Inkjet & Digital Printing
InfoPrint Unveils Striking Results from TransPromo Pilot at Best Western
Tuesday 17. February 2009 - Launches European TransPromo Consulting Practice
InfoPrint Solutions Company, a joint venture between IBM and Ricoh, today launched its European TransPromo Consulting Practice. It also demonstrated the value of TransPromo with a 39% improvement in response rates and a 30% increase in revenue with a campaign for Best Western Internationals
InfoPrint is expanding its proven TransPromo Solutions with the launch of its European TransPromo Consulting Practice. This new consulting team helps marketers understand how to integrate TransPromo applications with other marketing strategies and programmes, as well as with their existing technology, systems, and processes. These consultants bring expertise across the marketing, data, technology, software and hardware required for TransPromo, enabling customers to realise the benefits of TransPromo particularly during challenging market conditions when maintaining customer loyalty is paramount.
The recent pilot with Best Western proves how marketers can generate significant improvements in business results and communicate more effectively with their customers by combining personalised, data-driven promotions with must-read customer transaction documents, such as statements and receipts. TransPromo helps create more profitable and deeper customer relationships.
Working with InfoPrints TransPromo Consulting Practice, Best Western Hotels increased revenues through incremental bookings and longer stays. For the pilot, 50,000 Best Western Rewards members in North America received quarterly rewards statements with personalised and targeted promotions. This was compared with a control group of 50,000 that received a pre-printed statement with conventional inserts.
The eight-week pilot encouraged guests to upgrade their membership level through increased hotel usage; promoted the Best Western branded credit card to Rewards members; and tested bringing a partners promotional insert onto the statement as an “onsert”. The primary marketing campaign highlighted Best Westerns promotion, More Rewards, Faster. It encouraged hotel guests to stay during a set time period to earn double points or miles.
The results showed a considerable impact. 15 percent more of the TransPromo recipients registered for the More Rewards, Faster scheme than those in the control group. One third (39 percent) more than the control group then went on to stay in a Best Western hotel after signing up for the promotion and they stayed 34 percent longer. The TransPromo group generated 30 percent more in incremental revenue as well as a marked increase in applications for the Best Western credit card. This programme also proved the greater efficiency of using TransPromo with an increase in ROI of 278% in the test group compared with 178% in the control group.
“We are delighted in the results of this trial and our work with InfoPrint. This pilot really does underline our ongoing commitment to rewarding our loyal customers and to continually deepening our relationships with them,” said Tammy Lucas, Managing Director, Marketing Programs at Best Western International. “Our rewards statements have typically been reporting rather than response vehicles, but with the help of InfoPrint and CMO Council, we have identified ways to expand our interaction with customers.”
Best Western and InfoPrint identified 100,000 customers that had similar Best Western booking and redemption trends. 50,000 customers were randomly assigned to the test segment to receive TransPromo communications and the control group received their usual rewards statement.
“According to InfoTrends, consumers spend an average of 120 to 180 seconds reading transaction documents. TransPromo takes advantage of the customers attention to communicate relevant, personalised messages,” said Ms. Allen Thrasher, InfoPrint Solutions EMEA principal marketing consultant.
“The success of this pilot during one of the tougher economic times in many years, and the benefits of TransPromo are more than clear for any marketer looking to drive value and revenue from existing customer communications,” she continued. “This leading edge pilot demonstrated not only the cost savings of moving from inserts – in this case three or more with each statement – to onserts, but also has a strong environmental message.”
InfoPrint brought its marketing strategy, branding, design, data analysis and campaign measurement expertise to build a pilot programme that would both meet the customers business goals and provide an appropriate test for TransPromo. For the pilot, InfoPrint used both its own and best of breed partner software to integrate the data with the promotions and create the personalised statements. These were then printed on InfoPrints full colour printing system optimised for TransPromo, the InfoPrint 5000.
“InfoPrint Solutions is committed to providing comprehensive and cutting edge TransPromo Solutions for our customers,” said Dermot OLoughlin, General Manager and Vice President of InfoPrint Solutions EMEA. “Marketers need help to tackle declining budgets, resources and results. With our TransPromo consulting practice, we provide expertise, guidance and technological know-how to help innovate their customer relationships and deliver significant business results and efficiencies, particularly relevant in the current market situation.”