Best Western Selects VFM Leonardo to Manage and Distribute Hotel Visuals

Posted on February 3, 2010, 10:54 am, by VFM Leonardo and received No Comments ».

Best Western International, the WORLD’S LARGEST HOTEL CHAIN®, providing marketing, reservations and operational support to over 4,000* independently owned and operated member hotels in 80* countries and territories worldwide, has adopted VFM Leonardo’s VScape® Digital Asset Management System and named VFM Leonardo the preferred distributor of rich media for Best Western properties.

Best Western and VFM Leonardo have a long standing relationship. As a pioneer in hotel eBusiness merchandising, Best Western originally began working with VFM Leonardo as an early adopter of photo and rich media distribution services. The relationship has developed successfully and Best Western’s hotels have benefitted greatly over the years.

“We have seen impressive results since we started distributing rich media across VFM Leonardo’s expansive network. Adopting their VScape platform was a natural step to bring greater efficiency to the process. We have observed first hand, that travel shoppers who view hotel rich media are 76% more likely to book than those who don’t. We are optimistic that Best Western properties that take advantage of the VBrochure product will see similar results,” said Dorothy Dowling, Senior Vice President, Marketing and Sales, Best Western International.

Best Western has chosen VFM Leonardo’s VBrochure product as the preferred method for their hotels to distribute rich media. Best Western properties that wish to also have the hotel photos distributed by Best Western corporate displayed with rich media (virtual tours, videos and/or Flash presentations) and descriptive text in a highly-compatible multimedia viewer across the VNetwork can do so using VFM Leonardo’s VBrochure Online Merchandising System – providing a more engaging experience for travel shoppers and driving more bookings. Contact VFM Leonardo to learn more.

View the full release: Best Western International Selects VFM Leonardo to Manage and Distribute Hotel Visuals

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VIDEO: Increasing the Relevance of Your Hotel’s Content Using Personas

Posted on February 2, 2010, 4:08 pm, by VFM Leonardo and received No Comments ».

Robert Cole, the Founder of RockCheetah, explains that personas differ depending on the reason for the trip and what the traveler hopes to accomplish. For example, the points-junkie who always uses a certain channel to plan business trips may behave completely different when planning a family vacation or a golf weekend with friends.

Learn how to increase the relevance of your online content to appeal to different personas:

  • Ask why guests like staying at your hotel
  • Don’t say “I’m everything to everybody”
  • All content (text, still images, video) needs to be suited to personas
  • Show how your hotel will make their stay a success

Watch it on VTV Channel: Increasing the Relevance of Your Hotel’s Content Using Personas

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Increasing the Relevance of Your Hotel’s Content Using Personas

Posted on February 1, 2010, 12:39 pm, by VFM Leonardo and received No Comments ».

This week on VTV, Robert Cole the Founder of RockCheetah explains that personas differ depending on the reason for the trip and what the traveler hopes to accomplish. For example, the points-junkie who always uses a certain channel to plan business trips may behave completely different when planning a family vacation or a golf weekend with friends. Watch this episode to learn how to increase the relevance of your online content to appeal to different personas.

- Ask why guests like staying at your hotel
- Don’t say “I’m everything to everybody”
- All content (text, still images, video) needs to be suited to personas
- Show how your hotel will make their stay a success

Watch this episode now >>

Luxe Worldwide Hotels Selects VFM Leonardo’s VScape® and VBrochure™ Products Exclusively to Distribute Visual Content and Visually Merchandise Hotels Online.

Posted on January 28, 2010, 10:11 am, by VFM Leonardo and received No Comments ».

Luxe Worldwide Hotels, a premier representation company of over 200 independently owned and operated luxury hotels throughout the world, has selected VFM Leonardo to deliver images for member hotels to the VNetwork™ and named VFM Leonardo the exclusive distributor of rich media and provider of online visual merchandising tools for its member hotels.

Using VScape Enterprise, Luxe Worldwide Hotels’ corporate office easily manages and seamlessly distributes hotel photos directly to over 100 channels including all four GDSs, Pegasus, the largest online travel agencies and travel research sites and further to thousands of additional online channels.

Luxe member hotels that wish to supplement the images distributed by Luxe corporate with more and/or richer forms of media (virtual tours, video, interactive maps, Flash presentations) must do so by obtaining a license to VBrochure Online Merchandising System.

“At Luxe, one of our goals is to fulfill the marketing and eBusiness needs of our member hotels. As such, VFM Leonardo’s digital asset management and merchandising systems are the leading-edge tools that help us and our member hotels stand out in the cluttered online travel environment and drive bookings,” states Eve LeGrand Tronson, Vice President, Luxe Worldwide Hotels.

View the Release: Luxe Worldwide Hotels Distributes Visual Content Exclusively through VFM Leonardo

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VFM Leonardo Provides Multimedia Content for OneWed.com

Posted on January 27, 2010, 1:21 pm, by VFM Leonardo and received No Comments ».

OneWed.com, the ultimate online resource for wedding planning and home of WeddingPreParty.com, announced today three new featured service provider partnerships (GigMasters.com, VFM Leonardo, Wedding by FlowerPetal) to provide engaged couples with a wealth of information, multimedia and purchasing convenience.

By partnering with us to become part of our VNetwork™, couples using OneWed will be able to view multimedia displays for 7,000 hotels nationwide listed on OneWed. The old-fashioned methods of researching venues can be eliminated with access to well-merchandised hotels that have photos, virtual tours and videos available within VFM Leonardo’s embedded Multimedia Viewer directly on OneWed.com. Couples can appreciate the fact that a majority of the legwork can be done without leaving the comfort of home.

“We are glad to enhance the wedding venue research process for engaged couples. With access to photos, virtual tours and videos of hotels worldwide on OneWed, we are confident that couples are able to better visualize potential wedding venues and decide which should make their shortlists,” states Paolo Boni, President and CEO, VFM Leonardo.

View the release: OneWed Commits to Three New Industry Partners

Hotels on OneWed.com that wish to add visual content to their listings can do so using VFM Leonardo’s VBrochure Online Mercandising System. Register here for free to upload up to 10 photos or contact VFM Leonardo to lean how to add more than 10 photos as well as virtual tours and videos.

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Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ has Adopted VScape® and Named VFM Leonardo Exclusive Provider of Rich Media Distribution Services

Posted on January 27, 2010, 12:36 pm, by VFM Leonardo and received No Comments ».

Small Luxury Hotels of the World (SLH), a brand comprised of over 500 hotels in more than 70 countries, will use the Enterprise edition of VScape to manage still images for their hotels and distribute them to the VNetwork™ in the formats and delivery methods required.

SLH also endorses VFM Leonardo as the exclusive distributor of rich media for their properties. Individual SLH properties may choose to further enhance their presence on travel websites by distributing their photos as well as rich media to the VNetwork in a multimedia viewer using VFM Leonardo’s VBrochure Online Merchandising System which integrates seamlessly with SLH’s VScape instance.

“We encourage our hotels to use videos and virtual tours to better merchandise their hotels online. VFM Leonardo’s VBrochure Online Merchandising System will help us capture the attention of travel shoppers and differentiate a hotel with inspiring visuals,” stated Paul Kerr, CEO of Small Luxury Hotels of the World.

Read the release: Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ Adopts VFM Leonardo’s VScape® Digital Asset Management System

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VIDEO: The Role of Opaque Sites in the Travel Planning Process

Posted on January 25, 2010, 11:26 am, by VFM Leonardo and received No Comments ».

Chris Anderson, Assistant Professor at the Cornell School of Hotel Administration, discusses how hoteliers can leverage sites like Priceline and Hotwire to price into the value-seeking, non-brand loyal consumer segment while maintaining higher rates at retail outlets.

In this episode, you will learn tips on getting started with opaque sites:

  • Start using them as soon as possible
  • Give higher rates with restricted inventory
  • Use them day-of or day-before

Watch it now – The Role of Opaque Sites in the Travel Planning Process

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Upscale hotel management company uses VBrochure to better merchandise its hotels online…

Posted on January 21, 2010, 2:07 pm, by VFM Leonardo and received No Comments ».

Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts is using the Premium edition of VFM Leonardo’s VBrochure Online Merchandising System to better merchandise its properties online with photos and rich media on thousands of electronic channels and websites in the VNetwork™.

Heiko Siebert, Vice President Distribution, Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts, states:

“The majority of hotel guests research numerous hotels on a countless number of websites. Thus, providing engaging visual content is absolutely essential to winning their business when they are ready to book.

VBrochure is a merchandising system that provides travel shoppers on thousands of websites with an interactive gallery of hotel photos, virtual tours and videos that showcase the unique features, amenities and experiences that Mövenpick hotels have to offer.”

View the news release: Mövenpick Merchandises Hotels Online using VBrochure

Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts Merchandises Hotels Online with VFM Leonardo’s VBrochure Online Merchandising System

Upscale hotel management company uses VBrochure to better merchandise its hotels online with visual content across the largest network of travel intermediaries and websites.

Toronto, Canada & Glattbrugg, Switzerland — January 21, 2010 — VFM Leonardo, leader in online visual content distribution for hotels, today announced that Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts, an upscale hotel management company represented through over 90 hotels in operation or under construction in 26 countries, is using the Premium edition of VFM Leonardo’s VBrochure Online Merchandising System to better merchandise its properties online with photos and rich media on thousands of electronic channels and websites in the VNetwork™.

“The majority of hotel guests research numerous hotels on a countless number of websites. Thus, providing engaging visual content is absolutely essential to winning their business when they are ready to book,” said Heiko Siebert, Vice President Distribution, Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts. “VBrochure is a merchandising system that provides travel shoppers on thousands of websites with an interactive gallery of hotel photos, virtual tours and videos that showcase the unique features, amenities and experiences that Mövenpick hotels have to offer.”

“A travel shopper’s likelihood of booking increases significantly when they view hotel visuals, particularly rich media. Our VBrochure system enables hotel management companies and individual properties to capitalize on this by getting their visual content out to the largest number of travel websites and intermediaries. By giving travel shoppers the opportunity to explore their hotel’s visually during the research process, Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts are better positioned to inspire shoppers to book with them,” said Paolo Boni, President and CEO, VFM Leonardo.

About Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts

Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts, an upscale hotel management company with 12,000 employees, is represented through over 90 hotels existing or under construction in 26 countries with a

concentration in its core markets of Europe, Africa, the Middle East and Asia. The international

hotel group with roots in Switzerland is expanding and has a stated objective of increasing its hotel portfolio to 100 by the year 2010. With two hotel types, business and conference hotels, as well as holiday resorts, Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts has clearly positioned itself in the upscale segment. The hotel group stands for uncompromising product and service quality and is owned by Mövenpick Holding (66.7%) and the Kingdom Group (33.3%).

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To Merchandise or Not – Video interview with Felix Laboy, President and General Manager at Sabre Hospitality Solutions

Posted on January 18, 2010, 1:58 pm, by VFM Leonardo and received No Comments ».

Hotels are doing a better job of merchandising online they have been in the past. However, there is still room for improvement.

Hoteliers need to ensure their hotel information is not just out on the channels, but presented in the best way possible because better merchandised hotels are better positioned against their competitive set, have better exposure and higher revenues.

In this episode, you will learn tips on how to merchandise online:
• Optimize your website with relevant content
• Keep images, videos and rich media current
• Develop and execute a social media action plan

To Merchandise or Not  - Watch it now!

Check out this guide for links to previous VTV Channel episodes on hotel online merchandising, eBusiness strategies, generational marketing, social media and more!

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The Billboard Effect: Hotel placement on Expedia results in a 20% increase in bookings on other channels

Posted on January 12, 2010, 10:24 am, by VFM Leonardo and received No Comments ».

This week on VTV Channel, John interviews  Chris Anderson, Assistant Professor at the Cornell School of Hotel Administration.

Chris Anderson shares the results of a research study “The Billboard Effect” conducted in partnership with JHM Hotels and Expedia in which four properties were cycled on and off Expedia over a period of three months.

  • Hotel placement on Expedia results in a 20% increase in bookings on other channels
  • Reservations made on other channels (call center, brand.com, other sites) offset reservations made on OTAs
  • Rates attained while being listed on Expedia were about 2-3% higher
  • Hoteliers need to think of OTAs as marketing vehicles versus reservation engines

The Billboard Effect – Watch it now!

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