This case study looks at how a strategic communications plan helped to bridge the misconceptions that business travelers had, and ultimately improved compliance and improve the hotel program for a client in India.
FAST FACTS
Results at a glance
- Reduced hotel leakage from 73% to 38% in 5 months
- An additional 480 room nights per month booked using the client's hotel programme
Industry
- Professional services
Volume
- Annual hotel and air expenditure: USD33.39 million
THE CHALLENGE
A professional services firm wanted to increase compliance and encourage their employees to use hotels that were part of the company's hotel programme.
Travellers, on the other hand, believed that they were able to get better rates by booking directly with a hotel or through an online travel agency.
This disjoint caused inefficiencies in the client's booking process, reduced the hotel spend with preferred vendors, and caompromised safety policies as travel managers could not track their staff's whereabouts in the event of an emergency.
THE SOLUTION
Recognising that this issue can be solved with a cohesive communications effort, CWT worked with the client to develop a plan to educate and dispel misconceptions. This included face-to-face meetings and online training sessions with both travellers and travel bookers, as well as a useful FAQ document as a reference guide.
The training topics focused on helping travellers understand their company’s travel policy better, and the reasons why they should adhere to it.
- The value of the hotel programme, including cheaper rates for the company as a whole and add-ons such as complimentary breakfast and Wi-Fi
- Benefits of booking through CWT including visibility of travellers in the case of an emergency and reduced transaction fees when booking hotel and air in one transaction
Support from key stakeholders from within helped drive the project and ensure buy-in from travellers and travel bookers.
THE RESULTS
In just 5 months, we managed to halve the number of travellers who booked hotels outside of the programme - from 73% to 38%.
This in turn increased the client's occupancy with preferred partners by 480 nights per month, contributing to increased traveller safety and an improved hotel programme for the client.