Interview with Andreas Westerburg, director of sales, NH Hoteles

EFT Berlin 2006 Special: By EyeforTravel.com Correspondent

What have been the major developments for your organisation in the recent past?

NH Hoteles belongs to the fastest growing international hotelchains and brands. After entering markets such as BeNeLux and Germany, NH Hoteles just started a major expansion in Italy, and entered new emerging markets such as Romania.

Furthermore, we have just launched a new brand “nhow”, a new category of lifestyle hotels of our group with it’s first hotel opened September 1st in Milan. Presently we are evaluating new international destinations for our lifestyle-product development thus taking into consideration a market entrance in Asia and North America.

How do you assess the evolving role of an affiliate partner as part of marketing strategy?

First and foremost a marketing partner needs to fit into our overall strategy and general image of NH Hoteles: Young, innovative, dynamic hotel chain with a very good coverage of destinations in each country
NH Hoteles is already being present. Last but not least: NH Hoteles represent an excellent value for money. If these conditions are also reflected by a potential affiliate partner, we go ahead with partnership.

What factors do you take into consideration before opting for an affiliate partner? How has your criteria changed?

Our criteria has changed in a way that we need to have control over rooms inventory and content. In the past we have been facing challenges with partners who did not follow our CI-requirements, used NH key search words in the web unauthorised, etc.

How do you implement an affiliate programme and what are the benefits and pitfalls?

Most importantly for each programme or each new project to come we appoint a dedicated project/account manager. This person can do the first evaluation but also link to the respective departments involved. This ensures that we are always aware of projects and strategies with new affiliate partners within our worldwide organisation.

How do you keep rate parity across all sites?

We have been implementing rate parity already in 2004. One of the major steps to guarantee rate parity over major partner distribution channels has been the set up of a direct interface into our own CRS, which is our own CRS creation, thus making us independent from third party technology providers.

However, I need to stress that so far we have been selecting five distribution partners that have direct access to our CRS. There are a few external distribution channels on the market (extranets) which we need to update manually. By implementing revenue management for all hotels, we have control over the parity status.

How do you know which sites are displaying your product and how can you prevent your product and your brand from being misrepresented?

Our key focus is to provide rooms inventory, rates and hotel content to selected partners only, (i.e. Bookings.com) the ones we have been experiencing a trustworthy relationship for at least one year. With new partners we usually agree on a “honeymoon” phase in order to evaluate whether we have similar goals for the future. After this period, both sides need to review whether to continue the co-operation or not.

When partnering with an intermediary, how might you maintain control over information displayed through their affiliate marketing partners?

Such a process takes time and requires manual control work. By being selective with your partner search, you do not necessarily need much control, as long as rooms inventory and content is in your hands. The hotel industry generally tends to sign up with every new distribution or marketing partner and as usually you will find amongst them the one or the other black sheep. We follow the rule: Marry in haste, repent a leisure.

What’s on your agenda?

We will start a major client segmentation project in order help us identifying the right clients for our products in a more efficient way, thus involving all our on- and offline sales strategies.