Get the lay of the land. See what the conditions are on the ground. Get a perspective from the field.
There are all sorts of geographical references for determining the current state of affairs in a given environment, and they all have one thing in common: they all highlight the importance of direct assessment. As opposed to guessing at what's actually going on through numbers on a P&L statement, or through other indirect measures, asking those who are actually implementing strategies and performing day-to-day revenue management duties is the best way to understand what's happening at the moment.
For the hotel industry in particular, with its dynamic operating environment and demand-based challenges, it is important to accurately assess- from time to time- effective revenue management strategies, and to identify best practices in the industry. It helps to identify, for instance, whether hoteliers are using automated revenue management systems to their fullest, or whether traditional techniques still hold sway in the industry. It helps to know whether revenue managers are cognizant of the latest advances in technology that can affect their businesses or whether they are still relying on the low-tech RM strategies of the past.
REVPAR GURU launched a survey this week in an effort to determine which revenue management techniques and strategies are currently being practiced by hotels around the world. The survey delves deep into the core competencies of most revenue management departments at hotels and resorts, and seeks to identify attitudes about automated revenue management systems among lodging industry professionals. These statistics will give hoteliers a valuable insight into the competition's revenue management processes and strategies - no call-arounds necessary. The survey is open to any hotel employee across the globe that wishes to participate by offering their feedback on how their property prices their rooms.
Completing the survey is beneficial, not just to the industry as a whole, but also to the specific employees completing the short survey. Creating and keeping a competitive edge often hinges on knowing what your competitors are doing, and what the best practices are in the industry as a whole. The REVPAR GURU survey, once complete, will communicate that valuable information to both hotels and to the companies that serve them as all of the findings of the survey will be distributed free of charge to those who complete the survey.
It is important to know the conditions on the ground, to get the lay of the land, to go into the field to get information. To take the first step in finding out more about your competition's RM strategies, please take the REVPAR GURU survey at http://revparguru.com/revenue-management-survey.html
For more information about REVPAR GURU, please contact Lou Wolfson at 305.519.4297 or lwolfson@revparguru.com.