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I saw this article yesterday... http://business.financialpost.com/entrepreneur/growth-strategies/how-to-use-pricing-as-a-tool-for-innovation and I thought that it provided a few interesting things. First of which is that people tend to go for the medium if offered S, M and L. Which is interesting, because often in travel we see that some people go for the bottom, even to their detriment. So maybe we need to compare that offerings.
But I loved this rule... Better before cheaper.
So offering a better product is more important and a cheaper product. So, stop trying to sell a cheap product... sell a better product and point out why yours is better.
 
Liked these two points...
You may have heard of the infamous Coke machine that raised prices on hot days. The experiment failed, says Soma, because the proposition appeared unfair. His takeaway? “Don’t say ‘on a hot day, I will charge you more.’ Say that ‘on cold days, I will give you a discount.’”
Winning companies don’t hesitate to invest in creating more customer value. “Higher gross-margin percentage matters more than lower costs,” says Raynor. Once you get out in front of your competitors, he says, price comparisons will be meaningless.
 
Liked these two points...
You may have heard of the infamous Coke machine that raised prices on hot days. The experiment failed, says Soma, because the proposition appeared unfair. His takeaway? “Don’t say ‘on a hot day, I will charge you more.’ Say that ‘on cold days, I will give you a discount.’”
Winning companies don’t hesitate to invest in creating more customer value. “Higher gross-margin percentage matters more than lower costs,” says Raynor. Once you get out in front of your competitors, he says, price comparisons will be meaningless..
That first one goes well in the off season-peak season 'debate'.
The prices aren't higher in the summer, they're lower in the winter.
 
Liked these two points...
You may have heard of the infamous Coke machine that raised prices on hot days. The experiment failed, says Soma, because the proposition appeared unfair. His takeaway? “Don’t say ‘on a hot day, I will charge you more.’ Say that ‘on cold days, I will give you a discount.’”
Winning companies don’t hesitate to invest in creating more customer value. “Higher gross-margin percentage matters more than lower costs,” says Raynor. Once you get out in front of your competitors, he says, price comparisons will be meaningless..
I'm actually considering setting my system to not have a high season and a low season, but to actually show it as a discount from the standard price.
 
Liked these two points...
You may have heard of the infamous Coke machine that raised prices on hot days. The experiment failed, says Soma, because the proposition appeared unfair. His takeaway? “Don’t say ‘on a hot day, I will charge you more.’ Say that ‘on cold days, I will give you a discount.’”
Winning companies don’t hesitate to invest in creating more customer value. “Higher gross-margin percentage matters more than lower costs,” says Raynor. Once you get out in front of your competitors, he says, price comparisons will be meaningless..
I'm actually considering setting my system to not have a high season and a low season, but to actually show it as a discount from the standard price.
.
interesting idea. I'll talk it over with DH.
Room rate = $100.
Discount rate = $80
vs
Season = $100
Offseason = 80
 
Liked these two points...
You may have heard of the infamous Coke machine that raised prices on hot days. The experiment failed, says Soma, because the proposition appeared unfair. His takeaway? “Don’t say ‘on a hot day, I will charge you more.’ Say that ‘on cold days, I will give you a discount.’”
Winning companies don’t hesitate to invest in creating more customer value. “Higher gross-margin percentage matters more than lower costs,” says Raynor. Once you get out in front of your competitors, he says, price comparisons will be meaningless..
I'm actually considering setting my system to not have a high season and a low season, but to actually show it as a discount from the standard price.
.
We used to have one rate, and then advertised a percentage off (e.g. 15%, 20% off) for the slower seasons. I thought it more useful to just say what the price was for those seasons, but maybe it would be better marketing to go back to the discount approach?
 
As a guest, I really don't like it when places really hike their rates on "busy" or holiday weekends. Applies to hotel chains as well. This opinion may rankle some folks, because I know that they're trying to make hay while the sun shines.
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And, I don't mind paying higher rates for value delivered. I travel often to another state and stay at a B&B where their rate is $179/night vs $120 for hotels in the area (without any hotel discounts).
I kept our rates the same year round, weekends and weekdays. But we had business rates, long term rates, and discounts when it was slow or to do promotions. However, with the increase in alternative lodgings here, I probably would have to lower my regular rates to compete now.
I think you have to do what works in your location and for the type of lodging property that you have. There are so many variations of B&Bs/inns out there.
Seems like the psychology of discounts vs seasonal rates when it's slow works better for people like me. Hahaha...
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Liked these two points...
You may have heard of the infamous Coke machine that raised prices on hot days. The experiment failed, says Soma, because the proposition appeared unfair. His takeaway? “Don’t say ‘on a hot day, I will charge you more.’ Say that ‘on cold days, I will give you a discount.’”
Winning companies don’t hesitate to invest in creating more customer value. “Higher gross-margin percentage matters more than lower costs,” says Raynor. Once you get out in front of your competitors, he says, price comparisons will be meaningless..
I'm actually considering setting my system to not have a high season and a low season, but to actually show it as a discount from the standard price.
.
I switched to that years ago and haven't looked back. Instead of low season rates, I offer a low season discount and it's only available for stays of two nights or longer so I get full rate for one-nighters.
 
Or as Jimmy Dean used to say, "I'd rather explain my price, than my quality". We have increased our rates by 20-40% over the last three years and are booking just as many return guests as before. Our same year return rate has gone up quite dramatically. Provide an exceptional service and, don't be afraid to charge for it.
I would suggest removing any specific rate information from your web site. I have only been doing this for a couple of years but, I immediately took off any listed prices on my web site. With different rates for different dates, festivals and seasons, it got much too complicated. A guest will have to start the booking process before determining the price for a specific date. I am convinced B&B's booking process should be as close to a hotel's as possible as that is what is familiar to most people.
This will also allow you to quickly and easily raise or lower rates depending on availability and demand.
 
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