Weekly Insights. December 9, 2023

Customer service excellence in the luxury segment: How to stand out

The luxury sector is growing steadily and creating great opportunities for brands to enter the market or grow their audience. But it’s no longer all about being flashy and pricey, today’s luxury shopper is more influenced by personalization, innovation, conscious consumerism, and an emotional experience. So while today’s luxury industry is broader and more accessible than ever before, it’s also more challenging. To meet the high expectations of today’s discerning luxury buyers and stand out from the crowd, brands must achieve customer service excellence.

Dynamic pricing in restaurants: Feast or famine?

At a time when many restaurants are grappling with tight margins squeezed by inflationary pressures, dynamic pricing offers a lifeline that could breathe life into the commercial viability of a restaurant business.

At its core, dynamic pricing involves adjusting menu prices based on demand. Imagine a world where you arrive 30 minutes before the table next to you and pay a different price to them. This model, akin to the pricing strategies we are very accustomed to in hotels, would see the price of a dish change according to demand for a seating time.

However, its impact on the customer experience remains a topic of intense debate. Will diners accept fluctuating prices for their favorite dishes, or will the unpredictability sour their appetite? Moreover, the operational challenges of implementing such a system loom large, raising questions about the feasibility and acceptance of this bold approach in the culinary world.

In this edition of Elite RM Dispatch, we delve into the parallels of the hotel industry dynamic pricing journey and how the learnings can be applied to restaurants, setting the table for a transformative shift in how we dine out.

What are the best practices for driving revenue-generating email marketing and for collecting valid email addresses from guests?

Our Industry Expert Panel exists out of professionals within the hospitality & travel Industry. They have comprehensive and detailed knowledge, experience in practice or management and are forward-thinking. They are answering questions about the state of the industry. They share their insights on topics like revenue management, marketing, operations, technology and discuss the latest trends.

The shift from room-centric to guest-centric revenue management

In the hotel revenue management field, a significant change is underway. The primary focus is increasing total revenue, as traditional strategies focusing on room and space optimization have reached their limits. It is necessary to shift towards guest-centric strategies catering to guests' nuanced needs and preferences. This shift is revenue-driven and aims to enhance guest satisfaction, strengthen the brand, ensure customer loyalty, and attract more patrons in a highly competitive market for overnight accommodations. A guest-centric approach is the only viable pathway to grow revenue and profits in a landscape where traditional revenue enhancement avenues have been fully explored and maximized.

7 ways to get seasonal on your hotel’s direct channel

Get inspired by this festive selection of unique and creative offers for the holidays to boost your online conversion rate

35 restaurant technology trends you need to know

What’s new in the restaurant world? What will tomorrow’s restaurant customers expect from your restaurant? The restaurant industry continues to evolve, especially in the wake of the pandemic, and it can be challenging to keep up with the ever-changing trends and innovations. You certainly don’t want to be left behind as your competition adds technology that can increase demand, boost revenue, and reduce costs. Plus, customer expectations are quite different than they were five years ago, especially when it comes to ordering preferences, sustainability, and payment methods. In this article, we’ll share 35 restaurant technology trends you need to know to stay relevant, competitive, and profitable. Let’s get started!

Hotel spas fill in revenue void during recession

As of year-end 2022, the average hotel in CBRE’s Trends® in the Hotel Industry survey sample had surpassed its 2018 total revenue figure by 1.5%. This was achieved even though the average hotel had rented 8.2% fewer room nights in 2022 than it did in 2018. The improvement was largely due to continued improvement in average daily rate and revenue from other sources. The strategy to drive revenue from other sources was in direct response to the reduced number of occupied rooms and the increased cost of conducting business. One of these ancillary revenue sources was spa services.

To assess the impact of hotel spa departments on recent hotel operations, we analyzed the performance of 139 U.S. hotels that operate a spa and participated in CBRE’s Trends® survey each year from 2018 through 2022. In 2022, these 139 hotels averaged 63.5% occupancy, along with a $426.78 average daily rate (ADR). The sample consisted of 83 properties located in resort markets, and 56 operating in urban areas. Excluded from this analysis were hotels that leased out their spa operations to third party operators (i.e. an operator outside of the hotel management company).

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