In-stay Upselling: Why You Should Use It and How to Maximize Deals

In addition to pre-stay upselling, in-stay upselling allows hoteliers to unlock another dimension that leads to enhanced revenue and guest satisfaction. In-stay upselling reminds guests of services they might have missed when booking their room and allows them to book these deals throughout their stay.

What Are the Benefits of In-stay Upselling?

Below you will find 3 benefits of in-stay upselling.

1. Make The Most Out of Your Hotel’s Upselling Potential

The reality is that it’s simply impossible for guests to discover the whole range of services on offer during the check-in stage. However, by leveraging in-stay upselling, guests can explore everything your hotel offers throughout their stay.

2. Generate More Revenue by Selling Ancillary Services

Hotels that use in-stay upselling can create more revenue-generating opportunities for themselves. Relying mainly on room bookings and other core products or services is risky and places a hotel under unnecessary pressure, especially during slower seasons when the demand for rooms drops.

3. Level Up Your Guest Satisfaction

In-stay upselling also has benefits in store for guests as it helps hotels to create a more holistic guest experience. With the help of a digital upsell platform that can automate this process, you can enhance the guests’ stay and experience by showcasing services that they will find more relevant.

Nowadays, guests expect personalized services. Now, they can skip the queue at the reception desk and communicate their requests whenever it’s most convenient for them. By giving them access to deals tailored according to their unique needs and interests literally in the palm of their hand, hotels are empowering them to decide for themselves what they want to take advantage of and when.

“Implementing the automated In-stay Upselling module has been a huge help to us because now every guest can discover and book our offers at their convenience, be it pre-arrival or while they’re in-house. Thanks to that, we can create an even more personalized guest experience,” says Samuel Deladrière, Head of Global Revenue at Martin’s Hotels.

How to Maximize Your In-stay Upselling Deal Conversions: 4 Pointers to Steer Your Success

Below you will find 4 tips to maximize your in-stay upselling.

1. Let Hotel Technology Give You a Hand

Arranging all the aspects of in-stay upselling and conducting it manually might be easier said than done. However, in-stay upselling is definitely worth the effort and doesn’t have to turn into a time-consuming process.

It’s strongly recommended that you invest in a tool that will simplify the whole process. It will help you reach more guests at the right time, but it will also help reduce your team’s workload, freeing up time they can dedicate to other revenue-generating tasks.

With the right technology in place, hoteliers can set up QR codes throughout their hotels that guests can scan once they have checked in. This tool also allows you to send emails right after guests have checked in and present more personalized deals to each guest. It will encourage guests to explore the hotel’s services and let them book straightforwardly and conveniently.

If you’re still in doubt, according to a survey by Skift and Oracle, more than 60% of hospitality executives worldwide revealed that the type of tech they’ll most likely invest in soon is a fully contactless experience for all basic hotel transactions. Plus, it’s not only hotels showing keen interest but guests too. A survey completed by Criton has unveiled that nearly half of guests indicated that they would be more likely to order in-room service if given a chance to do so via a mobile app.

So, these online stats paint a clear picture — automating the in-stay upselling process will benefit all parties.

For example, with Oaky’s in-stay upselling module, guests can book add-ons and services at any time during their stay via a public guest app. Available deals are shared via email or QR code, and your front-desk staff will get notified automatically if a guest should choose to book a deal.

2. Position Your QR Codes in the Right Context

After the COVID-19 pandemic, guests are familiar with contactless technology, such as QR codes. Many prefer to use contactless services when given a chance. That said, it’s still essential that you explain to your guests how they can use QR codes and what packages they can book via them during check-in.

Then, to help you create awareness about your upselling features, place QR codes in prominent places so guests can easily spot them. Even better yet if it’s positioned in a place that’s not only prominent but also where they’re more inclined to book a specific offer, you can, for instance, display a breakfast deal along with the QR code on their nightstand. Other popular, prominent places include the elevator and the entrance of on-site amenities like a spa.

3. Sell Value and Support Your Deals with Eye-catching Imagery

QR codes won’t sell themselves. Include appealing images and a short description next to the QR codes. For example, if you’re selling a gift box, instead of just a photo of the closed box, be sure to add an image showcasing what’s included inside. By explaining your offer with the help of attractive images and engaging copy, you will capture guests’ attention and encourage them to book faster. After all, guests want to see and understand what they’re buying.

4. Keep Testing and Optimizing Your Deals

Just like with any other marketing strategy, you must make time to test to see what generated the best results. It could be as straightforward as changing a word in your description or swapping images.

Another effective testing method is to experiment with different discount strategies to see which type of discount appeals more to your guests. That said, your discount should be at least 20% to be effective.

After all, how would you know where to start making changes without proper testing?

Then, to optimize your deals, look at your existing services and identify the ones with the highest conversion rates. This way, you can expand your best-performing deals to give your guests more of what they prefer or add a variation.

Free In-stay Upselling Checklist to Drive More Conversions

Combining the power of pre-arrival and in-stay upselling can accelerate your upselling conversions while providing greater convenience to your guests. The best part is that automation lets you kick-start your upselling journey and streamline this process for your hotel teams and guests.