After more than 35 years in hospitality, one thing remains true: clients rarely remember the rate first. They remember how well you understood them.

That was the heart of our roundtable discussion, “From Order Taker to Trusted Advisor: Elevating Hotel Sales Conversations.” We explored a challenge many hotel commercial teams still face today: although we talk about selling experiences, too many of our conversations still begin—and end—at the transactional level. Dates. Rates. Space. Availability.

In today’s environment, that is no longer enough.

We are still too quick to sell the product

One of the strongest themes from the discussion was how easily teams default to order-taking, especially under pressure. When pace is soft, inboxes are full, and response time is everything, it is understandable that teams move quickly to proposals and pricing. But in doing so, we often skip the most important part of the conversation: understanding what the client is truly trying to accomplish.

A group inquiry is not just about guestrooms or meeting space. A client may be trying to create impact, protect their reputation, deliver a meaningful experience, or simply ensure the event runs flawlessly. If we do not understand that, we are not really selling—we are processing.

Clients are buying confidence, not just contracts

In luxury hospitality especially, clients are not simply buying a room block, a banquet package, or a venue. They are buying confidence. They are buying trust. They are buying the reassurance that their guests, delegates, or stakeholders will leave with the right impression.

That shift in perspective matters.

When we fail to uncover what success looks like for the client, we make it very difficult to position value. And when value is unclear, price quickly takes over the conversation. Once that happens, we have already given away too much ground.

Better questions change the quality of the conversation

The most effective sales professionals I have worked with over the years were never the ones who spoke the most. They were the ones who knew how to ask the right questions—and then truly listen to the answers.

That is what begins to move a salesperson from order taker to trusted advisor.

Questions like:

• What does success look like for this group when they leave?
• What has not worked well for you at other hotels?
• If this goes perfectly, what will people be saying afterward?
• What matters most here: impression, efficiency, or experience?

These questions do more than gather information. They elevate the conversation. They help us understand the client’s priorities, pressures, and definition of success. And that allows us to respond with relevance rather than simply speed.

We have trained teams to respond quickly, not always strategically

Another honest point raised in the session was this: many teams are not avoiding consultative selling because they do not care. They are often operating in environments that reward speed over depth.

Time pressure, lack of confidence, fear of sounding intrusive, and KPIs focused on fast turnaround all contribute to transactional habits. In many cases, we have trained our teams to answer quickly, but not necessarily to think commercially and strategically.

If we want different conversations, we need to coach for different behaviors.

This is not just a sales issue

What makes this conversation even more important is that consultative selling does not belong to sales alone. Revenue, marketing, and sales all shape the customer conversation. When those disciplines are not aligned, the client feels it—whether we intend that or not.

Sales needs flexibility and commercial context.

Revenue needs better insight, not just requests for lower rates.

Marketing needs to attract the right demand, not simply more demand.

The client experiences one brand, one hotel, one conversation. Internally, however, we are often operating from very different agendas. That disconnect weakens our ability to sell with confidence and consistency.

The opportunity ahead

The roundtable closed with a practical challenge: what is one change you can make in the next 30 days to move your team from order taker to advisor?

For some, that may be introducing one stronger discovery question into every inquiry conversation. For others, it may mean changing proposal timing, or adjusting coaching, or rethinking the KPIs that drive behavior.

After all these years in hospitality, I believe this more than ever: becoming a trusted advisor is not about saying more. It is about understanding more.

The hotels that will win in the years ahead will not simply be the ones with the best rate or the fastest response time. They will be the ones who know their clients deeply, listen carefully, and build conversations that feel less like transactions—and more like true partnership.

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This article is drawn from a roundtable discussion at HSMAI APAC Commercial Strategy Conference 2026 on 15-May at Marina Bay Sands, Singapore.