Maximise profit by diversifying your revenue streams

For most properties, selling rooms is the main source of income, and often the only one. That is not going to change. But a business that depends on a single stream is exposed when that stream dries up, and there are practical ways to add others that steady your income and lift your bottom line.

The past year made the point for every hotelier. When travel stopped, properties with nothing to sell but rooms had nothing to fall back on. Business may look good again, but it pays not to get comfortable.

Start with your market

Before changing anything, be sure you know who you are selling to. Who have your guests usually been, and has that shifted? Travel closer to home has grown, so local and domestic guests may matter more now than ever. Ask what those nearby customers might need that you could offer.

Location shapes the answer too. A city property and a beach property, a winter destination and a summer one, need different ideas. Know why people come to your area and you will see which services would add value to a stay.

Fill your rooms first

Rooms will remain your main income, so get occupancy as high as it can be before you look elsewhere. The simplest way is to appeal to more kinds of guest.

Remote work is one opening. In an Accenture survey of more than 9,650 people in 19 countries, published in April 2021, 79 per cent said they would like to work occasionally from a 'third space', somewhere that is neither home nor the office. A free room can become a workspace sold at a day rate. It needs a proper desk and fast, reliable internet, and the same set-up suits business travellers and remote workers who stay the night.

Families are another. If you do not already offer high chairs and baby cots, add them, and consider letting young children stay free. Review the child policies in your OTA settings so families can see they are welcome.

Then check every OTA listing. Use recent photos, list every facility you offer and make the descriptions clear and accurate. Guests lean heavily on photos and facilities when they choose where to stay, so make sure they see the best of your property.

Host activities and events

Once the rooms are covered, look at other income. Activities and events can be sold to guests and to anyone else who wants to join. Tours are the classic option, and you do not need to run them yourself: partner with a local tour company, promote its tours and agree a share of each sale.

Social evenings work well too: dinner nights, film nights, game nights or a picnic in a nearby park, each for a small fee. Many hostels already have a common room built for this. Put up notices locally, invite friends and neighbours and ask them to bring others. Letting non-guests join also keeps the atmosphere alive when occupancy is low.

People are paying, so give them something worth the money. Include food and drinks, plan a few games or activities, and keep the fee as low as you can while still making a profit. Local musicians and performers can turn a simple evening into one people come back for. Check the local rules on gatherings first.

Open your facilities to the public

Most properties already have facilities they could sell beyond their own guests: laundry, pool and spa access, food from the restaurant or bar, private transfers, tours and luggage storage. When occupancy dips, these bring in extra income.

A pool on a hot day will draw locals and people staying at properties without one. Industrial washing machines that sit idle can run a laundry service for anyone who walks in. A restaurant can reach diners at home or in the office through local delivery companies. The facilities already exist, so the extra work is mostly a little marketing.

In thelobbyboy, the point of sale handles these sales from the calendar screen: day passes for outside visitors, with a limit on how many people a pool or spa can take, paid on the spot in cash or by card.

Sell extras at reception

Keep a small range of everyday items for sale at reception. Basic groceries are a good start: bread, milk, drinks, coffee, tea and ready-to-eat snacks. Go a step further with products from your region, such as ajvar and rakia in the Balkans, stroopwafels in the Netherlands or halva in Turkey and Greece. For visitors from abroad, they become part of the trip.

Add a few useful non-food items as well: earplugs, phone chargers, toiletry kits, single-use raincoats and hand sanitiser. Depending on where you are, sunscreen, beach towels, hiking or ski gear and souvenirs may sell well.

Wherever you can, buy from independent local producers and artisans. Guests get something authentic and well made, and you support the businesses around you.

With thelobbyboy, each sale at reception goes straight onto the guest's invoice, and guests who book directly can add extras such as tours or airport transfers while they book.

Find new uses for your spaces

Many properties have space that earns nothing. An empty large room could be rented by the hour for meetings. An outdoor area could host markets and events. Local fitness instructors often need somewhere to hold classes, and even a neglected storage room might find a new use.

Look at every space you have and be creative about what it could become. Done well, it meets a real need for your customers and makes the business more profitable.

Research, plan, then act

These ideas are a starting point, and there are many more. Research and plan before you choose a route, and above all offer something of real value while keeping your standards where they are, or raising them. Done that way, extra income and a better stay for your guests go hand in hand.