Hotel & Motel Management - January 19, 2009 - (Page 12)

H&MM January 19, 2009 | HotelMotel.com 12 Sales Clinic BY HOWARD FEIERTAG “Do not get scared into dropping rates to try to get more business.” Keep selling satisfaction in 2009 to maintain proﬁtability T he news media and pundits are driving us crazy with bad news about travel and tourism cutbacks. All we see and hear about is how bad hospitality business will be this coming year. OK, we can accept the fact that projections reﬂect a drop in occupancy of a few points; however, has anyone indicated that the real cause in the drop might have more to do with the increase of about 200,000 rooms on the market in 2008? After all, every time a new property opens up in your territory, it may well be taking your roomnight business. These new properties may eventually develop new markets and new business for your area, of course, but right off the bat they will not be able to do so. Instead, they will eat into your business. We’ve seen it time and time again. Some in the news media are saying these are the worst times in history for the hotel business. Baloney! How wrong they are. Where were they in the early ’70s and mid ’80s? Now those were pretty bad times for us. How about 1986-1992—the worst years for hotels, with 64 percent of hotels unable to make debt service and the industry overall not making a dime? Today, even with a drop in occupancy, hotels still will be proﬁtable, with revenue per available room down just a little. The idea for 2009 will be to maintain rates. Do not get scared into dropping rates to try to get more business because if you drop rates TAKEAWAY by 10 percent, you will need Even this down time for an additional the industry can 7 percent in still be proﬁtable. occupancy to break even. The real key to doing your best business is to provide customer service that ensures the return of a guest. Tony Prusak, sales account manager at the Marriott Cleveland East, said: “In a down economy, we believe customer loyalty is our strongest asset. When you make customer satisfaction your advantage, you will perform better than the rest of your competitors. We are ensuring that our hotel is doing everything to make the customer experience signiﬁcantly better than anyone else in the market.” If we do, in fact, have a down period in our industry, it will be short-lived, and, as PKF has projected, in 2010 and 2011, we’ll be back with improved business. Maintain your sales effort, keep selling and provide extraordinary customer service. hmm@questex.com Howard Feiertag is on the faculty of the Department of Hospitality and Tourism Management at Virginia Polytechnic Institute, Blacksburg, Va. He can be reached at howardf@vt.edu. CIRCLE NO. 116 http://www.HotelMotel.com http://www.HRinHospitality.com http://www.HRinHospitality.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Hotel & Motel Management - January 19, 2009

Hotel & Motel Management - January 19, 2009 Contents Select Inn First in Vista's Buying Plans Danzinger Chosen for Round 2 at Wyndham Perspective Energy Star Update Legally Speaking Consultant's Corner Sales Clinic Travel Trends Franchise Law Family Business Cornell Insights HotelWorld Update Transactions Careful Marketing is Key for Timeshare Debt Market Slow for Most Transactions Trends & Stats Proper Mix of Uses Leads to Profitable Partnerships Card Check, Employee Retention Big Issues for CEOs Locking Systems Televisions Fitness Centers/Spas Mattresses Ad/Editorial Index Marketplace Checking Out

Hotel & Motel Management - January 19, 2009

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