IDeaS and Comwell Hotels: Navigating Revenue Management Challenges with Data-Driven Solutions

The Story

Comwell Hotels, a renowned hotel chain with a strong presence in Denmark, has been a leader in the hospitality industry for nearly half a century. Comwell has built a robust brand reputation with a strong focus on conferences, corporate travel, leisure and spa services. While the conference segment has long been a key focus area, Comwell understands the need for agile, data-driven decision making to stay competitive in an evolving market.

Comwell’s Journey to Proactive Revenue Management

Before partnering with IDeaS, Comwell faced a manual, time-consuming process of building ad-hoc reports to make revenue management decisions. Lars Wittendorff, Comwell’s head of revenue management, noted this process left little time for data analysis. The manual nature of their revenue management operations made them reactive in decision making, hindering their ability to adapt proactively to market changes, IDeaS and Comwell Hotels: Navigating Revenue Management Challenges with Data-Driven Solutions and in turn, limiting their ability to reach their overall revenue potential.

“We spent more time building reports and less time analyzing the data, giving us a short amount of time to make decisions which were more impulsive than strategic.”

Elevating Performance

Since Comwell implemented their suite of IDeaS products, which includes G3 RMS and Optix, their performance has soared to new heights. In terms of market share, they are not only on par with but often outperform their competition. According to Wittendorff, this success has instilled more confidence in their revenue management team because they now have tested data at their disposal. With IDeaS, Comwell now has better visibility into their revenue management performance—and that’s led to a tangible increase in rooms profitability. Furthermore, the consistency in data provided by IDeaS has been instrumental in streamlining their decision-making processes. While data consistency might not be the most glamorous topic, it plays a crucial role in enhancing efficiency and reducing frustration as staff know they’re working with reliable data.

The IDeaS solutions have also played a pivotal role in promoting effective communication among hotel departments. Through IDeaS’ comprehensive training and explanations of the system’s functions, such as optimizing the sale of the last few rooms through Last Room Value, Comwell has bridged the gap between the revenue management team and other departments.

One powerful feature, Investigator, has become indispensable for Comwell, enabling them to conduct in-depth analysis of the system’s forecast and pricing decisions. This helpful exploratory capability is invaluable in their day-to-day operations as staff seek to gain confidence and trust in G3 RMS’s decisions.

Simplifying Data with Optix

Optix, IDeaS revenue intelligence solution for multi-property portfolios, has streamlined data management for Comwell. The tool’s dashboards replaced time-consuming spreadsheets, offering an efficient way to gather and compile data at a portfolio level. This shift not only saves time but also enhances strategic decision-making, allowing the team to swiftly identify trends and capitalize on opportunities.

Optix has already led to operational changes and improved decision-making. It enables Comwell to analyze day-of-week patterns and market segments with ease, across multiple properties. Wittendorff appreciates the convenience of viewing rate code sales and property bookings on a single screen, which has fostered trust within the organization regarding the revenue team’s expertise.

Setting the Stage for Revenue Management Success at Scale

Thanks to IDeaS’ data-driven insights, the hotel chain effectively navigated rapidly changing market trends in the post-pandemic years. They capitalized on short booking windows and adapted swiftly to unpredictable market dynamics, significantly increasing rates in the process.

A notable example is Comwell Copenhagen Portside, who reevaluated their rate structure after implementation and training with IDeaS’ G3 RMS. By increasing the ceiling rate, they witnessed a substantial increase in ADR. Despite some initial concern internally, this change has not made waves with guests, as Comwell reports no negative impact on guest reviews.

For Comwell, the fact that IDeaS specializes in revenue management software instills a high level of confidence in both the product itself and the expertise of the team supporting it. Wittendorff underscored the significance of selecting a well-established partner for such a crucial aspect of their business and IDeaS’ outstanding history of excellence in areas like training, integration, data quality, and consulting provides Comwell with the confidence they need to succeed.

Comwell’s partnership with IDeaS has not only improved their financial performance but also their ability to adapt, respond, and thrive in a rapidly changing industry. By leveraging data and automation, they have secured a competitive edge and positioned themselves for future growth and success.