This shift in purchasing and distribution patterns has been showing more and more clearly over the years - and according to the most recent comScore report, excerpts of which were published by www.hotelmarketing.com, the first quarter of 2008 has seen a 3% plus rise in hotel website bookings (the majors like Hilton, Marriott, Best western etc) and a proportionate decrease from online travel agency websites - OTA’s (majors like expedia, orbitz, travelocity etc).

Marriott and Best Western have achieved the best increases over the period with Hilton, Hyatt and Starwood losing some. Orbitz saw the most decrease among the OTA’s.

This percentage change seems to be the quickest ever and it will be really interesting to watch whether it speeds up further or stops at a plateau. My thoughts - it still has a fair distance to go before it hits that plateau….

So does this mean that the fight for independent hotels gets hotter with the major chains grabbing bigger and bigger slices of the OTA pie? Are there going to be more SMD companies (see a previous blog post) in the running? Definitely a trend worth watching for all hoteliers large or small!

For more on the hotelmarketing.com article click here

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Very few obvious differences on the Marketing services of the SMD’s

Utell seems to have a higher distribution focus with their various rate programmes. Leading hotels leverages its brand name/image through partnership marketing with top luxury brands.

UTELL HOTELS AND RESORTS

Rate programmes such as GREATRATE that deliver a large percent of the revenues.
Another programme called LATEGETAWAYS provide a route for hotels to distribute their inventory at the last minute.
Preferred partner marketing activities with leading travel management companies like Amex and CWT
Electronic marketing to the travel trade
Media and PR

DESIGN HOTELS

E-Marketing programmes
Partnership marketing
Marketing Products
Global PR

SUPRANATIONAL

Monthly newsletter to Consortia and Corporate Agencies introducing new hotel properties, promotional rates and campaigns etc
Dedicated PR agency focused on increasing brand profile and hotel profile with the international travel trade.
Free PR service for members
Input on content of marketing messages/newsletters.

WORLD HOTELS

Marketing Partnerships
Print and online Newsletters to various target groups
Public Relations and Advertorials
Online Image Platform called Mediaserve

GREAT HOTELS OF THE WORLD

Extensive brand marketing campaign to create awareness of Great Hotels of the World within Travel trade, Meeting Planners & Leisure travel agents, Business travel agents, High-value corporate accounts, Consumers
Customised PR planning for member property to generate press coverage in the most appropriate media in Europe.
Press visits and press lobbying

RELAIS AND CHATEAUX

An international guide published in 4 languages, which is also downloadable from the Internet
The promotion of the properties and the brand through trade fairs and exhibitions and other events
E-marketing activities through e-newsletter
Partnerships marketing associating Relais & Châteaux with top brands
The promotion of the themes Golf and Spa

LEADING HOTELS

Partnership Marketing
EMEA Newsletter
Airline Marketing
Consumer lifestyle events

NOTE: Information and comments provided here are to provide an overview. It is not meant to indicate the full service offering of these companies in any way. Primary information source – respective company websites.

An article published today on Ehotelier comments further on mobile technology in travel - the article is by Nick Gay from EyeforTravel. You can find it here

E-commerce or electronic commerce can be summed up as cashless transactions - buying and selling of goods and services on the Internet. And this is (or should be) a top priority for hotels these days.

The reason is simple to understand - the value of goods and services purchased on the internet has gone up substantially over the last years. And this is very true with what a hotel has to sell - accomodation, meeting rooms, spa packages, restaurant bookings etc.

So where do you start? The key to effective E-commerce has to be a good store front and that is the hotel website. Having an intuitive, easy loading, structured and uncluttered site is critical. The possibility to click and buy at any stage of the website visit is important and so is the availability of live inventory. Then it becomes easier to negotiate arrangements with Online Travel Agents (OTA’s) to sell your products and distribute it further.

While distributing your rates to OTA’s the key area to watch for is rate parity - ensuring that the rates are the same across all channels.

The latest Phocus Wright study on Online Travel in the US year ending 2007, shows that, the trend of consumers utilize hotel websites more often than Online Travel Agents continues. In 2006 the percentage of direct bookings at hotel websites was 59% and the prediction is that this will go up to 65% by 2009. Which naturally means more money for the hotel, but also means that hotels have to work harder for their online share……

While these are travel and buying trends in the US, the most advanced E-commerce market, these are already filtering down into Europe and hoteliers better get their store fronts looking better, easier to use and even more importantly easier to buy.

And dont forget the latest buzz word which is M-commerce for mobile commerce - transactions made through mobile devices such as cell phones, PDA’s and other wireless handheld devices.

Omni Hotels has recently launched a brand wide mobile website which empowers guests to make reservations, review hotel information, browse special offers etc with any handheld wireless device. From what I could find out, it will be up and running in the next months and is not live at the moment.

Online marketing is one of the most powerful methods available to the modern hotelier. In the WEB 2.0 world it has taken on mythical proportions.

How does the hospitality industry work with some of the key components which form a big part of online marketing? And how can the independent hoteliers make sure that they don’t miss out!
E-commerce
Consumer generated media
Building Customer Loyalty on the Internet
Customer Relationship Management
E-mail marketing
Use of Mobile Technology
Exploiting the power of Web 2.0
Marketing software and tools

Here is something to kick start reflections on hotel marketing…..and before you start frowning at the image - it is a promotional video from WESTIN HOTELS