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It’s no secret that the Web has become the go-to place for travelers when finding and booking hotels.

For business travelers – or individuals booking travel arrangements for others in their organization – corporate booking channels and corporate self-booking tools have become the solution of choice when making reservations.

The ability to reach potential customers through these channels – and engage them by building a comprehensive, visually-driven story that attracts visitors and makes your hotel stand out from the competition – has become a key component in online hotel marketing.

In Part One, we’ll look at the value of corporate channels and why it’s important for you to leverage them as part of your digital marketing strategy.

In Part Two, we’ll take a closer look at using an online merchandising tool like VFM Leonardo’s VBrochure™ to really reach out, touch and convert those potential customers.

Accelerate Your Hotel Bookings with Corporate Travelers:The Hotelier’s Guide to Merchandising Online for Business Travelers

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Part One: Corporate Channels and Your Hotel

Why Corporate Channels?Corporate bookings have become a significant revenue source for many hotels, and corporate booking channels and self-booking tools represent a great a way to tap into this potentially huge market.

Even with the economy still in recovery mode, business travel is experiencing continued growth; in the fall of 2011, global corporate travel bookings increased 4 per cent from the previous year, with North America in particular seeing a 3.3 percent increase. In addition, average daily rates (ADR) increased almost 3 percent

over the prior year globally, and North America realized an increase of 4.0 percent, almost reaching the year-to-date growth pace of 4.6 percent. Meanwhile, despite continuing European debt concerns, October bookings for this sector increased by 4.6 percent over the prior year1.

In October 2011, the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) predicted that overall 2011 spending by business travelers would end up roughly 7 percent higher than in 2010.

Clearly, business trips remain a key aspect of corporate strategies for driving profit – and when it comes time to book those trips, the Web is playing an increasing

role. According to Business Travel News, more than 40 percent of survey respondents said they use the Web, a desktop or a Web app, to both shop for and book travel for their organization2.

Corporate channels are an ideal way to reach these travelers and turn them into customers. These channels offer a closed market segment, one thattravels a lot, and is ready to buy; users simply want to find the best hotel for their needs, within the “rules” their employer allows.

Fundamentally, the corporate self-booking tools put your hotel in front of an extremely lucrative market – business travelers. Of course, simply “being there” isn’t enough – that’s just the first step.

The next step, which we’ll talk more about in Part Two, is making your hotel stand out from the competition and transforming corporate channel users from prospects into customers.

What are Corporate Channels?Corporate channels are essentially tools – usually in the form of a Web site, Web app or desktop application, and, increasingly, mobile applications – used by corporations and their travel management companies to make travel arrangements for employees.

These channels offer the corporate entities the opportunity to take advantage of extensive search and compare tools, as well as rates and packages, that are all specifically targeted to business travelers (rather than going through OTAs or other more leisure-oriented travel tools).

40% use a desktop or a web app, to both shop for and book travel

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• Concur• CLCLodging• AmericanExpressCorporateTravelSolutions• CarlsonWagonlitTravel(CWTTraveler&Transaction

Services,CWTSymphonieSelf-BookingTool)• Conferma(HotelBooker)• CorpoviaCorporateTravel• CorporateTravelConsultants(CTC2,TRSTravel

ReservationSystem,TripConsole)

• Concur(ConcurPremier)• Egencia• HoggRobinsonGroup(HRG)• Lanyon(LanyonCorporateHotelDirectory,Lanyon

Meetings&EventManagement,LanyonEngagement&ProjectSourcing)

• MeetingsBooker(meetingsbooker.com)• TravelocityBusiness(TravelocityBusinessExpress)

A complete list of VFM Leonardo’s corporate partners is available [here].

Key Providers:

Who are some of the key players?There are many providers that offer corporate booking tools, and VFM Leonardo counts all of the main players as partners. While all of the providers have different strengths, their goal is the same: provide an easy-to-use method for connecting travel suppliers (including hotels) with business travelers.

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How can I Leverage Corporate Channels to Increase Bookings at my Hotel?Our experience with corporate channels and self-booking tools has given us unique insight into how they can be used effectively. Here are three tips:

Consider What Customers WantIt’s important to tailor your messages to the types of visitors you want to attract. Since we’re talking about corporate channels, you know you’re looking at business travelers – or individuals booking travel for their colleagues.

So - what are they looking for? What’s important to the people booking/buying travel, and those actually traveling?

Business Travel News notes3 that complimentary in-room Internet remains the most important amenity for business travelers. Other key amenities BTN noted include:• Complimentary breakfast• Promotions and discounts• 24-hour business center• 24-hout fitness center• Loyalty programs

Offer a Great Shopping ExperienceIf a potential customer sees two comparable hotels, with similar features and amenities, what’s going to make them choose you? A great shopping experience can be the key differentiator between getting that reservation and losing it.

Here are a couple of ways to make your hotel stand out next to the competition:1. Instead of just standard room images, add

panoramic images of your rooms – one that show

off the things that matter to business travelers. You can also include floor plans to help your visitors really visualize themselves in your rooms.

2. Don’t just list your amenities – show them off! We’ve already established that business travelers want a fitness room and a business center; why not offer virtual tours of each, or a short video demonstrating what each has to offer?

In addition, remember to: • Highlight the things business travelers want up-

front; • Keep your feature lists organized and concise;• Use inviting, easy-to-digest text alongside images

that back up your descriptions.Complimentary in-room Internet remains the most important amenity for business travelers

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Target Business Travelers with VBrochure™VFM Leonardo’s VBrochure helps hotels connect with business travelers by leveraging partnerships with the market leaders in corporate self-booking tools, not to mention the distribution capabilities of the VNetwork™, the most universally accepted and largest online visual content distribution network for the global travel industry. The VNetwork includes all four global

distribution systems (GDSs), Pegasus and travel-related channels including online

travel agencies, travel research and supplier web sites, search portals and major travel intermediaries.

In other words, your bases are covered when you use VBrochure. But using it to effectively target business travelers is another challenge altogether.

To help you reach these potential customers, VBrochure allows you to create and syndicate targeted visual experiences that speak to business travelers. Using VBrochure, you can easily highlight the things we discussed above that matter to business travelers – Internet access, breakfast, business and fitness centers, and so on. And with VNetwork, you know that your message will remain consistent across our network of top corporate travel channels.

Business travelers are increasingly using mobile devices to research and book their hotels. According to a Sabre Travel Network study, more than two-thirds of respondents indicated they want to use their mobile devices to shop and book hotels. With more than 80 per cent of business travelers using smartphones (and 40 per cent using tablets), it’s clear that mobile technology is a key way to reach business travelers4.

80% of business travelers use Smartphones

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Many corporate booking channels have recognized the increasing demands for mobile optimized research and booking experiences, and have launched mobile apps and websites to meet those demands. VFM Leonardo’s VBrochure™ is mobile optimized. This means when a consumer clicks to view a VBrochure customer’s VPowered Multi-Media Player on any one of the corporate channels in the VNetwork, the media will be displayed optimally for the mobile device they’re using.

The VPowered Multi-Media Player works on a number of operating systems (iOS4, Android, Blackberry OS) and devices (iPhone, Blackberry and popular Androids phones from makers such as Motorola and Nokia). Unlike mobile media players that are universal for all operating systems and devices, VFM Leonardo’s has advanced detection and display technology that ensures the user always gets the optimal experience for the device they’re using.

It doesn’t matter if a consumer is accessing the channels’ website, mobile website or mobile app from their mobile device, when the Multi-Media Player is launched; it detects the device they’re using and displays the appropriate, optimized experience.

This means that hotels using VBrochure provide consumers with a visually rich experience wherever they find the hotel, on whatever mobile device they’re using. If a visitor doesn’t have a positive experience when using their smartphone, that’s a potential customer lost before the process has even begun!

In Part Two, we’ll take a more detailed look at some specific ways VBrochure™ can help you take your corporate channel marketing strategy to the next level. We’ll even give you step-by-step instructions on how to do it.

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In Part One, we talked about the importance of corporate channels. In Part Two, we’ll take a look at specific ways VFM Leonardo’s VBrochure™ can help you drill down and target business travelers specifically, turning them from Web visitors into confirmed reservations!

How VBrochure™ HelpsBusiness travel remains a cornerstone of the travel industry, one that continues to see growth. Using VFM Leonardo’s VBrochure™, and taking advantage of the

VNetwork™, are great ways to transform your hotel’s presence on corporate channels and self-booking tools, and start turning business visitors into customers.

The ability to reach travelers through both managed and unmanaged business travel channels is a distinct advantage of the media network that VBrochure™ is syndicated to.

Let’s take a look at an example. Jennifer works for a software company that uses a corporate self-booking tool for employee travel arrangements; she has an upcoming conference to attend in San Francisco, so she logs into the self-booking tool to find and book a hotel.

The company has already established its rules within the self-booking tool system – the maximum price of hotels, star rating, features, etc., that it deems appropriate for its employees. Thus, when Jennifer searches for San Francisco hotels, only those that meet

these guidelines will be displayed.

In this case, let’s say four hotels, including yours, meet the guidelines – all three-stars, all at approximately the same rate, all with a business center. If your three competitors are only presenting a couple of images and a list of features, here’s your opportunity to make your hotel jump off the screen with a rich, visually-driven story.

Part Two: Reaching and Engaging Business Customers Using VBrochure

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By offering panoramic 360-degree photos of her room, a video that shows what the business center has to offer, virtual tours of the conference rooms, and descriptions that really show how the hotel will make Jennifer’s business trip successful, you’ve delivered an engaging, memorable experience that stands out from the rest – and one that’s going to make Jennifer want to stay at your hotel.

This is where the opportunity lies, and this is where VBrochure excels. You know the corporate travelers are there. You know they’re using the corporate self-booking tools – and you know your competitors are using them as well.

VBrochure lets you engage these travelers, and stand out from the competition by building a comprehensive,

compelling visually-driven story within a “mini-website.” In an August 2010 report, comScore noted that online shoppers who watch video spend an average of two additional minutes on a website and are 64% more likely to buy compared to non-video sites. The VPowered Multi-Media Player delivers video and a multi-media experience in a mini-website to multiple sources and channels. The result is a consistent and compelling message no matter where it’s being viewed that increases engagement (amount of time spent reviewing your hotel) and conversions (number of bookings as a result).

Instead of just presenting another hotel online with a few photos and a list of features, VBrochure’s mini-website player lets you build a rich, engaging experience for prospects, with panoramic photos, videos, virtual tours and more. VBrochure’s deep visual experience draws prospects in and makes learning about your hotel a memorable experience.

What follows is a series of five guidelines we’ve developed to help you deliver a strong message to business travelers!

Online shoppers who watch video spend an average of two additional minutes on a website and are 64% more likely to buy compared to non-video sites

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Step One: What Makes You Appealing?This is an easy step: Jot down all of the features and amenities you offer that appeal to business travelers. We talked about this in part one; research shows things like Wi-Fi and complementary breakfast appeal, but don’t just go by our examples; what do your visitors tell you? Examples might include:• Free Wi-Fi• Airport shuttle• Business center• Express check-in

Step Two: Use Media that Showcase Your AppealConsidering what you’ve jotted down in Step One, look at the media you already have. Does it showcase these things? Even if it does, consider if it’s effective, and think about creating new media that highlights these features. Think about the following possibilities:• A short video specifically for business travelers

(don’t forget to involve your staff!)• Promotions exclusively for business travelers• Linking floorplans and images to virtual tours or

detail shots. With VBrochure™, you can add Clickable Image Hotspots that highlight specific areas in an image – areas your prospects can click on to “zoom in” for more detail, more images, or even a virtual tour. For example, you might show a picture of a your business center and describe what it offers. But with a Clickable Image Hotspot, your visitors can take a virtual tour and see for themselves! It’s the next best thing to being there.

Get creative with your visuals!

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ContentUpdate

Seasonal Promotion

Step Five: Watch your Business Bookings Improve!Once your VBrochure mini-site hits the Corporate Travel channels in the VNetwork™, we’re confident you’ll start seeing improvements in no time.

Step Three: Work on your narrativeEvery hotel describes their features and amenities on the Web. What makes yours stand out? Ditch the generic, boring descriptions and make it real and inviting! Remember the following:• Catchy headlines go a long way • Long paragraphs are a no-no – business travelers

in particular don’t have time to read long blocks of text

• Use short, concise descriptions with bullet points!

Step Four: Get started with VBrochureNow it’s time to put your content to work. We can help! Contact us and we’ll get you up and running with VBrochure.

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1. TravelRecoveryShowsNoSignsofStopping,ThePegasusView,October2011.2. BTNResearchIssue:ConnectingWithManagedTravelers,BTNGroup,October24,2011.3. BTNResearchIssue:ConnectingWithManagedTravelers,BTNGroup,October24,2011.4. WhatBusinessTravelersWantWhenitComestoMobile,Hotelmarketing.com,September2011.

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