This book provides a customized statistical approach that determines whether or not discounting hotel room rates is actually an effective pricing strategy in the lodging industry. The study assesses the long and short-term relationships between discounting room rates and hotel financial performance when considering the non-stationary conditions of a time series data set. The research is rooted in an operational based perspective with regard to the challenges presented by the perishable nature of room night sales - the loss of which may impact a manager¿s fundamental responsibility: to generate maximum revenue from the existing hotel room capacity. The research is at the forefront in its use of the methodological procedures that support a theoretical framework capable of providing explanations regarding managers¿ internal process of discounting as an effective pricing strategy that could compensate for times of decreased room demand.

Dr. Kelly J. Semrad is a Rosen College of Hospitality Management faculty member at the University of Central Florida. She is internationally renowned for her research contributions in hospitality and tourism management related disciplines. She has engineered the application of econometric modeling to pricing strategies in the lodging industry.