The brand

The Richardson Hotel Group has always been forward-thinking when it comes to their digital marketing. Investing in Revinate back in 2017, the group saw results flying in during 2018 thanks to a vast PMS-linked database. But when GDPR came into effect, they were forced to remove over 80,000 emails, some dating back to the mid-2000s, to be in compliance with the new regulation.

Enter Joe Venton, who joined Richardson Hotel Group to manage digital and creative marketing. He had a lot working in his favor. First, the 4 hotels in the group were well-known for the buildings’ character and backstories, so there were many opportunities for content creation and storytelling; and second, Joe was able to leverage his work experience in both digital marketing and hospitality to make the most of Richardson Hotel Group’s guests.

The challenge

“Before GDPR, the group focused on volume. In many ways, GDPR was good for us because it forced a focus on quality in order to engage with our guests and build database back up. Having the PMS linked to Revinate is invaluable, allowing us to target and focus campaigns to capture and support return visits. Revinate made my life very easy post-GDPR and has led to some amazing results.”

The solution

Email campaign performance has improved dramatically year over year. Open rates have almost doubled, going from 21.4% in 2018 to 40.6% against a global benchmark of 16.2%. The group regularly see campaigns opened by 60 – 70% of recipients in 2019, leading to more than £570,000 in 2019 revenue.

Joe had used other email marketing solutions in previous roles, but when he used Revinate, he was hooked. “I fell in love with Revinate. It’s so easy to use and powerful because it connects to our PMS. It holds guest data from our surveys, our reviews and our previous outreach. This has enabled the move from large campaigns to hyper-targeted ones, which means I can create engaged audiences and let the results speak for themselves.”

The results

In addition to helping him meet his revenue goals, Revinate gives Joe the reporting features that he needs to set targets, continually improve and report on his success. Joe looks closely at the revenue per week report to ensure he’s on pace with revenue contribution. He also reviews the arrivals report to understand who will be checking into the hotel, since great marketing needs to happen on-site, as well as digitally. It also tells him what data he needs to capture for guests that are checking-in.

Joe also uses Revinate Guest Feedback reports to stay on top of the hotels’ reputation. He notes that the response rates for post-stay surveys are better than he has ever seen with other solutions. He attributes the performance to Revinate’s 360-degree approach to guest marketing. He explains, “Because guests hear from us before, during and after the stay, they are much more likely to respond to hotel-branded emails asking for feedback. It’s a friendlier approach that gets great results. I have not found a solution that does so much with such ease. We almost have too much linked data (not possible I know) but it really is an amazing tool.”