Summertime, and the living is easy.  That’s how the old song goes, and that’s the way it is supposed to be for hotels. After all, this is the time of year when business typically booms.  Yet I’ve been hearing from some Intergy clients that this has been a slow season for them, based on bookings.  So I thought I’d share a couple of suggestions that will help you generate more reservations, bank more revenue and fight off the summer blahs.

Limited-time stay-and-save offers: Well-timed, limited-time offers can drive bookings for your hotel when things are slow.  You have plenty of options for how you create and promote them, starting with Intergy. For example, I’ve noticed that some Intergy clients haven’t taken advantage of the flexibility in our online booking engine to ward off soft weekends through special two-or-three-day offers using their best-available room rates.  It’s a good way to generate some added visibility, interest and incentive for travellers to make a reservation with your hotel.  You can also adjust your rates to offer a limited number of special packages to further entice travellers, encouraging them to make the call today before the opportunity to stay and save passes them by. 

Add more value to your packages: I also recommend looking at the value-added features you offer guests when they book with your hotel.  Many extras that were once special, like continental breakfasts, have become standard over the years, so you have to be a little creative when it comes to giving guests benefits or extras beyond a comfy room.  Air Miles and Priority Club points are a good place to start because the savings and bonuses encourage guests to make a return trip to your hotel and your destination.  Gas cards are another great idea, especially when you bundle them into an economical room rate package, because guests believe they are getting something special as they save money.

Keep in mind that any incentives or offers like these are hit and miss.  The key is to get something together and see how it works. Using Intergy’s reporting tools, you can easily determine which offers are producing results, improve them to generate more bookings and revenues and weed out the ones that fail to meet your goals. Once you’ve tried a few initiatives, come back and share your success stories with us and other Intergy clients. Chances are you’ll also find an idea or two from other hotels that you can use to bring a little summer heat to your shoulder season.

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