Let’s Talk Data Paralysis…
The world of AI is amazing. In a space where I am between jobs and seeking my next opportunity, I can use programs like Gemini or Chat GPT to practice potential questions that might come up based on the job descriptions. You can even provide your answer, and it gives feedback on your thoughts. While practicing this week, Gemini asked me a great question that got me thinking. “How would you analyze data to identify trends and opportunities?” This question gave me a pause and I bet that surprises you. It is a broad question that can send you into a tar pit with the dinosaurs if you do not think through your answer. So, let’s break it down.
You have just taken on a new hotel, in a new market that you know nothing about. The idea is to do a little research to identify wins and opportunities. You have all the major BI tools to assist you so you dive in without a plan to see what you can find. You skip lunch because who needs to eat when you have data? When you are done, you find that you have 3 pages of information but nowhere to start and you are more confused than when you started. Any of this sound familiar?
Data holes are time sucks. I do not know too many revenue managers out there that confidently say they have time in their day but get trapped anyways. You must start with a plan of where you are and where do you want to go; write the answers to those questions first. I like to look at data wholistically, looking at the whole picture from 30,000 feet. This allows me to identify areas of opportunity for deeper focus. From there, I ask questions about what trends I am seeing and identify if they are just a one-time occurrence or if there is a pattern that needs to be addressed.
For example, in our unknown hotel above, I would want to look at one month of aggregate data first, for simple conversation, let’s say we look at a month STR. Looking at the typical data points you can quickly identify if you have an occupancy or ADR issue. You determine you have an occupancy issue for the previous month so you can now look at the last quarter and see if that is trending still or you can look at the next quarter and see if you are improving. All of this took you maybe 10 minutes and now you know where you have been: underperforming in occupancy.
Where do you want to go? That is the next question. Now you can drill down into your segments and market analysis. Use whatever BI systems you have available to compare your market share by segment to what is available and what you should have. If your occupancy loss in is group, write that down. If the loss is in discounts, write that down. Now identify when you have those gaps, weekdays or weekends or both, then write that down. STOP HERE! This is important, stop before you overthink it. One more step, especially in a silo is a step to far…at least in my opinion.
Now you have where you have been and where do you need to go to be successful. Do you remember what this statement was? It is your mission statement! Working with your commercial team, you can now use these two answers (where you have been and where you need to go) to identify your strategic steps and start winning. Keep is simple and you will get to keep your sanity and some time in your day.
