Hotel Banqueting is one of the essential revenue sources for hotels because it allows you to sell additional amenities or services.
However, banqueting has many variables, such as different costs, food and beverage, marketing, etc., and you must have a systematic approach to reap its benefits.
What is a banquet in hotels, and how can the Banquet feature drive revenue?
Let’s find out!
What Is a Banquet in Hotels?
A banquet in a hotel is a large, usually formal meal or festivity for many guests in a hotel’s dining or event space.
Hotels usually organize banquets for special occasions such as:
- Weddings,
- Corporate events,
- Conferences,
- Gala dinners,
- Awards ceremonies and other celebrations that require a spacious venue, catering services, and event coordination.
What Does Banqueting Cover?
Hotel banqueting covers various aspects that offer a sophisticated and upscale setting.
✨ Venue
Depending on the size and possibilities of your hotel, you can offer
- Banquet halls,
- Ballrooms,
- Function rooms and
- Event spaces to accommodate large gatherings for banquets.
These venues typically include seating arrangements, staging areas, dance floors, audiovisual equipment, and other amenities to host events successfully.
✨ Catering Services
You can provide catering services for banquets, offering various menu options, cuisine styles, and dining arrangements to suit the event requirements.
Catering packages may include:
- Multi-course meals,
- Buffets,
- Food stations,
- Pre-set services
- Themed menus,
- Beverage selections and customized culinary experiences tailored to guests’ preferences.
✨ Event Planning and Coordination
Your staff, including hotel event planners and coordinators, is in charge of organizing the event, coordinating logistics, managing guest RSVPs, and ensuring seamless execution.
Naturally, your team should work closely with clients to plan event details, customize decor, arrange seating layouts, schedule entertainment, and oversee event flow.
✨ Decor and Ambiance
Elegant decor, lighting arrangements, floral displays, table settings, linens, centerpieces, etc., can enhance the ambiance of banquets and create a festive atmosphere.
You can customize decor to match the event’s theme, branding, color scheme, or style preferences.
✨ Entertainment and Activities
Banquets may include entertainment options such as live music, DJ services, dance performances, interactive activities, photo booths, and other engaging elements to enhance guest enjoyment.
Why is Hotel Banqueting an Important Revenue Stream?
Banquet sales can contribute significantly to your hotel’s revenue stream because they help you make the most of your facilities and otherwise less-used spaces.
This allows you to leverage their resources efficiently and maximize profitability.
In addition, professionally organized banqueting can:
- Enhance your hotel’s reputation and attract new customers since you can showcase your services, amenities, and hospitality to a wide audience. Consequently, positive word-of-mouth can lead to repeat business, referrals, and long-term partnerships with organizations and individuals.
- Diversify your revenue streams beyond traditional bookings and weather fluctuations in the hospitality industry.
What’s more, you can implement a variety of upselling and cross-selling opportunities for guests to buy additional services, curated packages, etc.
5 Hot Tips to Increase Banquet Sales in Hotels
Hotel banqueting provides abundant benefits and opportunities you can leverage even more by implementing the following tips:
- Do benchmarking to see what your competitors lack, where you can shine, and offer something they don’t.
- Target your audience so you can create and tailor the event and the accompanying elements to their specific needs.
- Advertise your Banquet feature across OTAs, your website, social media channels, etc.
Opt for channels where most of your target audience resides to increase the possibility of booking.
- Nurture relationships with previous banqueting guests and create a reward or loyalty program to entice them to return.
- Monitor OTAs, social media, and other channels to check guests’ sentiments and use them to identify what you do well and where you can improve.
Why Should You Opt For Hotel Management Software (HMS) to Automate Banqueting Service?
Although a banqueting service provides multiple revenue opportunities, organizing an event in your hotel can be a nightmare unless you have robust HMS.
Without an HMS that can automate and streamline online bookings, the process is time-consuming and requires many calls and emails.
This system enables your staff to track all guests’ requests from a centralized dashboard and provide them with accurate information about room and equipment availability.
Additionally, the real-time view and updates allow your staff to quickly respond to changes in guests’ requests and provide them with alternative solutions if necessary.
But, it’s not only about benefits for you.
Online booking possibilities make the process more flexible for guests, too.
They can explore amenities, banquet spaces, and prices at their own pace to make an informed decision that aligns with their needs, vision, and budget.
Other noteworthy benefits of the banqueting feature within the HMS include:
✨ Customization — During the booking process, guests can make specific requirements based on their needs.
✨ Payment options — Thanks to integrated payment systems, your guests can quickly and safely pay online in multiple ways, using credit cards, digital wallets, etc.
✨ Better organization — Automated housekeeping management ensures all the staff gets real-time updates on room status, eliminating double or missed tasks.
✨ Upselling & cross-selling opportunities — From in-house catering to offering special discounts, promo codes, etc., you can elevate the guest experience.
For example, you can offer special discounts to event attendees who want to stay at your hotel after the event.
Or include curated packages with city tours, spa sessions, etc.
✨ Revenue tracking — The Banquet function enables tracking the total revenue from events, making it easier to plan future events and decide on the necessary resources.
✨ Minimizing errors — The feature reduces the possibility of errors and incomplete documentation by tracking invoicing and payments
✨ Improved service quality — Having all the aspects of the event meticulously planned and organized creates a positive experience for clients and their guests.
How Does The Banquet Feature Work?
The Banquet function is just one of the features of the hotel reception system. When a client requests the organization of a Banquet and chooses one of the available options or special requirement add-ons, all the information flows to the reception system.
The system includes all essential information:
- Guest details
- Event details
- Billing
- Statistics and reports.
Payment calculation functions include advance payment, amount distribution, and automatic adjustment based on the final bill.
Due to the automated system, any reservation changes or updates can happen instantly and immediately show in the centralized dashboard.
How Can OTA SYNC Take Your Hotel Banqueting to A New Level?
OTA SYNC is an all-encompassing hotel management solution that can help you automate and streamline everyday operations, including pre-, during-, and post-arrival.
Thus, together with the Channel Manager and Booking Engine, it provides a robust asset to:
🔥 Manage online reservations, room availability, invoices, billing, etc., from a centralized platform.
🔥 Connect with point-of-sale systems, ERP solutions, and reporting tools to get a comprehensive overview of the hotel’s performance.
🔥 Update room availability, rates, and bookings in real-time, ensuring consistency across multiple OTAs and booking platforms to avoid under or overbooking.
🔥 Manage multiple properties and events in a single view with real-time and accurate updates and changes.
🔥 Get direct bookings and allow guests to check room availability, view pricing, and complete secure bookings in real-time.
🔥 Access our Premium features:
- Banquet & Event management — Facilitates efficient coordination of venue booking, scheduling, catering arrangements, and guest management tasks.
Thus, you can centralize operations, track event details, manage reservations, and generate invoices.
- SPA & Wellness management — Includes features for appointment scheduling, client management, and resource allocation, such as treatment rooms and equipment.
Furthermore, it integrates with POS systems and manages staff schedules for improved overall efficiency.
- Housekeeping management — Provides a centralized platform for efficient task assignment, real-time updates on room status, inventory tracking, maintenance alerts, and seamless communication among housekeeping staff.
🔥 Change pricing depending on seasonality and demand to maximize revenue and avoid gaps.
🔥 Offer special deals, packages, and promo codes to boost loyalty and also attract new guests.
🔥 Enhance the guest experience via the Guest App, which hosts features for self-check-ins and check-outs, valuable tips on what to do and visit, information about hotel rules, etc.
And so much more.
Ready to test OTA SYNC?
Try OTA SYNC for free and ensure a seamless experience for event planners and attendees.
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