What is a hotel sales manager?
A hotel sales manager is a professional hired by a hotel to develop and manage sales strategies, with the aim of increasing brand visibility, bookings and revenue.
What does a hotel sales manager actually do?
What does a sales manager do in a hotel? A hotel sales manager’s responsibilities can include:
- Identifying new markets and sales opportunities
- Developing and executing sales strategies
- Building and maintaining relationships with travel agents and corporate clients
- Negotiating contracts and agreements for events, conferences and group bookings
- Coordinating with other departments and leaders, particularly the hotel revenue manager.
What is the primary purpose of a hotel sales manager?
The primary role of a hotel sales manager is to drive more bookings and revenue. Experienced professionals will accomplish this goal by implementing a range of strategies, from targeting untapped audiences to developing more tempting hotel deals.
In this guide we’ll take a closer look at hotel sales managers through the lens of the hotels who hire them.
Why are hotel sales manager jobs important?
Hotel sales managers are valuable because they are dedicated sales professionals. Many medium-sized hotels treat sales as an extension of marketing, and therefore miss out on the vast opportunities that a dedicated sales manager and team can capitalise on.
Hotel sales manager job description example
The specifics of a job description will depend on the role – you’ll describe a freelance, remote hotel sales manager very differently to an on-site department head, for example. But for the most part a hotel group sales manager job description will be structured something like this:
- Job title: Create a clear title for the open role, e.g. “Hotel Group Sales Manager”
- Job Summary: Provide a brief, paragraph-long overview of the role in the context of the broader business.
- Responsibilities: List the key hotel sales manager duties, e.g. developing and implementing sales strategies and managing corporate/group bookings.
- Requirements: List the skills, experience and qualifications that the sales manager is expected to bring to the role.
- Benefits: Provide a summary of benefits, such as hotel sales manager salary, hotel sales manager commission structure, and career development opportunities.
Hotel group sales manager vs senior hotel sales manager
There isn’t much difference between a hotel group sales manager and a senior hotel sales manager.
As the name suggests, a hotel group sales manager works for a hotel chain or group. A senior hotel sales manager, meanwhile, can work in any hotel business – group or single property – large enough to employ multiple sales managers, a group which they lead.
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Essential hotel sales manager skills
What talents do effective hotel sales managers bring to the table? Here are five must-have skills:
- Negotiation skills: To secure favourable contracts and rates.
- Communication skills: To build strong client relationships and work well with others.
- Analytical skills: To understand the industry trends that will inform sales strategies.
- Time management: To effectively manage responsibilities, deadlines and client communications.
- Leadership abilities: To guide junior staff and coordinate sales initiatives.
What are the strengths of a hotel sales manager?
The number one strength of any hotel sales manager is communication. Whether we’re talking about clients, sales teams or other hotel departments, a sales manager needs to be able to communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing, to get their job done.
What makes the best hotel sales manager?
The best hotel sales managers will combine elite communication skills with a constant drive to earn more sales. There’s no real end point to this role – the aim is to always make more money – so a great hotel sales manager will be able to maintain the hunger.
Core hotel sales manager responsibilities
Some of the key tasks that hotel sales managers are responsible for include:
Team management
Leading and supporting the sales team by setting clear goals, providing guidance and creating a collaborative work environment.
Client management
Building and maintaining strong relationships with clients to maximise satisfaction and earn repeat business.
Stakeholder management
Communicating and coordinating with internal stakeholders – marketing, operations, leadership – to ensure sales activities are aligned with the hotel’s broader goals.
Process improvement
Identifying and implementing improvements in sales processes to increase efficiency and streamline operations.
Sales improvement
Developing strategies to boost sales and revenue.
What are seven basic functions performed by a hotel sales manager?
A hotel sales manager performs a number of key functions as they manage their team, maintain client relationships and work to boost revenue. Seven of the most basic functions include:
- Optimising sales strategies
- Coordinating with other departments
- Identifying sales opportunities
- Negotiating contracts
- Managing client relationships
Hotel sales manager daily checklist
The specific responsibilities of a hotel sales manager will vary from role to role, but a daily checklist for a run-of-the-mill hotel manager might look something like this:
- Check emails and respond to client enquiries
- Track sales KPIs against targets
- Review sales goals and priorities
- Update and monitor key client accounts in the CRM
- Follow up with potential leads and contact current clients
- Review upcoming bookings or events with the relevant departments
- Analyse competitor rates and market trends
- Use insights to review and adjust sales strategies
- Prepare for and participate in sales team meetings
- Plan tasks for the next day and set follow-up reminders
In order to set your sales managers up for success, it certainly helps to equip your hotel with the best technology and automation on the market.