Frequent travel often involves frequent hotel stays. There are some benefits to this maid service, room service, and all the pint sized shampoos you can fit in your duffle bag but there are also a number of discomforts. The biggest discomfort comes with staying in a hotel room that is less than desirable, a hotel room with only one working light bulb, a broken television, and a giant cockroach selfishly hogging the bathtub. For this reason, the hotel room upgrade becomes of the utmost importance. The following is a list of ways to make your chances of moving on up as good as possible:

Make a Reservation over the Phone: Sure, online reservations are laden with convenience: you simply enter your information and you are done in five minutes flat. But, making a reservation by phone allows you to develop a relationship with the person to whom you are speaking. A phone reservation gives you the chance to turn on the charm, giving you a chance of getting a wonderful room. An actual conversation also gives you and the reservation taker a chance to find a commonality, which is the basis of a lot of relationships, relationships that can lead to upgrades. Perhaps you are flying in from Cincinnati, which just happens to be the reservation takers home town. You never know when this could happen: its a small world, after all.

Be Friendly in Person, but not Fake: When you go to the front desk to check into your hotel room, being friendly can help you get what youre after. However, you dont want to come across as too friendly, bordering on fake and looking as though all you want is an upgrade. Instead of hinting around for an upgrade, simply come across as unassuming: strike up a friendly conversation and see where it leads. You might be surprised when it leads you to the penthouse.

Be a Repeat Customer: Hotel chains love people who come back for more, repeat customers are their favorite. If you travel frequently to the same city, stay at the same hotel (assuming it was one you enjoyed). This gives the hotel staff a chance to get to know you, and get to like you. As you reward the hotel chain with your repeated business, there is a good chance they will start to reward you with upgrades, freebees, and special promotions.

Be a Tipper: One of the oldest mantras in business is simply that money talks. There is nothing that speaks louder than a good tipper. This doesnt mean you need to stuff a hundred dollar bill in the shirt pocket of the bellhop, but tip everyone, at least a few dollars. If you get room service, tip whoever brings it to you. If you have someone help you with your bags, help them with a few dollars. If you notice the cleaning service did an exceptional job with your room, leave them a few dollars upon checkout. If you plan on returning to this hotel, one of your best chances of being remembered is being remembered as a good tipper.

Complain with Tact, and with Reason: Occasionally, you may find yourself in a less than stellar room, one that gives you the creeps instead of a good night sleep. Instead of marching down to the front desk and ranting and raving, simply bring up the issue with tact and with patience. Express your concerns and the reasons you are upset, but do it in a manner that does not make you come across as unyieldingly angry. And, along these lines, dont look for things to complain about: only complain when you have a legitimate reason. Complaining about a mouse in your bathroom is one thing, complaining about a fly in your window sill is another.

A hotel room upgrade isnt something you should expect often, but every once in a while, it might just be your lucky day. Utilizing the above hints may be one of your best chances at pleasing the hotel staff and getting in goodor inn good.

Jennifer Jordan is a senior editor for http://turbocellcharge.com. A professional business traveler, she aims to make business trips feel less like work. She also has a healthy collection of hotel shampoos….and a shower cap or two.