How Traveltech Can Get Hotels to Pay Attention (and Sign a Contract)
Just so we’re clear, hotels are drowning in traveltech pitches.
AI this, automation that, “revolutionary” whatever. Meanwhile, hotel CTOs and their teams are just trying to keep the lights on, the beds made, and dozens of OTAs handled.
If you want to sell to hotels, you need to cut through the noise. That means ditching the jargon and showing real value. You're not just another vendor hawking a fancy dashboard.
Let’s talk about tips for getting hotels to not only notice you but actually buy in.
1. Stop Talking Like a Silicon Valley Robot
Hotels don’t have time to decode your pitch.
Say exactly what problem you solve in one sentence. If you can’t, redo your pitch until you can.
Lead with outcomes, not features. No one cares about your “next-gen AI-powered cloud-based API.” Tell them how it saves time, gets more nights, cuts costs, or fills rooms.
🛑 Bad: “Our AI-driven revenue management solution optimizes yield strategies through machine learning and predictive analytics.”
✅ Good: “We help hotels make more money by automatically adjusting prices based on demand.”
2. Show Results
Hotels don’t want to be guinea pigs for your startup. And they certainly don’t want to pay to do so. They want proof that your tech actually works.
What to do instead:
Get real case studies with hard numbers. “This hotel cut housekeeping costs by 20% using our system.”
Offer free trials or pilot programs. Let them test it for a few weeks or months. No one’s signing up on day one.
3. Pushy Salesperson, No. Partner, Yes.
The world just can’t handle yet another vendor clogging up inboxes with “just following up”. Successful traveltech companies don’t just sell product—they build relationships.
What to do instead:
Be accessible. Hotels love companies that pick up the phone and actually listen.
Adapt based on feedback. If hotels tell you your product needs tweaks, don’t say “we’ll add that to the roadmap.” Fix it.
Stick around after the sale. If your onboarding process is “Good luck, here’s a PDF,” don’t be surprised when hotels churn.
Give them more. Think about how to further develop product and solve additional pain points for the hotel after the first sale has been completed.
4. Make Integration Easy AND Free
Hoteliers are spooked by switching tech because they’ve been burned before. Surprise fees, painful setups, legacy compatibility nightmares. Hard pass, thanks.
What to do instead:
Offer free integrations—or at least don’t nickel-and-dime hotels for them.
Be plug-and-play. If onboarding takes longer than a hotel renovation, you’re doing it wrong.
Give options. Especially if franchisees are allowed to choose their own tech.
5. Messy Flexibility - Your Tech Should Handle It
Hotel operations are constantly shifting. There’s no “average” guest, no predictable front desk day. Tech that doesn’t get hospitality won’t survive.
What to do instead:
Prove you understand hotel life. If your product can’t handle last-minute cancellations, overbookings, or a surprise guest who insists they booked a room, you’re in trouble.
Show real-world scenarios. If your tech only works in perfect conditions, hotels will pass.
Train hotel staff properly. The best system in the world is useless if no one knows how to use it.
6. Franchise Rules Are a Thing—Work Around Them
Big hotel brands often force their properties to use certain tech. That doesn’t mean you’re out of luck, but it does mean you need a different game plan.
What to do instead:
Target independent hotels and flexible franchises.
Play the long game. Patience pays off and sometimes it just takes a long time to close a deal.
Position yourself as the better option. Eventually all hotels get fed up with outdated systems.
7. AI Is Cool. But Hotels Don’t Care.
Right now, everyone is slapping “AI” onto their product names and hoping for the best. Note to self: most hotels don’t care about AI unless it solves a real problem.
What to do instead:
Show practical AI applications, not just hype.
Be honest. If AI doesn’t materially improve hotel operations, don’t force it.
Automate boring stuff first. No one needs an AI chatbot that writes poetic booking confirmations. They need tech that handles check-ins faster.
What you can do next in 3 easy steps
Step 1: Fix Your Pitch
Rewrite your messaging in plain English (or Spanish, or Thai—just make it clear).
Get rid of every single last buzzword
Answer this: Why should a hotel give you five minutes of their time?
Step 2: Get Proof Before You Sell
Find one hotel willing to test your tech and exhaustively document their results.
Offer a low-risk pilot instead of asking for a big commitment upfront.
Quantify everything. “We save hotels time” is weak. “We cut check-in times by 30%” is strong.
Step 3: Make Sure You’re Easy to Work With
No hidden fees. No sneaky contracts. Straightforward integration.
Answer your emails and pick up the phone. Hotels appreciate tech companies that actually talk to them.
Don’t sell. Solve problems. If you can actually make hotels’ lives easier, you’ll win.
Hotels want better technology. But not the headache that usually comes with it. If you can make buying, integrating, and using your tech stupidly simple, you won’t just get attention—you’ll get contracts.
Now go get those deals.