Monday night the global leaders in the world of hospitality assembled in New York for the Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International (HSMAI) Adrian Awards Gala to recognise inspiring best practices in sales and marketing for the hospitality industry. During the black-tie event TRAVELCLICK¬ the leader in hotel ecommerce solutions and HSMAI named Joie de Vivre Hospitality the 2009 eMarketer of the Yeara recognition that reflects the superior ability to attract and convert guests through the industry’s most effective channel the web. Joie de Vivre is the firstand onlyrepeat winner of the eMarketer of the Year award. The company received the award also in 2006.
Sponsored by TRAVELCLICK eMarketer of the Year recognizes the best integrated emarketing program in the hotel industry. Contenders were judged on the strength of their web presence and booking performance driven by world-class online marketing including website design search marketing emerging channels and community development through social marketing.
Despite a recessionary economy in 2009 Joie de Vivre increased web traffic by 65 percent and grew web business by over 50 percent. The largest collection of boutique hotels in California the chain has 35 hotels that span from the northern wine country to San Francisco to Silicon Valley and down the coast to Los Angeles. Using a creative combination of strategies including integrated brand campaigns alternate channels social marketing search engine optimization and pay-per-click advertisingcoupled with an enhanced web platform and booking engine and strong relationships with third-party sitesJoie de Vivre has demonstrated extraordinary success in driving demand and converting bookings online.
Joie de Vivre who won in the competition’s Chain category to qualify for the overall award has been exemplary also in its use of social networking to grow business. From its ‘ìFive Little Words’ contest on Facebook to a ‘ìSowing the Seeds of Love’ earth-friendly Valentine’s package the company has evolved social networking into a true booking channel. Their ‘ìTwitter Tuesday’ and ‘ìFacebook Friday’ campaigns delivered more than 1000 room nights and expanded an already loyal community to over 10000 fans and followers.
Accepting the award for Joie de Vivre was Chief Revenue Officer Linda Palermo. ‘ìWe are delighted to receive the eMarketer of Year Award’ said Palermo. ‘ìJoie de Vivre has worked hard to understand how and where our potential guests are shoppingand which channels will bring us the greatest return at the lowest cost. We are pleased with how rapidly we’ve been able to connect guests to our brand online to generate high-value repeat business.’
Along with naming the 2009 eMarketer of the Year TRAVELCLICK recognized the following winners in the finalist regional and chain categories:
- Asia/Pacific Region: Zeavola Resort Phi Phi Island Thailand (www.zeavola.com)
- Europe/Middle East/Africa Region: Hotel Stureplan Stockholm Sweden (www.hotelstureplan.se)
- Americas Region: The Westin Copley Place Boston Massachusetts (www.westin.com/copleyplace)
- Chain Category: Joie de Vivre Hospitality San Francisco California (www.jdvhotels.com)
‘ìIn 2009 and more than any year before we’ve seen the Internet come of agemarking what many have called ‘Öthe decade of digital disruption” said John Hach Senior Vice President of TRAVELCLICK’s Digital Agency. ‘ìToday effective emarketing is a serious science that demands true expertise. All of our contenders for the 2009 eMarketer of the Year Award have leveraged this marketing science for maximum value. We applaud them our category finalists and winner Joie de Vivre for their tenacious use of proven strategies that drive revenue build brand and expand community.’
During the gala TRAVELCLICK also unveiled its new community Hotel Conversations where hotels from around the world share insights and experiences for connecting hotels and guests. To watch their video stories and join in the dialogue visit www.HotelConversations.com.
