Hilton Worldwide today announced plans
to launch two small- and medium-sized business programs—for corporate travel
management and in-person events—titled Hilton for Business and Small Meetings
and Events Packages, respectively. The hotel company target “early next
year” for the rollout.
Currently being tested with a
select group of customers, the new SME program, allows users to set up
“varying permissions across a designated team,” that enable program
administrators to no manage the program in-full, or delegate tasks to other
team members. The program will also include Hilton-wide discounts and loyalty
benefits, the company said.
Small Meetings and Event
Packages, which will be available via the company’s events website, is a service to support “growing demand for
in-person gatherings,” the company said. The program will offer instantly bookable
meeting packages, including room blocks and event spaces, for groups of up to
35 attendees without a contract.
According to Hilton, the SME
sector represents roughly 85 percent of the hotel company’s business transient
guests. Hilton EVP and chief commercial officer Chris Silcock said this sector
of travelers “never
slowed down,” during the pandemic which gave the company the “opportunity”
to “solve long-running pain points,” which resulted in “simple
booking and travel management tools,” he said in a statement.
Hilton isn’t the
only travel company revving up options for small and midsize business travel
programs. Marriott
has said it will roll out a program in the first quarter of next year, and
multiple airlines—including American
and Delta—recently
have revamped their SME programs and business loyalty formulations to be more
enticing to this sector.
