4-minute read
How many times have you heard a hotel owner say: “I won’t go below that rate”, “I’d rather stay empty”, “I need to hit at least 80% occupancy”?
These phrases sound like hard-won wisdom. In reality, they are deep-rooted beliefs that, without a solid commercial strategy behind them, turn into lost revenue — every day, every season, every year.
At Metodo Your Next Level we work side by side with hotels to dismantle these preconceptions and replace them with concrete tools: dynamic revenue management, multichannel distribution, negotiated contracts with tour operators, and full coverage of both online and offline channels. The result? More profit, fewer empty rooms, less stress.
Here are the most common myths we encounter — and why it’s time to let them go.
Myth #1: “I won’t go below this rate. Ever.”
Almost every hotel owner has a mental floor. A number below which dropping feels like a defeat, a loss of dignity, almost a betrayal of their product.
The problem is that this number rarely comes from analysis. It comes from habit, from what their father used to do, from what the competitor across the street charges, from a gut feeling.
Revenue management thinks differently: an unsold room generates zero revenue but carries its full cost. Utilities, staff, maintenance, depreciation — they run whether the room is occupied or not. Selling at a rate below the “mental floor” can, at certain points in the demand curve, be the most profitable decision available.
The right rate is not the one you feel you “should” charge. It’s the one the market is expressing at that precise moment, managed intelligently to maximise RevPAR — not just the price of a single night.
Myth #2: “I need to hit a certain occupancy percentage.”
Occupancy is a vanity metric. It feels good, but on its own it says nothing about the financial health of a hotel.
A hotel at 95% occupancy with discounted rates can generate less margin than one at 70% with a high average rate and a well-selected clientele. The metric that matters is RevPAR (Revenue Per Available Room) and, even more so, TRevPAR when the entire property is considered — food & beverage, spa, parking, ancillary services.
Chasing occupancy as the primary goal leads to compressing rates at the wrong times, accepting guest segments that are incompatible with the property’s positioning, and “burning” availability that could have been sold at a better rate just a few days later.
Our approach works on profit targets, not fill targets. The difference, at year end, shows up in the bottom line.
Myth #3: “I’d rather stay empty than sell at that price.”
This has an understandable emotional logic. It has, however, a fundamental flaw: an unsold room is not neutral. It is a straight loss.
Staying empty does not preserve the value of your product in the eyes of the market — that is built through positioning, reputation, and quality of service. It is preserved through an intelligent distribution strategy, not through closed rooms.
Dynamic revenue management exists precisely for this: opening and closing channels, raising and lowering rates, managing availability in line with real and forecast demand. It’s not about underselling. It’s about not wasting.
Myth #4: “Word of mouth is enough. I don’t need OTAs and online channels.”
Word of mouth is valuable. But it doesn’t scale, it isn’t predictable, and it doesn’t fill the gaps in low season.
Multichannel distribution — OTAs, direct booking engine, GDS, tour operators, agencies — is not an ideological choice. It is a commercial lever. Each channel reaches different demand segments, at different times, with different budgets.
Managing multichannel distribution poorly (or not managing it at all) means either depending entirely on a single intermediary, or losing visibility on the markets that could fill rooms when local demand falls short.
We work on distribution as a system: channel manager, considered rate parity, direct booking optimisation to reduce commissions, offline channel coverage with selected tour operators. Each channel has its role, its cost, its expected return.
Myth #5: “Tour operators only bring the worst guests at the lowest prices.”
This is a generalisation that often stems from negative experiences with poorly negotiated contracts.
Tour operators — both traditional and specialist — bring programmed, predictable demand, often during low-season periods when the individual market is thin. A well-structured contract, with considered allotments, appropriate release clauses, and rates negotiated around volumes and periods, can be a powerful tool for strategic fill.
The problem is not the tour operator. It’s negotiating contracts without the tools to do so effectively. We support hotels through this process: demand mix analysis, identification of operators aligned with the property’s positioning, conditions negotiation, and performance monitoring.
Myth #6: “The market sets the price — there’s nothing I can do.”
Partly true. Partly the most comfortable excuse for having no strategy.
The market creates the demand curve. But within that curve, pricing decisions make the difference between a hotel that captures value and one that leaves it on the table.
Dynamic pricing doesn’t mean changing prices at random. It means having a system: a base rate calibrated to cost and positioning, variation rules tied to pick-up trends, market compression, local events, and booking window. It means knowing when to raise rates before others do, and when to lower them without waiting for rooms to sit empty.
Without these tools, you react. With them, you anticipate.
Myth #7: “I’ve always done it this way. It worked before, it’ll work again.”
The hospitality market has changed radically over the past ten years. The digitalisation of distribution, the growth of OTAs, the evolution of traveller booking behaviour, the volatility of post-pandemic demand: these are structural shifts, not temporary ones.
“I’ve always done it this way” is the most dangerous phrase an entrepreneur can say in a market that keeps evolving. Not because experience has no value — it has enormous value. But because experience without data, without tools, and without an up-to-date reading of the market becomes an anchor to the past rather than a lever for the future.
What We Do at Metodo Your Next Level
We don’t sell magic formulas. We bring a method.
We work alongside hotels with an integrated approach that activates every commercial lever:
Dynamic Revenue Management — pricing strategies based on real and forecast demand, with defined and measurable profit targets
Multichannel Distribution — full management and optimisation of every channel: OTAs, direct booking, GDS, tour operators, agencies
Contract Negotiation — selection and management of commercial partners (TOs, agencies, corporate) with contracts structured to protect and enhance the property
Commercial Consulting — positioning analysis, segment mix, competitive set, to build a strategy aligned with the market and the owner’s objectives
The result is not a fuller hotel at any cost. It is a more profitable hotel, with a solid commercial structure, capable of navigating seasonality without relying on chance or habit.
Ready to question the way you’ve “always done things”?
Get in touch for an initial analysis of your property. Together, we’ll find your next level.
Article by Giorgia Manno, Sales & Operations Manager at MeToDo. A hospitality specialist with hands-on experience from operational roles through to management and direction, she supports hotels through the full journey: onboarding, pricing, revenue management, and commercial development. She translates strategy into concrete action, with an approach that combines field knowledge and a results-driven outlook.
Metodo Your Next Level — Revenue Management and Commercial Consulting for Hotels
