The Beimen WOW Poshtel offers both private and shared rooms to travelers visiting downtown Taipei. The hotel saw an increase in bookings and revenue after adding inventory for 6 to 12 months in the future and using promotions to incent guests to book early.
Taipei hotel increases bookings with inventory strategy
Small chain hotel
22 rooms
LGBTQ friendly
150%
increase in net room nights at the Beimen WOW Poshtel after loading long-term inventory
392%
increase in raw margin dollars (RMD) after loading long-term inventory
The Problem
As General Manager at the Beiman WOW Poshtel, Janet Chen has a primary goal to fill as many beds as possible. The Taipei market is highly competitive, with nearly 1.5 million searches by travelers on Expedia Group sites every day.
This property is different from other hotels because they appeal to a wide variety of guests, with room options ranging from a private room and bathroom to a dormitory style room with a shared bathroom.
Janet knew she had to think creatively to set the Beiman WOW Poshtel apart from the competition and earn bookings to grow the property’s net room night numbers. Janet’s Expedia Group Market Manager offered insight on the Taipei market, and the two devised a plan that would help meet Janet’s goals while maintaining a healthy average daily rate.
“It’s easy for us to set up promotions in Partner Central since we can amend them daily instead of having to set them for specific lengths of time. We depend on OTAs to sell rooms, so that promotions function works really well for us.”
Janet Chen
General Manager
Beiman WOW Poshtel
The Solution
To maximize booking potential, Janet’s market manager recommended that she adopt a long-term booking strategy. Adding inventory for future dates could help Janet attract travelers looking to book 6 to 12 months before their trip.
To make early booking even more appealing to travelers, Janet created several promotions that gave discounts based on how far in advance travelers booked their stay. These “early bird” discounts ranged from small amounts all the way up to 50% off for booking months in advance. Janet also created discounts for guests who book for two or more nights to incent travelers to stay at the property longer than they might have initially planned.
After loading long-term inventory, Janet saw a 150% increase in net room nights and a 392% increase in revenue.
The Future
The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted tourism worldwide, and Janet has seen the effect in Taiwan and at the property. By setting up a long-term booking strategy, Janet is confident that she can capture bookings from travelers eager to explore the world again, when it is safe.
The promotions also help encourage travelers to book now for dates months ahead, even if they’re uncertain about when they might travel again.
Janet and the Beiman WOW Poshtel team are taking advantage of the slower pace right now to renovate their rooms and are looking to their new long-term booking strategy to drive room nights well into the new year.
Travel will surely return, and hotels that adopt a long-term booking strategy by adding inventory for 6 to 12 months in advance will be well positioned to capture more bookings in the months and years to come.
