2020 Hotel Sourcing - Are You Prepared?

As you well know, 2020 is fast approaching. This is the time of year where we start reviewing the current hotel production for each of our clients, setting time to review the changes happening at each organization (are they growing? Have a new office location or a project in a new city?) to best determine what hotels are best for their program moving forward.  

Did you know that Cadence can do hotel sourcing and contract negotiation on your behalf?  Bonus!  In most cases (based on volume need) we offer this complimentary as we are here to fully manage your travel program and provide additional support as needed. 

As your trusted travel partner we thought these hotel industry insights might come in handy.  And if you're looking for some assistance with hotel sourcing and negotiation this year, we'd love to help you, too!  

2020 Hotel Industry Insights

• Slow but Steady Growth – An expected rate increase of 2.3% for North America in 2020 shows slow but steady growth. However, technology-focused areas – like San Francisco, San Jose, Seattle and Vancouver - are still seeing larger increases. Sometimes a slowdown can mean an opportunity for more aggressive negotiation.

• Dynamic Pricing – Is dynamic pricing right for you? This was a hot topic during the GBTA Convention this year and it seems to be a trend customers and hotels agree works for everyone.  Dynamic pricing offers a percentage off the hotel’s best available rate. A few benefits of this pricing structure include: increased potential for multi-year agreements, increased savings through advanced purchase, and additional availability across room types.

• Balancing Act – Practicality versus traveler experience. If hotel adoption is a problem, look at taking traveler preference and experience into account by negotiating rates with hotel properties that offer value added inclusions (i.e. complimentary Wi-Fi, breakfast, gym access etc.) 

• Leveraging Your Full Spend – Understanding your true spend is key (hint: streamlined booking through Cadence can help here!) If spend is happening outside of your program, consider all of your data sources, such as, expense and credit card reporting. Uncovered insight can be used as leverage to further negotiate rates and inclusions.

• Hotel Pricing Continues to Evolve - As we have seen with less flexible cancellation windows and the start of dynamic pricing, hotels continue to move towards a pricing structure similar to airlines with rates fluctuating based on seasonality and occupancy levels. Be aware that quoted rates may not be guaranteed and the room rate could change when an existing hotel reservation is modified. (Note: when we negotiate we always request a 24 hour cancellation policy as part of the agreement to help with those travelers who always end up with last minute changes.)

Get in touch with us today to learn more about our consultative approach to hotel sourcing and negotiation!