Graves 601 Hotel Implements "Place a Bid" Room Rate Opportunity
MINNEAPOLIS, MN June 3, 2009 - In an effort to attract consumers and increase sales at the 255-room Graves 601 Hotel, the management team recently implemented an industry-leading initiative which allows patrons to directly utilize the hotel's website to place an online bid price for the duration of their stay prior to making a reservation. "The economy is in flux and we recognize that people are spending less now than they have in the past. This online bidding system empowers consumers and positively engages them in choosing where to spend their dollars," explained Ben Graves, president of Graves World Hospitality, the company that owns and manages the Graves 601 Hotel.
The "Place a Bid" option drives consumer traffic to the Graves 601 Hotel website by providing an opportunity to secure a room rate at a price that fits their budget. Patrons simply select their ideal dates of stay and then enter a bid amount for those nights. If the bid falls within the hotel's predetermined range of acceptability, the reservation is automatically confirmed. "By offering this directly, we pass savings on directly to our guests. We allow the market to tell us where the room rate should be," explained Scott Fischburg vice president, sales and marketing for GWH.
For the creation of the "Place a Bid" online feature, The Graves 601 Hotel teamed with Open Hospitality, an Internet marketing company. "When Graves approached us about this possibility, we immediately thought it made perfect sense and was well timed with the marketplace," explained Chris Wichers, executive vice president of Open Hospitality. "This is an exciting solution for an independent hotel to implement. It is very innovative to personalize the booking transaction directly to consumers in this way," he added. The Graves 601 Hotel sales team, in conjunction with Open Hospitality, plans to continuously hone and improve the online room bidding system in response to evolving consumer needs and expectations.
Consumer response supports the philosophy that fueled this sales initiative. Within the first seven days of a soft launching of the "Place a Bid" feature on the Graves 601 website, 73 reservation bids were placed and over 49% of those were accepted. Additional comments placed by one bidder regarding a family reunion led the sales team to secure a potential group sale including meeting space and food and beverage.
If the "Place a Bid" sales initiative continues on its anticipated path of success, Graves Hospitality plans to implement it on the websites of the other hotels it either owns or manages, including two projects under construction in Manhattan and Brooklyn and a newly opened hotel in the city of Celebration, FL.
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