ancillary revenue

Hereby starts my newsletter, a space where I will be sharing my thoughts and reflections about hot topics from the industry I love: hashtag#tourism. I’ll mainly […]

Ai at the drive-thru may nail orders but miss the warmth customers crave. software works nonstop without error, yet can’t listen or empathize. authentic staff engage diners, spark loyalty and earn rave reviews. empathic employees drive extra sales that bots can’t replicate. show your caring side and your role stays irreplaceable.

Dublin’s Temple Bar pints climbed in price as the night wore on, revealing a missed F&B opportunity. most restaurants still serve static menus despite QR tech that can flex rates instantly. diners would gladly pay more on weekends and save during quiet weekday lunches. real-time pricing could sharpen profits and draw bargain hunters at off-peak hours. ready to watch your favorite bar’s menu evolve with demand?

Therapist connect one-on-one to unveil clients’ hidden needs. upselling add-ons like aromatherapy or hot stones feels like a gift. suggesting skincare products turns a treatment into a lasting ritual. ethical recommendations build trust and keep guests coming back. with a 15–25 % revenue boost, suggestive selling is win-win for spas.

Ancillary revenue is hotel treasure hiding in plain sight. Guests crave experiences from cooking classes to vip check-out perks. Food, spa and parking turns idle services into small gold mines. Reported sales jumped to 18.9 billion dollars in 2022, up from 13.3 billion. Are you leaving these extra dollars on the table at your property?

As the hospitality industry faces rising costs and evolving guest expectations, relying solely on traditional revenue sources like room sales is no longer sustainable. Ancillary revenue—generated through personalised services, tech-driven offerings, and strategic partnerships—has become essential for improving profitability, enhancing guest satisfaction, and driving long-term success. By leveraging guest data, embracing mobile technology, and creating tailored experiences, hotels can unlock new revenue streams, differentiate themselves in the market, and build a more resilient business model.

Mastering Hospitality Ancillary Revenue is a practical guide designed to help hospitality professionals unlock new revenue streams beyond room sales. Drawing from over 20 years of industry experience, the book offers actionable strategies across 10 chapters—covering technology, personalization, staff training, marketing, and guest experience—to help hotels, restaurants, spas, and bars optimize profitability through effective ancillary revenue management.

Maximizing ancillary revenue in hospitality involves more than offering additional services—it requires a strategic, guest-centric approach that enhances the overall experience while increasing profitability. By leveraging data, personalization, innovative marketing, staff empowerment, and emerging trends like wellness and sustainability, hotels can unlock hidden revenue streams beyond room sales, strengthen guest loyalty, and gain a competitive edge in an evolving industry.

To maximize ancillary revenue, hotels must adopt strategic and personalized marketing approaches that go beyond traditional tactics. By leveraging social media, influencer partnerships, user-generated content, email marketing, and tailored promotions, hotels can effectively showcase unique experiences like spa treatments, local tours, and exclusive dining. These creative efforts not only enhance guest engagement and satisfaction but also drive meaningful revenue growth by positioning the hotel as a destination for more than just a place to stay.

As the hospitality industry evolves, optimizing ancillary revenue—through both traditional services like spa treatments and in-room dining, and emerging streams like wellness programs, sustainable tourism, and retail—has become vital for profitability and guest satisfaction. By embracing personalization, leveraging guest data, adopting creative marketing, and continually refining offers based on performance and trends, hotels can deliver memorable guest experiences while unlocking significant revenue growth.

Effectively marketing ancillary services in hospitality requires a proactive, multi-channel approach that combines digital visibility, in-house engagement, strategic partnerships, and psychological pricing. By leveraging tools like social media, email segmentation, influencer collaborations, and real-time guest feedback, hotels can turn overlooked offerings into key revenue drivers—enhancing guest experience while maximizing profitability.

Maximizing ancillary revenue in hospitality depends on empowering staff—not just through training, but by fostering a guest-centric culture built on empathy, product knowledge, motivation, and technology. By equipping employees to recognize and act on personalized upselling opportunities with confidence and authenticity, hotels can enhance guest satisfaction while driving revenue. Investing in continuous learning, cross-department collaboration, and meaningful incentives turns team members into engaged brand ambassadors and key revenue contributors.

In hospitality, growing ancillary revenue isn’t just about pricing or sales tactics—it’s about building team confidence. Many missed upsell opportunities stem from self-doubt, not lack of strategy. By shifting mindsets, empowering staff to believe in the value they offer, and creating safe spaces to practice and grow, hotels can transform internal confidence into external revenue. Confidence sells—silence doesn’t.

The main idea is that in hospitality, true revenue growth—especially in ancillary services—comes not from nonstop hustle, but from intentional, focused, and thoughtful actions that create meaningful guest experiences and empower teams to work with purpose, not pressure.