The Power of our Commercial System

Preferred brands driven by world-class commercial delivery

The success of any hotel depends on its ability to consistently drive business at the right rates. And in today’s competitive environment, getting your hotel to market at a price that will drive sustainable returns is a complex business.

As a business led by a portfolio of strong, differentiated brands, IHG has built scale where it matters - in the most attractive markets and in the highest opportunity segments based on guests’ occasion needs. Our global presence across nearly 100 countries allows us to invest $1.2 billion in a system that continuously generates, converts, and retains demand for your property.

Across the globe, IHG has on-the-ground commercial resources that allow us to respond to local needs quickly and effectively, leveraging both our scale and local capability to maximise profitable revenue for your hotel and resort over the long-term.

IHG Commercial DNA

IHG Commercial DNA

Generating Demand

Generating Demand

In a crowded and complex marketplace, IHG’s capacity to influence the buying decisions of our target guests comes down to price, time and location, and the ability to match their needs with a suitable hotel brand. Together, IHG’s powerful global salesforce, strategic brand and loyalty campaigns, digital marketing, social content and PR generate demand for your hotels and help to keep IHG front-of-mind when guests make a booking.

Driving direct bookings through powerful digital marketing

  • As one of the biggest hotel companies in the world, IHG has scale and buying power when it comes to digital keyword searches. We optimise our web presence with crafted messages for target audiences, search engine optimisation and the strength of 30 million keywords globally to drive customers to book direct through IHG sites, for maximum return-on-investment. Through Performance Marketing (a global programme that drives direct channel revenue to your hotels), IHG generated over $1.5 billion in hotel revenue globally in 2018.

Deploying powerful, emotive content and leveraging third party endorsement through social media and PR

  • Through PR and social media initiatives such as our global 'always-on' news bureau, we generate a continual 'drumbeat' of communications activity for our brands and hotels in some of the world’s most influential publications such as The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, CNN, Conde Nast Traveller, Vogue and Robb Report.

Investing in brand and loyalty campaigns to drive demand from high-value global bookers and travellers

  • Our brand and loyalty marketing campaigns engage millions of customers around the world, generating over 110 million room nights and contributed over USD9.7 billion in global system revenue to all IHG-branded hotels in 2018. IHG Rewards Club also brought home five first place Freddie Awards this year - the most awards of any hotel loyalty program globally.

Maximising B2B Sales

  • IHG has scale and buying power when it comes to negotiating with online travel agencies and we leverage our own extensive sales network of over 18,000 associates globally to direct business to your hotel. IHG Global Sales teams manage over 2,100 Key Accounts and deliver on average 26% global sales contribution.

Converting Demand

Converting Demand

IHG helps your property convert demand into the most profitable revenue streams by providing low-cost direct booking channels to maximise the business potential of every guest. To do so, we are constantly strengthening our presence where our customers are spending time and continuously invest millions of dollars in developing mobile/digital assets and revenue management tools.

Reaching guests through Web & Mobile channels

  • The IHG website and the IHG Mobile App is now available in 17 languages, making it easy for customers to find and book our hotels. The award winning IHG Mobile App continues to drive incremental revenue, growing 45% YOY globally.

Driving bookings and providing customer care through voice channels (CRO)

  • IHG has over 1,800 agents speaking 14 languages, and operates 11 voice reservation centres worldwide to drive bookings and deliver customer care. Voice channels deliver the highest ADR across all channels and provide a low cost of sale that maximises profitable revenue.

Optimising revenue delivery through robust revenue management and sales tools embedded through rigorous training

  • IHG is reshaping our business, and industry, through cutting-edge technology. We're designing tools to deliver better experiences for colleagues and guests, with an aim to drive our competitive advantage.
  • We have launched a new technology offering, IHG Concerto™, bundling industry leading guest reservation, rate & inventory management and enhance revenue management capabilities, with a modern look and feel providing our hotels with a seamless navigation all accessed through a new hotel homepage. This is a cloud based, powerful new hotel technology platform that incoroporates a comprehensive set of capabilities into a single seamless hotel management tool.
  • Over time, we'll release additional features to drive business results; providing data to optimise the experience and pricing offer for each guest in order to maximise profitable revenue, streamline hotel operations and increase guest satisfaction.

Retaining Demand

Retaining Demand

Loyalty drives profitable revenue growth and will enable us to increase market share to maximise your hotel’s revenue over the long term. Through IHG Rewards Club, IHG Business Rewards and InterContinental Ambassador, we strengthen relationships with our best customers by offering competitive rates, relevant benefits and memorable experiences through highly targeted, personalised communications.

Delivering our brands through memorable guest experiences and personal service

  • Personal, relevant brand experiences and member recognition are what keep guests coming back through our hotels’ doors time and time again. Every touchpoint is an opportunity to create a memorable guest experience and to build loyalty - from the moment they search for IHG-branded hotels online to the moment they return home, and beyond.

Creating competitive, relevant benefits and experiences for loyal members

  • IHG continuously invests in its loyalty brand to engage and reward members in the ways that they want. That’s why IHG has the world’s largest hotel loyalty programme (over 110 million enrolled members) and continues to see growth in new member enrolment. In 2016, IHG launched “YOUR RATE by IHG Rewards Club” to provide members with access to exclusive preferential rates when booking through IHG direct and has seen positive results in changing booking behaviour.

Leveraging customer feedback through social insights and deploying highly targeted, personalised communications to drive loyalty

  • To better understand what guests want out of a hotel stay and help us build meaningful relationships, we listen to what they are saying using online listening tools. Members across the globe are far more likely to answer the HeartBeat survey compared to non-members. In addition, members were more prone to rate their experience between 8 and 10 as compared to non-members, driving advocacy for your hotels in the process.