Jul
20
A straw poll in the office today - completely unscientific and based on anecdotal evidence - suggests that a good many businesses (not just hotel businesses) don't actually have a marketing budget.
Nor do they have a marketing plan.
Or a strategy.
Ah.
We started off with the thought that we might find a figure that people think is a reasonable amount to spend on promoting and selling hotel bedrooms. We were a bit shocked (but not entirely surprised) by what we found.
Nor do they have a marketing plan.
Or a strategy.
Ah.
We started off with the thought that we might find a figure that people think is a reasonable amount to spend on promoting and selling hotel bedrooms. We were a bit shocked (but not entirely surprised) by what we found.
"Professional" advice was sought from the pages of Google and suggested a figure of between 2% and 20% of turnover. 20% just isn't compatible with life in the hotel industry and 2% isn't much better. Somewhere in between sounds about right.
Our own experience is that about 10% of turnover is about right. We called up an hotel manager who isn't a client and asked him what he thought?
"That's far too much!" he opined.
This particular hotel -we know - shifts a lot of rooms using 3rd party websites, so his sales commission is at least 15% for all those rooms he's selling. We asked him which was the smaller - 10% of turnover or the total of the last 12 months commission bills?
Silence.
Now, I understand that commissionable sales are paid on a performance basis. These websites make sales and deserve to be rewarded for their efforts. But surely there is now a case for making your own customers? For adding marketing skill and know-how to the attributes of your business? For finding the people you need to stay at your hotel?
There will always be a need for 3rd party websites. That doesn't mean you need to abdicate your entire marketing effort to them.
Our own experience is that about 10% of turnover is about right. We called up an hotel manager who isn't a client and asked him what he thought?
"That's far too much!" he opined.
This particular hotel -we know - shifts a lot of rooms using 3rd party websites, so his sales commission is at least 15% for all those rooms he's selling. We asked him which was the smaller - 10% of turnover or the total of the last 12 months commission bills?
Silence.
Now, I understand that commissionable sales are paid on a performance basis. These websites make sales and deserve to be rewarded for their efforts. But surely there is now a case for making your own customers? For adding marketing skill and know-how to the attributes of your business? For finding the people you need to stay at your hotel?
There will always be a need for 3rd party websites. That doesn't mean you need to abdicate your entire marketing effort to them.
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