How vacationing with friends helped influence clients
Dear diary,
After I hung up with the General Manager (GM) the other day, I started thinking about the time I planned my graduation trip to Goa! That was my first experience trying to convince a group with very different perspectives to agree to a single plan. Such a herculean task! Of course, this was before the pandemic, so any concerns for safety were virtually non-existent. Goa is the Florida of India, minus the swamp! As diverse as India is, Goa continues to be the go-to destination for all youngsters. So, for the friend who is programmed to hate everything that is classified as mainstream, we leveraged the serenity of offbeat beaches and architectural marvels from the 17th century. It was easy to convince the friend who is always in the forefront for a party, since Goa has the most popular raves. When it came to the sentimental friend, all it took was the reminder that this may be the last time our group was vacationing together. What seemed like endless persuasion for a Goa trip, was a blessing in disguise to prepare me for encounters in my career.
In revenue management, with all the effort to devise the right strategies to optimize revenue, the challenge associated with convincing stakeholders to implement recommendations is often overlooked. It is essential to understand that each stakeholder has a distinct outlook and may have reservations with adopting a strategy, even if it may have positively impacted revenue for several other properties. When I had to employ different tactics to convince my friends just for a vacation, one can imagine the finesse that is demanded for a job involving persuasion of stakeholders for business decisions.
The GM that I spoke to, has an all-suites, upper midscale property in a heavily leisure-driven market that has almost recovered from the COVID shock. It has been selling out almost every weekend and yet, the GM is very skeptical about pricing higher to capture such revenue opportunities. He is still not accustomed to the shorter booking window and significant last-minute pickup. He insists on maintaining the lowest price among all comparable brands in the market out of the fear of not selling all rooms. While talking to this GM, I have had to carefully position my pricing recommendations by citing examples of past weekends and competitor rates. Encouraging him to overcome his wariness of pricing high and convincing him to adopt a more aggressive pricing strategy for an upcoming event weekend is a personal victory.
On the other hand, I work with another GM, whose property, despite being in a leisure-heavy market, is on a very slow recovery path. Previously driven by wedding groups and accustomed to selling out very often, the economy-scale property was often priced almost at par with its upper midscale competitor in town. This GM has had a tough time coming to terms with the slower pace of business, even after capturing less than half our market share of revenue and occupancy. On multiple occasions, I collaborated with a colleague to persuade him to offer more competitive rates before he agreed to adopt a more conservative pricing strategy for a one-week trial period. The glaring impact of lower prices on their occupancy share tremendously helped in convincing him to adhere to a more modest pricing strategy.
These instances reinforce the idea that understanding the reasons underlying a stakeholder’s refusal to accept a recommendation and accordingly personalizing our approach to address their concerns, can be very impactful. The crux of the matter is that the one-size-fits-all approach is not relevant when it involves interacting with people. We must consider the proclivities and biases that drive a person’s reasoning. Discerning the rationale underlying their reluctance can help us build a rapport by making them feel understood. Building our influence through effective and personalized communication is crucial when convincing people. This not only enables us to customize our approach in making it more coherent for them, but also makes them more receptive of our recommendations. I wonder whether others also have personal encounters that have helped them influence difficult clients.
Until next time, adios!
