Share(McLean, VA) The Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International (HSMAI) and Knowland present The New Sales Team, a white paper that discusses how the evolving tactics of hotel sales teams are in turn changing the dynamic between hotel management companies and owner groups. The new sales team is focused on direct selling, fulfills multiple functions across a tiered organization, and does not rely on inbound leads.
Through interviews with industry leaders, the white paper examines how sales teams are moving from an overreliance on inbound leads to a renewed commitment to hunting and data-driven selling, and how this affects the type of data that sales teams, management companies, and ownership groups need and how they use that data.
“As sales teams continue to evolve in this environment, this white paper examines the effect this has within hotel management companies (HMCs) and ownership groups,” said Robert A. Gilbert, CHME, CHBA, president and CEO of HSMAI. “It is important to fully understand how to develop successful long- and short-term strategies to reconfigure sales teams and continue to effectively sell.”
The New Sales Team focuses on three main topics:
Hitting the Reset Button
Shifting business demands require a change in the sales dynamic — one that is rooted in proactive selling and will be necessary for teams to continue moving forward. Owners and management companies have had to think differently about how they sell and service, including structuring teams to focus on direct selling, rather than responding to inbound leads — a less effective use of their time. These changes are an opportunity for teams to hit the reset button and optimize business during the recovery and set hotels up for future growth.
New Approaches, New Needs
In order to have meaningful conversations, HMC sales professionals need access to the right type of data about their potential customers. It’s no longer enough to assume that your sales deployment is right, or that business is automatically going to return to normal at some specific point in time.
Future Forward
While HMCs and ownership groups will continue to add back personnel to their teams as post-pandemic booking and travel ramp up, strategies should not look the same as they did in 2019. Sales teams are going to be challenged to find efficiencies and cut out unproductive activities.
“We are excited to participate with HSMAI in this white paper. It is important to gain feedback from sales professionals, particularly as HMCs and owner groups re-evaluate and strategize on the best way to rebuild their sales teams,” said Patricia Shea, VP, sales and customer success, Knowland. “To be successful in 2022 and beyond, sales teams must pivot to become more productive and proactive sales engines. We look forward to helping ensure our customers have the tools they need to do just that.”
Access The New Sales Team on the HSMAI Americas website.
About HSMAI
The Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International (HSMAI) is committed to growing business for hotels and their partners and is the industry’s leading advocate for intelligent, sustainable hotel revenue growth. The association provides hotel professionals and their partners with tools, insights, and expertise to fuel sales, inspire marketing, and optimize revenue through programs such as the Marketing Strategy Conference, Adrian Awards, and HSMAI ROC. Founded in 1927, HSMAI is a membership organization comprising more than 5,000 members worldwide, with 40 chapters in the Americas Region. Connect with HSMAI at hsmai.org, HSMAI Facebook, HSMAI Twitter, and HSMAI YouTube.
About Knowland
Knowland is the world’s leading provider of data-as-a-service insights on meetings and events for hospitality. With the industry’s largest historical database of actualized events, thousands of customers trust Knowland to sell group smarter and maximize their revenue. Knowland operates globally and is headquartered just outside Washington, DC. To learn more about our solutions, visit www.knowland.com or follow us on Twitter @knowlandgroup.
Media Contact
Kaitlin Dunn
MCI | USA
kdunn@hsmai.org