19 - The Art and Science of Upselling Your Hotel Guest

In this ultra-competitive hospitality industry, profitability is tough to maintain. Consumers have more research power than ever and have the tools and technology at their disposal to find the best available rate with ease. This, coupled with the ongoing battle between OTAs and hoteliers for the privilege of getting the booking and owning the guest, means that it’s a great time for hotels to get creative in maximizing their revenue. One of the simplest and most effective methods is in the age-old sales technique of upselling. From room upgrades, to additional services, and F&B, there are so many opportunities to upsell a guest and maximize your profit. FULL SHOW NOTES CAN BE FOUND AT: http://www.fueltravel.com/blog/fuel-hotel-marketing-podcast-episode-19-art-science-upselling-hotel-guest/ Focus on Enhancing Your Guest’s Experience, Don’t Be a Used Car Salesman. As travelers, we are primed to buy things. There are seldom times when our purse strings are more loose. Having said that, no one likes being sold to. It’s very important that you train your staff to approach upselling as a way to enhance the guest experience. The result of upselling is increased profit; however, the primary goal and focus should be on strengthening your relationship with the guest by enhancing their experience, Upselling should occur throughout the guest’s journey Don’t focus on just one specific time to upsell. Any time you have an interaction with a guest, over the phone, in person, or virtually via your website or an email, there’s an opportunity to upsell. Here’s why: Guests are often not aware of upgrade options, especially when the reservation was OTA or an business traveller’s assistant. Even if they book direct, perhaps, the phone reservationists may not have conveyed the upgrade options or their value The guest’s needs will constantly change Family vacationers, for example, may add people to their trip or may want to squeeze in an extra attraction before they leave. The travel lifecycle is full of micro-moments for decision making. Each time a guest is presented with a decision to spend money or not you may get a different answer. Their experience, their mood, the fact that they already paid perceive that they’ve paid for the stay, etc. All of these factors can influence their decision. Timing and Message Matter. Since the purpose of upselling is to improve the guest’s experience then it has a place throughout the entire research, purchase and consumption life cycle, but what you upsell depends greatly on when you upsell. === CONTEST: the first three hotels to email to [email protected] with subject line "I love direct bookings!" gets a free pass to attend The Direct Booking Summit! Check out www.Triptease.com for great rate parity software and register for their Direct Booking Summit at http://www.directbookingsummit.com/ === Follow on Twitter: @fueltravel @stuartbutler @pdimaio @makavanagh