by Doug Kennedy
March 27, 2009
For veteran hoteliers who are experiencing our industry�s fourth economic
down-turn in the last twenty years, it is interesting to see how consumers
are reacting to the latest media-driven �fire sale� stories that �hotel
discounts are there for the asking.� In past down-cycles, such as
in the early 1990�s after the savings and loan crisis, again after 9-11,
and once more in spring of 2003 when we were facing the treat of the Iraq
war and SARS virus, guests increasingly turned to the Internet to find
what they perceived as the absolute-best available rates.
Not surprisingly, during the most current economic down-cycle, guests
still check the Internet first, although this is no longer a simple task.
With the emergence of �meta-search� engines such as SideStep and Kayak,
with more than 20 million guest reviews on TripAdvisor alone, and with
new information being posted every day on social networking sites, prospective
guests now have an overwhelming amount of information � and misinformation
� available to them.
After spending countless hours online reading every hotel review, looking
at every hotel photo (including seeing the real truth by visiting the �traveler
photos� at TripAdvisor and video shorts at YouTube), and even trying to
take the mask off opaque channels by visiting websites such as BiddingForTravel.com
and BetterBidding.com, many of today�s value-driven deal-seekers eventually
become very confused and even stressed by their decision-making process.
Here in 2009, an increasing number of these multi-tasking maximizers
in the end revert to a very old-fashioned tactic that is �so 1980�s�, which
is to call the hotel directly and talk to an actual live person. What a
concept! For evidence, just ask those fielding reservations calls
how often they get asked right up-front �Where are you?� by callers who
have checked YellowPages.com for a local phone number just to make sure
they can reach an on-premise agent.
According to numerous travel experts, the most famous of which is Peter
Greenberg (a.k.a. The Travel Detective), this is the very best way to get
the absolute lowest rate. Many guests are also discovering that this
is a great way to get a feel for the level and style of service they will
receive as a guest.
As a result of these trends, it is more important than ever to carefully
train your reservations (and front desk) salespersons to capture and convert
every possible inquiry, while simultaneously increasing average rates by
better-presenting higher-rated accommodations, packages and promotional
offerings. Here are sales training tips for your next reservations
meeting:
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Level The Playing Field On Rate Parity. Despite all of our focus
as an industry on this issue over the years, all too often callers want
to book with a voice agent they�ve connected with personally, but the reservations
agent�s system doesn�t show the same rate the caller sees online, frustrating
both parties.
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Train Your Staff In �Channel Conversion� Techniques. So many of today�s
hotel reservations sales inquiries occur only because consumers want to
double-check a best-rate. Converting these calls into bookings not
only saves distribution costs and OTA commissions, but it also ensures
the caller won�t end up selecting a different hotel off a menu at an OTA
website.
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Don�t Give Up When Caller�s Say �Just Give Me The Rate.� It
cannot be denied that a segment of today�s callers represent the extreme
version of our value-driven deal-seekers who start off with a direct, blunt
question of �I just need to find out the total price...� spoken forcefully.
Step One is to seemingly-concede: �Certainly, let me check that for you
right away�� and then to ask the Inventory Search Questions needed for
quoting availability and rates, such as the dates and number in the party.
Step Two is to then ask �While I�m checking that rate for you, are there
any questions I can answer for you about the hotel or area?� which will
often open the door to a conversation vs. fulfilling a transaction.
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At the same time, we must honor caller�s who respond with �No thanks, just
give me the rate.� Let�s� remember these callers have like
already invested precious time researching price online, so we need to
respect their quest to price-shop for the best available value. When
caller�s insist on a rate and decline information on the hotel, Step Three
is to proceed with quoting the lowest available rates first. But then after
seemingly conceding, agents can immediately resume control by then asking
questions such as �How does that sound?� and/or �Will that meet your needs?�
and/or �Is there something special you are looking for?�
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To the extent possible given your reservations systems and procedures,
provide your agents with the ability to reference �Normal� (such as �rack�
or �high season�) rates to position lower rates as already being a good
value. For example: �This rate normally runs X, but for the
dates you are looking at we can extend you a special rate of Y.�
-
So many hotels are running special rate offers, discounts, and promotions.
Of course many callers seek these rates over periods of peak demand, such
as during holidays, events, or other special circumstances. When
callers ask for these rate offers by name, indicate that they are �sold
out� vs. �not available.�
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If you can�t secure the reservation during the first attempt, train your
agents to leave the �next step� on their to-do list. At minimum,
invite the caller to become a guest and express interest in having them
call back. Where operational systems allow, offer to e-mail links
to the accommodations discussed, and add a short personal note regarding
their situation or story. (This is an especially important step for resorts
and luxury hotels who want to outsell their competitors.)
Certainly, today�s callers are more aggressive than ever in seeking the
best rate. Some reservations agents � and even a few managers � seem
convinced that �all the caller wants to hear these days is the rate.�
So what are we to do? Just give up selling and quote rates all day?
Well if you want just as much business as all of the other hotels in your
market are getting, just keep doing the same things the other hotels are
doing, which is conceding to the rate question and allowing buying decisions
to be made on price alone. On the other hand, if you want to capture
more business than your competitors, focus your attention on the �store-front
window� to your hotel, which ironically is once again your reservations
and front desk team.
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Doug Kennedy, President of
the Kennedy Training Network, has been a fixture on the hospitality and
tourism industry conference circuit since 1989, having presented over 1,000
conference keynote sessions, educational break-out seminars, or customized,
on-premise training workshops for diverse audiences representing every
segment of the lodging industry. Ee-mail Doug at: [email protected] |
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