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Inside Out How Private Communities Catalyzed Our Social Media Efforts

Nick AyresSocial Marketing Manager

InterContinental Hotels Group

February 2, 2011

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Who is InterContinental Hotels Group?

• IHG is the largest hotel company in the world by number of rooms

with the first and largest guest loyalty program in the hotel industry

Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/hibuenapark/4682155727/sizes/z/in/photostream/

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The fine print slide

• 9 brands

– “Normal” mix of stakeholders (Marketing, PR/Comm, HR, Legal, CRO, etc.)

• Operating in over 100 countries and territories

– Multiple regions bring more stakeholders

• With over 4,500 hotels

– Mix of franchise, managed and owned

• And 650,000 guest rooms

– Plus meeting spaces, restaurants, pools and social spaces

• Totaling 130,000,000 guests every year

– Who all expect and deserve a seamless, exceptional experience

• Bonus: All operating in a rapidly changing and evolving ecosystem

Source: http://cache.gawker.com/assets/stills/MACLEGAL.flv.jpg

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Hold on, what did you just say?

Source: http://www.themusicwithinus.com/2010/05/03/enough-is-enough-transforming-overwhelm-into-effortless-action/

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Important questions needed to be addressed

• Higher order

– How can we understand our customers’ mindsets to help grow our loyalty program

and share of wallet?

– How do we increase the effectiveness of our marketing comms and promotions?

– How do we transform the way we build relationships with our key customers?

• And just below the surface

– What exactly is “social media” and why should we care?

– What are people saying about us, and can we control it?

– Is there really that much “stuff” for our guests to talk about?

– Will people want to talk to us? What if we don’t like what they say?

– How will we measure this?

Source: http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_kX_mU6e0gcg/TUHcA8JdFVI/AAAAAAAAB3c/DSTDRrUZwX8/s1600/Mario-Box-question-mark2.jpg

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Important questions needed to be addressed

• Higher order

– How can we understand our customers’ mindsets to help grow our loyalty program

and share of wallet?

– How do we increase the effectiveness of our marketing comms and promotions?

– How do we transform the way we build relationships with our key customers?

• And just below the surface

– What exactly is “social media” and why should we care?

– What are people saying about us, and can we control it?

– Is there really that much “stuff” for our guests to talk about?

– Will people want to talk to us? What if we don’t like what they say?

– How will we measure this?

• Way, way, way down

– How can we be a conversation agent to create viral campaigns in an authentic way

all with synergistic convergence? #bingo #blogwell

Source: http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_kX_mU6e0gcg/TUHcA8JdFVI/AAAAAAAAB3c/DSTDRrUZwX8/s1600/Mario-Box-question-mark2.jpg

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Our starting point: private online communities

• Invitation-only space representing various segments of our loyalty program

and our hotel brands

• Approach– Feedback (talking to us about us) and discovery (listening to our guests talk about

themselves)

– Mix of tactical and strategic activities

• Benefits– Honest conversation

– Ongoing dialogue

– Speedy answers

– Fresh insights

– Cost efficiency

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ENGAGEMENT!Which is what exactly? And again, how do we measure it?

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Engagement = actionable insights=100

research

activities

=100

member

generated

activities

Total research activities = 3,362 | Total member generated activities = 7,037

Examples:

• Changed to the way we welcome and recognize guests

• Expanded point earnings opportunities

• Created a member referral program

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Digression: Stock Photography

#FAIL

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Photo by: M. Wald, Platinum member

Taken at the InterContinental Tahiti

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Engagement = guest-generated marketing collateral

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Engagement = guest-generated content

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Engagement = more effective promotions

Example #1: Gut check and tweak

• Details: Needed to create a promotion against a tight

deadline and with specific directives already in place from

senior executives

• Action: Tested the promo and incentives in the

community and received fast turnaround PLUS a new twist

to the offer based on community feedback (Double Points)

• Payoff: Most elite members registered for double points

PLUS significant incremental revenue

Example #2: Seed campaigns

• Details: Triple Points Offer

• Action: Seeded in the private community with an

opportunity to send to friends and family

• Payoff: Large volume of registrations and room nights

PLUS strong ROI

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Engagement = new product development

Example #1: Priority Club Select Visa Card

• Details: In 2009, IHG and Chase embarked on a

mission to create a new credit card for PCR

members that would be the first card out of the wallet

• Action: Embarked on a 12-month process of

exploration, ideation, development and testing of

product features and marketing strategy optimization

• Payoff: Launched the new card in June 2010 with

extremely positive results. One example: – The initial email marketing campaign delivered an 80% increase

in new accounts vs. the previous email campaign (which

featured the legacy product)

Example #2: iPhone and Mobile Apps

• Details: Members were frequently discussing the

need for a PCR mobile app

• Action: Recognized unmet consumer needs and

began to build, test and modify based on member

conversations

• Payoff: Significantly surpassed both revenue and

download expectations

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ENGAGEMENT!Answers to those nagging questions.

Perhaps most importantly: In many ways, our private communities closely mirror the

more “scary” social web, putting us two steps ahead.

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Four quick takeaways

• Don’t believe the hype… in a vacuum

• Be strategic but be flexible and

responsive

• Focus on answering the questions

that matter most to the business

• Start somewhere

Photo by: D. Kelleher

Royal Ambassador in Vernazza, Italy

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Questions?

• Email: nick.ayres@ihg.com

• Twitter: @nickjayres

• Foursquare: nickjayres

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