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Looking at your STR report for the first time can be confusing given the amount of data available. That said, with a bit of background reading it shouldn’t take long to familiarise yourself with the key terms, KPIs and metrics, and what they mean for your hotel.
A good starting point to read an STR report is to scroll down to the ‘Monthly Performance at a Glance’ tab. This tab contains a general summary of your hotel’s performance against your competitive set for the current month, year-to-date,
running 3-month and running 12-month periods.
A more involved way to analyse your STR report is to compare the current week’s performance to your performance during the same week last year. You can also do this for your compset.
Once you have a better handle on the ins and outs of the report, you can dive deeper into the data to review your performance against KPIs including occupancy, ADR and RevPar.
When reading your STR report, you’ll see your performance is calculated as an index. Your index number tells you whether or not your hotel is outperforming your compset against three key KPIs: occupancy, ADR and RevPar. The index is calculated by dividing your KPI values by the average KPI values of your compset, then multiplying by 100.
An index number higher than 100 indicates you are capturing more than your fair market share, whereas an index number below 100 indicates you are capturing less than your fair share.
In other words, the higher your index number, the better your hotel is performing. An index below 100 tells you there’s room for improvement to compete more effectively in your market.
These are the tabs you can expect to see in a typical STR report, and the information they provide:
This tab is a summary of your hotel’s performance against your competitive set for the current month, year-to-date, running 3-month and running 12-month periods.
Questions to ask when reviewing this tab:
Here you’ll see a summary of your hotel’s occupancy, ADR and RevPar versus your compset and others industry segments, for the current month, year-to-date, running 3-month and running 12-month periods.
Questions to ask when reviewing this tab:
See a comparison of your hotel versus your compset for the most recent 18-month period, as well as for the year-to-date, running 3-month and running 12-month periods.
Questions to ask when reviewing this tab:
Here you can find details of properties in your compset that have reported data to STR over the past 24 months.
Your segmentation summary compares your hotel versus your compet’s segmentation data for the current month and year-to-date. Segmentation data includes occupancy, ADR andRevPar broken down by the source of business (transient, group and contract).
Questions to ask when reviewing this tab:
This tab shows monthly occupancy, ADR, RevPAR, index and ranking analysis of transient, group, contract and total business for the past 18 months. It compares your hotel’s data to your compset and your broader market.
On this tab you’ll find monthly occupancy, ADR, RevPAR, index and ranking analysis of transient, group, contract and total business by day of week for the current month. It compares your hotel’s data to your compset and your broader market.
This is a monthly revenue analysis for room, food and beverage, other and total for the past 18 months. It compares your hotel’s data to your compset and your broader market.
Questions to ask when reviewing this tab:
This tab shows occupancy, ADR and RevPAR by day of the week for the entire month. It compares your hotel’s data to your compset.
Questions to ask when reviewing this tab:
This tab details occupancy, ADR and RevPAR for each day of the week and weekday/weekend for the current month, year-to-date, and the same day of the week for running 3-month and 12-month periods. It compares your hotel’s data to your compset and your broader market.
Questions to ask when reviewing this tab:
The three most important hotel STAR report tabs to pay attention to are:
A STAR report details important KPIs for your hotel and for your competitors (compset). The three core KPIs to be aware of are:
ADR , which stands for average daily rate, is the average income per occupied room your hotel makes in a set period of time.
ADR = Total room revenue/total rooms sold
You can use ADR to forecast for specific weeks, months, or seasons, and then set performance goals for your business – making plans to improve any areas you thought you could have done better in the past.
Occupancy rate is the percentage of occupied rooms in your hotel at a given time. It is one of the most high-level indicators of success and is calculated by dividing the total number of rooms occupied, by the total number of rooms available, times 100, creating a percentage.
Occ = Total rooms occupied/total rooms available for sale x 100
RevPAR stands for revenue per available room, and is one of the most common and important hotel metrics. It provides an insight into the number of rooms that are being sold at a hotel and how much revenue is being generated from those bookings.
RevPar = ADR x Occ
If the RevPAR of your property is increasing, it can mean your average room rate or occupancy rate is increasing – or both.
By analysing these three KPIs in your report, you can discover:
STR reports index your hotel’s performance in three key metrics: occupancy rate, ADR and RevPAR. The definition of RevPAR is room revenue divided by rooms available, and the higher the number, the better.
STR’s Competitive Set Report directly compares your hotel’s RevPAR against the average achieved by your competition (defined as your ‘competitive set’ or ‘compset’ in the STR report). Your report will also tell you how you rank against the hotels in your competitive set.
The final piece of RevPAR analysis in your STR report is the indexed number. This calculation sees the performance of your hotel divided by the average performance of your competitive set, then multiplied by 100. An indexed score of 100 tells you that your hotel has captured its fair share of the market. A score above 100 tells you that your hotel is capturing more than your fair share, and the higher the number, the better your comparative performance. Likewise, a score below 100 tells you that your hotel is capturing less than your fair share, and the lower the number, the worse your comparative performance.
Your STR report can also analyse RevPAR in terms of change over time (by day, week, month or year, both in pure terms and relative to your competition), and by source of business (e.g. transient, group or contract).
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Follow these best-practice tips to get the most out of your STR report:
Whether caused by seasonal fluctuations, adjusted pricing or a change in your business strategy, look out for trends that could be positively (or negatively) impacting your hotel’s performance and the performance of your compset.
A good place to start is to look at your index number. If it’s above 100, you’re doing better than your compset average, and if it’s below 100, there’s room for improvement. Ideally you want to see your index number trending upward over time. If it’s trending downward, look to see if the same trend is happening to your compset and other industry segments.
This can tell you whether it’s isolated to your hotel or a result of wider industry fluctuations.
Hotels and accommodation providers are particularly susceptible to seasonal fluctuations, so a drop in performance over a week or month isn’t necessarily a major warning sign. However, a general improvement in year-on-year performance shows that your hotel is growing steadily in the long term.
If your performance has dropped compared to last year, try to figure out why that’s the case. Perhaps a tourist campaign brought more guests to your hotel last year, or maybe there has been an overall downturn in discretionary spending. If you can’t attribute the downturn to any broader causes, it could be time to rethink your strategy and start looking at new ways to bring in revenue or attract a different subset of guests.
While an STR report contains a lot of valuable data, you need to dive deep into the meaning behind the data to make meaningful improvements to your business. Taking time to analyse your reports thoroughly and make notes of your findings is a crucial first step in developing more effective strategies that help you win a bigger share of your market and outperform your competitors.
An STR report is just one piece of the puzzle when it comes to managing your hotel effectively and ensuring your long-term success.
An STR report is just one piece of the puzzle when it comes to managing your hotel effectively and ensuring your long-term success. Our hotel commerce platform helps you take full control of your hotel or accommodation business, with valuable insights and tools to support your growth.
From distribution and marketing, to bookings and payments, we partner with you to succeed on your terms. Unlock the full revenue potential of your property with SiteMinder.
Dean is the Senior Content Marketing Specialist of SiteMinder, the leading technology provider delivering hoteliers unbeatable revenue results. Dean has made writing and creating content his passion for the entirety of his professional life, which includes more than six years at SiteMinder. Through content, Dean aims to provide education, inspiration, assistance and value for accommodation businesses looking to improve the way they run their operations achieve their goals.
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