There is a direct correlation between hotels that correctly implement digital media and consumers who are willing to pay high prices to stay in them despite the hits from the recession, according to a study from L2 Think Tank and ISM.
L2’s Digital IQ Index: Travel study encompassed airlines, cruise lines and hotels and ranked them on mobile presence, digital marketing, site performance and social media. Interestingly enough, Four Seasons was the only luxury hotel that made it in the top 10.
“The travel industry is relatively mature from a transaction perspective when it comes to online, and what we’ve found is customer service is driven from social media,” said Maureen Mullen, director of research and advisory services at L2 Think Tank, New York.
“The amount of attention and effort that brands have put toward social media depends on the digital competence of the brand,” she said. “Some brands that have gone hard and fast and made investments in social media have done well, while others who have seen the medium as a headache and have ignored it have done pretty poorly.”
Luxury Daily did not include airlines or cruiselines in this article because their varying price points do not constitute those particular industries as luxury.
The Digital IQ Index study was ranked thus: Web site, including functionality and content and brand translation, counted for 30 percent; digital marketing, including search, email and blog presence, counted for 30 percent; social media counted for 20 percent; mobile counted for 20 percent.
Right seasoning
The most digitally competent hotel, Four Seasons, was ranked No. 9 and placed in the "gifted" category.
The hotel was highly rated for its “Have Family Will Travel” blog.
The Four Seasons blog
The blog features rich media, tips and stories based around families and memories.
Four Seasons has marketed the brand on its Facebook page, which also encourages guests to upload photos from their vacation memories.
Additionally, Four Seasons was highly ranked for its Twitter account. It sends out approximately 11.1 tweets per day.
The luxury hospitality leader buttresses customer service excellence via Twitter, the study said.
Furthermore, the hotel maintains accounts on both Facebook and Twitter for each of its properties.
The next luxury brand with the highest digital IQ is Mandarin Oriental.
The hotel’s site customer service lags luxury peers, but makes up ground on social media, the study said.
Mandarin Oriental got special attention from the study for its mobile presence.
The hotel’s mobile app uses imagery from properties around the world and features seamless search and reservation functionality.
Users can find a hotel and immerse themselves in the brand with photos, detailed amenities, city information and special offers, according to the study.
In fact, Mandarin Oriental's mobile site was noted in the top 10 luxury branded mobile sites of Q1 (see story).
Mandarin Oriental mobile site
Mandarin Oriental’s Web site is available in different languages and countries, a feature that was also taken into consideration with its digital IQ.
Both Mandarin Oriental and Four Seasons were chosen for Conde Nast Traveler's 2011 Gold List for impeccable location, design, food and customer service (see story).
Some reservations
Most luxury hotels, such as the Luxury Collection, St. Regis, Ritz-Carlton and Waldorf Astoria, were nearing the bottom of the list, garnering “gifted” or “average” classes in the study.
Since the key finding from the study was that brands that were digitally competent were more likely to win over customers in terms of reservations, it is likely that brands should take a hint from their smarter competitors such as Four Seasons and Mandarin Oriental.
Moreover, it is difficult enough convincing customers to pay high prices for hotel rooms, the main reward is usually excellent customer service, food and design and aesthetics of the hotel.
Brands could try to engage their customers via social media so that they can use it as another form of customer service on another touch point.
“The No. 1 reason we do these studies is that if you look at the next 5-10 years, organizations that succeed are investing in digital competence and are understanding how technologies affect their marketing [and] sales and are making proactive investments," Ms. Mullen said.
"Those are the organizations that are ultimately going to drive shareholder value moving forward,” she said.
Final Take
Rachel Lamb, editorial assistant on Luxury Daily, New York