European hospitality experts keep customers engaged during pandemic lockdown with personalized email journeys
“The personalized campaign in Selligent helped us build a trustworthy environment for customers during this difficult time. We let them know they were safe with HotelSpecials; that they could use their money whenever they wanted again and trust a booking to be canceled in an acceptable time frame.”
No other industry was ravaged by COVID-19 like travel and hospitality. When the pandemic hit in early 2020, travel practically shut down overnight. When most countries closed their borders and initiated lockdowns, the industry was hit by an avalanche of canceled vacations.
During the pandemic lockdown, HotelSpecials shifted from promotional to informational emails using Selligent Marketing Cloud. They reduced email frequency while increasing relevance through four personalized approaches: at-home holiday inspiration, voucher balance updates with travel recommendations, location-specific COVID-19 regulations, and pandemic news updates.
The personalized email campaign maintained strong customer engagement throughout lockdown, with only a 0.3% dip in open rates during hard restrictions. Voucher balance emails achieved an impressive 88% open rate, while COVID-19 news emails generated a 9.3% increase in new leads when borders reopened, successfully positioning HotelSpecials as a trusted partner for post-pandemic travel.
No other industry was ravaged by COVID-19 like travel and hospitality. When the pandemic hit in early 2020, travel practically shut down overnight. When most countries closed their borders and initiated lockdowns, the industry was hit by an avalanche of canceled vacations.
As customers found themselves stranded at home, travel providers issued vouchers in the monetary value of canceled bookings. But with no end of lockdown in sight, sentiments grew negative towards the delayed gratification. Addressing the situation, HotelSpecials wanted to keep customers connected during the hiatus and maintain interest in their brand.
Faced with the new reality of pandemic shutdown, HotelSpecials abandoned its promotional approach to email newsletters. Customers were not allowed to book vacations for the moment, leaving no available data for recommendations. Working with Selligent Marketing Cloud, integrated with customers’ voucher balances and profile data, the team reduced email frequency and increased situational relevance along four strategies:
The personalized email campaign proved effective in reaching customers during severe lockdown. It also built a connection, establishing HotelSpecials as a trusted and helpful partner when restrictions started to lift. When travel began appearing feasible again, the emails with personalized recommendations generated significant engagement and inspired customers to use those vouchers.
The first wave of informational newsletters suffered only a 0.3% dip in open rates during hard lockdown — a tremendous achievement, as they lost very few customers and maintained strong engagement. Between April and May 2021, they bounced back with a 2–4% increase in open rates. Additional highlights included:
“Thanks to Selligent’s flexible templates and integrating our voucher balances, we were able to switch gears from a promotional to an informational approach. We kept in touch with our audience and reversed course once the hardest parts of the pandemic were over." —Frederik Jansson, CEO of HotelSpecials
