Attribute-Based Selling (ABS) is a step forward in hotel merchandising, but focusing solely on room features limits its true potential.
NB: This is an article from Sabre
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In a world where guests crave choice and customization, there’s a growing opportunity for hotels to extend personalization across the entire journey and not just at check-in.
Imagine empowering guests to select early check-in, parking, or room upgrades, while also pre-selecting spa treatments, dining experiences, excursions, and local events – all before they even arrive. By offering ancillaries and standalone offers across multiple touchpoints (at booking, pre-stay, during the stay, and even post-stay), hotels can enhance convenience and unlock new revenue streams throughout the entire guest journey.
The ability to sell standalone experiences to non-guests is redefining what it means to be in hospitality. It’s no longer just about selling a bed for the night – it’s about meeting evolving traveler expectations and monetizing meaningful moments, with or without a room.
From Attributes to Full-Scale Retailing
As hospitality technology advances, we’re seeing a shift from attribute-based selling to hospitality retailing, a more dynamic and flexible approach to hotel commerce.
The concept is simple: think like a retailer. Instead of offering static room categories or pre-set packages, hotels can curate and sell a wide range of products and services based on real-time availability, guest behavior, and demand. Hoteliers can transform existing amenities, services, and experiences into revenue-generating ancillaries by applying a retail mindset that treats every aspect of the guest journey as a product or experience that can be packaged and sold.
This shift doesn’t just enhance the guest experience. It also opens up entirely new ways to drive total revenue per guest, increase ancillary sales, and build deeper relationships through choice and relevance. Properties embracing this approach have seen an average of $300 in ancillary revenue per booking, demonstrating the significant potential of retailing to boost profitability while delivering more personalized and memorable stays. Whether it’s bundling a suite with a spa package, local tours or selling parking passes independently, everything becomes an opportunity to generate incremental revenue.
