Every night, guests check into your hotels. They share their names, email addresses, preferences, and payment details. They order room service, book spa treatments, connect to Wi-Fi, and leave reviews. Then they check out, and most of that data either disappears into a disconnected system or sits untouched in a spreadsheet no one opens again. For independent hotel groups across
For years, hoteliers have relied heavily on Online Travel Agencies to fill rooms. While platforms like Booking.com and Expedia provide undeniable reach, they come at a steep cost. Commission rates often slice deeply into profit margins, leaving revenue managers constantly searching for ways to balance third-party distribution with direct sales. Moving into late 2026, the landscape of digital travel planning
Imagine you're at the front desk, midway through a busy day, when you suddenly realize you’re overbooked. Guests are still pouring in, but you know—awkward conversations and unhappy faces await you. But overbooking doesn’t have to be chaotic. When done strategically, it can increase occupancy and revenue. This article will show you how to master overbooking and turn a stressful
Question for Our Hotel Marketing Expert Panel Independent hotels face strong competition for direct bookings in an OTA-dominated market. What strategies can they use to convert guests through their own channel? (Question proposed by Max Starkov) Our Marketing Expert Panel Max Starkov - Adjunct Professor Hospitality Technology, New York University Moriya Rockman
AI is moving fast. Really fast. Every day seems to bring a new breakthrough: an image generator that goes viral, a smarter chatbot, a more powerful time-saving tool. Some innovations will fizzle out or quickly be supplanted. Others will fundamentally change how we live and work. And one of the latest to watch for revenue managers? OpenAI’s Operator. Operator has
Today, marketing is no longer an optional extra for any business, and the hospitality industry is no exception. While some might view marketing as simply crafting social media posts and eye-catching visuals, the truth is that there are many other aspects to marketing, and all of them are crucial for your brand to succeed. Unlocking Revenue Growth Through Smart Marketing
Hotels often rely on blanket discount codes to spark bookings, but these offers rarely resonate with high-value guests. Instead, they attract low-spending visitors who deliver minimal long-term revenue. Today’s travelers expect more: personalization, recognition, and incentives that reflect their loyalty. Guests who feel noticed are far more likely to return, spend more, and recommend your brand. In this article, you’ll
Airbnb listing options are one of the most significant drivers of the travel industry. The average traveler has become agnostic to the particulars of a platform. When people travel, they want options ranging from boutiques to hotels, home rentals, or even serviced apartments. Airbnb is part of what makes that possible, and hoteliers leveraging those options are gaining a significant
What did you think when ChatGPT first came out? Maybe you were in the “nice, but useless gadget” camp. Or did you immediately see it as a powerful tool that will shake up our industry? The latter has proven true. Artificial intelligence (AI) tools have only been available for a short time. But you can already see an impact in
Airbnb China was a pioneering attempt to bring the platform and overseas guests to a new Chinese market. A number of issues, including the pandemic and operational hurdles, caused Airbnb to suspend Chinese domestic operations in July 2022. Airbnb's disappearance left a hole in the economic landscape of the hospitality industry. Hotels suddenly found themselves with new options to recapture
Hotel rewards programs are among the most powerful tools available to hoteliers. A strategically leveraged program will both increase repeat bookings through incentives and provide guest data that can be used to provide further growth. The process builds up a defensible market share, pushes up RevPAR, and reduces the overall cost of acquisition. In this article, you'll learn how the
Hostelworld Inbox is a central hub for managing bookings and communicating with guests via the Hostelworld platform. Hostelworld itself is a global distribution channel for hostels and similar accommodation businesses. For those in the industry, Hostelworld Inbox provides a valuable way to manage bookings made through the platform. It allows you to communicate with guests, set expectations and enhance the
There's a curious paradox in the hotel industry. Hotels have mastered the art of making it effortless for a guest to book a single room for one night. Yet the moment a group enters the equation, be it a corporate team booking, a sports club, or an event needing rooms and meeting space, the entire process grinds to a halt.
Group accommodation bookings have always been a significant yet underutilized revenue stream for hotels. Representing 30-40% of total net revenue for many business hotels, group bookings also drive ancillary income through food, beverage, and event services, which often yield higher profit margins than room sales alone. Yet, despite their potential, managing these bookings is frequently hindered by manual processes and
Travelers can now book a room without leaving their favorite social media app. Is your hotel capitalizing on social commerce? This trend is redefining how customers discover and book their stays, offering hoteliers a powerful tool to turn inspiration into instant reservations. Social Commerce Transforming Travel Inspiration into Hotel Bookings Travel is a familiar theme in most social feeds. We
"Heads in beds." While occupancy is not the only thing influencing the revenue success of a hotel, it's hard to say you're maximizing revenue if your occupancy levels are low. 7 Ways to Effectively Boost the Occupancy Today, guests typically have a wealth of options for determining precisely in which beds their heads will be resting. Hotel room supply is
Group bookings are vital for business hotels, but outdated, fragmented systems complicate the process. Managing accommodation, meeting spaces, and event services across multiple platforms often results in errors, wasted time, and client dissatisfaction. By adopting integrated technology, hotels can simplify operations, minimize mistakes, and improve profitability, ensuring they meet growing demand and operate more efficiently. Simplifying Group Bookings for Boosting
Data is the backbone of modern hospitality and relying on outdated, fragmented systems can be a recipe for disaster, especially in managing group and meeting bookings. If your hotel is not harnessing the full potential of integrated data management, you are jeopardizing the guest experience. Disjointed platforms can lead to miscommunications, missed opportunities and operational chaos. By leveraging analytics, you