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Internet Reservation Volume Sky-Rockets in 2003 |
CALGARY, Alberta, Canada � November 4, 2003 �
The Irish Chapter of the Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association
International (HSMAI) hosted its 7th annual awards ceremony and gala dinner
on September 23rd in the Burlington Hotel in Dublin. A total of fifteen
awards for marketing excellence and innovation were presented to members
of the Irish Tourism industry.
The Temple Gate Hotel, a 70 room hotel located in the centre of the historic town of Ennis, Co. Clare, Ireland, was thrilled to walk away from the evening with the coveted distinction of being named this year�s Best Hotel Internet Strategy entrant. The Temple Gate Hotel was short-listed as a finalist in the category in a group of four applicants. �I am delighted that we have won this prestigious award, � commented Paul Madden, the Hotel�s GM. �It is a genuine belief of mine that we have achieved this with tremendous support from VIP International, particularly through our productivity from �Book-A-Rez� and also some really dedicated Account Management, without which we would not be as successful. Additionally to this we have also received superb exposure through the alternative distribution channels such as Pegasus. I hope we can continue to develop our Internet Strategy with the help of VIP International in the future.� Entrants in the category were judged on a number of criteria relating to Internet strategy, including excellence in web design and functionality and the integration of Internet marketing activity with other forms of marketing initiatives. Particular weight was given to demonstrable effectiveness in using the Internet as a medium for commercial transactions and customer relationship management strategies. The Temple Gate Hotel, a VIP client since 2002, made a conscious decision last year to begin utilizing the Internet to bolster its reservation volume. With the assistance of VIP and the Book-A-Rez product, The Temple Gate added a booking engine to its proprietary website thereby enabling visitors to the site to access real-time rates and availability and receive instant confirmations to reservations made online. A willingness on the hotel�s part to participate in the various merchant model programs offered by VIP further optimized the hotel�s exposure on the Internet. By allowing VIP to distribute the hotel�s inventory through Pegasus, TravelWeb, Lodging, Orbitz and other channels, the Temple Gate Hotel realized tremendous reservation volume over a very short span of time. For the period running January 1, 2003 to September 30, 2003 Internet reservations accounted for a staggering 72% of the overall bookings the Temple Gate Hotel received from VIP International. Of that, reservations made through the hotel�s proprietary website translated into 74% of the total bookings generated from the Internet. In addition, reservations yielded from Pegasus-powered sites accounted for 11% of the total reservations processed by VIP for this hotel, while 8% of the hotel�s VIP reservations for the period came from GDS powered Internet sites. About VIP International Corporation VIP International (www.vipintcorp.com) is a channel marketing organization that drives revenue for hoteliers, car rental owners and airlines through a multi-channel reservation sales center, the adoption of leading-edge technology, and partnerships with clients to provide ongoing education. Founded in 1979, the now privately held Calgary, Alberta-based firm pursues a mission of being �the number one producer of bookings per client.� This is accomplished through mastering the electronic channel marketing environment and providing a central point of distribution to every viable Internet web site and to all of the major Global Distribution Systems including SABRE, Galileo, Amadeus, and Worldspan. |
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VIP International Corporation
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