Revenue management, answered

Should I change the tool's seasonality and demand sensitivity settings, or leave them on the default?

Adjust them. Defaults are built for average markets and average portfolios, neither of which describes your inventory. Seasonality curves and demand sensitivity need to reflect your specific destinations, property mix, and booking window patterns to price accurately.

By Jack Murphy, Head of Revenue Management at UpRev. Running pricing for US vacation rental managers since 2017. Last updated September 1, 2026.

Why Defaults Underperform for Managed Portfolios

Generic seasonality curves smooth out the peaks and shoulders that define your actual market. A beach market in the Gulf, a ski corridor in Colorado, and a urban market each have distinct demand shapes that a one-size setting will misread. If your sensitivity settings are too conservative, you leave money on the table during compression events. If they are too aggressive, you spike rates prematurely and kill conversion before demand fully materializes.

What to Calibrate First

Start with your highest-revenue properties and map their historical occupancy patterns by month and day-of-week against your actual booking lead times. Use that data to anchor your seasonality curve to real local demand, not regional averages. Demand sensitivity should be tuned tighter during your proven peak windows and looser during shoulder periods where you need to stay competitive to fill gaps.

Ongoing Management, Not a One-Time Fix

Seasonality and sensitivity settings are not a set-and-forget decision. Review them at the start of each booking season and after any significant market shift, such as new supply entering your market or a major local event calendar change. Portfolio managers who revisit these settings quarterly consistently outperform those who rely on defaults, because local demand intelligence compounds over time.