When you think of revenue generation in hotels, the first thing that usually comes to mind is room rentals and the sale of food and drink. However, there are a number of additional revenue streams that are sometimes overlooked, and these streams can have a big impact on the bottom line of your business, provided you implement the right revenue management strategies to promote them. The key is identifying all stages of the guest journey where you can create opportunities to generate more revenue and increase your profit margins.

Let’s take a look at 6 profitable sources of hotel revenue generation that you may not be taking advantage of.

Booking engine add-ons

The first stage of the guest experience is when a guest makes a reservation at your hotel. These days, most reservations are booked online. This might be through a third-party OTA or your own website booking engine. Whichever platform a guest chooses, the end of the booking process can be a great opportunity to upsell extra services and boost revenue maximisation in your hotel.

In terms of your own website booking engine, make sure you include add-ons to promote any extra services you offer. The most obvious add-on is breakfast, but there are many other extra services you can include here. This might include dinner, spa facilities, champagne in a guest’s room, upgrading to a higher-value room, meeting room reservations, airport shuttle services, or on-site parking. 

By clearly displaying booking add-ons and promoting them in an appealing way you can improve your RevPAG (revenue per available guest) and create a steady stream of revenue generation for your hotel.

Pre-arrival upselling emails

Another highly effective revenue generation strategy is sending out pre-arrival upselling emails to all your upcoming guests. This gives you a second opportunity to upsell and cross-sell upgrades and additional services to guests.

Make sure your emails and corresponding offers are personalised to each guest. The best way to do this is by contacting your guests in advance to ask them about their likes and dislikes. You could even send out a preference survey to find out what sort of experience a guest is hoping to have, then send out personalised offers that are specifically tailored to their interests. These offers might include onsite or offsite experiences and options to upgrade their stay, for example.

Promote ancillary services

It’s important to keep reminding guests of what you have to offer at every stage of their journey with you. And this means that you need to make sure that information about your ancillary services is easy to find.

There are a number of opportunities to promote your ancillary services once a guest has arrived at your hotel. The first of these is when a guest checks in. Remind them of all the services that you offer and ask them if they would be interested in any of them.

Another highly effective strategy is providing guests with a welcome pack in their room with information about your ancillary services. For example, you could promote your restaurant, remind guests of your laundry or concierge service, upsell guided tours, or include a brochure with the massages and beauty services that you offer if you have spa facilities. You could also put a few posters promoting your ancillary services in your lobby, lifts, and other public areas. The better you are at promoting these services, the more successful you will be at additional revenue generation. 

Use an in-house communications app

A great way to create a positive guest experience and increase your revenue streams is to use an in-house communications app to keep in touch with your guests throughout their entire stay. This will provide guests with a platform to voice any concerns they might have. Regular communication also reassures your guests that you care about the experience they have at your hotel.

Many in-house communications apps can be easily integrated with many of the smartphone apps that your guests are likely to already be using. For example, many platforms enable you to instantly connect with your guests over WhatsApp, WeChat, or Facebook Messenger. That way, you can provide your guests with an engaging contactless experience and help them feel welcomed and valued. Plus, the more you communicate with them and find out about their likes and dislikes, the more opportunities you will have to sell them additional services.

Request feedback and incentivise reviews

Your revenue generation strategies shouldn’t end after a guest has left your hotel. After they have checked out, send them a guest satisfaction survey, and encourage them to leave a review about your hotel. You could even incentivise them to leave a review by offering them discounts on future bookings, for example.

Above all, make sure you respond to any feedback and implement measures to improve any issues that might have been raised. That way, you can continuously improve the experience you offer your guests. And the better the experience that your guests have, the better your reputation will be and the easier it will be to upsell ancillary services to future guests.

Create attractive offers for repeat guests

Finally, a profitable source of hotel generation relates to creating attractive offers to encourage past guests to return to your hotel. This can potentially be a huge revenue stream for your business as repeat guests tend to be more trusting of your reputation and, as a result, more likely to show an interest in purchasing upgrades and ancillary services.

The aim here is to maintain an open line of communication with guests who have stayed with you in the past and create a loyal customer base for future marketing campaigns. For example, you could invite them to join your loyalty program and offer them discounts and points for future reservations. You could even align these incentives with their established preferences and offer them exclusive deals and packages. The more you are able to make your guests feel special, even after they have checked out, the more likely that they will become loyal, repeat customers, and boost your long-term revenue. And this is the key to building a sustainable strategy for your hotel.