The time is probably not so far off when booking meetings online and live will be commonplace. Every major hotel group is exploring solutions for the advent of a simple, practical solution to seamlessly manage relations between establishments and meeting organisers. In this context, Radisson likes to present itself as the first in the industry to achieve " a direct connection for instant management of tenders for meetings and group sales" .
To further automate the tendering process, Radisson has opted for products from German technology player hivr.ai, including " a AI-powered booking engine allowing hotels and conference venues to submit proposals automatically" according to the description on its website. The icing on the cake is " intelligent pricing" . With the elimination of repetitive tasks such as manually filling in tender forms, checking availability or sending follow-up emails, the response time for meeting planners is reduced accordingly.
Customers benefit from instant responses on availability, immediate rates for requests for hotel rooms and meeting spaces, as well as catering options and audiovisual equipment. While the solution currently handles requests via the hotel group's official channels, " Radisson and hivr.ai will continue to integrate other tender sources in the future, including market players Cvent, hubli, MeetingSelect, VenueDirectory, Aloom and others." says Felix Undeutsch, co-founder of hivr.ai, which also includes NH Hotels and Lindner.
At the same time, Radisson's digital distribution strategy is also based on a partnership with EY, which last year led to the launch of a new real-time booking platformBook it easy, designed for small events. As well as making it easier to search for venues, the tool incorporates immersive experiences, enabling organisers to explore meeting rooms in different configurations from their computer or smartphone, then book directly or send a request for a proposal.
This powerful conversion factor is now deployed in more than 120 hotels, but the group is also counting on extend it to all its hotels worldwide in the future. while adding new enhancements, with new booking management tools, room list options, prepayments and group booking options expected in 2024.
On the strength of all these developments, the Radisson Group believes it hasr increased conversion of leads into quotes by 80 % from the end of 2022 to September 2023, but also doubled its response rate to customers and reduced the time taken to send them proposals by more than 50%.
