Hotel Online  Special Report


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Property and Chain Web Sites Drive 60% of All Room Night Revenues Booked via Internet in 2003
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Over 100 Hotels Already Utilizing New TravelCLICK Interactive Division
To Maximize Business Direct to Hotel Property Web Sites


CHICAGO (March 19, 2003) - TravelCLICK reported today that in its 2003 forecast for electronic hotel bookings, direct distribution through individual property or chain Web sites will be 1.5 times the size of the third party Internet marketplace. While third party Web sites such as Priceline, Expedia and Orbitz will remain key sources of room nights, many hoteliers underestimate the importance of direct distribution through their own property or chain Web site.

�Hotels need to pay more attention to developing their direct online presence, not only because of the impressive size of this marketplace, but more importantly, property and chain sites represent the electronic channels with the lowest distribution cost,� said Richard W. Gray, chairman and co-CEO of TravelCLICK.
In response to hotels� distribution and revenue management needs, TravelCLICK has launched a new division: TravelCLICK Interactive (TCI). This division is now assisting hotels, owners and management companies in online strategies to increase consumer direct business and accomplish lower distribution costs.

TravelCLICK Interactive guides hoteliers by pulling their interactive efforts together, starting with the Web site, booking engine, search engine optimization, pricing, targeted e-marketing capabilities, local account sales, and ongoing management services to maximize direct distribution and achieve higher revenue.

�The name of the game is how all the pieces work together. When these factors are well-orchestrated, the upswing drives two to five times more business directly through the property Web site,� said Ray Cohen, president and co-CEO of TravelCLICK.

In its three months of operation, TravelCLICK Interactive has secured more than 100 hotel customers in the US and Mexico. Initial case studies analyzed hotel Web site performance after the completion of TravelCLICK Interactive-directed initiatives. Results show that TravelCLICK Interactive clients earn a full return on their on-line investment in under 60 days after implementing the TCI Web plan.

At the helm of TravelCLICK Interactive is Richard Chambers, former founder of hospitality-marketing.com, senior marketing alumnus of The Leading Hotels of the World and Omni Hotels, and co-author of the global marketing textbook Marketing Leadership in Hospitality.

�Richard Chambers knows the online marketplace, and his approach will help hotels get more business from their Web sites,� said Gray.

About TravelCLICK
TravelCLICK (www.travelclick.net) is the leading provider of solutions that help hotels and other travel industry suppliers maximize net revenue from electronic distribution channels. TravelCLICK�s competitive benchmarking reports provide hotels with price and booking performance information unavailable through any other source. The company�s exclusive electronic marketing networks allow hotels and other travel related suppliers to target promotional messages to specific travel agents, consumers, and group meeting planners when they are booking travel. Established in 1996 and headquartered in the Chicago area, TravelCLICK operates in more than 140 countries around the world. The company has over 6,000 clients, including national and international companies such as Accor, Air France, Avis, Best Western International, British Airways, Carlson Hotels Worldwide, Choice Hotels, Fairmont Hotels & Resorts, Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts, Grupo Posadas, Hilton Hotels Corporation, Hyatt Hotels & Resorts, Kempinski Hotels & Resorts, Leading Hotels of the World, Loews Hotels, Lufthansa, Marriott International, The Peninsula Group, The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, SAS, The Savoy Group, Shangri-La Hotels, Sol Melia, Starwood Hotels & Resorts, Thistle Hotels, USAirways, Virgin Atlantic and Wyndham Hotels & Resorts.

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Contact:
TravelCLICK, Inc. 
Kristina Paider 
 847/585-5238 
[email protected]
http://www.travelclick.net
Also See: Hyatt Selects TravelCLICK�s RateVIEW / Mar 2003
TravelCLICK.net Enhances Free GDS Hotel Booking Data Average - Daily Rates Can Now Be Viewed for Over 400 Cities / Feb 2003
Hotels Experienced Considerable Growth in Room Nights Booked Electronically Through the Global Distribution Systems in Q4; Luxury Segment Room Nights Booked Electronically Grow 21% / TravelCLICK eMonitor / Feb 2003
TravelCLICK Offers Bonus GDS Media Impressions for Hotels / Oct 2002
TravelCLICK To Partner With Pegasus Solutions on New 'Internet Hotelligence' Report / Oct 2002
TravelCLICK Digital Media Now Includes Orbitz Advertisements / Sept 2002
Blackstone Group Teams with TravelCLICK; Partnership Demonstrates Stronger Focus of Ownership Groups on Managing Electronic Channels / Sept 2002
TravelCLICK Announces RateVIEW - Develops Next Generation Hospitality Rate Monitoring
Tool with AgentWare / July 2002

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