It’s 7:30am and you’ve already spilled your Starbucks – but the morning meeting is afoot so you’ll have to park your coffee woes.
NB: This is an article from Roomdex, one of our Expert Partners
All the key department managers and the GM are gathering at the edge of some unlucky co-worker’s desk, probably in the office basement, to devour the day’s business at hand. You stand in nervous anticipation; inevitably someone is about to get a grilling over numbers. Will it be you? Or, will today be your lucky day?
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The morning meeting and “How are we going to make the numbers?”
Hotels are busy places and with so much going on at all times, there are several meetings that might occur during a typical day. They are crucial to establishing inter and intra-departmental communication, and one of the most important ways to get things done in a hotel. One meeting in particular that is a mainstay in every hotel is, the morning meeting – or briefing, daily stand up, huddle. Whatever it may be called, one thing is for certain, employees and co-workers alike curse the need to attend morning briefings.
The general purpose of the morning meeting is to give a quick overview – a status of things as they stand now, a recap of what happened yesterday to fuel the actions of today. It is a daily view into the latest forecast for the month and it can be a critical point where your managers need to know the play they can run to win the game. All in all, it is supposed to serve as an anchor and a reality check, to get everyone aligned. But the simple truth is the morning meeting is tough.
Why? Because every day it’s someone’s turn to get beat up over the numbers. Veteran hotel staff have (unfairly?) described the ritual as an exercise in fault finding. For many, it has become a daily tedium, evoking dread in the most optimistic of us and ensues some degree of eye rolling. But what if we told you the next morning meeting doesn’t have to be so painful? Enter, automated upselling.
Automated upselling helps everyone at the table look good
While upselling has been around as long as hotels have been open, historically, it has been fraught with operational issues and victim of a lack of staff motivation, so it hasn’t lived up to its potential. But the newest generation of automated upselling is a different ball game altogether and is the ultimate cross-departmental product that helps everyone – and might just bring a bit of sunshine to your morning meeting. Here’s how:
- Revenue Management: First off and most obvious is revenue. Upselling is one of the best ways for a hotel to increase profits – and will most certainly help answer the “How will be increase the numbers?” question.Traditionally, upselling was not regarded as a regular source of incremental revenue, but roomupsell revenue is essentially 100% profit. Early check-in and late departure upsells have zero cost to the hotel, and as it is room product revenue, increases the overall average daily rate (ADR). Automated upselling addresses the biggest problem with front desk upselling in that it is guaranteed to be consistent.When using ABS for Upselling (Attribute-based Upselling), hotels can actually sell brand new products. Specifically, a feature that is unique to a specific room (vs. a room type) can be merchandized and sold. These products might be things such as a room on a high floor, a room away from the elevator, and room with a specific view, etc. These ‘products’ are rarely merchandized and often are just given away, so they represent a new revenue stream.
- General Manager and Front Desk: Aside from the obvious benefit of increased revenue, automated upselling can enhance the overall guest experience. By offering personalized offers, guests can curate a stay experience that best aligns with their overall preferences. That means guest requests are received and managed in advance of arrival and so more time is free for Managers and Front Desk staff – something all GMs appreciate when staff shortages create service challenges.Because guests are able to personalize their stays without having to go and ask someone for something (and sometimes get denied!), automated upselling elevates the overall guest perception of the hotel and brand experience, increasing loyalty and repeat bookings.
- Housekeeping and Rooms Manager: The fulfillment of upsell offers requires synchronization between a number of departments – but it is particularly heavily reliant on housekeeping. Not surprisingly due to the operational logistics, complexity, and perceived backlash from staff most hotels are reluctant to sell early check-ins and late check-outs in advance of arrival, with many preferring an “ask and see” approach. However, automated upsell solutions like ROOMDEX ensure zero operational conflicts. ROOMDEX, as an example, calculates True Availability of the room before the offer is made – and the same goes for upgrades to higher room categories. The algorithm takes into account historical trends, actual reservation data and then adds a buffer, just in case. The result is that the software eliminates the manual efforts traditionally required to determine real time operational room availability.
Congrats! You won this meeting!
You just suggested a way to boost revenue, free up labor resources, make guests happier, and relieve operational stress. Genius! You were the star of the morning meeting!
Don’t be afraid to tap into this revenue source. It’s yours for the taking. And what’s more, we guarantee that if you propose this at your morning meeting, it be at least another week, minimum, before the GM is on your case again!
