In Indianapolis and Oklahoma City the hospitality market is in a rush, so hotels have to move quickly to get a good deal as interest in booking rooms skyrockets.
The Oklahoma City Thunder and Indianapolis Pacers have been locked in an NBA Finals series that has already produced a classic buzzer-beater win.
Local hospitality businesses will now have to beat their own buzzer. They have the opportunity to capitalise on the surge of interest in the series, as it is certain to continue to at least 5 games. demand.
Hotels must be ready to respond quickly when a playoff run occurs
If a local team is on a strong playoff run, this creates an exciting and unique opportunity for the hospitality industry.
NBA postseasons are dynamic, as opposed to tournaments which have fixed schedules. In a best of seven series, the winner is the team with the most victories. The loser gets nothing. A series can be over in just four games, or it could last seven. Each round is immediately followed by the following one with only a short break. This leaves little time to prepare.
The unpredictable nature of the schedule requires that accommodation providers be extremely flexible, adapting their pricing and strategies as series unfold.
The hotel industry is experiencing a boom in demand for two relatively small markets
The two teams vying for the 2025 Larry O’Brien Trophy are from what are known in the US as ‘small market’ cities, meaning they are not in the top tier for population and purchasing power.
The NBA Finals will have a greater impact on smaller cities like Dallas, Los Angeles and New York. Both cases have shown notable results. increases in search queries These cities are showing the level of interest their playoff runs have generated.
Since the playoffs began, search queries for hotels in both cities on Online Travel Agency (OTA) The following are some examples of how to get started: metasearch Sites have risen to their highest level in two years.
Oklahoma City’s search volume is 45% more than it was in the 22 months prior to the start of playoffs. The interest peaked on the 27th of April, the day after the Thunder beat the Memphis Grizzlies and clinched their semi-final berth. It has remained high ever since.
Indianapolis also saw a similar but slightly smaller increase. There is a 29% increase in the average search volume for hotels during the post-season period. This reached a 24-month record just before the finals started.
Indy’s daily search queries at the time this article was written reveal a real-time demand.
The data shows distinct peaks in search volume for the nights of Games 4 and 5, reaching levels far above the norm.
These are leading indicators that hotels need to pay attention to. In situations with short lead times, search data is often the first place to spot emerging demand.
Are local hotels missing a layup?
Hotels in Oklahoma City reported strong occupancy numbers to the local press on June 5, especially in the downtown area. It is clear that these events are major demand drivers for these smaller cities, which have limited inventory—downtown Oklahoma City has just 30 hotels.
Yet, when it comes to pricing, there appears to be a lag in decision-making and a cautious approach to changing market conditions.
Using data extracted on June 2 for the period of June 12-30, we can see that the average price for a hotel room in Indianapolis for Game 4 on June 13 had reached $179. At this point, the Pacers had won their conference final on June 1, guaranteeing Game 4 would be played in Indianapolis.
However, hotels had made limited pricing moves, with the average rate up only 2% compared to 30 days prior. The $179 average price was equal to the highest price available for any other night in June, making it unremarkable.
While this data was captured only 24 hours after the game was confirmed, it highlights a potential missed opportunity. Given the surging search volumes and the high probability of a Finals appearance even before the win, hoteliers could have been more aggressive with their pricing.
While rates in Oklahoma City during the first and second games were high, they weren’t as high as you might have expected.
The record was only by a hair’s width and in nominal terms. This is despite the fact that the city hosted the NCAA Women’s College World Series simultaneously with the playoffs.
Search data can be used to predict demand for events in your area.
Hotel rates are behind the curve, despite the fact that fans flock to playoff games.
The demand can vary from week to week and even on a daily basis with an event such as the NBA Finals. This is an excellent example of why hotels should adopt dynamic pricing, Automation and real-time information are particularly important. forward-looking demand indicators.
You can’t just look back to see what happened in the past. For you to truly take advantage of these new opportunities, you’ll need a playbook based on forward-looking, real-time insight.
A forward-looking data set is the perfect starting point for an event strategy. This is your leading indication, which allows you to see the demand growing before it becomes fully manifest.
The challenge is not only in recognizing the opportunity, but also in maximizing it. Next, you need to add pricing intelligence over that demand. You can see what your competitors are doing and adjust your rates accordingly. revenue-winning strategy.
Data can be your competitive advantage. Relying solely on past performance is similar to coaching from game tapes of the previous season, while your competitor is running a brand new play.
To be successful, you must identify opportunities ahead of your competitors and use the appropriate tools to take action immediately.
You can also find out more about Market Insight’s With forward-looking signals of demand and real-time price intelligence, Rate Insight You will gain the ability to adjust rates confidently and with ease, while capturing every opportunity.
Lighthouse
Lighthouse is the leading commercial platform for the travel & hospitality industry.
We convert complexity into confidence with our actionable market insight, business intelligence and pricing tools to maximize revenue growth.
We are constantly innovating to provide the best platform to hospitality professionals so that they can price more effectively, measure their performance more efficiently and understand the market better.
Lighthouse, trusted by more than 70,000 hotels across 185 countries is the only platform that offers real-time data on short-term rentals and hotels. Our goal is to provide an unsurpassed customer experience. We consider our clients as true partners—their success is our success.
Lighthouse is a great source of information. https://www.mylighthouse.com.
