Demand Doesn’t Live in Your PMS Anymore
Why historic data no longer cuts it - and what forward-looking hoteliers are doing instead
It’s hard to deny just how much the demand landscape has shifted over the past few years. There was a time not too long ago when historic booking data, a few trusty spreadsheets and gut instinct (cue calculator and crystal ball) were the best friends of every revenue manager. And for the most part, they worked.
Let’s be honest, COVID turned the industry upside down. That was followed by the unexpected staycation boom, which offered many of us some much-needed breathing space. But now, that bubble has well and truly burst, and we’re back in the thick of it trying to make sense of a market that’s harder than ever to predict.
Rising living costs, changing booking behaviour, and a global economic outlook that’s about as predictable as next week’s winning lottery numbers are all adding complexity to the role of the revenue manager.
And added to that, guest behaviour has evolved too. Guests expect more – more flexibility, more value, more personalisation. They are booking later and thinking harder before hitting that ‘confirm’ button.
Guesswork isn’t a strategy!
All of this means that without the right tools, forecasting demand has become less science and more guesswork. And even hotels using RMS tools are still relying on static, historical data and in a world that moves in real time, that’s like trying to solve today’s crossword with yesterday’s clues.
From our daily conversations with hoteliers, three key challenges keep coming up:
1. Economic Volatility
The pressure is coming from all sides. Interest rates continue to rise…domestic travellers are responding to inflation and tightening their budgets…energy costs rising... the list goes on. Add to that new legislation, both in the UK and abroad that’s reshaping how, when, and where people travel. All of it is resulting in lower consumer confidence and a much more cautious, considered approach to travel spending.
2. Guest Behaviour Is Evolving
Gone are the days of reliable lead times and predictable patterns. Guests are booking later, stays are of a shorter duration and scrutinising every penny they spend. Booking windows are shrinking, demand signals are coming in late - sometimes very late - leaving revenue teams scrambling to respond. And when that happens, it’s not just stressful, it can also be costly.
3. Tech often struggles to keep up
Even the most experienced revenue manager is limited by the tools at their disposal. And many RMS platforms are built for the world we used to live in, still reliant on fixed rules and historic data, and not reflecting how dynamic the market has become.
Without access to real-time, external demand signals, these systems respond too slowly to shifts in the market, leading to pricing decisions that are reactive rather than strategic. That means missed opportunities, whether from under-pricing and leaving money on the table, or overpricing and losing the booking entirely.
But it doesn’t have to be this way!
What hoteliers need now is a smarter, more dynamic approach, one that goes beyond pace and pick-up reports and actually reflects what’s driving demand today.
Because demand doesn’t live in your PMS anymore. It’s out there in the real world – in web searches, flight data, weather forecasts, exchange rates and shaped by how optimistic (or not) we feel about the economy.
Meet ADA: The Advanced Demand Algorithm
That’s why we built ADA.
ADA was created because we kept hearing the same thing from hoteliers: “Forecasting just isn’t working the way it used to. And my tools aren’t keeping up.”
So, we listened. And we built a solution that does the heavy lifting, pulling in real-time external signals and blending them with your own internal data to deliver smarter, more dynamic pricing and forecasting recommendations, and a more proactive approach to determining demand.
But here’s what matters most to us: ADA doesn’t just make sense of the chaos we are working with, it presents insights and recommendations in a way that’s clear, practical, and easy to use. While behind the scenes, our genius developers have built algorithms and advanced modelling capabilities to processes thousands of data points, our focus has been very much on creating simplicity for the user. That’s why for us, a clean, intuitive interface, designed to give revenue managers exactly what they need at a glance was key, providing them with practical, actionable insights they can trust.
Because we are all too aware that the one thing revenue managers don’t need are more spreadsheets. We need smarter tools that make sense quickly of market shifts and fast-moving data, without adding more chaos and overwhelm. And we are thrilled to say that’s where our hoteliers are already reporting the difference that ADA is making to their revenue management - providing revenue teams with quicker, more accurate pricing recommendations that are based on the real world and not driven by outdated information stored within your PMS.
We would love to show you how ADA can enhance your revenue strategy, allowing you to price more accurately, more efficiently and with greater confidence. Contact us on ask@rightrevenue.co.uk or on +44(0)28 9099 8866 to find out more or request a demo.
