Accor, the major French hotel company, has revamped its rewards program for luxury travel advisors to boost bookings at its upscale properties. The new "Hera" portal provides agents with resources to market and book over 270 luxury and lifestyle hotels from Accor's brands like Raffles, Fairmont, and Sofitel.
The revamped program aims to incentivize travel advisors by rewarding them with "Hera points" for each room night booked at eligible hotels. These points can be redeemed for personal travel or shopping. Separate from Accor's consumer loyalty program, this initiative specifically targets travel professionals to inspire their loyalty and drive direct bookings that avoid OTA commissions.
In my view, this is a smart move by Accor to leverage the influential role of luxury travel advisors. By catering to this key distribution channel with tailored rewards and marketing tools, Accor can increase visibility and bookings for its higher-end properties. The program provides advisors extra motivation to prioritize and promote Accor's luxury portfolio over competitors.
However, I wonder if simply offering transactional points will be enough to truly cultivate enduring "loyalty" among advisors, who likely work with many hotel brands. Accor may need to combine the rewards with strong training, relationship-building, and elevated service levels for advisors. The program seems geared towards incentivizing bookings rather than comprehensively supporting advisors.
Additionally, while rewards can incentivize bookings, Accor must ensure its luxury properties deliver outstanding experiences to create true advisor advocacy and repeat business. The quality of the product itself remains paramount for driving long-term loyalty from advisors and their discerning clients.
Overall, this appears a prudent strategy for Accor to capitalize on the luxury travel advisor channel. But successfully fostering true loyalty will likely require sustained investment in premium service levels and advisor partnerships, beyond just a transactional rewards program.
Risks and Potential Pitfalls
While Accor's revamped advisor rewards program seems well-intentioned, there are some potential risks and pitfalls to consider. One concern is the exclusion of travel management companies, wholesalers, and tour operators from eligibility. These are key distribution channels that drive significant corporate and group business to hotels. By leaving them out, Accor risks alienating important partners and losing out on booking volumes.
Another issue could be advisors perceiving the program as too transactional and self-serving for Accor. If not coupled with genuine investments in advisor education, relationships, and service excellence, it may come across as simply Accor trying to buy advisors' loyalty through rewards currency. This short-sighted approach could backfire and damage Accor's reputation among influential advisors.
There are also questions around how compelling and differentiated Accor's rewards currency will be compared to other hotel groups' advisor programs. With limited details provided, it's unclear if the "Hera points" will be richly valuable enough to truly sway advisors' booking patterns. If the rewards are too meager or redemption options unattractive, the program may fail to move the needle.
Furthermore, Accor must carefully calibrate supply and demand dynamics. If too many advisors flock to the program chasing rewards, it could create excessive discounting and devalue Accor's luxury brands through oversupply of rewards redemptions. Striking the right balance will be crucial.
Ultimately, while rewards can influence advisors' behaviors, Accor's true litmus test will be strengthening its overall value proposition to the luxury advisor community through exceptional service delivery, product innovations, collaborative relationships, and trust-building. A rewards program alone is unlikely to be a panacea without continual enhancements to Accor's core luxury offerings and advisor support infrastructure.
Emerging Competitive Landscape
Accor's move also signals the increasingly competitive landscape for courting influential luxury travel advisors. As more hospitality groups invest in advisor acquisition and loyalty efforts, a potential arms race could ensue with various appealing rewards "currencies" being dangled.
For instance, larger rivals like Marriott and Hilton already have established advisor rewards programs that they'll likely enhance and market more aggressively. Regional luxury players and boutique hotel groups may also get in the game with tailored advisor incentives. This could set off a cascading effect of new luxury advisor programs sprouting up across the hospitality industry.
In this rapidly evolving environment, Accor will need to closely monitor competitor moves and advisor sentiment to ensure its Hera program remains attractive and differentiated. There's a risk of advisor rewards becoming commoditized, with the industry converging on similar points-based models.
To truly stand out, Accor may need to push innovative rewards concepts beyond just earning and burning points. For example, providing advisors with coveted experiences, insider access, personalized services, or opportunities to interact with brand leaders could elevate Accor's value proposition.
Luxury travel advisors also deeply value being treated as trusted partners and brand ambassadors rather than mere transactional booking channels. As such, Accor should contemplate ways to make advisors feel valued, invested, and tightly integrated into the brands through its rewards strategy.
Additionally, as social and environmental values become paramount for today's affluent travelers, Accor could explore building sustainability and philanthropy elements into its advisor rewards structure. Appealing to advisors' principles while incentivizing business could be a compelling dual approach.
Ultimately, in an escalating battle for luxury advisors' mindshare and wallet share, Accor will need to continually innovate and refine its approach to retain its competitiveness. Staying ahead of emerging rewards paradigms and advisor expectations will be critical to long-term success.
Source: Skift