Rule One: never give away something for free that you can charge for.
Rule Two: Bundle!
Lots of rules, but essentially… If people are paying for beverages at your resort… keep charging for them.
However, to increase your sales, bundle them! Buy 5 and get one free or start a frequent buyer card.
The last is my favorite.
The hotter it is, the more beverages you’ll sell, but what happens when it rains? Dang… There’s a whole bunch of inventory in your cooler.
Recently, I was at a resort and saw a sign in the elevator advertising “activity packages” and I thought… “Genius!”
Hotels and resorts that keep guests at the pool make money. Food, floaties, suntan lotion, drinks… It’s an endless list, but you have to have your guests stick around to increase your sales.
This hotel created “packages”. Mostly of services. Lots of fun things that are intangible or an “in the moment” use… Like beverages. There is no fixed expense to the card for the business, for example, the buyer doesn’t automatically get a T shirt or hat. However, if they attend the arts and crafts activity included on the card, they can tie dye one to take home. If they consume a beverage there is a cost to the business, but if they don’t consume a beverage there is no cost to the business.
Up front the hotel receives $50 to $180 depending on the package purchased, the cost of the card to the business will vary because it’s entirely up to the guest to see how much of the card they “consume” and that’s why it’s awesome!
Once they pay the card they have lots of stuff they can do or receive, like; arts and crafts activities, soda, sno-cones, floaties. But again, the buyer has to stick around the resort to receive the value of the card. Which ultimately means you get the “free” thing in the bundle like a beverage… But you’re going to want chips or a sandwich, too and since they’re not included in the bundle you have to buy them. I seriously LOVE this “resort card” concept.
I mean, as parents, you want to take a ride to visit the near-by outlet mall, however, the “scuba lesson” that’s on your pre-purchased card starts at 3:20pm. You’ve got to stick around for that, after all, the kids want to do it and you already paid for it.
How about weather? I’ll bet the hotel “pool floatie” rental business isn’t as strong on a cloudy day, but they still have to staff the pool. Pre-paid bundle cards includes floaties! People will stick around the pool because they already paid for the fun.
Pre-paid cards are a nice way for a business to have more control over negative weather. Think of golf courses and their multiple package cards. The business gets paid and is less affected by a stretch of bad weather.
So if you’re looking to increase your sales or for a way level out “ups and downs” for weather, start to think bundle cards.
Whether it’s the one stop bundle (resort activity card) or the frequent purchaser card (coffee), there is a way to creatively bundle your services together and increase your sales!
