Leverage your high season data to better prepare

By Chris de Closey, Director, Switch Hotel Solutions

It’s early January — Christmas and New Year have come and gone, and we are now in the throes of the school holidays.

The ‘summer rush’ is no doubt hitting us for six, much like our Aussies are in the cricket. “I don’t even have time to take a breath” is a common phrase we hear. Many properties we talk with are excited about this time of year — while it’s the busiest, it’s also the biggest earning period for nearly every region in Australia.

A lot of the properties we talk with also rebook their guests this year for next, often with just a nominal rate increase. But there’s one problem with this — you might be leaving money on the table. We often have this conversation with new clients. While happy, repeat guests are great, if you could earn an additional 15 percent in nightly rate (or more in some

cases), wouldn’t you want to do that for your business? And for your owners, if you’re in a management rights environment?

Here are a few ways to best leverage your high-season data this year to prepare for the next.

Performance benchmarking

This involves comparing metrics such as occupancy rates, average daily rate (ADR), revenue per available room (RevPAR), and guest satisfaction scores against similar properties or industry averages. The goal is to evaluate where your property stands in the market and identify performance gaps.

For example, you might have a high occupancy rate, but your average rate might lag significantly behind competitors or market benchmarks. Industry tools such as STR Global can help you understand your performance and identify opportunities to improve results next year.

Guest demographics and preferences

Understanding who your guests are (families, couples, business travellers) and their preferences (room types, amenities used) can help tailor marketing strategies and offerings. For instance, if data shows a high number of families with younger kids visiting during the high season, you might choose to offer more family-friendly activities (such as a pop-up movie night). Enhancing your property’s appeal can attract a higher ADR for the same period.

Guest feedback

We talk about it all the time! Guest feedback gives you the best understanding of how to prepare for any period. Always collect and analyse reviews, surveys, and direct comments to staff.

Pay particular attention to recurring themes and specific suggestions for improvement. This feedback is invaluable for making targeted enhancements to the guest experience. For example, if guests frequently mention value for money (whether positively or negatively) you can adjust your revenue strategies accordingly.

Operational efficiencies and bottlenecks

Identify areas where operations were smooth and where there were bottlenecks in your service. Maybe check-ins were quick and painless, but cleaning teams had delays due to volumes. This insight tells you where to focus improvement efforts, such as increasing staffing levels at critical times or investing in technology to streamline service.

Monitor and communicate changes

After implementing changes, closely monitor their impact during the low season. This ongoing evaluation allows you to tweak your strategies before the next high season rolls around. Are you finding your booking pickup is slow or is it still going at a great pace? Keep this in mind for your pricing strategies. If significant changes or upgrades are made, be sure let potential guests know. This can be done through email marketing, updates on your website, or social media posts. Highlighting improvements can be a selling point for repeat or potential guests planning their next visit. If you are charging a higher price, showing the guests what they will get for their money (such as an increased offering with more activities) will ensure that the guests know the price is reflective of the market trends. Don’t be afraid to directly communicate with guests when they ask why the price has increased, be sure to let them know the price is competitive with the wider market.

The key to longterm success

Leveraging your data, especially in high season is key for the ongoing improvement of your property. By effectively analysing this data and implementing strategies that are developed around this, you can enhance guest satisfaction, optimise operations, and ultimately boost profitability. By doing so, you will ensure that you reap the rewards for every high season.