Mar
31
Many years ago, when I was a boy hotelier, hotel prices were published as high season and low season.
There were variations on the theme for groups, conferences and whatever other market segments you wanted to sell to, but essentially you had one set of prices for times of peak demand (often "summer") and another, lower set of prices for times of weak demand (for example, "winter").
Rate seasons were valid for 3, sometimes 6 months.
Do we use these rate seasons today?
Some websites certainly do. But the days of the long life rate season are numbered.
Why?
There were variations on the theme for groups, conferences and whatever other market segments you wanted to sell to, but essentially you had one set of prices for times of peak demand (often "summer") and another, lower set of prices for times of weak demand (for example, "winter").
Rate seasons were valid for 3, sometimes 6 months.
Do we use these rate seasons today?
Some websites certainly do. But the days of the long life rate season are numbered.
Why?
Because your rate season is now ONE DAY.
The huge variation of selling price from one day to the next, and the ability to distribute that selling price quickly throughout the internet, means that long rate seasons are next to useless.
This ability to adjust rate means that sitting down a year in advance and planning a rate card is almost a futile exercise. You simply can't decide what the rate will be - all you know is that it will have some proximity to the going market price at the time. You're going to have a method for deciding what your selling price is when you can see what demand, supply and competition are doing to your sales.
Sure, you need to set your price expectations in advance, but in reality you will be under pressure to vary your prices in response to market conditions.
The long rate season is dead - long live the daily rate season!
The huge variation of selling price from one day to the next, and the ability to distribute that selling price quickly throughout the internet, means that long rate seasons are next to useless.
This ability to adjust rate means that sitting down a year in advance and planning a rate card is almost a futile exercise. You simply can't decide what the rate will be - all you know is that it will have some proximity to the going market price at the time. You're going to have a method for deciding what your selling price is when you can see what demand, supply and competition are doing to your sales.
Sure, you need to set your price expectations in advance, but in reality you will be under pressure to vary your prices in response to market conditions.
The long rate season is dead - long live the daily rate season!
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