Making Informed Decisions with Data (ITB Now)

As hoteliers struggled to do more with less in 2020, data proved to be the industry’s secret weapon. During ITB Now last year, Revinate’s Patrick Oldenberg, Director of Business Development EMEA, shared how Revinate customers are using their own guest data to guide decisions and programs that drive revenue. Watch this short video to see how data helped hoteliers navigate and survive the pandemic, despite the incredible challenges.

Following are Patrick’s insights from the presentation that should make you think differently about how your hotel uses its guest data.

Safety and Cleanliness Are Critical

In a global survey that we set out towards the beginning of the pandemic, 31% of global survey respondents said that ‘safety and cleanliness’ was the top consideration when deciding on accommodations. This came as no surprise to anyone, since every day the media was sharing harrowing statistics about the spread of Covid-19 and why staying at home was the best choice until a vaccine was available. As a result of the focus on sanitation and safety, we implored hoteliers to continually monitor how they’re doing meeting guest expectations in this area. 

Thankfully, it’s easy for hotels to get the feedback they need to know how they’re doing in guests’ eyes around safety. Revinate Guest Feedback helps hoteliers stay on top of online reviews and post-stay surveys. Hoteliers can not only see all their reviews from across dozens of review sites and OTAs in one place, but also set up alerts for critical feedback, such as those that raise health and safety issues. 

Hoteliers can benchmark their success against their competitors and use a ticketing system to operationalize feedback and make sure that any issues are nipped in the bud before they become big problems. Or, alternatively, great reviews can be celebrated as a team.

Familiarity is Important

Our global traveler poll also revealed that 68% of travelers looking to book a hotel feel more comfortable doing so at one they’ve stayed at before. We surmise that guests will feel more comfortable at a familiar hotel because they have gotten a sense of the hotel’s cleanliness and layout and are confident that it will meet their needs, even if cleaning requirements and social distancing measures are more strict.

This is a very positive sign for hoteliers, especially those that have maintained their hotel’s CRM. It means that they can easily drive new direct bookings by reaching back out to past guests with promotions that they can’t resist. By leveraging your hotel CRM, you will be able to accelerate your hotel’s recovery, drive a profitable direct booking, and avoid sharing the revenue with an OTA. And, the best part is that repeat guests also tend to spend more money than new guests so once you have the booking, be sure to send the guest a pre-stay email with great options to upgrade the stay. 

Proper Guest Segmentation Has Never Been More Important

Given the importance of marketing to past guests, you will want to double down on your hotel CRM and use the data you have about your guests to make them want to return. To do that effectively, you will need to segment your hotel CRM by past stays or lifetime value and ensure that your messaging speaks to the target. Call out your guests’ status in the email and ensure they know they’ll be treated like VIPs when they walk through the door. 

Revinate Marketing customers have all the tools they need to easily segment customers and create personalized promotions and email campaigns. If you’re curious about Revinate Marketing and want to see it in action, watch the complete ITB Now video to see an in-depth demo. And, watch part IV of the ITB blog series to learn why Revinate is a leader in data security.