So while visiting the great PNW I went to one of their B&B conferences. The speaker said to raise our rates to all end in 9. He said it was a psychological thing and guests don't see the increase. So I thought, what do I have to lose. I did it. And raised my rates just slightly (still lower than competitor down the street). My occ was slightly down, but my income was up considerably..
Sunshine said:
My occ was slightly down, but my income was up considerably.
Yes it's well known in business that there is a happy place where the higher rates cause occupancy to go down a little, but the higher rates from the guests who DO come more than offsets the lower occupancy rate. So you work less, buy fewer supplies, have lower utilities, but make more money. Perfect!
Sunshine said:
...raised my rates just slightly (still lower than competitor down the street).
But ideally you should not strive to be the cheaper alternative. You should strive to be the
better alternative (which from what I have seen, you already are). Let people know why you are the better choice, not the cheaper choice.
In fact, you might want to raise the rate to equal the competition. Otherwise, people who see you as looking better than the competition might question why, then, you have to charge less. They'll suspect a hidden problem.
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