Hotel News Now just published a salient piece entitled, The money no one is talking about, which discussed the hospitality industry’s tendency to overlook Food and Beverage (F&B) as a viable source for additional revenue.  In it, the author asks the question, “How do you keep your guests’ F&B dollars within the four walls of your hotel?”

A great question, that.

Many best practices were suggested (standardizing purchasing for cost control, establishing standard portion sizes and service standards, among others), however the one that struck us was this: “Defining menus that align with the needs of guest preferences.”

Curious—exactly how does a hotel company uncover guest preferences in order to define menus (or restaurant types, or beverage mixes, or other on-property amenities like micro-retail or spas)?  By guest surveys and questionnaires?  Hardly an efficient or conclusive way to know what guests prefer at scale.

Luckily, there’s an answer—a mobile-derived answer. 

Knowing where guests go while on property and in-between stays tells hoteliers a true story about their preferences—where they shop, the local events and activities they attend and to the point of article: where they frequently drink and dine. New, location based behavioral analytics can give hoteliers just that, at scale, in a privacy friendly manner.

Just think how powerful it would be to know, for example, that many guests that visit a hotel property with an American cuisine restaurant, actually frequently dine at nearby Italian bistros while staying on property and at home, in-between stays?  Or knowing that guests staying at that property frequently attend craft beer festivals featuring domestic brews—brews they don’t offer?

If you’re not currently gathering these essential insights about your guests to make informed decisions on F&B and other amenities…aren’t you really just guessing, and leaving money on the table?