The last few years have brought unprecedented challenges
to the travel business. Much shakeout between competitors, increasing
threats to travel agencies, and price cuts that yield the thinnest
of margins – these are just a few of the issues the industry
faces. One company that has found a sweet spot amid the turmoil is
Resort Reservations Network Inc. (RezRez), a wholly-owned subsidiary
of the Vancouver, B.C.-based Intrawest Corporation.
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"Google is a central part of our marketing strategy. We track
each keyword uniquely to understand the ROI. Once we know which
keywords are providing the best ROI, we then increase the buys
on these keywords to convert even more customers through our
eCommerce engine." |
RezRez is a destination-focused central reservations company offering complete travel planning services for premier destinations in North America including Whistler Blackcomb, Mont Tremblant, Banff, Aspen, Vail, Breckenridge, Vancouver, Toronto, and Montreal, among others. Using RezRez, travelers can book hotels, all-inclusive resorts, discount flights, car rentals, cruises, airport shuttles, limousines and a wide variety of activities at each destination. RezRez offers the convenience of planning and booking online or speaking with a knowledgeable Travel Consultant who will assist with reservations.
Challenge
With heated competition from both large
travel bookers and many kinds of travel packagers, Robert Morrow, Senior
Manager of Online Marketing for RezRez, says their strategy "has been
fairly simple: focus on the top destinations in select areas, and do
it very well." Since 1996, the company has advertised online using
search terms and graphical banner ads. RezRez was one of the first
companies to adopt CPC advertising and believes very strongly in its
effectiveness.
To increase the reach in this advertiser-heavy business, Morrow says
that RezRez has taken advantage of Google AdWords™ since it began in
2000. RezRez has a dedicated team to develop online campaigns along
with SiteCatalyst web analytics software from Omniture to track the
ROI on each individual Google AdWords ad as well as other key metrics.
Results
"Our reservation business makes money because
of the effectiveness of our online marketing," says Morrow. He also
notes that "a large percentage of RezRez revenue comes from online
customers." He credits Google search results as contributing considerably
to this volume. And, he reports, the AdWords program has resulted in
a striking 50 percent increase in conversion to sales. This is a major
reason Morrow says, "Google is a central part of our marketing strategy.
We track each keyword uniquely to understand the ROI. Once we know
which keywords are providing the best ROI, we then increase the buys
on these keywords to convert even more customers through our eCommerce
engine."
About Google Advertising
Google AdWords is currently used by thousands of businesses
worldwide to gain new customers in a cost-effective way. AdWords uses
keywords to precisely target ad delivery to web users seeking information
about a particular product or service. The program is based on cost-per-click
(CPC) pricing, so advertisers only pay when an ad is clicked on. Advertisers
can take advantage of an extremely broad distribution network, and
choose the level of support and spending appropriate for their business.