Resources

Understand the Process to Decide if an Overbooking Override is Best

Override Demand by Occupancy Date

Use the Override by Occupancy Date to share information with G3 RMS about the remaining unconstrained demandClosed Unconstrained, or true demand refers to how much you could sell if there were no constraints such as the hotel’s capacity or restrictions on bookings. This demand forecast shows you the potential demand, not just the limited demand that you accept. See the Demand and Wash (Overview) topic for how the system calculates unconstrained demand. when you expect normal length of stay patterns. G3 RMS distributes your change in demand to the different lengths of stay, based on the observed patterns.

What Help Do You Need with Override Demand by Occupancy Date?

  • I need the steps for how to override demand by Occupancy Date.

  • I need to learn about the best practices before using a demand override.

  • Before overriding, I want to investigate the forecast.

  • I want to test the impact of overrides before saving them by running What If.
  • I need to how to override demand for a longer date range with Multiday Overrides.

  • We had a large, sudden change in demand, and I need to manage G3 RMS in this demand disruption.

  1. Click and then Demand and Wash.
  2. Navigate to and click the desired date from which to enter an override. Learn how to change your calendar view.
  3. Find the Forecast Group for the override.
    You can locate the rates codes or market segments associated with each Forecast Group. For example, you might want to share your knowledge about the remaining demand of a particular rate code through a demand override, but you do not know the Forecast Group in which to find the rate code:
    • To identify the rates codes within a Forecast Group:
      • Select the rate code from the Search Rate Code menu.
      • A green check mark identifies the Forecast Group that is associated with the rate code.
    • To identify the market segments associated with a Forecast Group:
      • Click the linked name of the Forecast Group. A window displays the market segments that make up the Forecast Group.
      • Click the open icon for a market segment to view the rate codes associated with it.
  4. If needed, click Hide to collapse the data columns for easier access to the override field.
  5. Use the Demand Override field to enter overrides. See Data Details for definitions.
  1. Click the notes icon to explain why you enter the override. This helps during your regular reviews of your overrides. This icon indicates that a note exists.
  2. Click Apply. The unsaved changes icon in the calendar indicates the date when you want to add or remove the override.
  3. Click What If to see the results of adding or removing the override using What If.
  4. Click Save to make your changes final.

As the arrival day gets closer and business changes, G3 RMS adjusts your override. See How G3 RMS Monitors and Adjusts Demand Overrides for details.

Data Description
Forecast Group (Non-Block and Block)

A list of Non-Block and Block Type Forecast GroupsClosed Block type forecast groups are booked through blocks and refer mostly to group business. An exception would be transient wholesale business that has contracted a number of blocked rooms per day.. Click the open icon to view Room Classes in the Forecast Group.

In the rare case that you have knowledge about the remaining demand by Room Class, you can add overrides at the Room Class level. Otherwise, G3 RMS distributes your override value at the Forecast Group level to the different Room Classes, based on its calculation of expected demand by Room Class.
Available Capacity to Sell Physical Capacity plus Overbooking minus On Books and minus Out of Order. This value is the number of rooms that the system can sell before the property or Room Class is sold out.
On Books The total rooms booked for the Forecast Group or Room Class.
System Remaining Demand The amount of unconstrained remaining demandClosed Unconstrained, or true demand refers to how much you could sell if there were no constraints such as the hotel’s capacity or restrictions on bookings. This demand forecast shows you the potential demand, not just the limited demand that you accept. See the Demand and Wash (Overview) topic for how the system calculates unconstrained demand. that G3 RMS calculated for the Forecast Group or Room Class.
User Remaining Demand

The remaining demand from a user's override. If no override exists, this value is the same as the System Remaining Demand. Note that G3 RMS can adjust your override to keep it accurate. This process differs by the type of Forecast Group. See How G3 RMS Monitors and Adjusts Demand Overrides for more information.
System Wash % The wash expected by G3 RMS. Wash is the drop in occupancy due to cancellations, no-shows, group cut-offs, and so on. For future dates, it is the expected drop in Peak DemandClosed Peak, or Total Demand, is the combination of the rooms on books and the remaining unconstrained demand.. For past dates, it is the expected wash as of the last optimization. For example, for yesterday the last optimization was at 1 pm when the system expected 4 rooms wash out of 40 rooms on books. Final Wash shows as 10%.
Note: For block-type Forecast Groups, the System Wash % applies only to On Books business, since G3 RMS forecasts the Remaining Demand net of Wash. For non-block type Forecast Groups, the Wash % is based on Peak DemandClosed Peak, or Total Demand, is the combination of the rooms on books and the remaining unconstrained demand..
Occupancy Forecast The constrained forecast of the occupancy for the Forecast Group or Room Class, expressed as a number of rooms.
Sales Forecast

This value displays only for properties that use the Component Rooms module.

The rooms that G3 RMS expects to sell, either Component Rooms or physical room types.

If you have sufficient demand to sell either the Component Rooms or the physical parts of Component Rooms, it is important that you can see the system’s strategy. Does G3 RMS expect to sell the Component Rooms or the parts, since the occupancy forecast is the same either way. Is the system expecting to sell the component rooms or the component parts.
Demand Override Demand Override Percentage

Use percentage overrides to adjust the remaining demand at the Forecast Group level. Enter a percentage for the demand override. Select Increase if the system value is too low. Select Decrease if the system value is too high. The percentage is added or subtracted based on the remaining demand that G3 RMS forecasts.

G3 RMS converts your Forecast Group override percentage into values and distributes them to the Room Classes, based on its calculation of expected demand by Room Class.

The option to enter a Forecast Group level override is not available after you apply a Value override at the Room Class level. In this case, the total User Remaining Demand value for the date reflects the Room Class level changes.

Unconstrained Demand Override

or

Constrained Demand Override

In this column you can view and modify the Room Class level override values and icons inform you of existing overrides. Unconstrained Demand Overrides apply to Non-Block Forecast Groups. Constrained Demand Overrides apply to Block Forecast Groups. See How G3 RMS Monitors and Adjusts Demand Overrides to learn how G3 RMS handles the two types of overrides.

  • Override demand at the Room Class level: In the rare instance that you have such detailed knowledge about the remaining demand, adjust it at the Forecast Group and Room Class level. Use one of the following methods:
    • Apply a percentage increase or decrease at the Forecast Group level. G3 RMS distributes your override value to the Room Classes. Click the open icon for the Forecast Group and change the remaining demand value for the required Room Class.
    • Click the open icon for the Forecast Group. Enter a value in the row for the required Room Class.
    • The option to enter a Forecast Group level override is not available after you apply an override at the Room Class level. The total User Remaining Demand value for the date reflects the Room Class level changes.
  • Override icon: An Occupancy Date icon or Arrival LOS icon displays if an override exists for the selected date and Forecast Group. Click the icon to see the dates and Room Classes with the override. To add a different override, enter the new value.
Action Click the delete icon for the Forecast Group or Room Class to delete a demand override.
Total The total values for all Forecast Groups, including those that have the Forecast Type attribute of "Wash" or "None" in Forecast Groups Configuration.

Best Practices

Demand overrides influences the decisions of G3 RMS. Use them when you know something about the demand that the system doesn't and add them at the appropriate level of detail.

Understand the Process to Decide If a Demand Override is the Best Solution

Following this overview of the process, click on any of the steps to learn more. Download a PDF of the process in the Resources.

G3 RMS optimizes all decisions and demand together, so a demand override influences the decisions.

If you question the demand forecast for a date, review any Pricing overrides, because they directly impact the demand forecast. And since G3 RMS maximizes revenue overall, review overrides not just on the day that you're questioning but also on surrounding dates, for example, on the Business Analysis Dashboard.

Removing these overrides might adjust the demand to a value closer to your expectation.

Notes:

  • Select a pricing or a demand override, not both. Override the price when you need to ensure a certain price. Override demand when you know something about that, not when you want to change the price. Watch this video on how demand impacts pricing.

  • After removing overrides, wait for the next optimization before reviewing the forecast. That ensures that forecast and decisions are based on the most recent data.

Your Pricing Management controls how G3 RMS uses the pricing setup without constraining the system. For example, define a price range from which G3 RMS picks an appropriate price.

G3 RMS considers the impact of your competitors' pricing on your demand.

For example, you might question why the system decreased the remaining demand forecast for a certain date, even though you expect higher demand. Before you override the demand, check if competitors lowered their prices, which can reduce the amount of business that you can attract. The system will still optimize pricing and demand to ensure that you capture the maximum revenue, but only from that reduced demand.

Rate Shopping setup controls how G3 RMS uses competitive rate information.

Rooms configuration tells G3 RMS how to manage your room types. Check for any restrictions on the Room Type and Upgrade Path setup, because they impact the system's ability to accept demand, even when the demand is not above capacity.

If you disagree with the demand because you expect unusual transient demand, add a Special Event. If it is a repeating event, G3 RMS uses the previous instances to forecast and price optimally. If it's a one-time event, ensure you agree with the remaining demand.

Override demand at the appropriate level of detail, based on the level of your demand information, the size of the demand change, and the override period.

Note: Do you want to override the demand because you disagree with the Occupancy ForecastClosed The number of rooms (or percentage of the total number of rooms) that G3 RMS expects the property to achieve for the period. For the calculation, see the Demand and Wash - Overview topic (under Data Details).? If so, consider that, in the case of demand in excess of the property’s capacity, the system decides during the optimization which demand to accept, see the Demand and Wash Definitions video for details.

An Occupancy Date demand override at the Forecast Group level is the most frequent type. You enter the amount of demand increase or decrease. Then G3 RMS distributes the demand to the different lengths of stay and to the different Room Classes, based on its calculation of expected demand at those levels and the observed patterns for this Forecast Group.

Less frequently, when you know something about the demand by length of stay (LOS) 1 to 8, use the Arrival by LOS demand override. For example, you know that a tactical weekend promotion will impact demand only for Friday arrival, 2-night LOS. You don’t want the system to distribute the increase to all LOS, so you use the Arrival By LOS override type.

Before you select this type, keep in mind that G3 RMS forecasts demand by LOS. For example, you need to increase demand staying 4 nights, while your average property LOS is 2 nights. However the system might already forecast higher demand for LOS 4 for the impacted Forecast Group. Therefore, use an Occupancy Date demand override instead and let G3 RMS distribute the demand accordingly. The same applies to demand for stays longer than LOS8. Unless you have Extended Stay Forecasting, you can't override such demand, but G3 RMS forecasts it and distributes an Occupancy Type override to longer lengths of stay as well.

In rare cases, you might have specific knowledge about demand at the Room Class level. In that case, apply an Occupancy Date or Arrival by LOS demand override at the Room Class level.

If you need to override the demand for more than just one day at a time, you can apply Multiday Demand Overrides by Occupancy Date or Arrival by LOS.

An incorrect multiday demand override has a large negative impact, so only use them after reviewing the following questions:

  • Are you certain about the type and quantity of demand that you expect?

  • Have you investigated the demand forecast? If you have, weigh the possible negative impact against delaying the override and monitoring the situation until the system learns the changes on its own.

  • Have you considered other factors, see step 1)? 

  • Determine if the selected Forecast Group contains other business where the demand does not need to be overridden. If it does contain other business, you need to assess what the overall impact on the Forecast Group is, considering that it includes other business that does not need to be overridden.

  • If you are uncertain about the size of the impact, use the Data Details in the Business Analysis Dashboard to view all business included in the Forecast Group and how big each of them is.
    Notes: The system calculates remaining demand only at the Forecast Group, not at more detailed levels, so estimate the share by using the Occupancy Forecast for the override period.

  • Review the system’s forecast of remaining demand (RD) for the selected Forecast Group on the calendar. Based on your expectation of demand and the share percentage considerations from step 2, what % of increase or decrease do you need to apply?

  • Is more than one Forecast Group impacted, for example, because business is moving from one Forecast Group to another? In that case, consider the first bullet and ensure that a Multiday Demand Override is the right solution for all impacted Forecast Groups before you override.

  • If you are certain that a Multiday Demand Override is necessary, the next step is to decide which Forecast Group to override. See Multiday Demand Overrides by Occupancy Date for how to select the matching Forecast Group.

  • If the remaining demand forecast is very low, the percentage increase might have to be very high to achieve an intended amount. For example, if the remaining demand forecast is only for 1 room on average, and you are expecting 10 rooms, then you would need to apply a 1000% increase to achieve that.

    Note: the only way to enter a specific value instead of a % change is to enter an Override by Occupancy Date. And if your override is for a Forecast Group with a zero forecast of remaining demand, a value override by day and Room Class is your only option, since a % increase of zero does not achieve your goal.

G3 RMS learns and adjusts to changes in demand once it sees proof of it in the booking data. For example, it's early April and you know that extra demand from a new corporate account will not start booking until May. If the booking window for that type of business is 2 to 4 weeks, you might want to override the demand only for May and possibly June, because by June the system will have seen the impact of the new bookings and adjusted the forecast for July and onwards accordingly.

Does the change of demand apply to the entire period? Or are different days of that period affected differently, like peak days versus shoulder days?

Note: the override period is limited to the two months that are visible on the calendar.

For shorter periods, or when the % demand change varies often within the period, use the Demand by Occupancy Date override for a single day. Then use the previous day and next day arrows to move to a different day. The advantage of applying the override day-by-day versus for multiple days is that you can see the demand details for each day and each Forecast Group before deciding for which Forecast group and how much, if at all, to override demand.

Monitoring your demand overrides to ensure that they remain accurate is important, but it can be time consuming. Therefore, G3 RMS monitors them for you. The system adjusts your demand override if it becomes unrealistic compared to what is actually getting booked.

For example, two months ago you added an override for tomorrow, setting the remaining demand forecast to 100 rooms. After that, you never removed or modified the override. In this case, you would not want G3 RMS to still forecast 100 rooms in remaining demand for arrival tomorrow, since almost all of that 100-room demand should have booked by now. Rather than making you adjust and modify your override as the arrival date gets closer, G3 RMS does the monitoring and adjusting for you.

How the system adjusts your overrides differs by the type of Forecast Group that you applied it to, either Non-Block or Block:

G3 RMS adjusts the override based on remaining time to arrival and based on booking pace.

For example, 60 days ago the system forecasted zero remaining demand for today. You disagreed and applied a remaining demand override of 100 rooms. If between 60 days ago and today, no new reservations booked for the non-block type Forecast Group, G3 RMS would slowly have adjusted your override down to almost zero today.

G3 RMS makes this adjustment based on the observed booking pace patterns. The system knows that the remaining demand should have booked in the 60 days, and it would consider any rooms that booked in that time as well, based on the expected booking pace.

The 100 rooms of remaining demand are also subject to optimization, meaning that if the system forecasts demand in excess of capacity, it might use LRV to close out the demand.

When G3 RMS adjusts a non-block demand override, you see the adjusted and your original override values in the Business Details and Overrides window.

In the example below, the original remaining demand override shows in the Unconstrained Demand Override column on the right side. The user entered the override as a percentage at the Forecast Group level. G3 RMS distributed the percentage as a value to each of the Room Classes, based on its calculation of expected demand by Room Class: 66.27 for Standard, 4.98 for Deluxe, and 2.19 for Suite.

The User Remaining Demand column in the middle displays the system's adjusted values: 53.57 for Standard, 4,13 for Deluxe, and 1.85 for Suite.

The system's forecast of remaining demand (28.78, 2.67, and 0.60) is lower than the adjusted user overrides. While G3 RMS adjusts the override based on booking pace, it maintains the original user intention of higher demand.

G3 RMS assumes that when you override demand for Block Forecast Groups, you are certain that the demand will materialize. Therefore, it adjusts the override only based on booking pace and On Books at the time of the override, but not on remaining time to arrival. The system also considers your override as constrained demand and does not subject it to optimization in case of demand in excess of capacity. Let's look at a few examples. All are for arrival today and for a Forecast Group that contains group business.

  1. 60 days ago, on books was zero. You overrode remaining demand to 100. Today, on books is still zero. Aside from wash, G3 RMS doesn't adjust your override and still expects 100 rooms of remaining demand for today.
  2. 60 days ago, on books was zero. You overrode remaining demand to 100. A new group books after the override, and on books today is 50. G3 RMS applies the new group booking to your override and forecasts only 50 rooms of remaining demand for today.
  3. 60 days ago, on books was 100, and you overrode remaining demand to zero. A group of 50 cancels after your override, and today on books is 50. G3 RMS still expects 100 rooms of remaining demand for today because it honors your override combined with the on books number at the time of the override. In other words, when you override remaining demand, you also tell G3 RMS to expect existing on books business, even if that business could cancel.

These examples show that it's important that you regularly review and, if applicable, remove your demand overrides for block-type Forecast Groups to ensure that the system knows the truth.

You can see your original demand override and the system's expectation in the Business Details and Overrides window.

In the illustration below, you entered an override for a Forecast Group with 25 rooms On Books, shown on the left side. You expect 50 rooms of remaining demand, and that override value is displayed in the User Remaining Demand column in the middle. The 25 On Books at the time of the override, plus the 50 remaining demand are saved as the Constrained Demand Override of 75 rooms, displayed on the right. G3 RMS expects those 75 rooms even if On Books change after the override:

  • If a group of 50 books a day after the override, on books is 75. G3 RMS adjusts the User Remaining Demand to zero. The Constrained Demand Override remains at 75.
  • If a group of 25 cancels, On Books becomes zero. G3 RMS adjusts the User Remaining Demand to 75, still expecting your Constrained Demand Override of 75.

Regardless of the adjustments that G3 RMS made to demand overrides, you still need to review them regularly. You should determine if the conditions that caused you to apply them changed and monitor how G3 RMS is adjusting them. After the system can see evidence of the changes in demand, we suggest that you remove the overrides and let the system take over the forecasting completely.

When you add, remove, or review and keep an override, add a note that helps you understand at the next step why the override is in place and what conditions led you to place it or keep it.