Julie Brinkman, CEO of Beyond, on guest demand, pricing strategies and the future of revenue management
Beyond CEO Julie Brinkman discusses guest demand, dynamic pricing, AI-driven revenue management and profitability at VRMA 2026., Beyond CEO Julie Brinkman discusses guest demand, dynamic pricing, AI-driven revenue management and profitabili
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What It Says
In an interview at the VRMA 2026 conference, Julie Brinkman, CEO of dynamic pricing platform Beyond, discusses the shifting dynamics of guest demand and the evolving challenges property managers face when building pricing strategies. Brinkman highlights the critical transition from focusing solely on top-line occupancy to prioritizing overall profitability.
While artificial intelligence (AI) plays an increasingly dominant role in automated revenue management, Brinkman emphasizes that human judgment remains essential to navigate nuanced market conditions. The discussion outlines how short-term rental (STR) operators can leverage sophisticated pricing technology alongside human expertise to establish a distinct competitive advantage heading into 2027.
Why It Matters
As the STR market matures, simple dynamic pricing based on historical data is no longer sufficient. Operators are facing tighter margins, shifting guest booking windows, and increased supply. By focusing on profitability rather than just occupancy, and by combining AI-driven automation with localized human expertise, property managers can protect their margins and optimize revenue performance in a highly competitive landscape.
Useful Signals
- Profitability Over Occupancy: The industry conversation is shifting from high occupancy rates to net profitability, requiring more strategic expense and rate management.
- The Hybrid AI Approach: Successful revenue management requires a balance of automated AI algorithms and human oversight to adapt to unpredictable local market shifts.
- Strategic Planning for 2027: Property managers must adopt advanced revenue management tools now to build a sustainable competitive advantage for the coming years.
STR Tech Report Take
For STR operators and technology vendors, Brinkman’s insights underscore a critical product and operational trend: the commoditization of basic dynamic pricing. To stand out, tech vendors must offer deeper financial analytics that help operators calculate true profitability, not just gross revenue. For property managers, the takeaway is clear—relying entirely on "set-it-and-forget-it" automated pricing tools is a risk. The future belongs to operators who use AI to handle bulk data processing while keeping experienced revenue managers in the driver's seat.
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