Hotel Revenue Glossary · Segmentation

Market Segment

A category of hotel business defined by the type of guest, booking channel, or rate arrangement. Common segments include corporate negotiated, OTA, direct/retail, group, and contracted crew.

Why it matters: Different segments have different price sensitivities, booking patterns, and net revenue contributions. Managing your segment mix — the proportion of business from each segment — is key to maximizing total revenue.

Worked example: Two Tuesdays, 92 rooms sold each in a 120-room hotel - 76.7% both times. The first: 30 corporate at A$189, 40 OTA at A$225, 22 direct at A$249. The second moves 20 of those OTA nights to direct at the same A$225. Occupancy is identical and ADR is identical, but the 15% commission on twenty rooms - 20 x A$33.75 = A$675 - stays in the building.

Common mistake: Letting the segment list grow until nobody can read it. Forty-one codes with Corp, Corporate and CORP-NEG all live means every mix report disagrees with itself and no two people quote the same corporate ADR. Map the codes to a fixed set once, then hold that mapping still for a full year of comparisons.

All glossary terms Comp Set (Competitive Set) Displacement Analysis Booking Window (Lead Time)