Booking activity for hotels in the United States generally differs from short-term rental performance; with shorter booking windows and shorter stay lengths. Hoteliers should use short-term rental performance activity to inform their marketing and revenue strategies. Let’s use the President’s Day week in Park City, Utah as a case study into how short-term rental data can be leveraged to help hotels improve their performance.
Overall, short-term rentals are performing better year-over-year than hotels are during the week of President’s Day, compared to the same period last year.
For short-term rentals, a significant increase in guest check-ins per property is driving a 6% increase in the paid occupancy rate. Combined with a 5% increase in the average daily rate, revenue per property is up 12% higher than last year for short-term rentals.
On the other hand, hotels are experiencing a dramatic decrease in RevPAR, driven by a large decrease in nightly rates.
How could hoteliers have used short-term vacation rental data to inform their management decisions for this week?
Market Demand Forecasting and Dynamic Pricing Strategies:
Since STRs generally have longer booking windows than hotels, hotels can monitor booking trends and anticipate upcoming surges in demand. Proactively adjusting pricing and inventory management strategies will help capitalize on peak travel times. This real-time data can also help inform dynamic pricing strategies based on market conditions.
Competitive Analysis:
Hotels can compare their rates and availability to STRs in the market and use this information to identify opportunities to optimize revenues based on competitor activity.
Identify Customer Preferences:
Understand the types of short-term rental properties available in your market. Are they mostly small luxury properties? Family or pet-friendly? Properties with pools? Identifying these competitive properties can help hotels understand what renters are looking for, and market accordingly. Additionally, hotels could use this information to improve their own amenities and services.
Location Insights:
Notice where short-term rentals are concentrated in your market. Is there an area where there are fewer STRs available, or where STRs are highly regulated? This information can help identify areas with high demand that you may not be capitalizing on.
Adding STR Data To Your Business
By leveraging STR data, hoteliers can make the best strategic decisions, leading to higher profits. STR data is a powerful tool that can make a lasting difference in performance. Not only can it aid in refining their marketing demand forecasting, but it also allows for an enhanced competitive analysis. Understanding STR trends also helps hotels set up their business for success with customer preferences and identify high-demand locations.
Want to learn more about integrating STR data into your revenue strategy? Contact us to unlock your competitive edge.