Hola hospitality professionals!
What if I told you that the traditional hotel revenue strategy ( focused almost entirely on rooms) is no longer enough?
I recently had the pleasure of sharing thoughts in an interview with SiteMinder, where we talked about what’s changing in hospitality, and more importantly, what needs to change. The conversation brought out some key lessons that are worth repeating here.
So if you’re rethinking your commercial plan for 2026 (and you should be), this one’s for you.
We’re moving from “heads in beds” to “Revenue per guest”
For decades, our industry has been obsessed with occupancy and ADR. But high occupancy doesn’t always mean high profitability.
In the SiteMinder interview, I pointed out a shift that’s already underway: instead of maximising room nights, we need to maximise total revenue per guest.
That means asking:
- Are we offering relevant upsells at the right moment?
- Are we optimising revenue touchpoints pre-, during, and post-stay?
- Are we measuring total guest value, not just their booking channel?
The guest is no longer a transaction. They’re a relationship. And that relationship can grow over time if we manage it right.
Tech helps, but strategy leads
There are many brilliant tools out there, but they won’t fix a broken strategy.
A revenue management system won’t deliver its full potential unless your internal culture supports cross-departmental collaboration and guest-centric thinking.
Start by getting marketing, operations, and revenue in the same room. Literally. Map out the guest journey together. Identify friction points. Design offers that feel helpful, not pushy.
In other words: make it easy for the guest to say yes.
From silos to synergy
If there’s one big takeaway from the interview, it’s this: the future of hotel profitability isn’t just about more bookings. It’s about better integration.
We need fewer walls between teams, and more shared goals.
And that starts with rethinking how we measure, reward, and manage performance across the entire guest experience.
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And if your team is working on your commercial plan for 2026, or if you’re stuck between tech investment and team training, let’s talk.
Because “more guests” is great. But “better guests, better spend, better experience” is even better.
