bidding on their brand terms, thus driving up the cost, with a view to stealing guests who have typed in your hotel’s name. To get the best out of your system, work with a number of agencies that distribute inventory and rates, as well as a digital agency to opti- mise the website for Google searches. There are, for instance, systems that analyse pick-up activity and manage pricing based on demand. It is also worth investing in PPC campaigns to prevent OTAs bidding on your hotel brand terms and taking direct business. Some booking platforms claim to help with
all this. Avvio, for instance, offers a 12-month guarantee that its booking engine can grow direct bookings by 25%.
How to establish rates Many hotels establish rates through com- petitor analysis and the services and facili- ties they offer. However, some experts warn against allowing competitors to dictate your rate and strategy, or over-reliance on compet- itor-rate shopping reports. You can then fluctuate the rates depend- ing on a number of factors. These include seasons, local events, availability and special events. A good system allows you to set rules, if necessary, on minimum nights’ stay, day of the week and so on, which are then automati- cally distributed across all channels. When developing a revenue strategy, assess how your property is regarded through social media and metasearch tools such as Tripadvisor, Google Hotel Finder and so on. Look at the strength of your brand reputation and what guests may be willing to pay. It’s also vital to understand what the distri- bution spread and marketing potential are for each channel. You need to assess cost of distri- bution, how the channel will be managed and what technology integration exists. Brand integrity is easy to trash. To avoid this, maintain rate and content parity and ensure the guest gets the best experience of your hotel regardless of how they booked. Adding value rather than discounting is equally important to protect the average daily rate. Likewise, it’s important to build strong relationships with distribution part- ners, including OTAs, consortia and corpo- rate accounts, to boost revenues. In addition, you need to understand how and when customers are booking and plan your revenue strategy accordingly. Look at the lead-time per channel, whether the rate strategy fits, what platforms customers use to book and then assess whether your content fits.
And remember, there are always factors that affect demand, pricing and supply – technology is only as effective as the person managing it.
Where to start? Companies such as Revenue by Design offer training in revenue management systems that are tailored to the property to ensure the hotel team get the best results. It helps hoteliers get a better understanding of which systems they should use and how to work with system sup-
42 | Technology Prospectus 2016
RICK STEIN GROUP, CORNWALL
Rick and Jill Stein opened the Seafood Restaurant in 1975. Since then, the family- run business has grown to include eight properties with accommodation. Two years ago, the group realised it needed
a more up-to-date management system that would enable it to manage its rates regularly and set up innovative packages to drive occupancy, as well as provide a simple online booking process. It approached Guestline and chose three
packages: Rezlynx PMS, Online Booking Manager and PCI Manager. “We knew we had to change to help provide a better service for our customers and to help manage our business more effectively. The solutions are versatile and easy to manage,” says Sarah Taylor, reservations manager at Rick Stein Group. The benefits include: ●Higher rates. By reviewing rates and occupancy more closely, the group can flex rates during busy periods and set rules on length of stay to maximise revenue. It also offers late availability discounted rates when necessary. The result is an increased average annual return of 5.4% year on year.
●Increased online bookings. Direct online bookings have risen by more than 10% year on year with the use of Online Booking Manager. Online bookings through the group’s website (it doesn’t sell rooms through third-party channels) now represent more than 40% of total bookings, which has reduced the calls and workload for the reservations team.
●Improved revenue. Through packages that include up-sells, such as dinner at one of Rick Stein’s restaurants and signed recipe books, the group is maximising revenue per booking without the need to discount. It also helps drive occupancy out of season.
●Effective, simple financial reporting. The team can review revenue streams and sales performance, and forecast accordingly.
●Ability to cross-sell across properties. By having one central reservations team and one planner for the group’s entire room stock, the staff can sell rooms across all properties and manage bookings from one site. Each front desk team then manages the check-ins on site.
pliers. For instance, a resort hotel with a high reliance on non-rooms revenue has different needs than a city-centre hotel. Hotels clearly want to drive up bookings rather than costs. Companies that offer a self-service technology for hoteliers include channel manager SiteMinder. It can provide a single web-based platform where clients can manage their distribution business. There is a flat fee per month, but no transaction fees, and hotels save costs and time associated with laboriously entering online booking data into their front-desk system and managing room inventory across several booking channels. SiteMinder is not a competitor to OTAs.
Rather, it integrates with other revenue man- agement and property management systems to ensure the hotel’s room availability, pricing and bookings are in sync.
Innovations in hotel metasearch also ben- efit independent hotels, such as TripAdvisor’s TripConnect and Google’s Hotel Price ads. SiteMinder offers a self-service platform that hotels can manage to drive more direct busi- ness without the burden of reservation trans- action fees.
What technology strategies can you use? There are many technology providers offer- ing packages to hotel operators. For instance,
www.thecaterer.com
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