next generation travel shopping

Increase Direct Business and Brand Awareness

knowledge engineering

Next Generation Travel Shopping

Merging local knowledge, publishing,advertising and bookings

in a seamless conversation

A Unique Platform for Destination Marketing

Advertising is the Driving Force for Direct Travel Marketing and Branding

Bookings is the Call to Action

AXSES has merged advertising and bookingsalong with local knowledge

into a single powerful marketing solution

with a sophisticated and simple interface for managing advertising and bookings

in multiple channels across multiple platforms


Knowledge engineering

In 2006 major brands direct online was 81.4%

- Small hotels less that 5% directOnline sales are increasing

Direct sales have have greatest growth potential

In this environment hotels do not have to rely on high cost distribution

Many axses clients get the majority of their business Direct

Internet is about being direct!

It is the most efficient marketing and distribution medium ever made for Direct Business


Brand IntegrityMaintaining the key elements of the brand

The Medium & the Message

Differentiation - Personality

Ownership

Promise & Expectation

Relationship - Loyalty

Sustainability


Brand Integrity

The Medium – Choice of channel does reflect on the Brand.It is not always good to be seen as Expedia or as Kayak etc. In many cases a different drum attracts travelers to the small hotels. They are looking for a personal touch. No matter how tight the Integration is, travelers are aware. They will spot tell tale design and URLs, they will know who they buy from.

The Message – The message is much more than content. It is also about form and function. You choose to buy at store X for many reasons but if there are no price tags and you have to go to the counter to get a price- would you bother? Creating a message that is not fully integrated with the product is similarly dissonant. The shopping experience should be fully fluid.


Brand Integrity

Promise & Expectation – A Brand is a promise.It can say we are a small family hotel, we are local, we are friendly, we are different, we care. What is the Brand of Expedia? Their mission statement says: “We are on a mission to be the largest and most profitable reseller of travel in the world”.

Differentiation & Personality - Differentiation and personality are conveyed by the suppliers’ website, by its individual tastes, its use of colour, its layout and its processes. OTA’s like Expedia do not create a brand personality for its suppliers. Expedia is the brand, and the products is a commodity. In the end, no matter what, the traveler is buying from Expedia.


Brand Integrity

Relationship – Travelers build a relationship with their suppliers. If you have bought from Expedia and you got what you wanted, you will most likely go there again to check out other options (properties, products, destinations). Creating the Expedia relationship diminishes the hotel brand and can result in loss of repeat business

Loyalty – Expedia is building its own loyalty program.Much like the airlines. Small hotels can and should reward repeat clients and clients that refer others to them. Loyalty programmes work. The visitor’s loyalty should be to the hotel or the DMP but definitely not to Expedia. AXSES has loyalty solutions for the hotel brand. Expedia does not! We are aware of several hotels where appropriate use of branding and loyalty programmes has resulted in 80-90% of business being repeat business.


Brand Integrity

Ownership – With arcRes, the database belongs to the supplier. This database is unique in that it captures leads as well as committed shoppers. arcRes database marketing allows hotels to market directly to their leads and their guests. Expedia has its own marketing tools, aimed at promoting its own Brand.

Sustainability – if you don’t own the brand and don’t have the relationship and loyalty, your business will not be sustainable.

Brand Integrity is too important to contract out

OTA do not provide seamless shopping and branding

OTA build their brads, their loyalty and sustainability


Travelers visit 6 or more travel portalsand several supplier sites

Start with Travel Guides/Destination sites

looking for information and direct links to suppliers websites finding options

Online travel shopping is tedious. Travelers may use channels not by choice but for expedience!. Often they see OTA as offering the “Best Price in the Market” By contract supplier websites are hard to find, hard to navigate, in-consistent and do not offer the best value

How people buy


both destinationand supplier branding

Many travelers prefer to buy direct – particularly Dominica travelers(personal, service, attention)

They have to be persuaded “brand promise”They want value

Travelers look for best value

Strategic priority: Build interest & desire – “Branding”

t

Suppliers are embracing the OTAs that have become dominant in travelers minds as being the “best place to shop”. But suppliers loose brand control and brand integrity in doing so.


Travelers look for best value

Brand Integrity - lost in the channel Traditional shopping sites/booking engines do not build your brand

Expedia: “mission to become the largest and most profitable Seller of travel in the world”http://investors.expediainc.com/

Closed loop – no product personality

Medium & Message Promise & ExpectationDifferentiation - PersonalityRelationship - Loyalty Ownership – Sustainability

No seamless experience

http://investors.expediainc.com/




Destination Marketing Context Local Knowledge - Brand Promotion/ Advertising

STICKINESS

direct links and product promotion

comparison charts shopping listsloyalty programs best price guarantee

travelers resources travelers websitelocal knowledge3rd party reviews social media

Travelers want to see supplier sites

Direct links at all stages of the buy cycle

Product Promotion

Build a reason to returnFacilitate shopping

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AXSES Next Generation Shopping Platform

- Changing the options!

Destinations can now build hybrid marketing channels using AXSES merged technology

The new shopping platform focus is on building the brand, offering expert systems, local knowledge, features and specials and “best price guarantee” in a fluid open conversation

Travelers can see the product, read reviews, visit suppliers websites, get instant quotes, save itineraries and buy at anytime, all right where they are

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Searching - Shopping – Product Branding: Merge

“Each element in the search-ads-shop-buy cycle is undergoing a period of intense innovation, making each increasingly significant, yet interdependent. In fact, searching, shopping and buying – once distinct terms describing different behaviors – are blurring at a furious pace”. The perfect storm - Philip C. Wolf, President and CEO, PhoCusWright Inc.

AXSES technology is leading edge!. We have integrated product branding with all phases of the shopping cycle into a seamless supplier focused experience

direct sales – facilitating distribution

Interactive advertising works! Travelers stay longer and use all options


20%

38%17%

14%

5% 5% 1%

hosting Mtn reg adverts smartads arcres production google other

Travelers want to go to supplier websites - no matter where they are

Advertising is the most significant revenue opportunity

Advertising – Strategic revenue opportunity

$$ Revenue

# Clicks in all channels

Even in our booking channels, given the option to go direct travelers do so..

# Clicks in Bookings Channel

bookings

Advertising 54%

hostingmiscgoogle

production

Clicks

89%Go to

website

81% Go to website


Destination Marketing is “Branding First” Bookings follow!

Advertising builds the Brand

50 % of ads are now smart. 56% of clicks are Bookable

Advertising provides the direct links – product exposure


We provide both Advertising and Bookingshighly tuned advertising platform integrated with e-commerce shopping/marketing

Advertising manager + e-commerce suites = bookable-adsTM

Caribbean resort based; supplier rules, supplier terms, supplier inventory options, payment options, supplier brand, supplier centered


Bookable-Ads Marketing

- exposure

– desire

- process

- bookings

Webinfo, scripts, video, virtual tours, photos,combination of direct linksAnd resources

Cost compare, listsquotes, local knowledgereviews, specialsdynamic packaging travelers resources

MarketingSEO – Niche Channels

Integrated with dynamic, content, ads, quotes, mapsValue reason to buy nowBest rate guarantee, loyalty programs


Tailored Descriptions Photos, linksadd with arcRes Tool

Smart Ads Marketing - Themes Barbados family vacationPublished (SEO) and tailored to te occasion


Smart Ads Marketing - Specials Barbados vacation specials

eSpecials – quotes, bookable

RSS pushSpecials to 1000’s of site

call to actionThe hotel site


Smart Ads Marketing - Quotes Bookings Beach View Hotel Barbados


Smart Ads Marketing – by name

Beach View Hotel Barbados

Hotel site rank boosted by our links & marketing


Bookings Conversion report Typical small hotel

16.4% of all lookers booked people who got at least a quote 59.5% of success booked successfully completed the process 0% of invoicesgot to the invoice stage 5.7% of quotes

Clicks ##

June to Aug. 23 2009

$ 88 million bds direct booking requests to Barbados2008: arcRes network


Bookings Conversion report: Small hotel June to Aug. 23 2009

In the first 7 days of Sept.

They have 8 bookings totaling US$ 5534 andcovering 51 nights

.


Integrated marketing that works

Bookable-Ads TM

Bookable-BannersBookable-MapsBookable-ListsBookable-SpecialsBookable-ThemesBookable-ActivitiesBooking-Partners

.


arcAds management and reportingTracks every click on every ad on every ad spot

Place any type of ad anywhere with a simple online ads managerDetailed Reports and analysis

Multiple Ad types

.


Tracks every click -on every page - on every ad spot

.


Tracks every click on every ad on every ad spot

7995 clicksCPC $0.15bds

Avg. cost $2.5 us

.


Travelers have a keen interest in Bookable-ads

using all of the ad-options (rates etc)to help make the right choice

Bookable-maps have increased AD use by 300% in many cases (3 clicks on rooms, rates, quotes, photos, and compare,

for every click to the website)

.


arcRes and ArcAds

Managing multiple sitesand applicationson several platforms

e-commerce platform Website Booking Engine for hotels, villas, cars, activities, channel management, GDS, marketing tools, e-commerce management


.

Easy to use supplier toolsAll inventory optionsAll payment optionsAll Guarantee optionsFull control of content Research NewsletterClient ManagementDatabase MarketingFlexible Family plan & agesFlexible rules & policies

Groups – Specials – PackagesThemes ManagementCo-Marketing (Partners Program)

Distribution | GDS | AffiliatesFaceBook


.

Easy to use marketing/management tools

Suzanne at Ocean Bliss

"arcRes is so easy to manage. It is a very efficient site. Most of my bookings come from arcRes.

The support that I get is awesome. If I have a problem,I get a response right away. It is very good. I love it!“

Rates management

Reservations management

Databasemarketing

Client management

Channels management Themes Packages SpecialsPartners


arcRes for Tourism Website

Database of lookers and bookers

RatesRates

Rates

Packages and Specials

ContentIntegration


Transaction details for hotel and partners

Selling propertytracked on partner record

arcRes for Tourism Partnerships

Properties selects partners

Selected partners displayedFinal bookings page

Widget on website


many results

arcRes for Tourism Partnerships

Flight search - GDS (Sabre) ian.com affiliate partner

Airlines webrates now available to GDS

FREE – Branded Solution $250setupAir search form set with arcres traveler details

Airline Search & bookings is non commissionable – this service offered as a convenience. Some service fees may be applied – Branded solution receives 50% of services applied

ARCRES


Property descriptionand photo

Quotes

Room descriptions

Rates

Specials automatically shown through RSS feeds.

Bookings

… all shown in Facebook and updated easily in arcRes.

arcRes for Facebook


Transaction record show agent. Custom reports available

Caribbean Specialists Resources

Links to:

Barbados

Sandy Lane

A Bookings Barbados Service direct on Travel Agents site

* Axses supplied agent website

* Agents own website

arcRes for affiliates

For the traveler:: compare lists, quotes, myRealHolidays website- -itineraries


arcRes for Portals

For the traveler:: compare lists, quotes, myRealHolidays website- -itineraries

Network of SitesNetwork of Sites


arcRes for Direct Marketing

Transaction manager & Database (leads) Marketing

Direct marketing system = broadcastarcMail = personal

arcRes GDSGDS


3000 million reservation per month

400,000 travel agents

40,000 iDS

arcRes for GDS

Automatically load arcRes to GDS


arcRes for Facebook arcRes for GDS

arcRes for e-Specials

arcRes for Affiliates

arcRes for Google Maps

arcRes for Your Website

arcRes for Bookable-ads

arcRes for Portals

arcRes for RSS Marketing

arcRes Marketing Suites

http://arcres.com/ecommerce-and-travel-marketing.cfm

arcRes for Partnerships







.


Combining Bookings and Advertising

Building Brands and Direct business

Giving travelersa uniquely rich experience

More clicks and exposure of brands

More leads and database marketing

More brand control

*engineering information & process for the knowledge based economymaking information malleable, configurable, searchable, accessible and delivered to suite


Examples of Bookings Portalsbuilding brands

advanced technology | know-how

training & support

.

.


Powering custom designed destination portals IntimatehotelsBarbados.com

.

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Powering Bookings Franchise’s

Direct Marketing


BookingsDominica.comBookings, Marketing and Branding

Directory of all accommodationSearch EngineComparison shoppingThemes MarketingSEO footprint Members ToolsPortal ToolsTravel PlatformDirect MarketingBrand ControlGDS integrationE-commerce managementNiche Channels


BookingsDominica.com: Marketing platform

Navigation – themes-search-liststravel guide-travel planning-travelogues

Search 100’s

Themes

Directories 5 pages Strategic content 40 pagesShopping, quotes, bookings, direct marketing, reports

Specials, Packages, Activities, Maps



NavigationSearch 1000’s

Themes

Strategic content 40pages

Specials, activities,maps



Navigation

Themes

Strategic content 40pages

Specials, activities,maps


Themes MarketingInformation tailored to the occasions

Tailored to the theme

Database Marketing

Traveler information

3rd partyreviews


Destination Marketing Context – Brand integrity

Travelers want to see supplier sites

Direct links at all stages of the buy cycle

Product Promotion

Build a reason to returnFacilitate shopping

The Medium is the Message

Differentiation - Personality Promise & Expectation

RelationshipLoyalty - Ownership Sustainability

Stickiness | Seamless


BookingsStLucia.com SUPPLIER ROI

How much money can a hotel save by using this system?

Case Study results for Hotel X that started using the arcRes Bookings-Expert December 2008 to July 09.

Revenue generated from direct bookings $118,287 USD

Revenue that the same sales would have generated using 3rd Party Booking Engine given 15% off Rack Rates: $100,544 USD

Cost/Investment in System: $ 375 USD (Includes set up and training of Booking Engine and 1 Ad Special for the year)

ROI: $ 17,368 USD (over a 6 month period)

.

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Creating long term sustainabilityDirect channels, destination marketing build brands & profits…. that last

From Distribution Branding To Supplier Branding /direct sales

Old paradigm- closed loop, distributor brand, distributor control & loyalty, high cost, vulnerable, fickle (ccourt, twt, trends)

Destination marketing, supplier brand, open loop, supplier control, supplier loyalty, supplier profits, Barbados profits

.

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OUR OfferDirect channels, destination marketing build brands & profits …. that last

We Build your website bookings options as you want it at competitive and fair rates

We give you 50% of that as an investment in Bookingsyourdestination.com Franchise *

• min investment is 2500 us $

.

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Create a Supply Chain Solution for StakeholdersMultiple Channels managed by a single admin

From multiple fragmented admin. To a single Umbrella

TA’s/IDSTA’s/IDS

IDS

IDS

Destination portals Destination portals


AXSES PEOPLE

Directors

Ian Clayton: CEO

John Gibbs: Managing Director

Kathy-Lynn Ward: Director Operations & Programming

Programmers/Technical

Shelly BurkeHussein GrantKris GoodingAndré Rock

Marketing and Support

Julia Hyndman: e-commerce MarketingAnn-Marie Morris: Web MarketingJanelle Knight: Web Marketing

St Lucia Partner: Glace Graphics


T h a n k y o u

Testimonial

“I can’t sing the praises of AXSES enough. I think they are doing a fantastic job in terms of tourism marketing.

The staff are very knowledgeable and always willing to assist clients. Each step along the way during the last decade,

they have made our advancement into the wireless world that much easier.

For example with regards to GDS and with tailor-made marketing initiatives for the property.”

Nautilus Beach Apartments Sept 2009

MILESTONES

1996 Launched Barbados.org. Established AXSES SCI, Barbados. 1999 Launched Realholidays.com dynamic packaging

2001 Launched ArcRes.com Reservations system

2002 Launched BookingsBarbados, affordable bookings & reservations

2004 Launched DestinationSuites.com

2005 Launched Integrated GDS solution with Reserv

2007 Launched BookingsFranchise.com

2008 Bookable-ads, Bookable-maps CaribRez.com Caribbean marketing launched

2009 FaceBook Travel platform http://arcResBookings.com2009 Booking-Partners.com collaborative destination marketing

20 AXSES Tourism websites already marketing Barbados via the Caribbean


helping small and medium sized resorts, tourism operators & destinations

build their brands and increase direct business


AXSES MISSION building brands & direct marketing

advanced technology – training & support – supplier tools

Building and Providing affordable supplier-centered tools and services

for direct marketing and branding, while facilitating distribution


AXSES FOCUS supplier tools & services

Direct Sales | Your Brand | Your Technology | Your Control

shifting control to destinations

*engineering information & process for the knowledge based economymaking information malleable, configurable, searchable, accessible and delivered to suite


Supplier Tools & Services

e-commerce marketing & management direct marketing websites & portals

reservations managementglobal distribution social networking

channel management hospitality management

cost effective advertising / advertising managementIntellectual resource & knowledge management

next generation travel shopping

Travel

brand of expedia

hotel brand

brand personality

expediaisthe brand

direct business

suppliers loose brand

expedia relationship

business direct internet