Good bye Holidays, Welcome 2009
Good bye Holidays, Welcome 2009!
What do we face as Hotel Sales Managers in 2009? Will we have to drop rates to gain new clients? Will we take crappy business because we have to? Do you look twice at business opportunities that you wouldn’t of thought about before you turn them away? Are you offering more concessions to make your RFP more attractive and a better value?
What is your plan of action? It’s time to take a fresh tour of your competition. What are their features? What is their pricing structure? What type of business do they have? WHAT CAN YOU TAKE?
Get the edge, work your game plan and take this week to check out the area hotels. I’m sure most of you have completed a monthly action plan for the 2009 budget. Take a look at your plan, put it in action.
What are all of the other hotels doing? Is there something your missing? Remember the more you learn about your competition the better you are at being able to sell your hotel.
I do not recommend or suggest EVER to trash your competition to a new client. You will instantly lose the respect of many, many clients. There are ways of going about discussing a competitors weakness to a prospect without sounding like a jerk. You may mention “our property has recently completed a multi-million dollar renovation plan, or we have recently upgrading our internet services” rather then “their property is a dump and their service is terrible”. You can even mention that you have recently toured the area hotels and you find that your property has much to offer and even at a possible savings.
Make appointments this week to tour your competition, do a rate analysis and educate yourself.
Good luck!
Pure Energy
