based on preferences and past behaviors.
Send pet-friendly itinerary ideas to pet owners or a kayak-and-mountain biking package to adventure enthusiasts. This type of individualized attention drives guest loyalty along with revenue growth.
Cross-promotional Sales
In addition to personalized promotions, hotels can implement a cross-promotional sales strategy by capitalizing on local festivals and events.
Tailoring promotions to coincide with local events attracts guests already looking to attend those events, helping to boost occupancy rates and profits during peak periods. To capitalize on community happenings even more, craft themed packages that include exclusive perks like event tickets, festive decorations and special dining experiences that will surely attract experience-chasing travelers to your hotel.
