Every guest interaction is a revenue opportunity, if you know how to unlock it. Yet too often, hotels miss these opportunities due to outdated approaches, poor room assignments and unmotivated staff. So, what is upselling in hotel operations? It's not about pushy sales tactics. It’s about enhancing the guest experience while boosting profitability. And increasingly, it’s about having the right tools and partners in place to help you do it.
Break Through Limiting BeliefsAcross the industry, limiting beliefs often hold teams back. Many hoteliers assume they’ve already maxed out their revenue potential or that their top performers don’t need external coaching. This is where Frontline Performance Group (FPG) comes in. As FPG's Mark Norfolk put it, “By bringing in an external partner to support you, you're going to break the shackles of those limiting beliefs.”
Unlike traditional upsell approaches, FPG’s program isn’t about pushy upsells, it’s about helping your team enhance stays while driving incremental revenue. The result? A better guest experience, more engaged staff and stronger profit margins.
The Skeptic’s Mindset: “Prove It”
Hospitality leaders may be skeptical of a new program by an external supplier. And it’s something FPG understands well. Tom Diaz, who has worked with FPG clients around the world explains, “If somebody tells me something, I’m going to say, ‘OK, prove it.’ I don’t take anything at face value.”
Skepticism may surface when hospitality leaders begin to explore new ways of upselling in hotel environments. They ask, ‘Can we really drive more revenue just by shifting our front desk approach? Has anyone else done it in our market?’
The answer, supported by real performance data, is a resounding yes.
FPG, has already refined the process, so your team doesn't have to. With over 30 years of experience working directly on property, FPG has partnered with hundreds of thousands of frontline employees and been present during just as many real guest transactions. This isn’t theoretical. It’s built from the ground up, one interaction at a time. No other technology company can say they spent three decades studying the problem before building the solution and that’s FPG’s powerful differentiator.
At FPG, we’re not technologists who had a good idea and went looking for a market. We are the global experts in incremental sales, and we created a platform, IN-Gauge, specifically to deliver those results. While others sell tools, we deliver proven outcomes because we’ve lived the problem and built the solution to solve it.
Hotels using IN-Gauge routinely see a 3–6% lift in RevPAR, with some achieving up to 10% gains. These aren’t projections or pilots. They’re actual results, driven by a program refined over decades in the field and delivered by experts who know what it takes to succeed.
Why Good Isn’t Always Enough
One of the most common traps hotels fall into is assuming that “good” performance is good enough. Managers often believe their top performers have nothing left to learn. But that’s rarely the case. Diaz shares a familiar story: “The manager says, ‘We’re not sending Johnny, he’s our top performer.’ Johnny skips the workshop. And guess what? Johnny’s not the top performer for much longer.”
This kind of missed opportunity is exactly what IN-Gauge is designed to prevent. It bridges the gap between service and sales by giving teams the training, data and tools they need to elevate performance at every level.
IN-Gauge: The Tool Behind the Transformation
At the core of FPG’s approach is IN-Gauge, a centralized performance enhancement platform purpose-built for hospitality businesses. It empowers front-desk teams to confidently offer upgraded options, enhancing both revenue and guest satisfaction.
IN-Gauge increases incremental revenue by elevating staff performance and improving the guest experience, it combines:
· Seamless training
· Clear reporting
· Actionable tools
· Service-first coaching
And it’s all rolled into one intuitive system.
Norfolk explains one of the many benefits of the program, “There’s a learning centre that gives hotel clients the opportunity to take that learning at their own pace, on their break, on the ride home, during pre-shifts, anywhere.” This flexibility allows hotels to build a culture of growth without disrupting daily operations.
Systems Create Confidence (and Results)
One of the reasons FPG’s program works is because it provides structure. Diaz says, “When I was working in the service industry at the front desk, they gave me a system and said, ‘We want you to follow this.’ I loved that. It’s became my safety net.”
By using scripts, structured conversations and assumptive language, hotel staff can build authentic rapport while confidently guiding guests toward better experiences. And when that happens, something amazing occurs: guests are happier, staff feel more empowered and hotels are able to command 15–20% higher prices.
No Growth Without Change
Change can be uncomfortable. But as Diaz says, “There is no growth without change.”
Hotel leaders often believe they’ve already figured out the formula, until they compare their performance against the broader comp set. Then the realization hits: “We thought we were doing pretty good… but we’re behind our peers.”
That’s often the lightbulb moment. Maybe the answers don’t lie within the building. Maybe it’s time to bring in a partner that has already navigated the battles, tested the strategies and found the winning formula.
The FPG Impact: Real People, Real Results
Bringing in an external partner to help with an upsell program, could change your life. And it’s not hard to see why. FPG combines technology with service-first training, giving hotels a proven way to:
· Improve guest satisfaction
· Motivate and develop frontline teams
· Capture high-margin, incremental revenue
· Eliminate “money left on the table”
This isn’t theory. it’s what effective upselling in hotels looks like in action.
Conclusion: A Smarter, Simpler Path to Profitability
Most hotels already excel at delivering service. But they often overlook the revenue opportunities that are hidden in plain sight. With FPG’s support, you can close that gap, turning everyday guest interactions into real, measurable revenue.
So, what is upselling in hotel environments today? It’s about enhancing the guest experience through genuine conversations, smart systems, and service-first coaching. And it’s about doing all of that in a way that improves results for your guests, your staff, and your bottom line.
If you want happier guests, more engaged employees and stronger profits, FPG is how you get there.
FPG partners with 2,500+ hotels in 100+ countries. Are you leaving revenue on the table? Click here for your free revenue assessment.
Related Reading:Pre-Arrival vs On-Arrival: Which Upsell Wins?Case Study: How New World Hoiana Beach Resort Achieved a 60% Upsell Revenue IncreaseHotel Front Desk Training: How Role Play Boosts Confidence and Sales
Discover how FPG and IN-Gauge can help your property unlock its full potential:👉 Request a Demo 👉 Download Our Hotel Upsell Playbook
