Introduction: Hotel commerce is undergoing a quiet but significant shift.

For years, commercial strategy in hospitality has centered on moments of transaction: booking conversion, check-in upsell opportunities, and isolated ancillary purchases. But rising operational costs, evolving guest expectations, and the growing complexity of hotel tech ecosystems are reshaping how revenue is generated and experienced.

Today, commerce is becoming less about selling more and more about orchestrating the right decisions at the right moment across the guest journey.

A critical part of this evolution is happening before guests even arrive.

To explore this shift, ExploreTECH spoke with Erik Tengen, President at Oaky by Plusgrade, whose work focuses on helping hotels rethink how upgrades, ancillaries, and guest value are designed across the travel journey. His perspective reflects a broader industry movement toward more intentional engagement, clearer decision timing, and a stronger connection between experience design and commercial outcomes.

As Tengen explains:

“The opportunity isn’t about pushing offers earlier. It is about recognizing that the guest relationship now begins well before the lobby. Hotels that engage at this point help guests arrive informed, confident, and already connected to their stay.”

This shift marks the emergence of a more connected, intelligent approach to hotel commerce, one that blends guest experience design with commercial strategy

Pre-arrival becomes a strategic moment

Pre-arrival is no longer a passive waiting period between booking and check-in. It has become a critical planning phase where guests actively shape their stay.

Travelers are deciding arrival logistics, priorities, and how they want their experience to unfold. These decisions are thoughtful rather than reactive, making pre-arrival the natural moment for hotels to introduce options that reduce friction and increase confidence.

Digital behavior reinforces this trend. Guests increasingly expect to engage with their stay before arrival through mobile communication and self-service touchpoints, instead of relying on last-minute front desk conversations.

This expectation is particularly visible among frequent travelers, who manage trips through structured planning habits and often prefer making decisions in advance rather than negotiating options during arrival.

According to Tengen:

“Before arrival, guests are organizing logistics, weighing trade-offs, and deciding how to use limited time. Options introduced during this window feel more useful because they support planning rather than interrupt it.”

Hotels that recognize this behavioral shift are not simply moving offers earlier. They are redefining when meaningful engagement begins and creating a smoother transition between booking intent and in-stay experience.

From static offers to informed decisioning

Another major evolution in hotel commerce is the transition from static upsell moments to clearer, earlier decision-making.

Traditionally, upgrades and ancillaries were introduced at check-in when time pressure, queue dynamics, and limited context reduced their perceived value. Today, forward-thinking hotels are repositioning these choices as part of trip planning rather than arrival negotiation.

This shift reflects a deeper understanding of guest psychology. Decisions made during arrival are often influenced by fatigue, time constraints, and competing priorities. In contrast, decisions made before arrival tend to be more deliberate and aligned with personal expectations for the stay.

Clarity plays a decisive role. Guests often do not decline options intentionally. They hesitate because they lack understanding, context, or time to decide.

Tengen highlights this dynamic:

“When guests don’t act, it is often because they don’t fully understand what is available or when a decision needs to be made. Introducing options earlier gives hotels space to communicate value without pressure.”

This evolution does not replace human interaction. Instead, it elevates it. When guests arrive already informed, hotel teams can focus on delivering meaningful service rather than explaining available choices.

The result is a more confident guest, a less pressured arrival experience, and a commercial interaction that feels supportive rather than transactional.

Reframing ancillaries beyond incremental revenue

Perhaps the most important mindset change is how ancillaries and upgrades are positioned internally.

In mature commercial strategies, these elements are no longer treated as opportunistic add-ons but as components of stay design that influence satisfaction, loyalty, and perceived value.

Early engagement improves guest confidence, which often translates into repeat behavior and long-term value rather than one-off revenue spikes. Guests who feel informed and in control of their experience are more likely to return, recommend, and engage more deeply with the property over time.

As Tengen notes:

“Ancillaries are not about maximizing spend. They are about helping guests plan a better stay, with revenue emerging as the natural outcome.”

Pre-arrival engagement also addresses a persistent blind spot. Many guests, particularly frequent travelers, simply assume they have already seen what a property offers. Proactive communication resets that assumption and expands perceived choice.

Loyalty further amplifies this impact. Guests with status respond best when options feel relevant and considered, reinforcing the importance of timing, personalization, and contextual awareness.

Seen through this lens, ancillaries become less about selling additional items and more about helping guests design the experience they actually want.

What separates commerce leaders from transactional operators

Hotels advancing their commerce maturity are not merely introducing new tools or tactics. They are redesigning engagement across the travel journey.

Rather than concentrating commercial activity at check-in, leaders distribute meaningful decisions across multiple stages. They deliberately determine which choices belong before arrival and which should remain contextual during the stay.

This distribution reduces pressure on guests, lowers cognitive overload during arrival, and allows staff to focus on hospitality rather than transactional conversation.

Technology plays a supporting, not substitutive, role in this model. It handles routine communication and early decisioning so that hotel teams can concentrate on delivery, service quality, and follow-through.

Measurement evolves alongside this shift. Mature organizations increasingly evaluate success through total guest value, repeat behavior, and satisfaction rather than isolated revenue events.

Tengen summarizes the outcome:

“Commercial maturity today is not about selling more, but about orchestrating the experience more thoughtfully. When engagement happens at the right time, arrivals feel calmer, conversations feel more relevant, and guests feel prepared.”

The difference is not only visible in revenue metrics, but in guest perception, staff workload, and the overall flow of the arrival experience.

The future of connected hotel commerce

The new age of hotel commerce is not defined by more offers, but by better timing, clearer relevance, and stronger alignment between guest intent and hotel capability.

Pre-arrival engagement is emerging as the bridge between booking and experience, a space where guest expectations, operational readiness, and commercial strategy can converge.

Hotels that succeed in this environment will not simply optimize transactions. They will design journeys where commercial value and guest value grow together, reinforcing loyalty while improving operational efficiency.

In this shift, commerce stops feeling like selling and starts feeling like service.

The new age of hotel commerce: From transactions to intelligent guest value