Rising operational costs, and an expected dip in hotel occupancy during 2018, according to STR, are pushing hoteliers to adopt new strategies designed to maximize hotel revenue.

It’s about finding better ways to help increase revenue per available room, otherwise known as RevPAR, which can be achieved when using the right type of cloud-based property management system, in the right way. Though STR is predicting new hotel supply to outstrip hotel demand in 2018, the firm believes there is still pricing power on rooms sold, pegging an industry-wide RevPAR increase of 2.3% both this year and in 2018.

But sitting back will not help hoteliers make strong RevPAR gains. Rather, it’s a matter of combating downward market pressures to help keep profits moving upward. Here’s some ways hoteliers are increasing revenue.

Rising Labor Costs

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports compensation costs for civilian workers increased 2.4% for the 12-month period ending June 2017. It also notes wages and salaries increased 2.3% for the current 12-month period.

To help hoteliers keep more revenue, for example, the SkyTouch Hotel OS® creates efficiencies in the housekeeping department. The mobile-ready PMS alerts staff to which rooms are occupied, which ones must be cleaned immediately, and what rooms can be put back into service next. Plus, training times become more efficient; SkyTouch Technology’s intuitive system reduces training time to as little as two shifts in order to get a new employee oriented. Each of these elements help hoteliers achieve the same goals in fewer hours, helping save owners and operators money.

Costly Customer Acquisition fees

While your hotel may be selling rooms on a variety of third party sites, what a hotel may earn for each guest room sold can vary greatly. That’s because some online travel agencies (OTAs) cost hoteliers more in fees than others.

The SkyTouch Hotel OS, for example, provides two-way channel management via XML connections with OTAs and the GDS. The platform also features a cool and customizable (branded) Internet Booking Engine (IBE). Plus, the cloud based hotel PMS allows for inventory pooling, so all your rooms are seen on every distribution channel simultaneously. That means lesser known OTAs that typically charge lower fees are given equal online real estate as higher charging OTAs, yielding owners potentially more overall revenue.

Plus, the system allows for the creation of local-only rates available by calling or visiting the property, helping to further boost RevPAR.

Rates are Too Low

The SkyTouch Hotel OS cloud-based PMS also automatically adjusts BAR based on occupancy for any given night, or by number of rooms sold for a specific night. This ensures when a certain threshold of rooms are sold, prices are updated without any intervention, helping to increase revenue automatically. The system is also designed to transfer rates from one bucket to another, while also setting up specific policies and restrictions for a rate plan, too. Say, for example, a rate available during a special date range, or only specific days of the week.

Not Leveraging Demand Spikes

Hoteliers know which are the top selling nights in their market. But even the smartest hoteliers can sometimes be unaware of sudden market demand shifts. For example, a major band is rumored to announce a show on a specific date in your town. Rooms quickly fill up at a rate much lower than the market would bear, even before the show is officially announced. With the right hotel PMS, such as the SkyTouch Hotel OS, rates can be set to automatically increase when certain occupancy thresholds are reached. This always helps ensure the hotel is achieving the best possible RevPAR throughout the year.