Worldhotels kicks off 45th Year Announcing Significant Growth and a “Check 5” Sales Support Guarantee
Shanghai, 10 February 2015 – Worldhotels, a global brand that brings together 500 of the world’s most unique independent hotels, celebrated the start of its 45th anniversary year with a bold new mission: to generate significant growth in room nights in 2015 for its member hotels across the globe.
The ambitious target and roadmap were announced at the group’s annual conference, which this year was held for the third time in Worldhotels’ 45-year history in China, at the legendary and newly renovated Garden Hotel Guangzhou from 22nd to 25th January.
Worldhotels Annual Conference 2015 Delegates
The new plan also included the launch of Worldhotels ‘Check 5’ programme – a bundle of important initiatives designed to help hotels increase sales intelligence, which includes essential education about key markets, quarterly webinar updates from sales experts, face-to-face meetings with Worldhotels experts at the Annual Conference, a “Market Concierge”, and an individual ‘Check 5’ review.
The programme also comes with a confident guarantee: hotels are free to leave the network, if Worldhotels fails to deliver on its promises.
However, partnership is key to success, said Kristin Intress, Worldhotels CEO who was addressing the annual conference for the first time as the group’s CEO.
“Joining Worldhotels is like hiring a personal trainer as opposed to just a gym membership. We are there to motivate and help you achieve your goals”, she said.
Kris Intress also laid out key plans and objectives for Worldhotels new loyalty programme, Peakpoints, which was launched last year.
Two enhancements of this programme to be rolled out first half of the year include a Worldhotels electronic luggage tag which can be used for tracking down missing baggage and providing information on travel destinations, plus a one-year complimentary Travel Assurance programme activated upon registration of the luggage tag.
To remain ahead in a technological age, Worldhotels also announced plans for the launch of a new website in the third quarter of 2015 and a new booking engine to be developed by the final quarter of this year.
The annual conference also gave Worldhotels members a glimpse of some future innovations under development with partner company, Trust International, using exciting new augmented reality techniques. Delegates could download an App which enabled them to use smart phones and tablets to identify objects and areas within the conference hotel, and to view content triggered by their real-time geographical presence.
Titled “Dream Dare Do”, the Worldhotels conference saw a series of high profile keynote and motivational speakers, including best-selling author Michael Losier who spoke on how to use “the law of attraction” to achieve positive outcomes, and Suyoung Kim who shared her remarkable story of coming from a humble background in Korea and achieving many seemingly impossible dreams through sheer determination.
The conference also included a series of insightful knowledge sessions designed to give more detailed knowledge about key markets and key marketing developments within the industry.
Established in 1971, the Worldhotels Annual Conference has become invaluable to the group’s hotels by not only providing local and global market travel industry updates, but also offering opportunities and solutions.
Other guest speakers at the 2015 conference included Andre Wiringa, Chief Experience Officer & Strategic Consultant at Performance Solutions; Sharanjit Leyl, Singaporean producer and presenter for BBC World News; Chris J Reed, CEO and Founder of Black Marketing Asia; including senior executives from Worldhotels, Trust International, TrustYou, Duetto and Derby Soft.
About The Author
Juhan Kamaruddin has spent years sharing and editing stories that inspire people to explore the world with greater curiosity and purpose. Passionate about travel, culture, and meaningful connections, he works closely with tourism stakeholders, media partners, and industry leaders to showcase the best of Malaysia and beyond through storytelling, strategic content, and collaborative partnerships.
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