Check out highlights from our latest article on Hospitalitynet.org:

Personalization. Why? It is really a 2-part problem. First, you need to know what the guest will want, and second, you need to have the operation bandwidth to deliver it.

Can new technology really deliver what was once considered only obtainable and deliverable by luxury hotels? If you take a closer look at ABS, the answer is, “Yes.” Attribute-based Selling (ABS) is positioned as a way to sell hotel rooms differently. But what it really does is provide a vehicle for hotel stay personalization – and the benefits for hoteliers are significant.

Personalization in the Hotel Industry

For luxury hotels, one distinguishable feature that has set them apart from their peers is the level of personalization and customization they offer their guests.

Luxury hotels use two techniques to deliver personalization. The first is simply the effort to accommodate guest requests through extreme flexibility.

The second technique is the collection and recording of meticulous stay records that are referenced to prepare for returning VIP guests.

Understanding Attribute-Based Selling (ABS)

At its core, ABS is a way of unbundling hotels services and room product into smaller units, allowing hotels to sell every room feature independently of one another, each one with their own inventories – and optional costs (If you are a luxury hotel, don’t focus on the “selling” part. Prices can always be set to zero, or “Yes!”).

Instead of the traditional method of offering rooms by room type, a hotel separates out its room inventory and allows guests to pick and choose the features they most value.

Immediately the first problem of hotel personalization is solved.If you can’t personalize a stay experience for your guest because A) you don’t know the guest, or B) you don’t have the staff to ask them, then ABS is your answer. It provides the automated interface for guests to tell you what they want.

The future of personalization involves ABS

The calculus is very straight-forward.

1. Today’s consumers have an expectation of the ability to personalize products and services through a digital interface.
   
2. Hotels that don’t run a business model that supports niceties like a “Pillow Menu” will have to see how their current property investment can be transformed into flexible product offering in the minds of their guests.
   
3. Current labor availability and costs make it a challenge for any hotel to execute personalization data gathering and service execution, so automation tools are the only way out.
   
4. The answer is Attribute-based Selling. ABS provides hotels of any type the means to provide a personalization program.

And it works! All customers currently using the ROOMDEX ABS solution have positive results. Initial figures revealed the number of upsell purchases increased by 36%. 55% of guests upgraded to a higher room category via ABS; 32% of all ABS upsell revenue was directly attributed from upsells within the same room category, and 45% of all guests purchased two or more features or room attributes via ABS!

Plus, you can set the whole program up in an afternoon!

Read the full article here!