Mid-Priced Hotels Develop Strategies To Battle Forecasted Summer Travel Slump

NEW YORK— With news reports indicating that summer travel is anticipated to drop off, hotels in the mid-priced segment are launching savvy summer promotions to generate business during the forecasted slowdown. Hilton Hotel Corp.s Hampton brand and Choice Internationals Comfort brand are just two of the many mid-priced brands that are banking on their various summer promotions to boost business this season. “Were very optimistic for the summer. Hampton had a great 1Q and our overall marketing effort is working to target all audiences important to us. Weve got special promotions for all segments and have designed one to specifically target business travelers and one targeting leisure travelers as well,” said Judy Christa-Cathey, vp/brand marketing for Hampton Inns and Hampton Inn & Suites. To entice business travelers, Hampton has developed the “Million Points” on-line promotion in which the brand is giving away one million HHonors points to travelers booking stays with the brand via the Internet. To target the leisure segment, Hampton has launched the “Picture Yourself at a Hampton” promotion, which entails asking guests to snap and submit their most unique photo during their hotel stay at one of the brands properties. Prizes include a Chrysler PT Cruiser and five “Hampton Summer Cruisin” vacation packages. Additionally, to ensure that travel agents are booking stays at Hampton hotels, the brand is offering the “Unlimited Budget Program” where agents are entered to win a $5,000 shopping spree. Senior citizen travelers are another audience Hampton has chosen to target, offering them the “Lifestyle 50” rate and finally, Hamptons website offers potential guests access to an e-coupon for $10 off. Comfort Inn is also taking an aggressive approach to booking summer business. “Were coming off of a gangbuster year, for Comfort Inn, last summer was the best summer weve ever had. If we can keep on pace with what we did last year, well be happy,” said Mike Cothran, brand manager for Comfort Inns and Comfort Suites. “Right now, looking at reservations volume, business is flat to down 1%,” Cothran added. While business remains rather steady for the Comfort brand, Cothran noted one trend he has noticed is the shortening of lead times for bookings- from 10-14 days to 7-10 days. In recognition of the fact that a good majority of its guests drive to their vacation destinations, the Comfort brands are offering a $5 gas coupon as their summer promotion. The promotion runs through August 31 and all told, Choice expects to give away $2 million in free gas this summer. Meanwhile, Econo Lodge, Choices budget brand, is using the popularity of NASCAR to boost summer business. Econo Lodge hotels are offering a scratch-off game featuring collectible racing driver cards, instant prizes and a chance to win an all-expense paid trip to the 2001 NAPA 500 race in Atlanta. Furthermore, in an effort to capitalize on the synergies between its family of brands, Choice has adopted a new approach to advertising, said Cothran. “Going forward, we are working on a lot of multi-branded ads. Our brands compliment one another and we can broaden our market with the synergy that comes in realizing that the sum is more than its parts,” said Cothran. According to the Travel Industry Association (TIA), which recently published a study on summer travel, a small percentage of U.S. adult travelers are planning to cut back on travel this summer because of the slowing economy and rising gas prices. According to the TIA, 7% or 10.3 million Americans plan to travel less or not at all this summer. Unofficial business travel statistics from recent news reports indicate that much of the summer slump will be due to an expected decrease in business travel over the next few months. However, one in five, or 20% of the 138.5 million U.S. adults who traveled in the past year plan on traveling more this summer compared to last