Friday, November 13, 2020

WEB RESERVATIONS
INTERNATIONAL

International Corporate
Development

QIRJAKO Frenki

GALANTE Louise

VIGNON Mathilde

GARNIER Emilienne

IBIKUNLÈ KOUDYRAT

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Question 1: Describe and comment the recent acquisitions made by WRI

All along its lifetime, Web Reservation International developed using acquisitions.

The first acquisition was made in 2003 when WRI decided to acquire Hostels.com.
The choice to acquire this company was well thought. The company had a well-
established brand name so they could profit from it. They had already a listing over
6000 hostels worldwide that allowed the firm to develop very quickly and be able to
offer accommodations in a lot of different countries. Hostles.com received awards and
had 10 million page requests per month. This acquisition allowed WRI to use their
name and gain knowledge in the market and already have the trust of thousands of
hostels. What is also interesting for RI is that Hostles.com was a key player in the BIYT,
that is the market WRI is focusing on so it is a good fit for the company in relation to
the market and the product fit.

The next acquisition happened in 2004 when WRI decided to buy Hostel of Europe.
This provided the company with marketing support and operated a website containing
450 hostels all throughout Europe. This gain expanded the number of offers and
accomodations available to the public.

The last acquisition WRI made was World Res in 2005. World Res is a US booking
business. WRI already had a good implementation in Europe through the previous
acquisitions but with World Res they developed even more their offer in the US. This
granted the firm access to independant and chain hotel contracts.

Question 2: Explain how WRI adapted and extended its Business Model

The emergence of a new market segment, the budget youth and independent travel
(BYIT) led the company to adapt its business model. These travellers are essentially
young people on a budget looking for a unique travel experience including outdoor
activities and cultural ones. The particularity of this segment is their frequent use of the
internet to plan and organise their activity and also for shopping purposes. WRI
spotted this trend earlier and adapted its offer according to that.

The first move was by upgrading their software called Backpack Online and their
websites to enable a more automated booking service for thousands of hostels. This
service included a reservation system and the ability to pay online by credit card which

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was a lacking facility for hostels at the time. They were the first to provide such a
comprehensive management system for hostels and budget accommodation.

Beyond providing a customised trip designed by the customer, WRI also based its
business on networking and sharing information about the destinations, locations of
the hostels and activities. This communication plan is suitable for the target since
young travellers have an important presence on social networks and search for
connection with other backpackers. The company extended this online marketing
strategy by acquiring several domains to ensure that every research for hostels or
accommodation would eventually lead to a WRI owned website. They diffused the
same information on all these websites in different versions and focused on User
Generated Content as a key factor of their strategy.

Lastly, another extension of their business model is the use of partnerships with travel
related professionals such as insurance companies, travel guides or flight booking. The
advantage of these partnerships is the promotions and special offers to WRI’s
customers. It also enables the company to benefit from costless advertising.

Question 3: Explain how WRI entered and plan to enter international markets

➡ Through innovative technology

In order to reach the global market, it was important to use the Internet as a tool. WRI
created an automated booking service for hostels, building relationships with 5000 of
them, and selling rooms on their behalf through an integrated Internet system. This
allows the network to grow over 24 000 hostels, and other accommodations by 2010.

The company also responded to the growth of social networking trend by creating
‘myworld’, allowing users to connect with other travellers, building an active
community on relevant social networks.

In addition, WRI owns individual domains in order to ensure that anybody searching for
a hostel will ultimately land on one of their websites. They use search engine
optimization and present the same information in different formats depending on the
website.

The use of the Internet allowed WRI to get known by most travelers, and to build a
strong community. Thanks to that, WRI became a reference for online booking and
comparison.

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➡ Through acquisitions (see question 1)

For example, the acquisition of “Hostels of Europe” which operated a website featuring
450 hostels throughout Europe (in 2004) allowed WRI to quickly enter the european
market. Also, “WorldRes” allowed WRI to access independent and chain hotel contact
in US.

➡ Through a multilingual customer services team

In fact, a multilingual customer services team is essential to ensure that there is no

interaction and communication barriers with the parties: end customers, property
owners and partners, when entering international markets.