CONCIERGEUpdate on Travel Distribution Services for the ... · Having developed the world’s first...

CONCIERGE News July 2004

Dear Valued Partners,The last few months have been particularly busy for us within Cendant’s Travel Distribution ServicesDivision, with major developments in the range of distribution and technology solutions we provide.

We extended our online distribution capability when we acquired Flairview Travel, a leadingonline hotel distributor throughout Europe and Asia Pacific through its merchant hotel brandWWW.HOTELCLUB.COM, and last minute travel site WWW.RATESTOGO.COM. Theintegration of these businesses with www.lodging.com and www.CheapTickets.com is well underwayto provide enhanced international distribution opportunities for hotel groups in the near future. The‘new-look’ Lodging.com and recent launch of an extensive CheapTickets.com advertising campaigncoupled with improvements to the booking process on both sites highlight the intense activity surrounding our now ‘global’ portfolio of online distribution channels.

Among our many technology solutions, the pace of change has been equally as fast in order tomaintain the high standards we set ourselves for releasing products on time to meet key customer requirements:

• VOYAGER CRS 4.0 was released in April with 45 technical improvements (includinga multi-lingual booking engine) and implemented for existing customers free of charge

• NEAT DYNAMIC PACKAGING ENGINE 2.2 was launched with improvementsincluding enhanced criteria in hotel searches, the ability for hotels to now add photos,and a new ‘luxury hotel’ search functionality.

• HOTEL CACHE 2.0 reduces the load on a CRS by responding automatically to multiple, identical shopping requests.

• EASYACCESS PLUS RATEMANAGER now provides XML interfaces to RFPsystems, fully automating the rate loading process compliant with NBTA 2005 standards.

• EASYACCESS PLUS HOD 2.0 enhanced capabilities now fully meet all GDS and RFP hotel information requirements, with onward distribution through automated XML interfaces

This third edition of Concierge News is completed with excerpts from two recent articles onhow to execute SUCCESSFUL ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS across both online andagency distribution channels and the major advantages of NEXT GENERATION SEAMLESStechnology in driving incremental business to your hotels.

We very much hope these insights and updates continue to be of value and highlight how our combineddistribution and technology solutions can help you maximize your sales, while controlling costs andimproving efficiencies in the distribution process.

We wish you continued success and please feel free to contact either of us, or the staff featured in thisnewsletter, to discuss any questions you may have.

Sincere regards,

CONCIERGE NewsUpdate on Travel Distribution Services for the Hospitality Industry

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Kenneth S. EsterowSupplier ServicesCendant Travel Distribution Services

Michael W. McCormickHospitality & Leisure Services, Cendant Travel Distribution Services

EDITION 3 • July 2004

To receive a regular copy of Cendant'sConcierge Newsletter please respond by email to:[email protected]

HOTELCLUB.COMONLINE DISTRIBUTION MADE EASY

HotelClub.com (www.HotelClub.com) provides hotels with access to newdistribution channels and consumer markets, thereby stimulating room salesand growth. HotelClub.com is a full service online accommodation provideroffering hotel bookings up to 12 months in advance. HotelClub.com features7,000 properties across 37 countries worldwide.

MULTI-LINGUAL GLOBAL REACHHotelClub.com presents hotel partners with a cost efficient method todistribute inventory online, as well as gain direct access to the global consumer market. By working with HotelClub.com, properties are immediately exposed to 3.5 million unique visitors worldwide each month in 7 different languages including English, French, German,Chinese, Japanese, Spanish and Italian. This ensures that hotels are able to target and tap into different consumer markets.

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• A cost effective distribution channel with 3.5 millionunique monthly visitors

• Services a strong global customer base in 7 languages• Access to a frequent traveler base of 750,000 members• Large distribution network of 7,000 online distribution

partners, PLUS 8,000 travel agencies to retail your product

• Recommended Hotel Program providing additionalopportunities for hotel partners

HOTELCLUB.COM BENEFITS AT-A-GLANCE

CLUB MEMBERSHIP DRIVES CONSUMER RESPONSEHotelClub.com has a membership base of 750,000 frequent travelers.These registered club members have access to exclusive member benefitssuch as the ability to earn “Member Dollars” to be used as discounts in futurebookings, receive regular communication and special offers promoting hotelpartners directly. The HotelClub.com membership program ensures thathotel partners are connected to a highly targeted group of consumers. HotelClub.com has many consumer friendly options including “Rate a Hotel”(an independent hotel review system) and “Recommended Hotel” (a preferred supplier’s program) which provides “Lowest Rates Guarantee”and enhanced services to HotelClub.com consumers. The “RecommendedHotel” program was developed to meet the dual objectives of offeringconsumers value while providing hotel partners with a range of additional benefits. These benefits include prime Web site positioning, speedy paymentsand additional promotional opportunities.

EXTENSIVE ONLINE AFFILIATE PROGRAMHotelClub.com delivers an extended distribution network to hotels by providingHotelClub.com hotel booking technology and content to over 7,000 affiliateonline partners and 8,000 travel agents. These partners have integrated theHotelClub.com hotel booking engine and hotel content on their Web sites,generating sales through the HotelClub.com hotel reservation service. With a strong focus on technology, HotelClub.com has developed a front endhotel booking service that ensures a fast and efficient booking experience forour consumers. At the same time, we have established stable and effectivehotel distribution technology to meet our hotel and affiliate partner’s needs.

To view the Web site visit www.HotelClub.comFor more information on HotelClub.com: Contact Sean Cummins – General Manager [email protected] or visit www.hotelclub.com/hotelregform.aspPartnership inquiries, please contact Chloe Lim – Director of Marketing [email protected]

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NEW VOYAGER CRS 4.0FULL SERVICE AND NEW ‘SELF SERVICE’ OPTION AVAILABLE

With more than 45 enhancements, Voyager CRS 4.0 – one of the mostadvanced, flexible, Web-based reservation systems on the market – isnow available in both traditional ‘full service’ and new ‘self service’ options.Voyager CRS 4.0 software powers hotel connectivity and transactionalfunctionality with Global Distribution Systems (GDS) and InternetDistribution Systems (IDS) through one user-friendly interface. Itenables hoteliers to manage all of their rate, availability and booking information through one system while maintaining total control over individual distribution channels. Hotel companies can implement Voyager CRS 4.0 as a Web-based‘self service’ solution where they maintain their own data managementand GDS relations independently, or as a ’full-service’ outsourced solution managed on their behalf by Trust International.

• Multilingual booking engine features Asian languagesupport in addition to European languages

• Enhanced XML based Interface supporting a richer information exchange with PMS

• Interface with the IDeaS revenue-management system for optimized control of rates

• Enhanced Business Intelligence Module ‘Voyager View’ including scheduled reports now running automatically

• Interface with WizCom’s Easy Access PlusRateManager to provide seamless transmission of rates from Voyager to all four GDSs

• Improved group processing and better handling of child rates

NEW FEATURES OF VOYAGER CRS 4.0

“Voyager CRS helps us to distribute our inventory in amore efficient and economic fashion. We have access to all enhancements and new functions of the VoyagerCRS, but our operations department has direct andintermediate access to all distribution channels. That is what we were looking for and we are happy to havefound it with Cendant’s Voyager system.”

GONZALO ALCARAZ Corporate Sales Officer, NH HotelesCommenting on new Voyager ‘Self Service’ options

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For more information:Contact Andy Hermo – Vice President of Enterprise Sales [email protected]

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RATESTOGO.COMDISTRESSED INVENTORY AT A CLICK

RatesToGo.com www.RatesToGo.com) is one of the fastest growing “hotelonly” last minute booking Web sites, providing consumers with a choice of over 4,100 properties in 22 countries worldwide. RatesToGo.com offershotels a unique opportunity and outlet to retail their distressed inventorydirectly to the end consumer. Hotels can choose to release rooms up to 21days in advance to ensure that their mainstream bookings are left unaffected.

RATESTOGO.COM BENEFITS AT-A-GLANCE

• A cost effective channel to distribute distressed hotel inventory to 1 million unique monthly visitors

• The property retains full control of pricing and inventory at all times

• Access to global consumer base in 8 languages• Large distribution network to 7,000 online distribution

partners and 8,000 travel agents to retail your product

RATESTOGO.COM OFFERS CONTROLRatesToGo.com ensures that hotel partners retain full control over the type of inventory they want to sell and the rates they want to sell at. ThroughRatesToGo.com’s user friendly inventory management system, hotels havethe freedom to update inventory, pricing, hotel and room information.

EXTENSIVE DISTRIBUTION NETWORKRatesToGo.com is actively marketed through a variety of online and offlinemediums ensuring that the properties on the Web site are seen by more people seeking hotels than any other similar site.

Having developed the world’s first “last minute hotel booking white label” solution, the RatesToGo.com hotel booking engine and content is distributed to an extensive network of 7,000 affiliate partners and 8,000 travel agentsinternationally. Hotels can further leverage on these third party channels foradditional exposure and sales.

RatesToGo.com is available in eight languages: Chinese, English, French,German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese and Spanish, allowing hotel partners to reach more customers across the globe.

To view the Web site visit www.RatesToGo.com

For more information on RatesToGo.com: Contact Sean Cummins – General Manager [email protected] or visit www.ratestogo.com/hotelregform.asp

Partnership inquiries, please contact Chloe Lim – Director of Marketing [email protected]

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ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONSMajor enhancements have recently been completed to a number ofCendant’s portfolio of technology solutions including:

EASYACCESS PLUS – RATEMANAGER AND HOD 2.0Two break-through enhancements to our EasyAccess Plus suite of data-management tools, enabling hotel groups to initialize, populate, manageand distribute their hotel rates and descriptive data from a single locationin a matter of seconds:

• XML interfaces now fully automate the transmission process to GDS, ADS and RFP systems

• Fully support all GDS and NBTA 2005 RFP specifications• Web-based applications require no software installation• Creation of secured rates and propagation to specified

channels at the push of a button• Copying of rates from a chain level to a defined subset of

hotels in seconds• Expanded fields for marketing messages e.g. package information and

incentive programs

HOTEL CACHE 2.0A powerful new tool to significantly reduce CRS maintenance and upgrade costs caused by increased Internet and NGS shoppingrequests. Hotel Cache 2.0 intercepts duplicate shopping messages thatdegrade CRS performance, helping provide faster reservations, lowercosts and enhanced CRS efficiency.• ‘Caching Process’ can be activated automatically when spikes

in activity threaten CRS performance • Requires no upgrade investment to an existing CRS • Operational in days on any CRS system connected to the WizCom switch• Caching parameters controlled by hotel group

NEAT DYNAMIC PACKAGING ENGINE – 2.2Our popular Neat-dynamic packaging technology, featured on such sites as www.United.com, www.Marriott.com and Cendant’s own www.CheapTickets.com and Galileo Neat Agent for travel agents, has recently made numerous enhancements to its dynamic packagingengine. The technological improvements include:• The inclusion of more than 1,000 new hotels from sister company

Lodging.com – many located in popular, summer-travel destinationssuch as the Caribbean, Mexico, Las Vegas and New York City withmore properties on the way

• The ability to select flights by their departure and return times,rather than choosing from less flexible, pre-selected, roundtrip pairs

• The ability to narrow the geographic search area for hotels in majormetropolitan areas and other popular travel destinations

• The ability to include childrens airfares, luxury hotels and luxury carsin customized travel packages

• More user-friendly and informative result displays, including photosof the hotels

• Hotel options on the first screen and a recap of the package information at the top of the purchase page

• Improved menus for speedier navigation and results

“We are delighted to have found an easy solutionin Hotel Cache’s technology, serving as a bufferagainst jumps in duplicate shopping requests andsaving us from costly upgrades to our CRS. Afterusing Hotel Cache, we saw an immediate 30%reduction in the number of shopping requests hitting our CRS, which has significantly improvedits operational efficiency.”

MARK LOWERY, Vice President Distribution Strategy Adam’s Mark Hotels & Resorts

“We estimate that RateManager technology willcut back the time frame for loading rates by asmuch as 80 to 90 percent as well as cut costs byabout 70 to 80 percent compared to our old manual systems.”

D.J. VILLAURI, Vice President eCommerce Prime Hospitality

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HOW TO EXECUTE A SUCCESSFULADVERTISING CAMPAIGN THAT BRINGS REAL RESULTS

(Excerpts from an article by Michael W. McCormick for Hotel Business Executive)

• PhoCusWright projects total hotel bookings (all channels) will hit$76 billion by 2005.

• Travel Industry Association of America (TIA), states 42 million people booked travel on the Internet last year (71% reserved hotels)

• Jupiter Research predicts online hotel bookings to surge from $5 billion in 2001 to $14.8 billion in 2007.

• TravelCLICK indicates travel agents have influence on the hotelselected in approximately 40 percent of all bookings

These statistics strongly suggest that hotels must incorporate both astrategic online and agency focused advertising campaign in order to besuccessful, but what is the most effective manner with the greatest ROIin this crowded marketplace? While there are numerous options, I’lltouch upon some of the most successful methods used within theCendant Travel Distribution Services organization.Cendant is uniquely positioned to provide end-to-end marketing solutionsto hospitality suppliers through our online channels, Lodging.com;CheapTickets.com; and Traveler’s Advantage (www.travelersadvanatage.com),a discount, membership-based travel site, as well as our travel agency and corporate channels including Galileo, Apollo, Cendant Travel,THOR and Travelport. This multi-faceted marketing approach enableshotels to maximize marketing ROI through a variety of integrated distri-bution channels. It’s a lot of “bang for your buck.”

Hotel groups can choose from our direct marketing online solutionsincluding banner advertising, e-mail programs and search engine optimization through all of our Web sites. In addition, hotel suppliers can choose to be on the first page of any search result in a city, whichvastly increases the likelihood that the featured hotel will be booked. While many leisure hotel bookings now take place via the Internet, thereare still billions of dollars in hotel bookings transacted every year via theGDS and so electronic hotel marketing efforts through these channelsare critical. An example of a GDS advertising component that getsresults is Galileo’s ‘Featured Property.’ When a travel agent calls upavailable hotels in Paris, ‘Featured Property’ hotels appear at the top ofthe list, rather than as an entry in an endless display. Travel agents generallydo not surf past these first few results, significantly increasing the chancesof your hotel being chosen. ‘Featured Properties’ are also graphically represented and clearly marked on city maps for the travel agent to see,detailing their exact locations. Comparisons done on similar hotel profilesshows hotels utilizing the Featured Property product sold nearly twoand a half times as many room nights as non-featured properties.In terms of online marketing, utilizing a paid search on travel content and research sites can have a direct effect on your bottom line. WhenCheapTickets.com altered its strategy to specifically sell hotel propertiesthrough focused marketing efforts, it resulted in a +60% increase inhotel transactions!Furthermore, the key to successful advertising is to go beyond the Weband integrate your marketing efforts through every possible channel. Oneunique manner in which Cendant uses its reach and relationships to sellhotel rooms is through a hangtag program in conjunction with Avis andBudget. This innovative offering targets the highly sought after businesstraveler segment of the market. When it comes to your advertising dollar, our motto is “more heads inyour beds.” Honing your hotel marketing strategy by utilizing numerouschannels and opportunities is the key to increasing sales and maximizingROI. In addition, diversity and innovation are extremely important in this cluttered marketplace. Industry leaders who realize the unbelievableopportunity in developing non-traditional campaigns while leveraging the best partners will see the most profitable results.

For More Information on Cendant’s range of integrated and innovativeadvertising opportunities, contact: [email protected]



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By providing the highest level of connectivity, Inside Shopper enableshotels to maximize their control over where, when and how they makeinventory available.

Managing preferred client relationships during the booking process is a unique feature of Inside Shopper, allowing a customer’s frequent hotel guest number to be entered before the hotel sends their rate or availability response, allowing for alternative responses for their VIP clientele, and supporting guaranteed availability programs.

The power of NGS technology continues to be proven by more salesand increased revenue. For example, more than 55 percent of Galileo’shotel segments come from 110 top hotel chains that are utilizing or planon implementing NGS with Inside Shopper.

Furthermore, Inside Shopper doubled the amount of sales fromhotel room requests in Galileo since the connectivity was added.

Clearly, the technology gives both hotels and travel agents an extraadvantage in their selling efforts; all while further improving customerservice and remaining attentive to the ever-changing needs of theirmutual customers. Next Generation Seamless represents the model by which the entire industry will ultimately pattern itself in order to deliver the most accurate, efficient and valuable offerings available. Even in the tried and true GDS world, NGS reminds us that with theright relationships the industry can work together to address new ways of improving efficiency and sales success.

For more information on Cendant’s Next Generation Seamless technology and Galileo’s Inside Shopper program contact:[email protected]

ARE YOU TRULY CONNECTED? HOW NEXT GENERATION SEAMLESS DRIVESHIIGHER REVENUE AND CUSTOMER RELATIONS(Excerpts from an article by Ken Esterow for Hotel Business Executive)

Making sure information is accurate and up to date is the key challenge bothhotels and distributors face in managing the exploding volume of travelersbooking online. With so many options to choose from if a customer’s requestdoesn’t go through, or a rate isn’t available (when a room in fact may be), thecustomer will simply click away. This costly consequence is compounded by a decline in brand loyalty as customers price surf for the best deal.

In trying to stem the tide, suppliers spend millions of dollars on maintaining theirCRS, resources they’d rather be spending on marketing and sales efforts. Inthe late 1990s, hotels spent as much as $2.0 billion on new CRS technologyand upgrades alone. Distributors, like Cendant, also invest significantly in providing connectivity and technology solutions to suppliers to help thissituation. One such enhancement to this process is a revolutionary new tech-nology that provides a win-win solution for all parties in the distribution process.‘Next Generation Seamless’ (NGS) provides an interface directly from ahotel’s CRS, to travel agents, online travel providers and corporate clientswith the same up-to-the-minute accuracy and room availability informationthat is offered through a hotel’s internal reservation system. NGS also helpstravel agencies improve productivity, by requiring less time in the “shopping”mode, leaving more time for agents to sell!

The technology enhances the effectiveness of the GDS distributionchannels thus generating more sales. For example, a leading hotel chainthat implemented Galileo’s NGS solution, Inside Shopper, realized a32% increase in sales volume during the first month of implementation.

“We are extremely pleased to be able to benefitfrom this technology. We are now able to offerour hotels the many benefits that come withInside Shopper.”

HANS KENNEDIE, Managing Director and CEO of Golden Tulip Hotels, Inns & Resorts


CCeennddaanntt CCoorrppoorraattiioonn Hospitality & Leisure Group • Travel Distribution Services Division 7 Sylvan Way • Parsippany, NJ 07054 • Tel. 973.496.6889 • Fax 973.496.0489 • www.cendant.com

IntegratedTechnology, Outsourced Services

Distribution And Partner Marketing Solutions

© 2004 Cendant Corporation. All rights reserved.

To receive a regular copy of Cendant's Concierge Newsletter please respond by email to: [email protected] .

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