Data analytics in the hotel industry is key to marketing strategy, building customer loyalty, and enhancing productivity. Hotels can use data analytics to create an excellent customer experience. It enables hotels to personalise experiences for their guests, introduce better hotel pricing strategies, and expand their customer base. This can help integrate various channels and open new avenues for revenue creation for the hotel industry. By being aware of behavioural motivators such as how guests make their booking decisions, how they make their choices, and why they return, hoteliers can use these insights for long-term planning.
There is an abundance of data available to hotels: customer data, market data, booked data, guest stay data and more. Several sources contribute to this data pool which is consumed by hotel companies, chains, and independents alike, which brings up key questions, including:
- How do hotels use this data?
- How is the data accumulated, and from where?
- How is the data processed?
- How is the data consumed, and in what format?
Booked data and guest stay data allow hotels to build a narrative using different methods of analysis. In summary, business intelligence tools help us navigate diagnostic and descriptive analysis, while revenue management software helps us with predictive and prescriptive analysis.
Diagnostic Analysis
It helps diagnostic analysis look better by telling a story. A root cause analysis leads to answers of peaks and troughs of losses and gains in market share performance. Simply, why did it happen?
Prepare forecasts using machine learning and forward-looking data, or other models primarily based on historical data.
It makes the best use of predictive analysis. It is awareness of future demand levels and forecasts. Prescriptive analysis helps to apply the best price, LOS, and availability restrictions to create the best yield for the operation.
Business intelligence of searches on OTA platforms, search engines, and alternative accommodation platforms will help hotels understand not only destinations that are gaining priority, but also:
- The products and room type customers seek.
- Preferred length of stay.
- Critical guest experiences.
It will help hotels to act quickly on their pricing, curate products and offerings that attract a potential customer base and newer markets and stay agile with their marketing strategies. Hotel companies have long tried to manage the customer journey from booking to arrival and through the stay, with the cycle then repeating. Multiple touch points along the way help hotels digest and process the customer data and use that information to develop future strategies.
Digital marketing broadened the scope of the customer journey and gave access to the data that was being actively searched by consumers on various platforms. It helped hoteliers to develop more relevant marketing and advertising campaign strategies.
Future trending data has the power to end the speculative forecasts that many hotels have ascribed to during the last many months. Analysis based on ‘news’ and half-baked information leads to guesswork. With the industry shunning talent due to costs, it further complicates the recovery path for many. Hoteliers can still make qualified and optimal decisions but require solutions that provide accurate market intelligence about future trends.
Pre-booking data alone cannot give hoteliers the magic forecast numbers they are looking for - yes, this data is powerful enough to help you create some scenarios and make meaningful projections. It will also assist to a degree in defining future marketing and product strategies and cater to customer groups that went unnoticed earlier.
Hotels need to embrace forward-looking data in decision making across the spectrum of commercial functions. Forward-looking data presents an accurate depiction of future demand, enabling you and your team to forecast and deploy strategies to capture changing demand ahead of the competition.
This was very thought out and helpful. I especially liked the area about future predictions also.
ReplyDeleteI gained a lot of insight about the use of data analytics in hotels and spas. It was great to learn how hotels can gain an insight into the products and room type customers seek,
ReplyDeletethe preferred length of stay and the critical guest experiences. Looking forward to reading your future posts.
Thank you Arlene
Deletegreat read
ReplyDeleteA fantastic read with lots of interesting info on the subject.
ReplyDeleteLove this!
ReplyDeleteGreat read. Very interesting
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