Study Shows Hotel Loyalty Programs Play Important Role in Corporate Travel Programs

High Interest in Corporate Travel Loyalty Programs

ALEXANDRIA, VA – July 9, 2015 – Two-thirds (66 percent) of Corporate Travel Managers agree hotel loyalty programs play at least a “slightly important” role in their negotiations with hotels and one in five admit they play a “very important” or “extremely important” role, according to new research from the GBTA Foundation, the education and research arm of the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA).

The study, Making Hotel Loyalty Programs Work for You and Your Travel Program, sponsored by Hilton Worldwide, surveyed more than 200 U.S. Corporate Travel Managers and revealed that hotel loyalty programs are an important consideration for many Travel Managers when choosing preferred hotels. Additionally, according to the survey, the primary role that loyalty programs play for Travel Managers is encouraging corporate travel policy compliance and driving greater volume to preferred hotels. The study also uncovers that one-third of Travel Managers say they actively inform travelers about hotel loyalty programs.

According to the study, 78 percent of Travel Managers are allowed to use individual hotel loyalty accounts when traveling for business. Travel Managers almost universally say travelers can keep the points or rewards earned through business travel for their own personal use.

“Most loyalty programs reward individual travelers for staying at hotel chains, but these programs can also align with the goals of corporate travel programs to promote compliance, improve traveler satisfaction and extract value from hotel stays,” said Joseph Bates, GBTA Foundation vice president of research. “While the primary goal of loyalty programs is to incentivize travelers to be brand loyal, continued partnerships with Travel Managers should prevail.”

The study also found high interest in both corporate hotel loyalty programs and adding incentive to individual programs to encourage booking through authorized channels. A large majority (77 percent) of Travel Managers are “somewhat interested” or “very interested” in a corporate loyalty program that rewards companies through various discounts and perks and 72 percent are also “somewhat interested” or “very interested” in allowing travelers to belong to individual loyalty programs to accrue points more quickly if they booked through a channel agreed upon by both the Travel Manager and the hotel.

Methodology
This study is based on an online survey of 221 Travel Managers based in the United States fielded from April 7 – 16, 2015. Respondents included GBTA members and non-members.

GBTA’s Joseph Bates will be presenting the results of this study in an education session called New Trends in Hotel Loyalty Programs: What Works for Travel Managers and What Doesn’t at GBTA Convention 2015 in Orlando on Monday, July 27 at 11:30am.

The study, Making Hotel Loyalty Programs Work for You and Your Travel Program, is available exclusively to GBTA members by clicking here and non-members may purchase the report through the GBTA Foundation by emailing pyachnes@gbtafoundation.org. Click here to view an abstract of this research.

CONTACT: Colleen Gallagher, +1 703-236-1133, cgallagher@gbta.org

About Hilton Worldwide
Hilton Worldwide (NYSE: HLT) is a leading global hospitality company, spanning the lodging sector from luxury and full-service hotels and resorts to extended-stay suites and focused-service hotels. For 95 years, Hilton Worldwide has been dedicated to continuing its tradition of providing exceptional guest experiences. The company’s portfolio of twelve world-class global brands is comprised of more than 4,350 managed, franchised, owned and leased hotels and timeshare properties, with more than 720,000 rooms in 94 countries and territories, including Hilton Hotels & Resorts, Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts, Conrad Hotels & Resorts, Canopy by Hilton, Curio – A Collection by Hilton, DoubleTree by Hilton, Embassy Suites Hotels, Hilton Garden Inn, Hampton Hotels, Homewood Suites by Hilton, Home2 Suites by Hilton and Hilton Grand Vacations. The company also manages an award-winning customer loyalty program, Hilton HHonors®. Visit news.hiltonworldwide.com for more information and connect with Hilton Worldwide at facebook.com/hiltonworldwide, twitter.com/hiltonworldwide, youtube.com/hiltonworldwide,

flickr.com/hiltonworldwide, and linkedin.com/company/hilton-worldwide.

About the GBTA Foundation:
The GBTA Foundation is the education and research foundation of the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA), the world’s premier business travel and meetings trade organization headquartered in the Washington, D.C. area with operations on six continents. Collectively, GBTA’s 7,000-plus members manage more than $345 billion of global business travel and meetings expenditures annually. GBTA provides its growing network of more than 28,000 travel professionals and 125,000 active contacts with world-class education, events, research, advocacy and media. The Foundation was established in 1997 to support GBTA’s members and the industry as a whole. As the leading education and research foundation in the business travel industry, the GBTA Foundation seeks to fund initiatives to advance the business travel profession. The GBTA Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. For more information, see www.gbta.org and www.gbta.org/foundation.

About the Global Business Travel Association
The Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) is the world’s premier business travel and meetings trade organization headquartered in the Washington, D.C. area with operations on six continents. GBTA’s 9,000-plus members manage more than $345 billion of global business travel and meetings expenditures annually. GBTA and the GBTA Foundation deliver world-class education, events, research, advocacy and media to a growing global network of more than 28,000 travel professionals and 125,000 active contacts. To learn how business travel drives lasting business growth, gbta.org
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Colleen Gallagher

Vice President, Communications
+1 703 236 1133
cgallagher@gbta.org

Marianne Varkiani

Communications Manager
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mvarkiani@gbta.org

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