Our New Action Plan: 5 Stages to Orchestrate the Guest Experience
Our new operational map provides a clear path forward for the industry. Each stage has a defined mission and requires a cross-functional team, or “pod,” responsible for executing it with measurable goals.
Stage 1: ATTRACT
Our first mission is to ATTRACT. We must become the inspiration for our guests’ journeys, creating genuine desire by telling a compelling story that moves far beyond simply selling on rate.
But a compelling story requires a solid foundation. We must ground our strategy in two fundamentals. First, we need an in-depth understanding of our destination and the primary reasons people travel there. Second, we must have a crystal-clear definition of our target audience—the travelers who represent the absolute best fit for our specific hotel’s identity and offerings. These two insights guide every message, ensuring we answer the critical question of why a guest should choose us over any other option.
With that strategic clarity, we can empower dedicated, cross-functional “Storytelling Pods”—uniting Marketing, Brand, and PR—to lead the charge. These pods must invest in cinematic video and immersive imagery that resonate with our target audience’s motivations for visiting the destination. We must establish authentic influencer partnerships that align with the values of our ideal guests. Our social channels need to become platforms for storytelling that build a true community around shared interests.
Finally, we must hold ourselves accountable with clear metrics. Success should be measured by our brand’s search volume and share of voice within our defined audience segments. We will also track the engagement rate of our content and the quality of media placements, ensuring that our compelling story reaches and resonates with the right people.
Stage 2: CAPTURE
After attracting the right guest, we will need to CAPTURE their business. Our mission here is to convert that interest into profitable direct bookings, making the process as seamless and efficient as possible. Succeeding at this stage requires a powerful blend of commercial and technical expertise, led by a unified “Conversion Pod” that brings together Digital, Revenue Management, Distribution, and Sales.
brand.com. We must ensure that our websites offer a frictionless and intuitive booking journey, which is unequivocally our most profitable channel. To enhance that experience, we must leverage AI-powered personalization to make our websites dynamic—showing the right offer and the right message to the right guest at the right time. A disciplined distribution strategy is also crucial. We must view OTAs as tactical partners for targeted reach, not as a crutch we depend on for volume.The success of our capture strategy will be transparent and data-driven. We will measure our direct booking share and the profitability of every single channel. On our own websites, we will obsess over the website conversion rate and work tirelessly to reduce the booking abandonment rate. Furthermore, our goal is not just to sell a room but to maximize the value of each transaction by tracking the ancillary revenue captured per booking.
Stage 3: PREPARE
The guest journey doesn’t pause after a booking is made. The period between booking and arrival is a golden opportunity we have historically overlooked. Our mission in the PREPARE stage is to build anticipation and begin personalizing the upcoming stay, turning a simple transaction into the start of a real relationship.
An “Experience Pod”, with a sharp focus on pre-arrival, must orchestrate this phase by connecting our CRM, Front Office, and Concierge teams. We must proactively engage guests with personalized pre-stay emails that offer genuine value, like curated local guides or early access to event tickets. We must also offer seamless mobile check-in and room selection options to provide convenience and control. Most importantly, we need to use our CRM data to ask about preferences—from pillow types to arrival times—demonstrating our commitment to the details before a guest even walks through the door.
The impact of an intense preparation phase is highly measurable. We will track pre-arrival upsell revenue from room upgrades, spa bookings, or F&B reservations. A critical operational metric will be the mobile check-in adoption rate, a key indicator of guest convenience. Finally, we must measure the volume and quality of guest preference data captured in our CRM. High-quality guest data is an invaluable asset that pays dividends during the current stay and for all future visits.
Stage 4: DELIVER
Now comes the moment of truth. All the storytelling and seamless booking culminate in the on-property experience. In the DELIVER stage, our mission is to flawlessly execute the brand promise we made during attraction and capture. We must create memorable, human-centric moments that not only meet expectations but also exceed them.
Our on-property “Experience Pod”—uniting Operations, F&B, and Wellness—is the heart of this effort. We must empower our staff with CRM insights so they can genuinely recognize and delight guests, turning data from previous stages into personal connections. Our focus must shift from simply managing rooms to driving Total Revenue, actively promoting our on-site amenities, such as dining, spa, and unique local experiences. We will also integrate seamless technology, such as mobile keys and in-app requests, not to replace service, but to enhance the human touch by freeing up our teams to focus on meaningful guest interactions.
The results of our delivery are measured in two ways: guest happiness and total profitability. We will rigorously monitor guest satisfaction scores (NPS) and the sentiment of positive online reviews. On the financial side, we must look beyond RevPAR and measure our success by Total Revenue Per Available Room (TRevPAR), along with the growth in in-stay ancillary spend.
Stage 5: REVIEW
A guest’s departure is not an end, but a beginning. The final stage of the journey is where we create a lasting connection. The mission of the REVIEW stage is to turn a great stay into powerful loyalty and authentic advocacy. A successful review stage creates a virtuous cycle, directly fueling our “ATTRACT” efforts for new guests.
A dedicated “Loyalty Pod”, uniting CRM, Marketing, and Sales, must own this critical post-stay phase. A comprehensive review process looks both outward to our guests and inward to our teams. We must be proactive in collecting post-stay guest feedback and diligent in managing our online reputation. Simultaneously, we must establish a formal process for gathering input from all team members, constantly asking: What works well? What could we improve to increase both guest satisfaction and our own productivity? Combining direct guest insights with the on-the-ground expertise of our teams will dramatically accelerate our ability to improve.
The ultimate proof of our success lies in the long-term value our guests place on us and their advocacy. We must shift our focus to measuring Customer Lifetime Value (CLV). We will closely monitor our repeat booking rate (especially direct bookings) and the volume and sentiment of online reviews, recognizing that these results are the product of a guest- and team-driven commitment to excellence.
The Engine for Change: Leadership, Technology, and Talent
This five-stage framework is a powerful map, but it requires a new kind of engine to bring it to life. We must power our strategy with three critical components: our leadership, our technology, and our talent.
Leadership is the Catalyst. The role of a leader in our industry is fundamentally changing. Leadership is no longer about protecting departmental turf; it’s about providing vision, breaking down barriers, and holding every function accountable for its measurable impact on the guest journey. We must lead with data to gain insight, but always with the empathy and compassion our people deserve in a business built on human connection.
Technology is Our Engine. We must fully embrace a data-driven mindset. Hotel Business Intelligence (BI) is the foundation, providing the essential knowledge and insights across all stages of the guest journey. BI platforms break down our data silos and give us a single source of truth to drive better decisions. On top of that foundation, we must view Artificial Intelligence (AI) not as a replacement, but as an accelerator. AI takes the insights from our BI and puts them into action—automating prospecting, optimizing campaigns, and forecasting demand. Using this powerful combination frees our people to do what they do best: build relationships and create the fantastic experiences that technology alone cannot.
Talent is Our Future. To execute this guest-centric strategy, we must invest in and cultivate a new kind of professional. We need ‘T-shaped’ people—experts with deep knowledge in one area but a broad understanding of the entire commercial landscape. The sales manager who embraces digital prospecting and the marketer who understands TRevPAR are the future of our industry.
Conclusion: It’s Time for a Commercial Reset
The choice we face as an industry is clear. We can continue to operate with commercial structures designed for a bygone era, discussing the same internal arguments every quarter. Or, we can rally around the single, powerful action plan outlined here, recognizing that a seamless guest journey is the most direct path to long-term profitability and unshakable brand loyalty.
The hotels that thrive in 2025 and beyond will be led by commercially sharp, emotionally intelligent leaders who unify their teams around this common cause. Successful organizations will be the ones that finally trade their spreadsheets of conflict for a shared, dynamic map of the customer journey.
Ultimately, the question is not whether we can afford to change. The real question is whether we can afford not to.
