Here are some of the variables hotels may find tricky to understand while finalizing the pricing / tariff models.
Timeliness: Any message that you have, from an offer to an announcement or a Press Release, the fastest mode of disseminating information on the internet is via social media.
Direct Bookings: Most of the serious hotels today have their own websites. It may appear like a one time cost but that is not so. Search engine optimization is a continuous exercise, so are paid campaigns like Google’s PPC. These need to be factored in while deciding the tariff for rooms being sold online. And then, is your booking engine provider charging a commission on each booking?
OTAs: How much should you sell through OTAs? Is a major factor to your higher room night rates the commission to OTAs? Which OTA to prefer over the others? The one which sells more at a higher commission or the one with lower sales but lower commissions?
Media Buying: Offline marketing campaigns have usually been for branding and brand awareness purposes. Should you try to sell a specific inventory via online paid campaigns like Google PPC or Facebook PPC? Does it make sense to advertize on OTAs which are already selling your room nights and incur the dual cost of media space and the commission?
Social Media: How about incentives to your loyal customers who follow you on social media? Some special rates for them or some special services for them? Considering the minimal cost of managing social media, should you pass on the benefits of savings in the cost to your loyal customers?
Platforms: Will Facebook continue to impact your sales in the future? Will the review websites get more popular in India? Is there a new OTA entering the market space or a new service by Google like the Hotel Finder?
