What is one of your main challenges in today’s post-pandemic climate? Like many of your fellow hoteliers and revenue managers, consistently increasing hotel sales and revenue is probably pretty high up on your list.
NB: This is an article from Oaky
Especially today, creativity and adaptability are the keys to succeeding and improving your business results. Upselling is one of the foolproof ways to boost your hotel sales and increase your revenue. The reasons are simple. It’s easy and cost-effective to implement an upselling program.
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Guests enjoy the chance to personalise their stay, and it generates a steady revenue stream. Oaky’s clients are living proof; some of them generated over €400,000 in 2021.
The good news is that achieving such fantastic results isn’t rocket science. Read on to discover eleven straightforward ways to boost your average spend per guest and overall revenue with upselling.
1. Stop giving away free upgrades
Upgrading loyal guests or offering a higher room category to make up for an error are legitimate ways to show your guests you care. This can lead to an improved experience and positive reviews. However, be mindful of how often you bump up travellers for free.
A single room category supplement may not look like a lot of money. But if you overbook your standard room category without a plan, you may be forced to give countless free upgrades every month. Those foregone supplements can add up to a lot of lost potential revenue.
On the other hand, if you overbook strategically, you can minimise free upgrades and even drive incremental revenue. Upselling is the easiest and most efficient way of doing that, especially if you automate the process with a specialised upselling platform. Keep in mind that upselling should happen at the right time if you want to maximise your gains. This brings us to the next point…
2. Offer paid room upgrades pre-arrival
If you’re inspired to start promoting paid upgrades, your first thought might be to motivate your front desk team to upsell guests. While that’s not a bad approach, you may be surprised that the best time for upselling is actually pre-arrival. That’s when guests are finalising trip details and are keen to add perks that make their stay more memorable.
This makes it the ideal moment to offer travellers a room upgrade at a discounted rate. If they decide to pay a little extra and opt for the paid upgrade, everyone wins. Your guests get a good deal, you generate extra revenue and you can resell the standard room.
Sending guests your best offers before check-in also primes them for more cross-selling when they arrive. They already have an idea of your offerings. A gentle suggestion from your staff can be the final prompt they need to make spa, restaurant or entertainment bookings.
3. Streamline your upselling efforts with a smart hotel technology
As hinted in the first point, smart hotel technology can make upselling and cross-selling much more efficient.
For example, a platform like Oaky pulls PMS data to segment your guests and determine the most suitable offers for your target audience. It then automatically sends them a message at the optimal time pre-arrival, encouraging them to browse and book. This works both with direct bookers as well as with guests coming from online travel agencies to maximise your reach and results. Once someone takes a deal, the system adds it to the guest profile and their invoice.
All your team needs to do is ensure everything is perfectly prepared for your guests on arrival.
