The Jolt: Hilton offers Meetings for Free

• Hilton launches new promotion
• Across multi media channels
• Free meetings package with bedroom booking

With the recession having had a fair impact on travel budgets and the meetings industry as a whole, Hilton Hotels in Asia Pacific is getting in touch with its target audience and overhauling its marketing approach. Hilton has launched a new multi-media promotion where anyone making a bedroom booking before 30 June will be eligible to receive a complimentary day meetings package for any date this year.

The package includes meeting room facilities, refreshments and lunch and the offer extends across all Hilton hotel brands in Asia Pacific: Hilton, Conrad and Doubletree by Hilton.

The ‘Meetings For Free' promotion also applies to any conference, training or sales event held at any one of the 47 Hilton family hotels across 14 Asia Pacific countries. The promotion is open for bookings made between 15 April and 30 June, for events taking place throughout the year until 31 December.

Prior to launching the promotion, Hilton had commissioned some independent research across Asia Pacific and a survey was conducted by Prophisee - an independent research house based in Sydney. The survey was conducted in Sydney, Tokyo, Singapore and Shanghai with a sample of 233 people.

Findings included that 77% believe offsite meetings are a necessity not a luxury, 94% that meetings can build stronger business relationships and 91% that meetings build stronger bonds between teams.

"The opportunity that offers us as marketers is that if we can understand how people are making their decision and what's important to them, we can provide something that is right in the headlights of that decision-making process," Andrew Flack, vice president sales and marketing, Hilton Hotels Asia Pacific, said.

"Part of it is just being a leader in the industry in terms of advocating why meetings are important."

Flack said the promotion will run across multi-media channels, a change from the traditional sales led approach to the meetings segment.

"When we sat down to look at it, we still felt there was a place for all media channels. By going out direct to the consumer, as well as business to business, we're hoping to hit a whole range of influences and actual buyers."