Managing the Hotel Sales Operation:

What You Should Expect from Your Sales Team

David L Jones, Ph.D. Associate Professor

Hong Kong Polytechnic University

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What is Selling?

Responsibilities for Managing the

Sales Operation • Revenue Generation • Business Development / Account

Management • Customer Satisfaction • Sales Team Development • Administration

How Do You Get More Business in a Competitive Environment?

• Right Account

• Right Person

• Right Need

• Right Questions

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Right Account

It’s About Priorities: Account Grid

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Account Grid100%

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Potential Room Nights/Revenue

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/Inclin

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ou

Account Grid Rating

Good

Target

Top

Marginal

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0% 100%

Potential Room Nights/Revenue

Pro

pen

sity

/Inclin

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n to

Use

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Account Grid Rating

Good

Target

Top

Marginal

100%

0% 100%

Potential Room Nights/Revenue

Pro

pen

sity

/Inclin

atio

n to

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Right Person

Knowing the Decision Process

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Working Relationship Continuum

Transactional Collaborative

• Bidding for Business

• Price Sensitive

• Responding to RFPs

• Strategic Partners

• Long-Term Relationships

• Guanxi

[ Most of Our Accounts ]

Understanding the Roles People Play in Decision

Process• Many People Who Influence the Decision

• Hierarchy of Organization • Identify Roles

– Recommender – Final Decision Approver

• Need to Sell All of Them

Recommender

• Gatekeepers • Screen Out, As Well As

Recommend • Specifications are the Important

Issue • Not the One Who Can Give the

Final “Yes”

Recommender: Job Titles

• Administrative/Executive Assistant• Purchasing Manager/Director • Corporate Business Travelers and

Meeting Attendees • Third Party Organizer – Travel Agent, PCO

What is important to them is that the proposal meets the specifications for

the meeting or corporate rate negotiation

Final Decision Approver

• Gives Final OK to Sign Contract • Delegates the Specifications • Releases the Control of the

Dollars • Can Say “Yes”, Even if Others

Say “No”• Insulated by Recommenders

Final Decision Approver: Job Titles

• Managing Director

• Vice President of Sales/Group Director of Sales (Sales Meetings)

• Vice President of Human Resources /Group Director of Human Resources (Training Meeting)

• Chief Financial Officer (Volume Corporate Business Contracts)

What Does the Final Decision Approver Want?

What the meeting or corporate rate contract is intended to

accomplish and the resulting RETURN ON INVESTMENT

Recommender Attendee/ Traveler

Final Approver

Recommender Administrative Assistant

Purchasing/ Planner

Buying Decision

Group Buying Decision

Coaches

• Must be Developed

• Inside the Organization

• Outside the Organization

Coaches• Credibility (Guanxi) with the

Other Persons in the Decision Process

• You have Credibility (Guanxi) with Them

• Willing to Support Only Your Proposal

• Helps You to Sell the Final Approver

They support your proposal as the best solution to their needs and are willing to help you get the business booked

Recommender Attendee/ Traveler

Final Approver

Recommender Administrative Assistant

Purchasing/ Planner

Buying Decision

Group Buying Decision

COACHES COACHES

Right Needs

Knowing the Final Decision Approver’s Needs

Understanding Customer Needs

• Rates, Dates & Space– Specifications for the Corporate Rate

Contract or the Meeting

• Business Results • What They Want to Achieve/Accomplish

Beyond Specifications: Business Results

• What They Want to Accomplish • Purpose of the Meeting or Corporate

Rate Contract Negotiations • Their Objectives

Increase Profits/Revenues/Sales Reducing Costs/Expenses

Improving Productivity

Key Factors with Volume Corporate Customer

• Who is the Guest? –Company Employees –Customers –Vendors

• Where is the Final Approval Given?

Right Questions

Determining Final Decision Approvers and Business Results

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Questions That Need to Be Asked

• Right Person• How Will the Decision Process Be

Made?

• Right Need• What Do You Want to Accomplish

from this Meeting?• What is the Goal or Objective of

Your Company’s Corporate Rate Negotiation?

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How Can a You Stimulate the Selling

Process?

Stimulating Selling

• Knowing Top/Target Accounts

• Create Dialog with Final Decision Approvers

• Making Joint Calls with Your Team

• Acting As The Account Grid Master

• Integrating Front Office & Sales

• Recognizing “Key Selling Time”

Creating Dialog with FA- Social Media

• Linkedin Discussion Groups– Associations– Start Your Own

• Facebook Pages– Specific to MICE

• Blogs & Twitter• Mainland China?

Linkedin Discussion Group

Using Linkedin for Dialog

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Look Who is On Facebook

No, Look Who is On Facebook - My Mom!

Marketing

Starwood CEO Blog

Which Social Media Option?

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The Possession of Facts is Knowledge,

the Use of Them is Wisdom

Thomas Jefferson

To Be Fond Of Learning

Is Near To Wisdom

Confucius

Thank You

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