Hotel revenue management solutions can help you optimise your prices and inventory and maximise the potential of your revenue management strategies. But it’s important to pick the right solution for the unique needs and requirements of your hotel. Aside from being a wasted investment, the wrong choice can significantly impact your ability to drive revenue and profit.
But where do you start? How do you know if a solution will be effective?
In today’s guide, we are going to explain everything that you need to consider before you invest in a revenue management solution so that you can make the right choice for your business.
What are revenue management solutions?
Revenue management solutions are software systems that help hotels automate and optimise their revenue management strategies. These systems use advanced algorithms and analytics to analyse data relating to demand, pricing, and inventory. Revenue managers can then use this information to optimise their rates and maximise their occupancy levels, ultimately boosting revenue and profitability.
Revenue management solutions typically include features for dynamic pricing, demand forecasting, rate parity monitoring, channel management, integration with other systems, and reporting and analytics. These features allow hotels to make informed strategic decisions, track performance, and identify opportunities for improvement.
Revenue management solutions can be used by hotels of all sizes, from small independent properties to large chains. The best revenue management solutions can also be customised to meet the specific needs of a hotel, taking into account factors such as room types, booking patterns, and market segments.
What should you consider before you invest in revenue management solutions?
There are a number of things to consider before choosing a revenue management solution for your hotel. This includes the specific needs of your business, your workflows, and the features included in a solution. You also need to ensure that the solution you pick can be easily integrated with your existing tech stack. Plus, it’s important to consider vendor reputation and support, training and implementation, and future growth and scalability.
Let’s take a look at these aspects in a bit more detail.
Business needs
Before choosing a revenue management solution, it’s important to identify your hotel’s specific needs. For example, how big is your hotel? What is your budget? How complex is the data you need to access? Do you need a solution that can manage pricing and inventory across multiple channels? Identifying your needs will help you narrow down your options so that you can choose a solution that meets your requirements.
Once you have identified your needs, research your options. There are many revenue management solutions on the market, and it’s important to choose one that is right for your hotel. Read reviews, arrange demonstrations, and speak with other hoteliers to learn about their experiences with different solutions.
Integration with your existing tech stack
It’s also important to pick a revenue optimisation solution that can connect with your existing tech stack – integrations are crucial for making the most out of your RMS. The solution should integrate seamlessly with your other platforms, including your property management system (PMS) and your customer relationship management system (CRM). This will improve the accuracy of your data and save you a great deal of time.
Business model and workflows
Make sure the revenue management solution you pick can be easily adapted to your business model and workflows. Many RMSs can be very limiting in terms of the types of hotels they can work with, and hoteliers are often forced to adapt their workflows to the software. Pick a solution that can adapt to the way you work instead.
Features
When evaluating revenue management solutions, consider the features offered by each solution. Some key features to look for include dynamic pricing, rate parity monitoring, channel management, demand forecasting, reporting and analytics, and a user-friendly interface.
Don’t limit your search to features for descriptive analyses and forecasting, either. The best hotel management software tools also include prescriptive analysis capabilities and a good recommendations algorithm to help you better understand your business, anticipate market trends, and optimise your revenue strategies.
Talent and customer support
Make sure you consider the level of customer support offered by the revenue management solution. The platform you choose must have a great team behind the scenes that can guarantee the quality of the solution. They need to understand your needs and have comprehensive knowledge and experience so that they can recommend solutions and strategies during implementation and training. The provider you choose should also offer ongoing technical support.
Finally, don’t forget to account for future growth and scalability when investing in a revenue management solution. It’s important to choose a solution that can grow and adapt to your hotel’s changing needs. That way, you can continuously optimise your revenue potential and get the maximum return on your software investment.
