4 Process

Chapter 4 of Active Revenue Management.

Developing a consistent, repeatable and scalable Revenue Management process

By Kegan Mulholland, Revenue Manager and Head of Onboarding at Wheelhouse

Updated: Jan 14, 2025

2 minute read

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Intro

A successful revenue manager needs a structured and repeatable process of Identification, Intervention, and Communication but time constraints and team structure need to be considered before implementing any of the daily, weekly, or monthly processes below.

Some teams consist of full time Revenue Manager(s), RM Consultants, Property Managers that handle Revenue duties, or a mixture of any of these roles. If your team’s capacity is stressed then you may opt to start with, as your portfolio and ability to hire also grows, some of the daily processes below but instead focus on doing them a few times a week. If you’re a seasoned Revenue Manager with a full team then you may find some of the processes helpful to fit in with what you are currently doing. The below outlines for RM processes are by no means exhaustive or static. 

Doing some Revenue Management is better than none. If you’re short for time then focus on the below processes that we’ve designated as “Mandatory”. Like mentioned, there is flexibility with the amount of time and frequency spent on these activities.

4.1 Daily Processes

Daily activities focus on monitoring recent booking activity and identifying any immediate opportunities or concerns.

Review Bookings (Mandatory)

Frequency: Daily 

Time Required: 15-30 minutes

  • Examine the reservation list from your Revenue Management Software (RMS) or Property Management System (PMS).
  • Sort by Reservation Date or Booked Date (Creation Date) to bring the most recent sales to the top.

Look for:

Lower than expected ADR.

Far out stay dates.

Length of stays lower than your required minimums.

Review Calendar (Mandatory)

Frequency: Daily 

Time Required: 15-30 minutes

  • Scan the calendar for the next 30-60 days.

Look for:

Gaps between bookings.

Blocks that may no longer be necessary.

Rates that seem out of line with current market conditions.

Make small adjustments as needed, such as removing unnecessary blocks or adjusting rates for gap nights.

4.2 Weekly Processes

Weekly activities involve more in-depth analysis and strategic adjustments.

Analyze Booking Pace and Occupancy 

Frequency: Twice weekly (e.g., Monday and Wednesday) 

Time Required: 1-2 hours

  • Use charts to visualize Booked Nights, Occupancy, and Average Daily Rate (ADR) for the upcoming calendar year. Do so on the monthly level and also the daily level.

Look for:

"Peaks and Valleys" in occupancy.

Compare current booking pace to Same Time Last Year (STLY) data and pacing week over week.

Identify areas where intervention may be necessary (e.g., rates too high for low occupancy periods).

Manage Expiring Inventory (Mandatory)

Frequency: Twice weekly (e.g., Monday and Wednesday) 

Time Required: 1-2 hours

  • Focus on upcoming dates (typically 1-4 weeks out) with unsold inventory.
  • Consider market booking windows and seasonality.
  • Review rates for competitiveness.
  • Adjust rates and/or minimum price/stay restrictions as needed to stimulate bookings.

Conduct Team Meeting (Mandatory)

Frequency: Weekly 

Time Required: 1 hour

  • Review previous week's performance.
  • Discuss current market trends and upcoming events.
  • Present planned interventions and strategies for the coming week.
  • Get feedback and adjust plans as necessary.

Generate and Distribute Reports

Frequency: Weekly 

Time Required: 2-3 hours

  • Prepare a weekly performance report including key metrics (Occupancy, ADR, RevPAR).
  • Compare performance to budget and previous year.
  • Highlight top-performing and underperforming segments.
  • Distribute report to key stakeholders before the team meeting.

4.3 Monthly Processes

Monthly activities focus on longer-term strategy and performance analysis.

Conduct Market and Comp Set Analysis

Frequency: Monthly 

Time Required: 4-6 hours

  • Compare your property's or properties' performance to similar properties in the area.
  • Analyze key metrics: Asking Rates, Occupancy, ADR, and RevPAR.
  • Identify areas where your properties are over or underperforming relative to the market.
  • Develop strategies to address any gaps in performance.

Review and Update Strategy Documentation

Frequency: Monthly 

Time Required: 2-3 hours

  • Review your documented revenue management strategies.
  • Update any strategies that have changed based on recent performance or market conditions.
  • Ensure all team members are aware of and understand any strategy changes.

Analyze Longer-Term Trends

Frequency: Monthly 

Time Required: 3-4 hours

  • Look at booking patterns and performance for the next 12-18 months (depending on your calendar availability).
  • Identify any potential issues or opportunities in the longer term.
  • Ensure Far Future rates and MLoS restrictions are set appropriately, especially over known events, holidays, or high seasons.
  • Develop strategies to address these, such as adjusting base rates or planning promotional activities.

Prepare Monthly Strategic Report

Frequency: Monthly 

Time Required: 2+ hours

  • Conduct a detailed analysis of the past month's performance.
  • Compare year-to-date performance to budget and previous year.
  • Analyze the effectiveness of revenue management strategies implemented during the month.
  • Provide recommendations for adjustments to long-term strategy if needed.

4.4 Quarterly and Annual Processes

While not part of the regular monthly routine, these less frequent activities are crucial for long-term success.

Conduct Post-Mortem Analysis

Frequency: Quarterly, or after major events/seasons.

Time Required: 2+ hours

  • Analyze what strategies worked well and what didn't during the past quarter or season.
  • Assess if revenue goals were achieved.
  • Compare performance to competitors.
  • Identify any missed opportunities.
  • Use insights to refine strategies for the upcoming quarter or season.

Review and Update Segmentation

Frequency: Annually 

Time Required: 2+ hours

  • Review your portfolio segmentation (e.g., by market, neighborhood, bedroom count).
  • Assess if current segmentation is still effective or if adjustments are needed.
  • Update segmentation in your RMS and documentation as necessary.

Conduct Annual Strategy Planning

Frequency: Annually 

Time Required: 2+ hours

  • Review overall performance for the past year.
  • Analyze market trends and forecasts for the coming year.
  • Set revenue goals for the upcoming year.
  • Develop high-level strategies to achieve these goals.
  • Communicate the annual plan to all stakeholders.

By following these structured processes, you ensure that your revenue management activities are comprehensive, consistent, and aligned with your overall business objectives. Regular review and refinement of these processes will help you continually improve your revenue management effectiveness.

Course Page

0 Basics

1 Identify

2 Intervene

Back to 3 - Communicate

Contributors

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Kegan Mulholland

Revenue Manager and Head of Onboarding at Wheelhouse

Kegan is a seasoned Revenue Manager and heads the Wheelhouse onboarding team.

John profile

John deRoulet

Sr. Director of Revenue Management Education

John deRoulet (JDR) is an expert revenue manager and sought after revenue strategist.

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Andrew Kitchell

CEO & Founder

Andrew Kitchell is CEO and Founder at Wheelhouse, a revenue management platform that serves the leading professional operators in the vacation rental, short-term, corporate rental & boutique hotel space. 

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