Do you know a website accessible only for subscribers and how they promote it ??

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Darren Cronian on March 18, 2008 at 12:30am

Hi Bernard.

I remember watching Dragons Den (a BBC business show in case you aren't aware of it) and one of the businesses featured was a luxury travel guide which helped travellers find hotels, travel guides etc. What one of the experts said was that he could go on to Google and find all of the information he needed without paying x amount of money in a membership site.

I thought this was a good point.

So, what you need to think of is a number of Unique Selling Points (USPs) which is going to save people time, provide them with useful, unique information at a click of a button (or 2 buttons) Once you have thought of these USPs then make sure you mention them on the membership sign up page.

Hope this helps.

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Permalink Reply by Bernard Fromageau on March 18, 2008 at 10:15am

Hi Darren,
This is a good point...
If I had to answer to the expert I would have asked...
How can you find on Google "In France, a small hotel, less than 20 rooms, with a Spa an indoor pool...
This was the request we had last week.
Or an other request: "We are a group of 15 couples travelling together, we would like to find in Europe for a three nights stay a small hotel (we want the exclusivity of the place). We want to play golf and go horse riding and if possible an indoor pool as we are travelling next October.
Every day we have to answer such questions.

People are no longer asking for destinations they are asking for products.
Google is a fantastic tool if you really know what you are looking for.
Otherwise it take’s hours and days... and you miss the exceptional.

Thank you so much for your comments.

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Permalink Reply by Ronald Ashri on March 20, 2008 at 6:20pm

Hi Bernard,

I think the concept is fantastic - although as you say you could definitely improve the presentation to make it feel just as exclusive as the destinations you are providing access to.

I also agree with your comments about Google and requests. For more sophisticated travelers without the time required to do the research themselves (and the local knowledge that no amount of research will give you) specialised travel agencies can offer true added value.

The only challenge is to find the more appropriate format to give access to and charge for the expert advice they are getting.

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Permalink Reply by Select World Travel on March 18, 2008 at 9:53am

Hi Bernard
We use the Squarespace system for our combined blog and
website. It Is based on a series of building blocks and incredible to use, and extremely in expensive. It also allows you to control memberships etc.
It might be worth having a look at, and it also offers a free 30 day trial. You can access and take a look at it using this link.
http://www.squarespace.com/?associateTag=selectworld

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Permalink Reply by Dee Edwards on March 18, 2008 at 10:47am

I remember that Dragons Den show. It was actually about StyleBible, a lifestyle club, which I put a link to earlier. I thought at the time that whilst the founder came across very badly in pitching, I was a member of it at the time (though it didn't cost much), actually still am. Stylebible is quite an interesting product. I liked it as it has a techie thing which enables you read around and click to add nuggets so you can make your own guidebook of a place (you make a PDF in a click), great if you're going to say New York for the weekend. Though on the whole I think Stylebible and it's club type concept which involves bars, invitations to sample sales is more for the aspirational, for the mid twenties sort of woman. Not like Bernard's exclusive service. But as you say Darren, Bernard's site really needs to show the USP better.

That Dragon's Den panel member must have a lot of time on his hands if he's willing to spend so many hours on Google!

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Permalink Reply by Nicola Grimshaw on March 30, 2008 at 8:35pm

Hi Bernard,

I've just read your post with interest and would love to have a look at your subscription site. You have already identified that the presentation of your offer is really bad and I'm afraid I would have to agree. Your product may be absolutely fantastic, but I was left wondering exactly who might buy a subscription as a consumer.

Then I suddenly thought, as a travel agent specialising in luxury holidays perhaps I should be your target market! I am always being asked for unusual requests and as you quite rightly state the hotel that 'ticks all the boxes' can be difficult to find even if you are a google 'expert' and you have a good idea where to start looking.

The only site I can think of is http://www.luxurytravelmagazine.com which I subscribed to a couple of years ago - I think I paid about £25 for a year. The site always gave partial access to non paying members, but the search facility was only avaialble to subscribers. I'm not sure quite when it happened but the site is no longer based on subscriptions and anyone can use the search facility. The site now, presumably, generates it's revenue from hotel membership; I guess it is no longer impartial (which I particularly liked) but there must be a reason for the change and my guess would be that it is much more profitable. Now the site is competeing with the likes of www.kiwicollection.com - I find both great sources of information.

As a consultant to the stars, testimonials/celebrity endorsement would be a great selling point.

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Permalink Reply by Bernard Fromageau on March 30, 2008 at 9:30pm

Hi Nicola,
Thanks for your remarks.
I know the two sites you mentioned. Luxury Travel, the Australian site, was indeed a good source of info. They've changed last year and now hotels are paying to be part of the website.
Kiwi collection features only well known properties... and little choice.
Our site: just to give you some info... we have
- 19 Ranches in Colorado including 3 Diamonds
- 19 of the best Ryokan in Japan
- 142 hotels in France less than 20 rooms including 34 diamonds
- 11 Private islands in Europe, 23 in Africa, 25 in Pacific ocean
.../...
Our selection starts with a private Palace with only one Suite with banqueting facilities for hundred to a remote hotel accessible only by helicopter…

I will be quite happy to give you a free “Golden key” access. Your experience will be quite interesting for me.

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Permalink Reply by Nicola Grimshaw on March 30, 2008 at 9:54pm

Hi Bernard,

It sounds very interesting although I'm wondering perhaps, as an agent, it may frustrate me that the properties are so unique that I will struggle to find who out of my 600+ suppliers may have contracts with the hotel? Although I can usually source more or less any hotel, I have on occasions found the perfect hotel on the internet, only to find I can't get a commissionable rate from anyone. I could contract directly with the hotel but that causes me problems in terms of payments as a contract has to be in place with my 'head office'. Aditionally direct contracting adds a certain level of responsibility in becomming a 'real' tour operator (health and safety etc) rather than a travel agent with an ATOL bond who 'dynamic packages'. In a way it would be more interesting, to me, if it also covered well known properties too - sorry :-(

From a consumer point of view, if I were paying for access to a site I would expect it to cover well know properties as well as the more obscure. Whilst the properties Kiwi Collection cover are indeed well know to us, they are not necessarily well know by (even well travelled) customers. Being completely honest with you, even after I had worked in travel for a number of years, I would not have heard of 90% of the properties on the site until I made a real effort to learn about luxury travel.

Anyway I should reserve further judgement until I see the site, but those are my thoughts so far...

Please let me know how to access the 'Golden key' and I will try to provide constructive criticism.

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Permalink Reply by Bernard Fromageau on March 30, 2008 at 10:09pm

Hi Nicola
Re subscription: go to "subscribe" http://www.hotelexcellence.com/visit2/index_temp.php?op=inscription...,
fill the formula, then confirm.
DO NOT PAY and leave the web site.
We will then activate your access and you will receive an email for confirmation.

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Permalink Reply by Bernard Fromageau on May 27, 2008 at 1:54pm

I am so sorry... I have been travelling in Asia and just got back from Philippines and Hong Kong last week.
Reagarding the access to my website go to
http://www.hotelexcellence.com/visit2/index_temp.php?op=inscription...

fill the formula, DO NOT PAY then click on OK

We will activate your access and you will be able to come back with constructive criticism

Very best Bernard

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Permalink Reply by NEC on June 10, 2008 at 9:51am

Hi Nicola,
I was reading your thread about commissionable rates and the problems of direct contracting with a hotel. Could you explain a little more about the problems of direct contracting with a hotel ? Thanks

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Permalink Reply by Nicola Grimshaw on April 2, 2008 at 11:57am

Hi Bernard,

Have looked at the site and really like it on first impressions. I will contact you directly with my thoughts over the next week or so, when I have had more chance to use it.

Kind regards

Nicola

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