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Upselling services at a hotel is an art. Not everyone does it, and those who do it, don’t often do it well. However, as discussed in the article ‘ Fundamentals of Upselling’, upselling is a necessity that properties cannot ignore. This article covers some of the best ways to implement upselling at your hotel and increase revenue. We will also share unique approaches you can use for every guest, no matter the property's type.
A key factor in upselling is your relationship with your guests. Whenever guests book via OTAs or third parties you won’t get their email addresses, which means that it will be hard to reach out to them before arrival and upsell to them. This can be fixed by making sure that the content you create for social media platforms is targeted and informative.
Keep in mind that conversion is difficult to achieve – the average conversion rate is less than 2%. Hence you must ensure that the right content is presented to the right target audience. This does require that you invest some money upfront, but in the long run, it will save you a lot of commission fees. Whilst you promote, you can also offer tips about the location and create added value.
Apart from this, you should also ensure that your hotel has an easy-to-use website with a booking engine and includes all necessary information under Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs).
The second most essential tip is awareness about the timing! If you’re able to upsell the right service at the right time, you’ll be able to increase your revenue without any additional effort.
Once a guest books a hotel room, they are open to customizing their stay and experience by adding a few extras to their trip. They might also be open to upgrading to a better room, getting transportation as an add-on, or choosing a few activities that the hotel offers.
Remember, the pre-arrival period is the key to upselling. The time between when the booking was made and the guests’ imminent arrival, is when people are most receptive to extra offers.
HotelMinder, it is about:
HotelMinder, it is about:
There are two ways by which you can reach out to our guests:
When sending out the offer to your guests, there are several things that you need to take into consideration. Without these, driving conversion and guaranteeing value-add can be difficult.
When you know your guests, you’re able to target them with specific offers. Without understanding your customers’ preferences, targeted advertisements or offers won’t work. However, it isn’t always possible to get to know your guests in advance. In such scenarios, dividing guests into different segments works.
There are different ways in which you can segment guests. For instance, it could be couples, families, or businesses. Or you could segment guests by the location they’re coming from. Regardless, whenever you segment your guests, you should do it by using specific information within your PMS. You can also utilize guests’ data to help you tailor-make a pitch just for them. That will increase the conversion rate of upselling.
Dividing guests into groups based on different factors will help you evaluate their preferences and decide which offers might be most appealing to them. Knowing who your guests are and what they value will make the conversion rate of upselling higher. The following are different options for segmenting:
Based on the segments, ensure that you create tailor-made offers for your guests, with enough options. Remember, not to offer too many options or you might overwhelm your guests.
Another great way of upselling and increasing ancillary revenue is by packaging it up! Upselling can be as simple as a room upgrade, early check-in, or late check-out. These are the most basic offset guest book.
However, if you want to promote a service or cross-sell an offer, the best way to do it is by packaging it up and creating added value. Check out what are the most recently booked services and go from there.
Use already existing products and services to create a value-add package for guests. Some examples could be:
Furthermore, think of amenities/services already existing in the hotel that could provide added value to different types of customers.
No matter the property type, you will always find different types of customers. Therefore, it’s good to identify them to make sure you can present them with the most value-add option in the form of a package.
Listed below are a couple of examples of customers and what might attract them to package up their stay.
Mia Kun, originally from Hungary, Budapest, has been living in London UK while pursuing her interests in travelling and experiencing other cultures.
HotelMinder is a leading advisory agency for hoteliers to maximize business performance with hands-on advisory & project management services; a free and unbiased hospitality knowledge platform with Tech, Marketing, Revenue and Operational content; and a marketplace for professionals from all over the world to find hospitality specific software and services that best match their vision and requirements.
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