Upselling and cross-selling must be suggestive, so that, as Pablo Torres, technical director of the Advanced Program in Total Revenue Management at the University of Alicante, emphasized, "any employee who is in contact with the customer can suggest products or services that meet their expectations." The key, in his opinion, is "ensuring that the customer leaves the hotel happy, having paid more, but it can't be a hard sell; instead, you have to offer them other options in a coherent way."
Upselling and cross-selling are gaining increasing importance as revenue generators at a time when, according to Pablo Torreira, Regional Director of Revenue Management for Meliá Hotels International in EMEA (Europe, the Middle East and Africa), “every hotel needs additional revenue generators,” as HOSTELTUR tourism news published in Thinking Outside the Box Also in Revenue Management.
Proof of this is that, according to the examples presented by Pablo Torres, "upselling in accommodation, even if it is only 10% of rooms, can translate into increases of between 1.5% and 2% in RevPAR (average revenue per available room); a percentage that can reach 22% in the case of Food and Beverage revenue, thanks, for example, to offering breakfast to guests who stay overnight with a room-only rate."
In urban hotels, this increase, as Pablo Torres explained, "can be a third lower because the company pays for the business client's stay, but the extra costs are the client's responsibility."
To be able to carry this out with greater chances of success, as Torres explained, it is essential that "all departments have a good understanding of the product," which requires "training, as well as a positive attitude on the part of employees, fostered by an incentive program to commission these upsells, which don't always have to be financial but are motivating for the team."
Torres recommends "being as genuine as possible in your welcome, suggesting products that meet the guest's expectations. It's important to suggest upselling at check-in and let them decide, to avoid them arriving at their room unaware of other options."
In this regard, he acknowledges that "it makes more sense to offer additional products the longer the guest will be staying at the hotel, in order to provide value. Also, ask them about their plans for the destination to try to make money, but in a meaningful way. In fact, some hotels work with local businesses that suggest home delivery to guests who inquire, and they earn a commission."
Torres advocates "only proposing upselling to clients you consider to have potential, such as couples celebrating a special occasion, long-stay clients, families, or now, users of the coworking product."
For suggestive selling in Food and Beverages, the professional serving the customer must try to understand, as the expert has listed, “their origin (whether they are staying or are an external client, whether local or foreign), frequency (regular customer or first time), purpose (whether it is for business or celebrating a special occasion), number of people, available time, budget, their preferences, etc. In short, they must try to connect with the customer and suggest the products most suited to their tastes and needs.”
The role of the receptionist
With the increasingly widespread automation of receptionist administrative work, coupled with the proliferation of online check-in, the profile of this professional, according to the expert, "will shift toward customer service and brand ambassadorship, and the evolution will be very rapid. There will be more public relations in all segments, not just in lifestyle brands."
