Definition 6 Q&A with La Quinta Hotels, Ted Schweitzer
To gain a little more insight on the latest trends in the online travel industry we interviewed Ted Schweitzer, vice president, E-Commerce, at LQ Management L.L.C.. La Quinta has more than 650 hotels in the US Canada and Mexico and is one of the largest operators of limited-service hotels in the United States.
1.) Definition 6: Where do you see the future of the online travel industry going?
La Quinta: The online travel industry is still continuing to grow at an exponential rate. With more and more people continuing to logon and utilize the online space the industry will continue to thrive.
I believe that some of the more traditional means of booking your travel plans will continue to evolve. For example, call centers will always exist, but they will serve more as contact centers. They will primarily exist to answer questions and help customers to resolve issues and perhaps book the occasional reservation Travel Agencies will still be here as well, they will just have to keep adjusting their business models to function with the times.
2.) Definition 6: How important have you found independent customer review sites and blogs to be to the customers who are booking rooms in your hotels. How much do you think that they ultimately influence the customers’ decision making process?
Has La Quinta considered adding a customer review section to your site?
La Quinta: I think customer reviews are becoming more important all the time - certainly more important than a professional review. It seems as though many businesses are trying to figure out what the best application for these customer reviews would be for their sites. It is, after all, a slippery slope. How do you deal with a negative review posted to your website? When responding to a negative review, as a company, it may not always be viewed positively by readers. Furthermore, how realistic is a page full of nothing but positive reviews? It is something that La Quinta has discussed, but as you can imagine, it is a delicate balance with no final decision made just yet.
3.) Definition 6: Have you seen a shift in demographics on who is utilizing the features on your site?
If yes, how effectively do you think this group is being targeted online?
La Quinta:We have been seeing a steady increase in the Adult 35 + and 50+ markets and we continue to target this group. These are groups that we have always focused on primarily as they are more likely to be traveling. We do extensive consumer research to refine the best targets for our marketing dollars and continually optimize our message and media to reach those targets.
4.) Definition 6: Has there been an overall industry shift in where marketing budgets are being allocated because people are relying more on the internet to make their reservations?
La Quinta: Absolutely, the great thing about the Internet is that it is easier for us to test and measure results. It’s a cost effective way that allows us to try new things. If something is not working we can make a quick decision to either pull it or tweak it. We also can experiment on ways to more effectively target specific markets. Online marketing continues to take a larger role in our overall marketing approach.
5.) Definition 6: What are some of the ways that you are able to measure the effectiveness of an online marketing initiative in order to be able to make those quick decisions on what is working and what isn’t?
La Quinta: One of the tools that has helped me is having Definition 6 deliver daily KPI reports to my blackberry. I can easily track the analytics on a new campaign and determine its level of success.
6.) Definition 6: How important is mobile marketing to La Quinta?
La Quinta: We have a mobile site that we launched last year and it continues to be successful for us. Visitors can easily find a hotel, access their reservations, log into their La Quinta Returns account, access special deals, and contact customer support. We have found that people have really been utilizing the resources on our mobile site. We have been happy with the results.
La Quinta: The idea of a blog is definitely a possibility. With a blog our goal would be to bring measurable traffic to our site while still being engaging and useful and beneficial to our visitors.
We have done several online promotions, most recently with a “make your own brightside video” following our breakthrough commercials last year. We gave the user the ability to choose from several clips and to add their own copy lines to make a commercial. We had a great response to the promotion and will continue to look at ways to be innovative online.
The main concern for us is to continue to engage the visitors we have on www.lq.com. We want our site to be as user friendly as possible all while promoting the La Quinta brand.
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About Ted Schweitzer
Ted Schweitzer is currently the Vice President, E-Commerce, at LQ Management L.L.C. For the past five years, Mr. Schweitzer has worked to grow La Quinta’s share of online business
through aggressive digital marketing, site optimization and strategic partnerships. Prior to joining La Quinta, he served in multiple positions at Choice Hotels International in training,
distribution and marketing beginning in 1997. Previously, Mr. Schweitzer held the position of General Manager and various other operational roles with Heartland Hotel Corporation for 11 years.
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