Hospitality Revenue Management

Revenue Management – The Podcast

Revenue Management From Both Sides Now

Welcome to Hospitality Highlights! In this 32nd episode of the ThinkUp Podcast, host Lily Mockerman talks with Scott

Bunce, the Chief Operating Officer for Cabins For You. We're a vacation rental company that focuses primarily on cabins,

but we have 466 vacation rentals available now, from a one-bedroom vacation cabin, all the way up to lodges that sleep

up to close to 60 people.

Highlights from this episode

Lily: How do you approach Revenue Management differently from the way that you would approach it for a hotel?

Scott: All of the revenue management skills are translatable. For instance, when I think of a hotel, I think of the charges for a view, being on the top floor, something on a club floor, which is all good. But here's the difference. Vacation Rentals kind of explode in the attributes that you need to forecast. Number of bedrooms? in my world, it could be a one-bedroom all the way up to a 11-12 bedroom cabin. Booking windows are vastly different. The type of clientele is vastly different. In addition, the community is also a factor in figuring out demand. Then there's the view - the mountain? A white river? A lake? The Gulf of Mexico, woods, a meadow? At least 80 of our cabins have pools that are either in or next to a cabin. Hot Tubs are another big demand generator, as well as video games. So all of these things just explode the different possibilities of managing, forecasting and predicting rates going forward.

Lily and Scott go on to discuss:

The disparity in technology and tools for the vacation rental industry
Tools such as Rev Max and Key Data, specifically for vacation rental companies
How Scott converts a booking on an OTA to a direct booking moving forward
How vacation rentals and hotels become part of the overall distribution landscape
Ways that vacation rental companies can move towards this commercial strategy approach
Tips for alternative accommodation providers or those who bridge the gap to a traditional hotelier as it relates
to distribution and revenue management
TO REACH SCOTT WITH QUESTIONS OR FOR ASSISTANCE
LinkedIn Cabins For You See cabins and deals on our Facebook page
FINAL NOTES FROM THINKUP
Read more articles on Hospitality Revenue Management on our ThinkUp Thought Leadership page.
Join us live on This Week in Hospitality Live Show, which you can register for at hospitalitydigitalmarketing.com/live. For questions on this episode or any other revenue management related topics, you can send them to us at info@thinkupenterprises.com.

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Bringing In New Business and Driving Direct Bookings With Meta

Highlights from this episode

Welcome to Hospitality Highlights! In this 31st episode of the ThinkUp Podcast, host Lily Mockerman talks with Dean Schmit, founder at Base Camp Meta and MetaSearchMarketing.com, where they provide help for staff suddenly responsible for running the property’s metasearch program, and educational content for digital agencies. Dean’s Revenue Management – The Podcast

Lily: From my perspective, some hoteliers seem to think that working with a metasearch isn't about direct bookings. So

that is essentially like working with another OTA and steering people away from direct bookings.

Dean: It really IS about direct bookings, and that is one of the core benefits of a better search program. When we talk about metasearch, it means that I've searched for something and I'm getting multiple results for the same search. So within hospitality, we're talking about different booking options for that hotel. I can go to hotels.com, Expedia, brand.com, whatever the case would be, and aggregating it all into one place. So not only are we getting the direct booking, but we're getting the traffic coming directly from that site to our website.

Lily and Dean go on to discuss:

The fundamental shift in remarketing and display advertising
How metasearch and revenue management are tied together
How hoteliers can move forward with metasearch without feeling like they have to add another full-time person
The simplest and most effective way to start getting involved in a metasearch strategy
The first three steps that people should take as they're diving into this world
TO REACH DEAN WITH QUESTIONS OR ASSISTANCE
You can visit Base Camp Meta, email Dean@basecampmeta.com, or contact him on LinkedIn. FINAL NOTES FROM THINKUP
Read more articles on Hospitality Revenue Management on our ThinkUp Thought Leadership page.
Join us live on This Week in Hospitality Live Show, which you can register for at hospitalitydigitalmarketing.com/live. For questions on this episode or any other revenue management-related topics, you can send them to us at info@thinkupenterprises.com.

specialty is running metasearch campaigns or helping to find the right vendor for your situation.

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Revenue Management – The Podcast

Proactive Selling – What to Ask, When to Ask, and Why You Aren’t Getting a Response

Highlights from this episode

Lily: I think many hotel sellers haven’t readily had the opportunity to be fully trained in business development as opposed to just relationship selling. What is the GitGo perspective about that process of new business development for hotels?

Amy: The difference between relationship selling and the proactive process is with the proactive approach, you’re reaching out to a customer before they probably even know they have a need, and the type of questions that you need to ask that customer are a little bit different. We train our clients which questions to ask and when. That's how we approach the proactive process, and how we train sellers, how we train our own team, and how we build our tools around and resources around this so that this can enable sellers to be more efficient at it and more productive.

Lily and Amy go on to discuss:

Some reasons why the proactive process is so elusive to sellers
How to use tech and marketing collaboration to enable sellers to be more effective
The two sides to collaboration between marketing teams and sales
How to up level types of B2B marketing and communications
The best cadence and frequency for running great campaigns
Why companies aren’t getting responses from prospects when they reach out
Amy’s top 3 tips for sellers as they’re hunting for new business during this delicate recovery period.
TO REACH AMY WITH QUESTIONS OR ASSISTANCE
You can visit www.GitGoGroup.com, email Amy@gitgogroup.com, or contact Amy on LinkedIn
FINAL NOTES FROM THINKUP
Read more articles on Hospitality Revenue Management on our ThinkUp Thought Leadership page.
Join us live on This Week in Hospitality Live Show, which you can register for at hospitalitydigitalmarketing.com/live. For questions on this episode or any other revenue management related topics, you can send them to us at info@thinkupenterprises.com.

Welcome to Hospitality Highlights! In this 30th episode of the ThinkUp Podcast, host Lily Mockerman talks with Amy

Infante, CEO and founder of GitGo, which focuses on the Hospitality and travel industry, with product to help sales

teams more easily convert business, email marketing campaigns designed for B2B marketing programs, and a new

coaching programs just launched in 2020, designed for individuals or teams to relook at the way they’re doing things

with an eye to innovation

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Revenue Management – The Podcast

How to Align Revenue Management, Sales and Marketing to Impact Guests

Welcome to Hospitality Highlights! In this 29th episode of the ThinkUp Podcast, host Lily Mockerman talks with Eric

Sutfin, CMO at Social Capital Agency (SoCap) and Kathryn Baker, founding partner of ThinkUp Enterprises and Vice

President of Strategy at Total Customized Revenue Management (TCRM).

ThinkUp Enterprises:

SoCap:

HIGHLIGHTS FROM THIS EPISODE

Lily: How have you seen COVID-19 impacting hoteliers, and specifically, how are they now having to adjust to meet customer demands?

Kathryn: Guests are now traveling more locally than they typically would. Hoteliers are trying to turn them into repeat customers and show them that this destination is worth coming back to. They can do that by really creating a unique local experience, focusing on all of the things that make that hotel, that area, that larger market special and unique.

Eric: Our friends went up to Aspen the other week. They had booked the skiing, the hotel, and a spa/hot springs experience in one package. The property provided an enhanced and elevated experience for my friend, and he loved that. He said, “Why aren't more doing this?” I think that's certainly a way to build deeper relationships with those local partners in your destination and share in that experience to elevate and add value for guests.

Lily, Kathryn and Eric go on to discuss:

How you can bridge gaps for your guests and alleviate question marks and concerns about their stay at your property.
How the alignment of sales, marketing and revenue management impact consumers.
The difference in how to approach a commercial strategy versus an industry strategy.

ThinkUp is a commercial strategy consulting firm. We focus on standing out by cutting to the

chase. We're here to give hotels true actionable guidelines to make a difference in their revenue and in their

profitability. We focus on assessments, looking at every piece of the hotel – everything that touches revenue, any

expenses that are related to those revenues, and maximizing all of them to get our clients on a more profitable path.

We believe in increasing the social capital, the guest experience, and ADR of various international resorts,

boutique hotels and hospitality brands. We do that by provoking truthful and authentic messages that really

revolutionize how people are engaging, exploring and connecting with the industry today. As an agency, our main focus

is really to be conversion oriented. And so we optimize the guest experience across whatever channel they touch

through the micro moments that build customer satisfaction, add brand value, drive sales, and enrich customer data for

the hotels we represent.

• Kathryn’s and Eric’s top 3 tips, tactics or tools that hoteliers can implement today that will make a difference through this recovery.

FINAL NOTES FROM KATHRYN

You can visit www.ThinkUpEnterprises.com. We'd love to have the opportunity to talk with any property that feels like they might have some potential that they're not quite tapping into.

FINAL NOTES FROM ERIC

To reach Social Capital Agency, you can visit www.SoCapAds.com. There we have a variety of great resources that we put out monthly for the hospitality industry, some really thought provoking and progressive ideas across the marketing sector for you to explore, to digest and to learn how you can implement them yourself.

FINAL NOTES FROM THINKUP

Read more articles on Hospitality Revenue Management on our ThinkUp Thought Leadership page.

Join us live on This Week in Hospitality Live Show, which you can register for at hospitalitydigitalmarketing.com/live. For questions on this episode or any other revenue management related topics, you can send them to us at info@thinkupenterprises.com.

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Revenue Management – The Podcast

Welcome to Hospitality Highlights! In this 28th episode of the ThinkUp Podcast, host Lily Mockerman talks with Jenny

Poff, owner of Presque Isle Designs, a boutique marketing and advertising agency based out of Erie, Pennsylvania.

A Scientific Creative Approach To An Integrated Commercial Strategy

Highlights from this episode

Lily: You mentioned having to really dig through data in your work with hospitality. What kinds of data did you look at to

help drive the business objectives, and how did the customer profile data impact marketing strategies?

Jenny: We really dug into the data. I wanted to see what the average day was – their frequency rate, their booking window, where they were coming from, what kinds of people. We dove into this over 200,000-person database. Our goal was to uncover patterns in the guests’ purchasing and stay behavior. The result was a customer profile dashboard which broke it into buckets. I started filling the buckets with patterns, similar purchase behaviors. Now, what did we do with that data? What did that tell us? In the marketing side of things, it generated specific strategies.

Lily and Jenny go on to discuss:

Jenny’s different approaches: a consultive and management approach; a scientific, creative approach; an intentional, data-driven approach.
The results achieved within the data-driven marketing approach.
Other changes Jenny implemented to help the marketing program in her hospitality role.
Jenny’s top 3 tips for revenue managers and marketers alike to embrace an integrated strategy .
For questions or to contact Jenny:
JennyPoff.com LinkedIn
Read more articles on Hospitality Revenue Management on our ThinkUp Thought Leadership page.
Join us live on This Week in Hospitality Live Show, which you can register for at hospitalitydigitalmarketing.com/live. For questions on this episode or any other revenue management related topics, you can send them to us at info@thinkupenterprises.com.

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Revenue Management – The Podcast

Welcome to Hospitality Highlights! In this 27th episode of the ThinkUp Podcast, host Lily Mockerman talks with Vinny Cuneo of Autocamp, a unique alternative accommodation option.

Strategies to Deploy to Maximize Revenue and Guest Value Perception

Highlights from this episode Lily: There have been certain advantages to experience driven lodging options, especially in the mindsets of travelers dealing with the restrictions of COVID. What opportunities do you think hotels have to capitalize on that or mimic some of the successes?

Vinny: I think no matter where you are, be it Yosemite National Park or Hermiston, Oregon, it doesn't matter. There's something unique and inherently cool about every place in the world. Really dive into that and build those relationships with the local community, then give guests that true local experience.

Lily and Vinny go on to discuss:

Where glamping/alternative accommodations overlap with traditional hospitality and where it stands alone
Hotel companies are quickly moving in the direction of commercial strategy. What does that look like for
Autocamp?
Threats that exist as more traditional hospitality companies try their hand at glamping/alternative
accommodations
What strategies to deploy to maximize revenue and guest value perception when pricing accommodations in
remote locations with little to no direct competition
For questions or to contact Vinny:
www.Autocamp.com Autocamp on Instagram Autocamp on LinkedIn
Read more articles on Hospitality Revenue Management on our ThinkUp Thought Leadership page.
Join us live on This Week in Hospitality Live Show, which you can register for at hospitalitydigitalmarketing.com/live. For questions on this episode or any other revenue management related topics, you can send them to us at info@thinkupenterprises.com.

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How to Create Magical Moments for Guests That They Will Treasure Forever

Highlights from This Episode

Lily: I know in your work, you emphasize the memory, and how the brain works in relation to how customers

rate their experience when traveling. Tell us a little bit more about your thoughts on that.

Antonio: In a parachute jumping experience, it’s not that we are writing about the experience at the moment we jump. We write about it when the jump is done, our memory of the experience.

The experience that hotels and restaurants or any business in hospitality wants to deliver has to be good enough most of the time, but occasionally remarkable. And the higher the emotion intensity, the more likely a person is going to talk about your experience, whether good or bad.

Lily: In the middle of this pandemic, keeping the staff’s spirits’ high can be especially challenging. How do you see this connecting back to review scores, and what can hoteliers do in the midst of a stressful situation to keep the team on track?

Adele: If you're listening to what your team is saying, and you're listening to what your guest is saying via the reviews, emails that they send, or little comments that they make at the desk, if you're deeply listening, and you're all wired, looking for ways to improve, you're going to take off like a rocket ship. And your revenue will show the difference.

Lily, Adele and Antonio go on to discuss:

Best practice in responding to reviews that maybe aren't fair to the hotelier, and how to avoid having travelers write those reviews in the first place
How communication will generate better encounters during the guest’s experience
How to develop a customer journey map specifically for the hospitality industry
How to enable everyone on staff to be Hospitality Heroes

Welcome to Hospitality Highlights! In this 26th episode of the ThinkUp Podcast, host Lily Mockerman talks

with Adele Gutman about how to inspire 5-star reviews and Antonio Pibia of Guest X Inside, who emphasizes

how a guest’s brain works in relation to how they rate their customer journey.

How limited-service hotels can deliver excellent service and earn 5-star reviews, even supplanting 5-star hotels
How to get a positive review by properly resolving an issue

For questions or to contact Antonio:

www.GuestXInside.com

Antonio on LinkedIn

For questions or to contact Adele:

www.AdeleGutman.com Adele on LinkedIn

Read more articles on Hospitality Revenue Management on our ThinkUp Thought Leadership page.

Join us live on This Week in Hospitality Live Show, which you can register for at hospitalitydigitalmarketing.com/live.

For questions on this episode or any other revenue management related topics, you can send them to us at info@thinkupenterprises.com.

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Revenue Management – The Podcast

Helping Leaders Become Free, Healthy and Wealthy From the Inside Out

“What really started me down this road of money therapy was that

I was existing wealthy, but internally, I was far from it.”

Welcome to Hospitality Highlights! In this 25th episode of the ThinkUp Podcast, host Lily Mockerman talks with Jennifer

Love of the Living Wealthy Institute. Jennifer is a wealth philosopher, money therapist and the founder + CEO of The

Living Wealthy Institute. She presents a model that world influencers and leaders use to deepen and reconfigure their

complex relationships with worth, value, and money.

Highlights from This Episode Lily:

that?

Jennifer: One is fear. “How am I going to be evaluated? How am I going to be judged? How is someone going to see

me?”

I don't like to reference just money, because money is only one form of exchange. We also have a relationship exchange.

Lily and Jennifer go on to discuss:

In hospitality, we have what we call commercial strategy departments, incorporating sales, marketing and revenue

management, which are really the main departments focused on generating money for the business in strategic ways.

Could you give a few examples of what those money mindsets might look like or how those might manifest in a role like

And so that fear begins to run the show in how we're making decisions, whether it's about our money, or how we're

allocating things, or resources in our teams, right?

5 typical money mindsets
the psychological impact of those mindsets on business leaders
why it's important for business leaders, even those who may not be company founders or
entrepreneurs, to work through their limiting beliefs about money
the impact of COVID and some of the emotions that might be prevalent for both business leaders and
those who are out of a job

Jennifer’s top 3 tips for business leaders, owners, or revenue managers who are driving money for a business going into 2021, where there’s still a lot of uncertainty around the future of travel and when we will all be able to travel freely again.

Resources to learn more about the Wealth Zone and Money Mindsets Jennifer’s website

Contact Jennifer on LinkedIn

Living Wealthy Institute

Want To Become A Millionaire? Ask Yourself These Four Questions Forbes Magazine

Money Morphosis 3-Day Online Event – March 16-18, where your Wealth Zone & Freedom Flourish. Designed to help

you increase your net worth and live truly wealthy.

Read more articles on Hospitality Revenue Management on our ThinkUp Thought Leadership page.

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Revenue Management – The Podcast

Timeless Principles To Scale A Business That Hotels Can Use To Rebound

2X founder & CEO Austin Netzley:

Highlights from This Episode

Lily and Austin explore the following questions and tips The ITA, or Ideal Target Audience

The Irresistible Offer

Rebounding from COVID

“We want to really simplify things, get the business owners free from the weeds, and

then start to take the company to the next level.”

Welcome to Hospitality Highlights! In this 24th episode of the ThinkUp Podcast, host Lily Mockerman talks with Austin

Netzley about proven principles and strategies that help 6 and 7 figure business owners scale.

Lily: One of the things that many hoteliers have struggled with over the years has been defining their target

market. You're looking to attract group business; you're looking to really provide a great corporate travel

experience. You want to be that romantic getaway, and also family friendly.

Austin: Most businesses go too broad. We're afraid to go narrow because we think that we're turning business

away. But by going specific, we get much more clear on what we need to do from a marketing standpoint.

Lily: As someone who has experienced hospitality as a traveler, have you ever seen a great irresistible offer used

in travel or hospitality?

Austin: Brian Chesky, the founder of Airbnb, wants the Airbnb hosts to think about and write down what a 10-

star experience looks like. For an irresistible offer, think about what makes a 10 star experience. Then working

backwards from there, detail how to go above and beyond to make the client’s experience go through the roof.

Lily: You have worked with businesses that have really taken a major hit from COVID. What business tactics have

worked best for those businesses to rebound?

Austin: Being real with the moment. Know your ITA in more detail. If you know them, then you know what news

they're watching or what their concerns are in relation to cleanliness and other things. Then you can take those

proper measures and beat them to the punch before they become concerned.

Austin’s advice for the future

Businesses that are planning for the future are going to be the ones that get ahead. We've worked with a lot of

people that have gotten hit, most have rebounded really nicely by doing exactly what we've talked about so far,

which is updating and refocusing their business model, or doing different marketing initiatives and

communicating in a very human manner. Just give value and connect with your audience.

For questions or more information:

Website: 2x.co

The 7-Figure Playbook: 2X.co/7fpb

FREE Audiobook: From 6 To 7 Figures: 2X.co/freeaudio

Read more articles on Hospitality Revenue Management on our ThinkUp Thought Leadership page.

Join us live on This Week in Hospitality Live Show, which you can register for at hospitalitydigitalmarketing.com/live.

For questions on this episode or any other revenue management related topics, you can send them to us at

info@thinkupenterprises.com.

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Revenue Management – The Podcast

The Power of the Pause

multiple options, multiple choices for you to choose from.”

Welcome to Hospitality Highlights! In this 23rd episode of the ThinkUp Podcast, host Lily Mockerman reflects on 2020, what we have

Some positive things which came out of this past difficult year, and how to honor what was good about 2020.
How to release the negative to move on to the next chapter.
How we are approaching our world – frantic, pulled into a negative flow?
How to use the power of the pause in planning for your hotel.

To wrap up, Lily talks about her personal method of inserting a pause in her daily schedule to help her make decisions from a place of being more centered, less reactive, and more proactive.

Read more articles on Hospitality Revenue Management on our ThinkUp Thought Leadership page.

Join us live on the This Week in Hospitality Live Show, which you can register for at hospitalitydigitalmarketing.com/live.

For questions on this episode or any other revenue management related topics, you can send them to us at

info@thinkupenterprises.com.

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Revenue Management – The Podcast

How Sales, Catering and Marketing Can Be Combined Into One Solution

Highlights from This Episode

Lily Mockerman:

Looking long term, like in the next two to three years, what do you think will develop into group trends?

Amy:

Lily and Amy go on to discuss:

To wrap up, Amy gives her top three tips for group sellers going into 2021, regardless of which type of technology they're using.

For questions or more information:

Website: iVvy LinkedIn: Amy Forss

Read more articles on Hospitality Revenue Management on our ThinkUp Thought Leadership page.

Join us live on the This Week in Hospitality Live Show, which you can register for at hospitalitydigitalmarketing.com/live.

“The technology was well established in Australia, working with large hotel companies over the course of 12 years. It was

a great opportunity to bring it to the U.S. and introduce it to our U.S. customers.”

Welcome to Hospitality Highlights! In this 22nd episode of the ThinkUp Podcast, host Lily Mockerman talks with Amy Forss, Senior Vice President of Sales at iVvy. iVvy provides a full-encompassing sales, catering and marketing solution specifically designed for hoteliers.

Hybrid meeting styles will be something that we’ll always have to offer. Also, historical data tools that you might use can really kind of be thrown out when you're looking at cities and size. We’ll need to look at other options and suggestions, then put them in front of the planner. They're looking for us to propose those things to them, and they will be for years to come. Then we’ll need to look at how hotels can position themselves to avoid declines in revenue, and instead do more to sell value as opposed to dropping price or dropping concessions.

How iVvy functions as a full encompassing sales, catering and marketing solution specifically designed for hoteliers.
How the solution works from the lead coming in to the proposal, then turning the contract over to CES for detailing,
sending out resumes and doing banquet checks, and finally sending out invoicing.
How iVvy’s online meeting space booking tool fits into the landscape after COVID.
How giving up a little control will allow more time for hoteliers to work with larger groups.

For questions on this episode or any other revenue management related topics, you can send them to us at

info@thinkupenterprises.com.

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“I knew that there were many women who were interested in hotel ownership and development, so I came up with the

Highlights from This Episode

Lily Mockerman:

Revenue Management – The Podcast

She Has a Deal.

idea to create She Has A Deal, which included a hallmark event.”

Welcome to Hospitality Highlights! In this 21st episode of the ThinkUp Podcast, host Lily Mockerman talks with Tracy Prigmore,

founder of TLT solutions, a real estate investment and development firm and founder of She Has a Deal.

Her other guest today is Susan Barry, 25-year hotel business veteran, now helping hotel owners with commercial strategy, and

involved with She Has a Deal as Director of Communications.

I imagine there are some plans that changed a little bit for you this year. How did this season of pitches differ from what you were originally expecting for the program?

Tracy and Susan:

Lily, Tracy and Susan go on to discuss:

When we started, the women’s pitches were due on March 14. Then everything shut down about March 15. So their pitches were already submitted and planned for opportunities that did not involve COVID. They had to really think on their feet! So many of these women started out green, not knowing much of anything about hotel investment. But then they were pitching as if they were industry veterans. We had comments from judges who said they'd been in the industry a long time, and they worked with many owners, and had not heard polished presentations to that level. So it was pretty exciting.

How the concepts of the program were developed, and how they would serve to expose young women to the idea that hotel ownership and development is an option.
The nine-stage hotel investment roadmap.
The goal of creating a community, a network of women who were going through that same journey, to collaborate, share
ideas, share challenges, and help one another achieve their aspirations.
Advice on investing in hospitality with all the talk of potential resurgence and the uncertainty around how hotels will

perform in 2021.

To wrap up, Tracy and Susan give their top three tips on what women who are interested in hotel ownership can do right now to prepare themselves with the skills that are required to be in a 2021 pitch competition.

For questions or more information:

Website: She Has a Deal.

LinkedIn: Tracy Prigmore, Susan Barry

Read more articles on Hospitality Revenue Management on our ThinkUp Thought Leadership page.

Join us live on the This Week in Hospitality Live Show, which you can register for at hospitalitydigitalmarketing.com/live.

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Revenue Management – The Podcast

Culture and Wellness During COVID-19

“I think the one thing that this pandemic has taught most of us is the culture doesn't change, it just gets more crystallized.”

Welcome to Hospitality Highlights! In this 20th episode of the ThinkUp Podcast, host Lily Mockerman talks with Priya Chandnani,

who oversees the entire Revenue Management discipline at Benchmark Resorts and Hotels.

Priya and Lily discuss how to focus on maintaining a healthy culture in the midst of the many stress factors and financial uncertainty

resulting from COVID-19.

Highlights from This Episode

Lily Mockerman:

How has Benchmark been able to support staff during times of personal stress?

Priya Chandnani:

One of the things we did was we reached out to the spa director at one of our hotels to request a session for the revenue team. We had a virtual session for the team where not only did she guide us through some breathing exercises, but also quick tricks and tips on how to manage quality of sleep and stress relief.

Lily and Priya go on to discuss:

• • •

For questions or more information:

Benchmark Resorts and Hotels LinkedIn: Priya Chandnani

Read more articles on Hospitality Revenue Management on our ThinkUp Thought Leadership page.

Join us live on the This Week in Hospitality Live Show, which you can register for at hospitalitydigitalmarketing.com/live.

How Benchmark handled communicating with the team regarding furloughs and callbacks

How the tone of the culture affects weekends or family time

How to leverage this unprecedented moment to improve our workplace culture

For questions on this episode or any other revenue management related topics, you can send them to us at

info@thinkupenterprises.com.

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Revenue Management – The Podcast

“I wanted to do something to help a new generation of leaders.”

Developing people, changing the operation, and making it work better

Highlights from This Episode

Lily Mockerman:

Antoine Berberi:

Lily and Antoine go on to discuss:

• • • •

For questions or more information: Cedar Hospitality Partners LinkedIn: Antoine Berberi

Read more articles on Hospitality Revenue Management on our ThinkUp Thought Leadership page.

Join us live on the This Week in Hospitality Live Show, which you can register for at hospitalitydigitalmarketing.com/live.

Welcome to Hospitality Highlights! In this 19th episode of the ThinkUp Podcast, host Lily Mockerman talks with Antoine Berberi, CEO

and principal at Cedar Hospitality Partners.

Antoine’s hospitality career began with Hilton International Worldwide and moved to Senior Vice President of Proper Hospitality. Antoine then founded Cedar Hospitality Partners to implement his unique perspectives on all things hospitality.

Revenue management obviously works closely with sales and marketing departments. In your opinion, what should that interaction look like?

A daily business review must occur every single day for discussion of ADR occupancies, promotions, packages, forecasts, and daily pick up trends. The general manager should also be involved. The yield management meeting, again, should include everyone, including operations, to analyze and discuss any revenue opportunities in the hotel. You need to talk about the overall revenue and really involve the entire operation.

How to fix departmental relationships which have been derailed by various personalities

Correlation of online reputation and maximizing revenue management

Training the staff to infuse the revenue culture into all departments

The top things that the Front Office staff can do to assist the Revenue Manager in being successful

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Hospitality Highlights

“How we handle obstacles defines who we are as a company.”

Arbor Lodging’s strategies for the next 6-18 months

Welcome to Hospitality Highlights! In this 18th episode of the ThinkUp Podcast, host Lily Mockerman talks with Sheenal Patel, CEO of Arbor Lodging Management.

Highlights from This Episode

Lily Mockerman:

Sheenal Patel:

Lily and Sheenal go on to discuss:

• • •

Do you find that you've had to make adjustments to your culture to support your team through this? Or has it always been the core values that you've always had that have carried you forward through this difficult time for your employee teams?

We’ve had to figure out how to retrain service at our properties when people have to talk to other people through masks or shields. You can't see people's facial expressions, which is so much of the way that we communicate with each other. How do we still provide that level of service and empathy that is needed to communicate with guests? Where we are right now is resetting expectations.

Arbor Lodging’s proprietary labor model

The two new high-level goals for corporate to property level

The importance of helping staff achieve the right mindset, a first step to achieving goals of profitability

For questions or more information: Arbor Lodging Email Sheenal

Join us live on the This Week in Hospitality Live Show, which you can register for at hospitalitydigitalmarketing.com/live.

Read more articles on Hospitality Revenue Management on our ThinkUp Thought Leadership page.

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Hospitality Highlights

“I’ve been through 4 major economic downturns.”

Advice from a 4X recession survivor who came out on the other side

Highlights from This Episode

Lily Mockerman:

Would you say that there are any specific promotions or strategies that are allowing some of your hotels to fare better than others?

Mike Marshall:

Lily and Mike go on to discuss:

• • • •

Finally, Mike shares 3 pieces of advice, gleaned from his prior experiences, to help hoteliers be a bit more resilient through this crisis. For questions or more information: Marshall Hotels

LinkedIn: Mike Marshall

Read more articles on Hospitality Revenue Management on our ThinkUp Thought Leadership page.

Join us live on the This Week in Hospitality Live Show, which you can register for at hospitalitydigitalmarketing.com/live.

Welcome to Hospitality Highlights! In this 17th episode of the ThinkUp Podcast, host Lily Mockerman talks with Mike Marshall, President and CEO of Marshall Hotels. Mike has seen 4 recessions, and shares his insight on what has happened before, what’s normal during a downturn, and what to expect as we come out of the recession.

We've made it a real priority to try to keep as many hotels as we could open. We felt that by staying open and using social media to let people know, they’d remember that we were there. This spring in South Carolina, there were some really terrible storms that cut off electric for a number of days. Our hotel there filled up with just locals. We were a place to stay that had running water and electric.

The role that ideation plays for Mike and his team

Staffing strategies to get as lean as possible

Structuring their portfolio to succeed over the next several months

Restructuring use of space to host different kinds of meetings and events

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Staffing Guidelines, Corporate Structure and Dedication

How Crescent Hotels Has Remained Resilient During Covid-19

Highlights from This Episode

Lily Mockerman:

How would you say your portfolio has been faring through the impacts of Coronavirus?

Dawn Gallagher:

At the property level, as with most hotels, we had to move quickly to work with owners and come up with new staffing guidelines. From a corporate level, our CEO took the posture that we were not going to lay anybody off at the corporate office, because with reduced staffing at the hotel level, the hotels would need us more than ever, and it was really up to us to make sure that we provided the hotels with everything that they needed.

Lily, Raul and Dawn go on to discuss:

• •

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Finally, Dawn and Raul list some crucial focus points and details of implementation to allow more resiliency. For questions or more information on Crescent Hotels and Resorts

LinkedIn: Raul Moronta Dawn Gallagher

Read more articles on Hospitality Revenue Management on our ThinkUp Thought Leadership page.

Join us live on the This Week in Hospitality Live Show, which you can register for at hospitalitydigitalmarketing.com/live.

Welcome to Hospitality Highlights! In this 16th episode of the ThinkUp Podcast, host Lily Mockerman talks with two special guests: Dawn Gallagher, Chief Sales and Marketing Officer, and Raul Moronta, Senior Vice President of Revenue Strategy of Crescent Hotels

and Resorts. They share the specific approaches that have sustained them through the COVID-19 pandemic.

I think the great news about a company like Crescent is we can be quick, and we can be nimble. And we can make things happen in a day. You couple that with the strength in our digital teams to impact email marketing or impact any other campaigns or packaging that we needed across the board, and it really helped us move through this as well as possible.

Raul Moronta

On the revenue management side, we made a conscious decision to keep every revenue manager in place. In some cases, we had reduced hours and things like that, but we still felt that there was a need to provide insight to our owners with regards to visibility. In general, we wanted to make sure that every one of our hotels was actually operating, and that we had eyes on every one of our properties, because we knew that things are moving very fast, and that the trends were absolutely changing. So for us, being able to keep that structure in place was extremely important and clearly paid out for us.

How to approach budget season, new methodologies, and multiple scenarios that may be effective

Crescent’s staffing plan, including how to ensure ROI on the revenue generation positions in place

• Some key words within Crescent’s culture and organization – flexibility, creativity, team structure, competitive mindset,

opportunistic, interchangeable – and how the lens can be reset to what has to be done today

Thoughts on base of business and speed to market

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How Revenue Management Processes Should Change

More details on Prism’s new sales initiative

Significant shifts in strategy post COVID-19

Welcome to Hospitality Highlights! In this 15th episode of the ThinkUp Podcast, host Lily Mockerman talks with special guest Doll Rice, Vice President of Revenue Optimization at Prism Hotels and Resorts. Doll has unique perspectives on revenue optimization,

and she shares the ways COVID-19 has changed the revenue space, takeaways from this downturn, and her insight on the changes that should be made post-COVID.

Prior to COVID-19, you were working on some great initiatives around profitability by channel and total Revenue Management, and I got a little bit of a front row seat to some of that. Can you talk about where your focus has been and why those are important to Prism’s future development?

Doll Rice:

Our role has changed so much over the last 15+ years, and I think it continues to change. We are becoming profit maximizers rather

than topline maximizers. We have to be open-minded and look at our business through a different lens.

Doll goes on to discuss:

• • • • • • •

Prism’s article in Hotel Business Magazine: Introducing: Sales Office of the Future For questions or more information on Prism Hotels and Resorts:

LinkedIn: Doll Rice

Prism Hotels and Resorts

Read more articles on Hospitality Revenue Management on our ThinkUp Thought Leadership page.

Join us live on the This Week in Hospitality Live Show, which you can register for at hospitalitydigitalmarketing.com/live.

Impacts of COVID-19 on Prism Hotels and Resorts

What makes Prism successful in owner relationships

Forward-thinking management focus

Significant shifts in strategy since COVID-19

Dynamic pricing

Main 3 takeaways from the pandemic

Finally, Doll is on a bandwagon to take a step back and look at how we do our budgeting, marketing and business plans. Doll shares

her vision of how Revenue Management processes could be more efficient with less people on property. Don’t miss this unique

perspective.

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Extended Stay FTW! Insights from Sandpiper Hospitality

Highlights from This Episode

Lily Mockerman:

Overall, how has your portfolio been faring through the impacts of coronavirus? Are you seeing any specific trends by location for

We had a mass exodus at the beginning of the pandemic, as most properties did, but overall, our portfolio is up 40% in June, and most of our furloughed staff has been called back.

Additional topics

• • •

For questions or more information on Sandpiper Hospitality:

www.SandpiperHospitality.com

Email: vcruz@sandpiper.us.com

Read more articles on Hospitality Revenue Management on our ThinkUp Thought Leadership page.

Join us live on the This Week in Hospitality Live Show, which you can register for at hospitalitydigitalmarketing.com/live.

Welcome to Hospitality Highlights! In this 14th episode of the ThinkUp Podcast, host Lily Mockerman talks with special guest Victor Cruz, Vice President of Revenue Management at Sandpiper Hospitality. Victor has been in hotel management for over 20 years, and this has helped him grow into a focused professional with valuable insights into elements of success in Hospitality.

your properties?

Victor Cruz

How pricing was handled and the results of the strategies

How organizational strategies allowed maintaining a level of success

What hoteliers could activate that could allow more resiliency through this crisis

For questions on this episode or any other revenue management related topics, you can send them to us at

info@thinkupenterprises.com.

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How LOGE views staffing, infrastructure, and responsibility within the pandemic

Highlights from This Episode

Lily Mockerman:

How have you chosen to handle staffing throughout this as an organization, particularly in the areas of sales, marketing, and revenue?

Ian McClendon:

We changed literally every piece of technology. We will be taking a soft approach to staffing. We’re relying on short-term and trial

contracts. We’re investing in our core team, and we’ll be taking an all-hands-on-deck approach until things stabilize.

Additional topics:

• • • •

To wrap up, Ian explains 3 things that LOGE and other hoteliers can keep in the forefront as the Hospitality industry recovers. For questions or more information on anything LOGE:

Ian Robert McClendon

Join us live on the This Week in Hospitality Live Show, which you can register for at hospitalitydigitalmarketing.com/live.

Welcome to Hospitality Highlights! In this 13th episode of the ThinkUp Podcast, host Lily Mockerman talks with special guest Ian McClendon, Regional Manager of LOGE Camps (pronounced “lodge”), a mixed-use property in the Pacific Northwest. Ian, with extensive experience in branded properties, has taken his talents to this successful lifestyle brand. He describes how going into the

pandemic as a startup may have been a plus, and how LOGE will work to ensure a cost-effective infrastructure, while remaining nimble and agile, both financially and in staffing.

How the LOGE (Live Outside Go Explore) model operates

The two pillars of LOGE

How the LOGE portfolio has fared through the impacts of the coronavirus

What it was about the way LOGE ran its organization prior to COVID-19 that helped them maintain a level of success

LinkedIn:

www.LOGEcamps.com

Read more articles on Hospitality Revenue Management on our ThinkUp Thought Leadership page.

For questions on this episode or any other revenue management related topics, you can send them to us at

info@thinkupenterprises.com.

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Implementing a Commercial Director Position Successfully

Highlights from This Episode

Lily Mockerman:

Although it might not have been planned, you were telling me that you’re now overseeing all the commercial departments of sales, marketing, and revenue. Can you tell our listeners a bit about how that came to be, and what the transition has been like?

Cesar Rocha:

I had been in Revenue Management for 2 years and was asked to assume this role because of the need to downsize. I’m a firm believer in promoting accountability through KPIs. Also, I’m encouraging a collaborative approach in our strategies, because more ideas help bring more success.

Additional topics:

• • • • •

Cesar wraps up with the top 3 things that hotel companies or future commercial directors should do to prepare for success in this

role.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/cesaroc/

Join us live on the This Week in Hospitality Live Show, which you can register for at hospitalitydigitalmarketing.com/live.

Welcome to our new series, Hospitality Highlights! On this 12th episode of the ThinkUp Podcast, host Lily Mockerman talks with special guest Cesar Rocha, Commercial Director at Performance Hospitality. Cesar, with extensive experience in Revenue Management, has recently been named to this new position, with the responsibility of overseeing sales, marketing, and revenue

management teams. He describes how that came to be and what the transition has been like. Cesar brings people a new way of thinking and is using these proven techniques to change the paradigm.

How the portfolio has been faring through the impacts of coronavirus

How the sales team performance is being measured in this challenging environment

How Cesar’s experience in other roles helps him lead

The role time management is playing with a leaner staff

How that might shift as team members return from furlough

To contact Cesar Rocha: cesar.rocha@performancehm.com

LinkedIn:

Performance Hospitality

Join us in our next episode to hear about LOGE Camps, a unique mixed-use concept.

Read more articles on Hospitality Revenue Management on our ThinkUp Thought Leadership page.

For questions on this episode or any other revenue management related topics, you can send them to us at

info@thinkupenterprises.com.

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How My Place Uses Profitability Metrics in Revenue Management

Highlights from This Episode

Lily Mockerman:

We’ve talked a little bit about how My Place takes a different approach to revenue management meetings. Can you talk a little bit about that?

Bryan Gatzemeyer:

The main questions we ask ourselves, our main focus of the company is does it provide guest value and does it provide owner value.

All of our internal meetings and our strategy meetings are based on those foundational criteria.

Additional topics:

• • • •

Join us live on the This Week in Hospitality Live Show, which you can register for at hospitalitydigitalmarketing.com/live.

Welcome to our new series, Hospitality Highlights! On this 11th episode of the ThinkUp Podcast, host Lily Mockerman talks with special guest Bryan Gatzemeyer, Vice President of Business Intelligence at My Place Hotels.

How to consider the bottom line rather than top line revenue

How 3 revenue managers handle 55 hotels

Wins their hotels are seeing in these difficult times

The 3 main areas of focus Bryan would recommend right now

My Place Hotels

Trend by My Place

To contact Bryan Gatzemeyer: bryan.gatzemeyer@myplacehotels.com

Read more articles on Hospitality Revenue Management on our ThinkUp Thought Leadership page.

For questions on this episode or any other revenue management related topics, you can send them to us at

info@thinkupenterprises.com.

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Upselling: Still Possible During a Pandemic?

Highlights from This Episode

Lily Mockerman:

Clément Dénarié:

In general, guests are looking for creative experiences, upgrades in rooms, and enhancing their stay with auxiliary experiences. They are also treating themselves to add-ons, resulting in increase of spend.

Hospitality Revenue Management: Recent Episodes

Loren Gray & Lily Mockerman