Connections are everything in hospitality sales, (coupled with a liberal helping of tenacity and a sprinkle of charm). At Vine Hotels, our connections with both major and emerging agents form a key part of our sales strategies. In fact, our exceptional agent connections are a cornerstone of our success.
Agents are a client segment we continue to nurture, in a marketplace where corporate bookers and consumers increasingly use them to:
- Save time and effort
- Leverage their hotel and venue expertise
- Secure the best rates as a result of the bulk buying power
This is how it works to the advantage of properties in the Vine Hotels portfolio…
The Agent Advantage
The Vine Hotels Sales Team has trusted partnerships with a diverse range of agents, including:
- Travel trade
- Hotel, conference and venue finding agents
- Event management companies
- Online booking channels
This vast network helps Vine Hotels deliver the right business for each property. But this is only achievable as a direct result of understanding the intricacies of agent operations. It’s a highly specialist arena that can often seem daunting to teams accustomed only to direct corporate and consumer trade.
Liz Wood, Group Sales and Business Development Director at Vine Hotels, sums up this sentiment perfectly: “Our strength lies in our deep understanding of the agency landscape. We recognise the unique needs and workings of each agency type, which allows us to tailor our approach to ensure our properties stand out. This includes presenting directly to their booking teams, plus arranging and hosting relevant fam trips to take these partnerships to a deeper level.”
It’s like accessing a “little black book” of key third party players to open doors to opportunities that might otherwise be out of reach. Richard Newman from Conferences UK agreed that from the other side of this relationship, Vine Hotel’s display an insightful view on how agents can deliver sales:
“Conferences UK have worked with Liz Wood and her team at Vine Hotels for a number of years and are huge fans of their business.
“What sets their portfolio of hotels above their UK competitor set is that Liz deals with different brands in the UK conference and meetings market and can offer solutions for both independently owned venues and group venues, which really helps us drive business into the right venues on behalf of our clients.
“Liz and the Vine sales team offer a personal service and always help us fulfil client expectations; they genuinely understand the M&E market as have so much experience over the years with their contacts at venues.
“In this increasingly competitive marketplace for M&E business, Conferences UK can always rely on Liz and the Vine sales team to deliver, which makes our lives as a venue finding agency so much easier.”
A Client Segment in Exponential Growth
Moving forwards, the value of these agent connections will only continue to grow as businesses and consumers seek personalised, efficient, and cost-effective accommodation and event solutions. For these reasons, understanding and leveraging the strengths of each partner property is key to success in terms of making and growing vital agent connections.
For these reasons, Wood is keen to reiterate the ongoing advantage of agent relationships:
“Our agent connections create mass visibility. Moreover, they drive results. We leverage these agent connections to place our properties front and centre, ensuring they’re top of mind for agents doing hotel and venue searches for their corporate clients. It’s a collaborative effort where success is shared, and growth is mutual.”
Conclusion
At Vine Hotels, the importance of our agent relationships remains a key focus of our strategic sales vision. These connections continue to propel Vine Hotels and our properties to new heights, cementing our place as an industry leader in a way it’s really hard for properties to achieve on a standalone basis.
If your intuition is telling you agents are the missing piece in your sales strategy, then listen to it. … and get in touch with Vine Hotels, because it’s time to exceed your targets.