Joinslh.com
Baros Maldives
for more information visit joinslh.com
WELCOME | DECLARE YOUR INDEPENDENCE
A Warm Welcome to Small Luxury Hotels of the Worldtm Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ (SLH) brand is an unrivalled portfolio of some of the world’s finest small luxury independent hotels. Comprising over520 hotels in more than 80 countries, the diversity of the individual hotels, and the experiences that they offer, is exceptional. From cutting-edge design hotels to palatial 17th century mansions, city centre sanctuaries to remote private islands, historic country houses to idyllic resorts – the breadth and depth of the brand is far reaching. We believe that small is beautiful. We passionately champion the small, independent luxury hotel that can deliver the genuinely personal, distinguished, one-of-a-kind big experience that our guests crave. While a hotel undoubtedly enjoys the benefits of being part of a global brand, SLH places enormous emphasis on celebrating the individuality of each hotel. This remains one of our core values and is central to the continued success of the brand. We encourage only the very best to apply to join the brand of Small Luxury Hotels of the World™. As soon as you join, you will benefit not only from a wealth of experience, but also from our partnerships with other luxury brands and established names. By being part of Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ your visibility and profile will be enhanced. Your revenue will be maximised and your independence preserved.
Paul Kerr, Chief Executive Officer For Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ Managed by Hill, Goodridge & Assoc Ltd.
for more information visit joinslh.com
1
The Refinery, New York
WELCOME | DECLARE YOUR INDEPENDENCE
The Benefits of Joining Small Luxury Hotels of the Worldtm 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Why Small Luxury Hotels of the WorldTM? Worldwide presence and distribution of your hotel Dedicated support every step of the way Worldwide exposure through marketing, social media and public relations Worldwide sales team support and opportunities Be part of a community of unique independent luxury hotels How to Apply
for more information visit joinslh.com
3
1
WHY SMALL LUXURY H O T E L S O F T H E W O R L D TM ?
Ch창teau de Bagnols, Bagnols near Lyon, France
4
for more information visit joinslh.com
WHY SLH? | DECLARE YOUR INDEPENDENCE
for more information visit joinslh.com
5
Why Small Luxury Hotels of the Worldtm? Our passion is, and will always be, the connecting of authentic independent hotels, their architecture, style, hospitality, exceptional service, perfect location and the exclusive experiences they offer, with our discerning customers. We have been excelling at this for 25 years. We are committed to acting as a trusted adviser to hotels by harnessing the latest technology, opening multi-lingual offices around the world and attracting a specialist team to completely support our hotels. All whilst remaining independently owned and operated.
FOCUSED NICHE BRAND We only market small independent luxury hotels. We do not market large hotels, conference hotels or other accommodation types. The average size of hotels is 49 bedrooms. With SLH, you are never a small fish in a big pond.
LEAST EXPENSIVE CHANNEL Our fees are tailored to small independent hoteliers, and we are often the lowest cost of distribution. Our fees are no higher than glossy magazine advertising or employing an international sales manager. We also have our own pre-paid rate programme, to compete with websites such as Expedia and Booking.com, at a lower net rate margin.
STAY INDEPENDENT We have a ‘soft’ approach to branding. You can maintain your independent ownership but identify with one of the world’s top luxury hotel brands.
ALL INCLUSIVE FEES We include many activities within the annual fee, such as entry in the Be Inspired magazine distributed to 100,000’s of consumers worldwide and monthly newsletters.
SMALL IS BEAUTIFUL The brand positioning matches what luxury consumers want nowadays – choice, individuality, memorable experiences and a sense of self identity. Consumers do not want cookie-cutter hotels.
6
for more information visit joinslh.com
Belvedere Hotel, Mykonos, Greece
WHY SLH? | DECLARE YOUR INDEPENDENCE
ONE STOP DISTRIBUTION Our reservation platform can handle all GDS, voice, website, mobile and third party website distribution. Your content, rates and inventory are distributed to the eyes of over 450,000 travel agents worldwide and millions of web users. Our web booking engine can also be used on your own individual website, at a much lower cost than other limited distribution suppliers.
TRAVEL AGENCY FOCUS We can offer unique access to luxury travel agencies worldwide. We have a strong sales team, an action-packed calendar of sales events, a global database of luxury agencies and the unique and instantly recognizable ‘LX’ GDS Code.
POWERFUL ONLINE PRESENCE We are constantly working hard to harness the power of technology to deliver the SLH brand into the hands of our customers no matter what platform or channel they want to book through. Our PR and marketing activity, social media, advertising and e-mail campaigns provide our hotels with enormous worldwide exposure.
TRAINED VOICE AGENTS We have a team of reservation agents and VIP desks around the world, fully trained to only sell SLH hotels.
LOYALTY AND RECOGNITION Many SLH hotels have been part of the brand for over ten years. In terms of customers of the brand, The Club of SLH is one of the most powerful hotel recognition programmes, delivering repeat guests at higher ADRs. We now have over 370,000 Club Members over three loyalty tiers – Special, Loved and Honoured.
QUALITY, QUALITY, QUALITY Each of our hotels is subject to a vigorous inspection process, both before joining the brand and throughout membership. As an extra check, Club Members are now able to review hotels, provided they have actually stayed there! This is far more powerful than other review websites.
DEDICATED ACCOUNT MANAGEMENT Unlike pure distribution platforms, we have a global team of Revenue Account Managers to support you every step of the way.
TRULY GLOBAL. TRUE CHOICE Over 520 hotels in over 80 countries & over 370,000 Club Members in over 150 countries.
Ca’Sagredo, Venice, Italy
for more information visit joinslh.com
7
2
WORLDWIDE PRESENCE AND DISTRIBUTION OF YOUR HOTEL
El Lodge Ski & Spa Resort, Sierra Nevada, Spain
8
for more information visit joinslh.com
DISTRIBUTION | DECLARE YOUR INDEPENDENCE
for more information visit joinslh.com
9
Worldwide Presence and Distribution of your Hotel Joining Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ can transform the electronic distribution strategy of your property. SLH reservations revenue for the brand in total is $150 million (Year end December 2014). For some hotels, the SLH Reservation System contributes up to 40% of the hotel’s total room revenue.
INTERNET One of the most significant benefits of using the SLH CRS is that your team can be freed from the burden of manually maintaining multiple 3rd party extranets. The SLH CRS can connect you to a wide range of online travel agency websites, seamlessly.
SLH INTERNET BOOKING ENGINE (IBE) By joining SLH, you will benefit from one ‘command centre’ to manage all of your rates, across all booking channels. Once you have joined SLH, you will be given 24-hour access via Internet (no proprietary hardware to install) to one of the hospitality world’s most powerful Central Reservations Systems (CRS). The CRS grants you and your operational team extraordinary power and flexibility in managing everything related to onward distribution of your hotel rooms, from one system. The sophisticated CRS holds your property descriptions, images and all rates and availability, including any negotiated or consortia rates.
MULTIPLE DISTRIBUTION CHANNELS SLH provides you with the capability to manage your rates across multiple channels.
By using the SLH IBE (white label booking engine) to power reservations on your property website, you and your team can manage your inventory through just one system. Our IBE is currently one of the most cost-effective booking systems on the market. Additionally, it is fully customised to match the look and feel of your website. You can also add amenity upgrades such as champagne or airport pick-up.
UTOPIA Depending on your PMS supplier and specification, you can have a 2-way interface with the SLH CRS. If you also use the SLH IBE, you can gain ‘Utopia’ by having most of your distribution channels managed by one system, making it far easier to manage your rates and control rate parity between channels.
MOBILE DEVICES • • • • • •
Our award winning website – www.slh.com All four (GDS) global distribution systems (Sabre, Amadeus, Galileo & Worldspan) used by over 450,000 business and leisure travel agents in over 90,000 travel agencies worldwide Internet sites powered by the GDS or internet third party sites including channel management via third parties such as RateTiger SLH voice reservation centres SLH internet booking engine (white label service for your own website) Mobile devices such as the iPhone
Unlike some other distribution options, with SLH you retain control across all distribution channels. No allocation is required, and nothing contractual automatically locks you into supplying a certain number of pre-determined room nights.
GLOBAL TRAVEL AGENTS By joining SLH, you will become part of a prestigious global luxury brand, represented internationally to the travel industry by the GDS chain code LX, standing for LuXury. The importance of this cannot be underestimated. It immediately identifies your hotel as being part of our prestigious brand and links your property with a group of luxury hotels to travel agents around the world. Compared to other distribution channels you might be using, global travel agents can be a very cost-effective distribution channel. Some other organisations may try to entice you with the offer of connectivity they claim is similar to us, but they cannot match the power of the strong SLH global brand. Travel agents genuinely recognise the LX code, while some other companies have generic two-letter codes, unknown to them.
10
for more information visit joinslh.com
To provide customers with as many choices as possible to look and book your hotel, SLH also provides content and reservations on mobile platforms. SLH was one of the first hotel companies to launch an iPhone App and we are constantly developing our mobile strategy. Many of these advancements would not be possible for an individual hotel.
PEGASUS ONLINE DISTRIBUTION DATABASE (ODD) Alongside the Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ Reservations System, becoming a part of the brand means that you are automatically loaded into the Pegasus ODD. This is the system used by many top Internet websites such as Expedia, Travelocity and Orbitz to provide content and availability. It provides full details of your hotel to these websites making you highly visible to an international audience.
SLH VOICE RESERVATION CENTRES Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ has dedicated reservation offices covering 18 countries, including China, Russia, UK and USA: toll-free numbers offering local language, hotel information and bookings. SLH has enhanced its telephone reservation offering by employing highly trained in-house executives to take customer calls based in London and New York.
SLH ONLINE DIGITAL LIBRARY Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ provides its hotels with an online central point for maintaining and distributing high resolution digital images. This is an invaluable complimentary service which distributes images to the four GDS and the onward distribution channels. Each SLH property can load over 30 highresolution photographs, providing journalists and other parties with immediate access to download images of individual properties.
DISTRIBUTION | DECLARE YOUR INDEPENDENCE
DISTRIBUTION CHANNELS The SLH Reservations System is central to distributing your hotel effectively. It feeds voice centres, travel agents, GDS (Global Distribution System) and internet sites worldwide and has the potential to reach millions of prospective guests. All SLH hotels use the code LX (for LuXury) in all GDS. The diagram below shows how the SLH Reservations System links your hotel to the world:
GDS-Amadeus, Galileo, Sabre, Worldspan (the systems used by travel agents to book travel arrangements) Pegasus/Online Distribution Database (ODD) (provides content to websites such as Orbitz.com)
for more information visit joinslh.com
11
3
D E D I C AT E D S U P P O R T E V E R Y S T E P O F T H E W AY
Cameron Highlands Resort, Malaysia
12
for more information visit joinslh.com
DEDICATED SUPPORT | DECLARE YOUR INDEPENDENCE
for more information visit joinslh.com
13
Dedicated Support Every Step of the Way When you join Small Luxury Hotels of the World™, you will be introduced to your dedicated Revenue Account Manager, who will ensure you get the most from your investment. Your Revenue Account Manager can offer advice and assistance on new business opportunities, reservation systems, joint marketing activities and events.
CONNECTING TO THE BRAND It is vitally important that your hotel is fully connected to the SLH brand. By actively engaging in the opportunities and initiatives that are offered to you, your hotel will maximise its potential to generate reservations. Hotels that work hard in developing their relationship with SLH do experience a greater return on their membership investment.
REVENUE MANAGEMENT In today’s increasingly competitive hotel industry, it is of critical importance to position your hotel appropriately within your market. SLH will provide you with a comprehensive guide to accurately assessing your hotel’s positioning, pricing and most effective strategies for maximising revenue, using best practice templates from peer hotels.
TRAINING Once connected to the brand you will receive training on all SLH systems within 20 days to enable maximization of revenue generation through the proficient use of all systems. Our in-house Training Managers are located in London, New York and Singapore and can conduct training either by on-line conferencing, in house training or by invitation to our regional offices.
All topics covered in training are backed up with training guides and video tutorials, all accessible on MYSLH.com in the training resources section.
MYSLH.COM Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ is far more than a simple reservation channel. We provide you with state of the art tools to help you run your business. When you join, you will be given access to MYSLH.com which is your one-stop shop for all your needs. MYSLH.com has been built to support the business requirements of individual hotels, and allows you to maximise your partnership with the SLH brand. MYSLH.com is the perfect way for us to provide you with campaign ideas and initiatives that will help you generate reservations. From MYSLH.com you can access all your monthly reservation reports, which can be downloaded online. You can view your monthly Hotel Business Report showing all your reservations by rate, room type, channel and source. Your Hotel Dashboard gives you an overview of the same data but in a simple graphical format. And your Hotel Overview report gives you a summary of rate plans loaded and other great information for connecting with SLH.
Blanket Bay, New Zealand
DEDICATED SUPPORT | DECLARE YOUR INDEPENDENCE
MYSLH.com is a resource centre that contains information about SLH accounts, distribution, marketing, PR and sales: • •
Dedicated space for opportunities which invites you to participate in revenue-building initiatives. Detailed information about events and exhibitions with online registration functionality.
MYSLH.com is your only gateway to download and manage your SLH reservations.
for more information visit joinslh.com
15
4
Hotel Éclat Beijing, Beijing, China
16
for more information visit joinslh.com
WORLDWIDE EXPOSURE THROUGH MARKETING, SOCIAL MEDIA AND P U B L I C R E L AT I O N S
MARKETING & PR | DECLARE YOUR INDEPENDENCE
for more information visit joinslh.com
17
Worldwide Exposure Through Marketing and PR The Marketing Team at Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ is dedicated to driving reservations to your hotel, and increasing awareness of the brand in key markets. Our marketing and PR activities put your hotel name in front of a global targeted audience of like-minded high net worth consumers, all wanting a unique experience at a small independent luxury hotel.
WORLDWIDE EXPOSURE THROUGH AWARD WINNING WEBSITE SLH.COM With over 300,000 visits a month to slh.com, your hotel will soon be on show to the world! With over 10,000 pages of content and 15,000 high-quality images, our website is dedicated to promoting our collection of hotels to luxury customers throughout the globe. Website features include: • • • • • •
Rich hotel content with strong photography including photo gallery Bespoke, easy-to-use booking engine with live prices and availability Fully-optimised destination and news pages to drive traffic to hotel pages Special offers functionality to promote tactical or seasonal rates Google Maps Trusted user hotel reviews by Club Members
When it comes to Google, slh.com does the hard work for you. For a ‘luxury hotels’ search, slh.com has prominent organic and paid listings thanks to ongoing Search Engine Optimisation and global Adwords campaigns.
SLH ONLINE SUCCESS In 2014, slh.com generated over $26.7 million, with a share of revenue of 22%. There was a 6% increase in visits to slh.com in 2014 vs 2013 and avg monthly visits in 2014 of 355,000. This was achieved by a number of different factors, including: 1 Launch of new reactive slh.com website in September 2014 2 Timely and targeted marketing emails 3 Pre-paid and flash sale rates 4 Pay per click advertising and improved SEO 5 Focus on the Club of SLH (our guest loyalty programme) and its benefits
18
for more information visit joinslh.com
MARKETING & PR | DECLARE YOUR INDEPENDENCE
WORLD OF CHOICE THROUGH MOBILE With increasing numbers of hotel bookings being made from a mobile device, SLH offers several different ways for users to find and book your hotel. Wherever your potential customers are, and whichever device they use, SLH is there with them. Mobile success Slh.com has seen fantastic growth on both tablet and mobile in 2014 vs 2013: Tablet: visits were up 3% and reservations were up 15% Mobile: visits were up 75% and reservations were up 64% Website re-launch In 2014 we re-launched slh.com and agents.slh.com. The new sites use reactive design to provide a stunning experience for all users across mobile, tablet and desktop. Slh.com features enhanced imagery and improved functionality and has been designed to meet the needs of hoteliers, guests and travel agents around the globe.
The Racha, near Phuket, Thailand
Casa Bonita, Barahona, Dominican Republic
OF SMALL LUXURY HOTELS OF THE WORLDTM Designed to build brand loyalty, The Club of Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ is a guest recognition programme rewarding our most loyal customers within 3 membership tiers: Special, Loved and Honoured. We have over 370,000 Club Members. The more a guest stays at any one of the SLH hotels, the more benefits they will enjoy as they move up the tiers to Honoured membership.
There are no costly air miles or points to pay for, and you will be rewarded with high-value reservations. Other than voice reservations, bookings made through The Club generate the highest average room rate and length of stay. In addition, Club Members spend more on spas, food and beverage and other incidentals than non-Club Members. Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ uses Club Member data to execute regular targeted email marketing campaigns to promote the SLH properties and drive reservations. All hoteliers are extended an opportunity to promote their properties by loading a special rate exclusively for Club Members, visible on the SLH.com website.
CLUB REVIEWS
It will help you identify guests who are loyal to the brand, and respond to their unique needs. By offering tangible benefits and a highly personalised standard of service to these guests, hotels are rewarded with increased repeat business. Participation is an obligation of your membership, and you will be contractually required to deliver the core benefits whenever a Club Member books through the SLH channels or via travel agents.
20
for more information visit joinslh.com
Only Club Members who have stayed at least twice in an SLH hotel in the last 12 months can write a Club Member review of our hotels. Members are either Loved or Honoured. Unlike other hotel review websites, they can only be submitted by Club Members who have stayed in your hotel and at least one other, so we know that the reviews can be trusted.
GUEST PROFILE One word describes the typical guest of Small Luxury Hotels of the World™: Discerning. As you would expect of a global brand with a presence in over 80 countries, our customers are international and are distinguished by higher-than-average incomes. As experienced travellers, they have the means to afford the best, they expect the best and most importantly, they are prepared to pay for it. They value the unique character and charm of the SLH brand, choosing individuality over uniformity throughout their travels.
MARKETING & PR | DECLARE YOUR INDEPENDENCE
COOL O L Oes,FChristmas family holidays SC Hls, O viti ays winter acti ic hideaw Ski skil rom ant isla nds, PE S A C C ESbest places to unplug, innovative EX OuncTI the overed , LE R EL Me xico AV TU R Y TR shopping 2 1ST C EN ure & gourmet, spa & Lux ury
pilg rim
ages, cult
PLACE OF RESIDENCE: 31% Americas 28% Europe excluding UK 21% UK 20% Asia
AGE: 18-24 = 1% 25-34 = 18% 35-44 = 27% 45-54 = 25% 55-64 = 19% Over 65 = 10%
GENDER:
To further strengthen our focus on the experiences that our hotels offer, we have designed and produced a bi-annual magazine called Be Inspired. This editorial brochure is packed full of beautiful imagery, holiday ideas and articles featuring a number of different properties along with the variety of experiences a guest can enjoy when they book with Small Luxury Hotels of the World™.
“ I happen to travel very often and thus have membership in different travel related programmes. SLH has always been my favourite of all….” Belgian SLH Club Member
60% Male 40% Female
GIFT CERTIFICATES *Data based on Club Members of The Club of Small Luxury Hotels of the World™, the brand’s guest recognition programme
TARGETED MARKETING CAMPAIGNS Take advantage of being part of a global community of hotels! With over 520 hotels in the collection, Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ is able to engage in a series of marketing campaigns that promote hotels by the exceptional experiences they offer. All hotels, where appropriate, can participate in at least one themed programme without charge. We promote the campaigns directly to Club Members as well as through various media in our top international source markets. The principal objective is to engage our audience and generate reservations. Rates can be booked through slh.com, all of the GDS channels and SLH voice centres.
Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ Gift Certificates not only come beautifully wrapped but are available in a variety of types, tailored specially to those who enjoy a spa experience, a gourmet retreat, luxurious honeymoon or more simply a 1, 2 or 3 night escape. Certificates are also available in monetary values (50,100,500) available in three currencies (Pounds Sterling, Euros or US Dollars). This offers lucky recipients the chance to pick from a wide range of destinations at a time and place that is best for them. They are a great way to celebrate special occasions; to say ‘thank you’; to impress important clients, and to motivate key staff.
for more information visit joinslh.com
21
PARTNERSHIP MARKETING Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ seeks to develop strong and meaningful marketing partnerships with like-minded brands and organisations around the world. Working closely with several luxury partners on a variety of marketing and promotional activities enables Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ to raise brand awareness, generate reservations and grow our customer database for The Club. Key joint marketing activity with like-minded brands helps to reinforce Small Luxury Hotels of the World’s luxury brand positioning – current partners include American Express, A Small World, Cathay Pacific, Land Rover, Porsche Club, Mercedes-Benz, Oyster Marine, Ettinger and Roeckl in EMEA; Mastercard, Morgan Stanley Smith Barney, The Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Audi, Saks, Mountain Living, AFAR and Price Waterhouse Coopers in the Americas; and Citigold, The Law Society of Singapore, HSBC and Diners Club APAC.
have our world to yourself
AMERICAN EXPRESS Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ also has a long standing partnership with American Express which includes preferred partner status with the Platinum and Centurion programmes. ‘Platinum members are affluent high net worth professionals, decision-makers and frequent travellers, who are used to the finer things in life and enjoy treating themselves. American Express Platinum Card is more than just a card: it unites a community of cosmopolitan, family-orientated men and women, who travel widely for both business and pleasure’. (American Express) ‘Centurion members are super-affluent high net worth individuals on a continual quest for the best and most exclusive. They own companies and frequently travel; they define success. Exceptionally discerning and style-conscious, Centurion readers are global players who gain truly worldwide access to the inaccessible. They do not compromise and expect only the highest level of personal commitment from those around them: individually tailored service, unlimited financial power, exclusive travel benefits, global access and influence. Centurion is a global community of the highest earners and spenders on the market’. (American Express) SLH has created dedicated websites for its Platinum and Centurion card members. The websites can be viewed at: www.slh.com/amexplatinum www.slh.com/amexcenturion
22
for more information visit joinslh.com
Over 520 hotels in more than 70 countries American Express Centurion members can expect more: priority room upgrade, late check-out and daily continental breakfast for two*. To find out more visit slh.com/amexcenturion We invite you to join our world at the Club of Small Luxury Hotels of the World. * Priority room upgrade and late check out are subject to availability at check-in. For a full list of terms and conditions please contact your Centurion Concierge. Small Luxury Hotels of the World Ltd.
For more information or to make a booking, contact your Centurion Concierge on 0808 100 50 50
SLH_Amex CENTURION ad final_UK.indd 1
06/07/2012 13:50
The websites showcase all hotels in the SLH portfolio. As part of this programme, SLH hotels are contractually obliged to promote a value-added offer to these customers – you will be rewarded with high-value reservations. Platinum and Centurion card members will spend significantly on food and beverage and spa treatments when they stay at your hotel. As an additional benefit of membership, SLH hotels also receive discounted American Express credit card fees – this represents a significant cost saving opportunity. This is called the American Express Affiliate Agreement and all new members will be asked to sign this contract upon joining. The participation of all hotels provides SLH with a marketing allowance funded by American Express, enabling the opportunity to actively promote the brand through their marketing channels. Furthermore, all SLH hotels can participate in the corporate American Express Preferred Extra Programme, included within the annual marketing fee. Resorts and Country Houses can also benefit, and you will be featured as a Preferred Partner hotel in the GDS.
cmyk version
cmyk version
MARKETING & PR | DECLARE YOUR INDEPENDENCE
E-Marketing CLUB NEWSLETTER – “NEW AND NOTEWORTHY” In each newsletter, we promote the new hotels that have joined the brand in the previous month. On occasion, we will also promote partnership offers and activity such as competitions to win products or events occurring globally.
TACTICAL PROMOTIONS VIA EMAIL Each month, according to relevant time periods, market requirements and hotel needs, we send specialist marketing emails to support tactical offers and seasonally inspired or regional travel opportunities with our hotels. We have an excellent database of SLH Club Members which we segment and target to match the member’s needs with our hotel objectives. This represents a good sales opportunity for hotels, particularly during off peak/shoulder seasons. We also create bespoke e-mails to support our specialist marketing programmes or events during key periods in the year.
TRAVEL AGENTS NEWSLETTER Should you offer either an agent rate or commission offer, SLH can include a mention in the travel agents news email that is sent monthly to a database of 26,000 highly qualified high-end luxury travel bookers such as agents within the Virtuoso and Signature networks. Lefay Resort and Spa, Lago di Gada, Italy
SPREADING THE WORD – SOCIAL MEDIA Social media allows SLH to communicate information instantly and have conversations with our community in an informal manner. Not only does it allow people to share real experiences and inspire others, it has also brought people together who share common interests. As part of our communication mix it is important to ensure our customers receive the latest news from SLH. This helps raise awareness of the SLH brand, drives customers to www.slh.com, and ultimately, generates reservations for your hotel. We continue to push content through our social media platforms, with over 100,000 fans on Facebook and over 50,000 followers on Twitter. (Jan 2015)
HOW CAN WE HELP YOU WITH SOCIAL MEDIA? • • • • •
We can promote news, special offers, incentives, interesting facts, videos and more through our social media channels and share this with our community We have social media guidelines which will help you create a presence for your hotel in the social networks We can help you reach wider audiences and raise awareness of your hotel Our platforms allow us to listen to what people have to say, which we will happily report back to you through your dedicated SLH Revenue Account Manager We can reinforce key messages through our channels and complement other communication channels
Why not join us on: • • • • • • • • •
facebook.com/smallluxuryhotelsoftheworld twitter.com/SLHLuxuryHotels pinterest.com/SLHLuxuryHotels plus.google.com/+slh/posts blog.slh.com weibo.com/smallluxuryhotels linkedin.com/company/small-luxury-hotels-of-the-world youtube.com/user/SmallLuxuryHotels instagram.com/smallluxuryhotels
We have expanded our social media presence into China, and we are growing at a strong rate on the Sina Weibo network, China’s equivalent to Facebook. Having a strong network in this region allows your hotel to reach a new audience and capture new customers.
24
for more information visit joinslh.com
MARKETING & PR | DECLARE YOUR INDEPENDENCE
Dukes London, London, England
SPREADING THE WORD – PR COMMUNICATIONS Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ has a dedicated team of public relations professionals who, through an integrated global communications plan, are responsible for raising the awareness of the brand amongst high-end consumers and travel agents. With in-house PR teams in New York, London and Singapore as well as working with outsourced agencies in key markets, the geographic reach and exposure of the SLH brand is extensive. Having an experienced team of PR professionals in our key source markets is incredibly valuable as it means that as a brand Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ has a sound understanding of the local market and the media that operates within it. In addition to the benefit of local knowledge, Small Luxury Hotels of the World’s global PR network provides your hotel with the potential to be exposed to an extensive database of international media and PR opportunities, which you may not otherwise have access to. Our global PR strategy includes a number of core activities that are designed to directly benefit SLH hotels: • •
Mini-press releases for new joiners featured on slh.com’s media section on the slh.com homepage Strategic messaging in consumer and trade press through the regular creation and distribution of press releases to international media
• • • • • • • • •
Pitching of story angles to key luxury high-end media, with the aim of communicating the diversity of the SLH brand and its individual properties Provision of a dedicated press site (http://www.slh.com/press-releases/slh-news/) which serves as a reliable resource centre for international media Provision of downloadable high-resolution images via www.slhimages.com to ensure the media have immediate access to high quality images of individual properties Distribution of a series of monthly electronic newsletters to a continually expanding database of consumers, travel trade and media Building mutually beneficial relationships with luxury high end media through regular one-to-one meetings Creating a publicity buzz through compelling and exciting competitions and campaigns designed to drive traffic to slh.com and your hotels’ pages Quarterly brand news/updates include a feature on new hotels joining in that quarter Dedicated hotel PR list to communicate ad-hoc opportunities hotels can contribute to, posted on MYSLH.com Clipping service of all Brand coverage and individual hotel coverage
All PR activity that is undertaken by the Small Luxury Hotels of the World’s public relations team is designed to strengthen the SLH brand and to drive reservations.
for more information visit joinslh.com
25
Shanghai
26
for more information visit joinslh.com
SALES | DECLARE YOUR INDEPENDENCE
5
WORLDWIDE SALES TEAM SUPPORT AND OPPORTUNITIES
“ Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ is a preferred supplier of Valerie Wilson Travel because of its commitment to sales and representing a wonderful collection of hotels world wide. In addition, it is their dedication to the Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ reservations centre, using an 800 number, which provides accurate information to our travel consultants.” Valerie Wilson, Valerie Wilson Travel, New York City, USA
for more information visit joinslh.com
27
Worldwide Sales Team Support and Opportunities Our specialist sales professionals have developed close relationships with the travel trade to raise awareness of the Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ brand and reinforce the status of the exclusive LX GDS code.
CONSORTIA AND TRAVEL TRADE EXPOSURE Small Luxury Hotels of the World’s partnerships with all major consortia, multiple-outlet agencies, business travel specialists and global corporations will drive further business to your property. As part of our corporate sales strategy, Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ works with the online RFP submission tool, Lanyon, enabling hotels to submit consortia and corporate RFP’s at once.
“ We consider Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ to be one of the best sources of luxury hotels for our clients”
There are close to 20 consortia programmes to choose from including ABC, CCRA, Radius, Carlson Wagonlit Travel, BCD and HRG Worldwide.
TRADE EXHIBITIONS
SHOWCASE EVENTS AND ROADSHOWS As a Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ property, you will be invited to join us on a series of events and roadshows designed to give you the opportunity to meet some of the most influential luxury travel planners, bookers and key media partners globally. These agencies are not usually accessible to non-affiliated hotels. However, becoming part of the Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ brand will unlock the doors to these highly productive suppliers.
28
The events and road shows are hosted worldwide and take place in key source cities including London, Paris, Milan, Los Angeles, New York, Mexico City, Moscow, Sydney, Shanghai, Hong Kong etc. There is also the unique opportunity to participate in American Express showcases in England, Germany, Sweden, Holland, France, Hong Kong, Sydney, Singapore and many more.
for more information visit joinslh.com
Reed & Mackay, Prestigious Independent Business Travel Agency, London
In addition to our own events and road shows, you will also be invited to take part in a number of global trade and consumer events including ILTM Cannes, Americas and Asia. You will have the opportunity to participate on Small Luxury Hotels of the World’s impressive corporate stand always located in premium positions. Collectively welcoming over 200,000 visitors per year, these events raise brand awareness and generate new business opportunities for your hotel.
SALES | DECLARE YOUR INDEPENDENCE
TRAVEL AGENT WEBSITE SLH recognise that travel agents are critical to the success of the brand and we continue to identify and implement new initiatives that provide agents with the tools to sell the SLH brand as effectively and seamlessly as possible. SLH is proud to offer a dedicated website especially for these specialists in the luxury travel business. This website provides travel agents with extensive travel and hotel information, as well as fantastic opportunities that will support their daily business activities. AMERICAN EXPRESS BUSINESS TRAVEL American Express Business Travel is the largest wholly owned global travel network with over 2,200 travel services locations in over 140 countries and manages the travel arrangements of 70% of Fortune 500 companies. SLH is extending you an opportunity to partner with American Express Business Travel Network globally, better known as the AMEX Preferred Supplier Programme. The partnership will cover the United States, Canada, Japan, Asia Pacific, Latin America, Europe, Middle East and Africa. This opportunity is not available to individual hotels contracting with AMEX directly.
WHAT IS THIS PROGRAMME?
• • • • • • •
It provides hotels with AMEX Preferred Supplier Status globally, including premium exposure through GDS which preferences and highlights preferred AMEX suppliers It provides access to all AMEX owned travel offices Access to Corporate Meetings Solutions for group and incentive business Participation in incentives, familiarisation trips and miscellaneous promotions AMEX Preferred Extras Hotel Programme Client and employee business meetings and forums Ongoing communications to the AMEX Network for new hotels, offers, service enhancements etc
Different to the Amex Platinum and Centurion leisure programme, the AMEX Preferred Supplier Status is for business travel. The focus is on educating AMEX Call Centre consultants and implants on SLH hotels, so they can sell better to their corporate clients. AMEX uses all the GDS systems and will favour participating SLH hotels in those channels. Currently AMEX agents only have the ability to book SLH hotels that participate in corporate negotiated programmes run by AMEX i.e. Goldman Sachs, Bank of America etc.
6
BE PART OF A COMMUNITY OF UNIQUE INDEPENDENT LUXURY HOTELS
Cap Rocat, Mallorca, Spain
30
for more information visit joinslh.com
COMMUNITY | DECLARE YOUR INDEPENDENCE
for more information visit joinslh.com
31
Be Part of a Community of Unique Independent Luxury Hotels JOINING CRITERIA & QUALITY STANDARDS The strength and credibility of Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ is dependent on the quality of its individual hotels. Strict controls are applied to ensure that only the very best hotels with the highest standards are accepted, and to ensure that Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ properties continue to uphold these standards. In assessing a hotel’s suitability for joining the brand, we believe that the totality of the guest experience is as important as anything else.
NEW BUILD HOTELS & REFURBISHMENTS OF EXISTING PROPERTY We also invite hotels to join us at any stage of the development process, whether it is a complete new-build on a green-field site or a conversion and remodelling of an old building. Hill, Goodridge & Associates Ltd is the home of the small independent hotelier operating both the global brand of Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ and specialist luxury boutique operator, Luxury Hotel Partners.
INSPECTION PROGRAMME Maintaining the quality of Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ properties by way of regular inspection is of paramount importance to the individual client, the travel trade, the media and most importantly to you, the hotelier. The integrity of the brand must be preserved and maintained worldwide, because all our hotels will be judged on the quality of the others. SLH runs an invisible guest inspection programme at no cost to you other than accommodation, food and beverage charges incurred at your property by the inspector. These inspections are carried out at least once every two years, and after each visit you will receive a report outlining the results of the inspection. All inspectors are qualified luxury hotel guests who pay and stay at luxury hotels all over the world. Hotels that fail to adhere to the luxury standards expected by SLH through the first inspection, must have a second inspection within six months, and a second consecutive failure equates to removal of the hotel from the brand. SLH uses both the Inspection Report and Club Reviews combined, to maintain a clear picture of standards and guest satisfaction.
As specialists in the international boutique hotel sector, providing a comprehensive range of hotel services, Luxury Hotel Partners can provide Technical and Pre-opening services during the process of development. Their input will ensure that the hotel is optimally designed and that the operation commences and flows efficiently with luxury standards of service from the outset. They will provide direction and advice on architectural plans and interior design to ensure the hotel will have the potential to be a financial success.
HOTEL MANAGEMENT Luxury Hotel Partners operates hotels that either are, or, will become part of Small Luxury Hotels of the World™. LHP manages hotels for owners, investors and absentee landlords. Hotels range from the award winning San Antonio in Santorini to the city sanctuary of No 11 in London.
Canaves Oia Hotel, Santorini, Greece
32
for more information visit joinslh.com
COMMUNITY | DECLARE YOUR INDEPENDENCE
Le Grand Bellevue, Gstaad, Switzerland
CRITERIA
CONTRACTUAL & OPERATIONAL OBLIGATIONS
To be considered, applicants should meet the following strict criteria including:
• • • • • • • • • •
• • • • • • • • •
The hotel must be recognised as one of the best, if not the best, small, luxury, independent hotel in the locality The market positioning of the applicant should be consistent with the overall aims of Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ Operational management must be of the highest standard at all times Service should be personal, efficient, prompt and friendly Food and wine must be of the highest quality, properly presented and expertly served The hotel must provide room service with limited items available, 24 hours a day Decor must be of the very highest quality and well maintained with a good general ambience providing a feeling of comfort and attention to detail The hotel must offer a luxury experience to its guests The hotel must invest in contemporary lifestyle and experiential imagery
Implementation begins when the contract is signed and fees are paid Joining fee is due with the contract The hotel will join for a compulsory minimum period of three years in order for its affiliation with Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ to fully permeate the market All contracts are standard and signed by each hotel, changes to the contract will not be made Annual fees are due by August 1st of each year Hotel must accept the American Express Card, participate in the American Express commission programme and American Express Platinum/Centurion benefits programmes GDS must transfer to LX within six months of signing the contract Travel Agent’s commissions must be paid within 45 days of departure via the Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ Global Payment System or by the hotel directly Hotel must participate in regional meetings Immediate response to inquiries or requests from Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ offices is required
for more information visit joinslh.com
33
La Sultana Marrakech Hotel & Spa
7
How to Apply 36
for more information visit joinslh.com
HOW TO APPLY | DECLARE YOUR INDEPENDENCE
To Apply There are four stages in applying:
STAGE 1 A formal application must be completed and submitted for review. Successful hotels will be asked for a non-refundable deposit of GBP£1,000 which is required before the assessment visit. This amount is credited against the initial fee if the application is successful.
STAGE 2 Upon receipt of the application form and deposit an initial visit and inspection will be arranged. The visit enables you to discuss the benefits of joining and determine the potential return on investment. It also enables Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ to assess whether the hotel meets the criteria and standards.
STAGE 3 The report generated from the visit along with the application is reviewed by the Joint Managing Directors of Hill Goodridge and Associates. If they consider the hotel will add value to Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ and Small Luxury Hotels of the World™ will add value to the hotel taking into account the location, standard and management of the hotel then they will be recommended to the Board of Directors’ and then to the Chairman for it to be accepted.
STAGE 4 Successful applicants will receive confirmation of acceptance and the contract to sign. The contract is standard for all hotels and states all terms and conditions of joining SLH. The process is completed when the signed contract is returned together with the payment of the initial joining fee.
for more information visit joinslh.com
35
Experience another World
OVER 520 HOTELS IN MORE THAN 70 COUNTRIES
Joinslh.com