Hotel revenue management outsourcing means an external team takes over the revenue manager role: daily rate and inventory decisions, restrictions, forecasting, distribution and reporting. You keep control of the hotel and see every decision; the work, the tools and the expertise are provided for a monthly fee instead of a salary.
Demand drivers in Chicago: Lollapalooza and summer festivals; McCormick Place conventions; Cubs, Bears and Bulls seasons; Christmas markets and Magnificent Mile lights. Typical guests: Weekend leisure guests, convention attendees and families visiting Wrigleyville, River North and the West Loop. Where the work starts: Summer-heavy seasonal spread, convention and concert premiums, and winter floor pricing paired with longer minimum stays.
Chicago hotels sell to convention attendees, corporate travellers and summer leisure guests, so convention calendars at McCormick Place drive pricing more than almost anything else. We set convention-week pricing early, protect festival weekends from discounted groups and track comp sets separately for the Loop, River North, the Magnificent Mile and the South Loop. Winter weekends need targeted leisure packages.
The full service is described on our outsourced revenue management for hotels page; this page covers how it applies in Chicago.