How Timeshare Companies Are Using Research To Enhance Their Business

Question: How are timeshare companies using research to enhance their business?

As a participating board member for the ARDA International Foundation (AIF), research is at the heart of what Hilton Grand Vacations does. Valerie Spangler, Senior Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer at Hilton Grand Vacations (HGV), has a strong commitment to continuously learning and leveraging research to ensure her team meets the needs of the industry as well as their members, HGV team members, and customers.

Valerie believes it’s critical to keep evolving to adapt to the present and prepare for the future. She shares a few ways to leverage and analyze data below:

1. Industry Trends – Emerging technologies and regulatory developments are always aspects that drive and impact the timeshare industry. For example, throughout the reopening and recovery processes of the COVID-19 pandemic, it was essential to evaluate public perceptions and attitudes to fully understand how willing the general public was to return to travel amidst the ever-changing health climate. To determine the appetite for travel, consumer sentiment survey data was leveraged across the industry to ensure we kept a pulse on the sentiments of HGV members, guests and future prospects.
2. Customer Feedback and Satisfaction – As a steward of the Hilton brand, Hilton Grand Vacations’ mission is “Putting People First.” The company is committed to listening and collecting insights across its “people channels” to help continuously improve based on the information it receives. HGV uses a customer-driven innovation approach, embedding customer feedback throughout the conception and testing phases of new initiatives and pilot programs.
3. Market Research – As the needs and preferences of the public are always evolving, staying in tune to these changes is essential. A tailored experience, product offering and means of accessing new customers across emerging platforms must inform how companies build and innovate for the near-term.
4. Operational Effectiveness – Over the last few years, HGV has spearheaded a large-scale integration of products and team members with the acquisition of Diamond Resorts International in 2021, and more recently Bluegreen Vacations, which the company closed on in January 2024. HGV has embarked on something so unique in the industry, and it requires a broad evaluation on how to best align organizationally and across brands. Taking best-in-class standards for a company of this magnitude and geographic scale has been a top priority and instrumental in HGV’s ability to deliver for its internal and external stakeholders.

At HGV, there are several exciting initiatives and programs that enhance the experience of members, team members and guests.

On the technology side, HGV is committed to developing high-quality solutions that enhance and elevate experiences for customers. For example, the company utilizes a third-party vendor for AI solutions in its call center. This helps streamline support for members and guests by improving efficiencies and allowing team members to quickly and accurately respond to customer inquiries while delivering a high level of service.

Furthermore, research proves that the demand for experiential travel continues to grow, especially among younger generations. Hilton Grand Vacations members have had an overwhelmingly positive reaction to the HGV Ultimate Access experiential events platform which offers members access to thousands of exclusive concerts, dinners, celebrity meet-and-greets and sporting events each year. One such event is the HGV Tournament of Champions, which kicks off the LPGA season with a unique tournament that welcomes celebrities to compete alongside LPGA tour pros. HGV also recently announced that they will be partnering again with the FORMULA 1 HEINEKEN SILVER LAS VEGAS GRAND PRIX.

In today’s fast-paced society, where customers are presented with an abundance of choices, it is crucial for timeshare companies to harness the power of research to enhance the experiences of their members, owners and guests. By continuously evolving and staying current with industry trends and consumer preferences, the industry can not only meet but exceed the expectations of our members and ensure long-term success.

Katy McKeown, Director Customer Experience Insights, Travel + Leisure Co., agrees that customer-first business practices are not only the right way to treat people, but are also the smartest approach for timeshare companies to take. According to Deloitte research, customer-centric companies are 60% more profitable. For these reasons, “Customer Obsession” is one of Travel + Leisure Co.’s strategic pillars. Research enables the global team of associates to make data-driven decisions that earn consumer trust across 5 key areas.

Market Trends and Consumer Preferences – Research keeps leaders tuned into market trends and evolving traveler needs and preferences so the business is well positioned to meet them. In addition, market insights gauge the strength of the consumer, inform prospecting strategies and prepare functional leaders to meet expectations in each stage of the owner lifecycle – from purchase, to making a reservation, to enjoying a vacation at a resort.

M&A Activity and Brand Strategy – As a company evaluates growth opportunities and new partnerships, research plays an integral role to understand how consumers perceive a potential new partner or test how certain brand elements would resonate. On an ongoing basis, research is conducted to track brand awareness, relevance, trust, and differentiation to ensure successful positioning in the market.

Product Development – Whether assessing new product concepts or re-evaluating existing owner benefit programs, consumer research is a critical step in a successful launch. Feedback may be collected in the form of online discussion boards, focus groups, surveys, in-depth interviews, and more, with methodology designed to meet the specific business objectives of each project. Results are used to ensure products or programs will resonate with customers and validate key assumptions.

Customer Retention – In addition to conducting bespoke research, the Consumer Insights function at Travel + Leisure Co. manages a Voice of the Customer (VOC) program with ongoing surveys to measure satisfaction at each customer touchpoint (resort stays, marketing interactions, sales presentations, calls to Owner Services, website sessions, etc.). Surveys enable teams to track owner pain points over time to proactively collaborate to solve them.

Product and Service Quality – Leaders of customer-facing teams use VOC program data to:

1. Celebrate wins: Survey KPIs help leaders know exactly where strengths and opportunities lie. Leaders who celebrate customer wins with their teams (e.g. high resort cleanliness scores with Housekeepers) encourage even more collaboration, focus, and innovation that drive a consistent high-quality customer experience.
2. Identify opportunities for continuous improvement: Real-time dashboards enable leaders to see guest ratings and comments, identify gaps, brainstorm with teams, create action plans, and then monitor scores to see if actions drove improvement. Great leaders take care to inspect what they expect and not only give consistent praise where merited, but also coach quickly and correct issues as they arise.
3. Unify teams with different goals to collaborate: Each function in the company has its own goals and success metrics. By including customer survey scores in the list of success metrics, teams are motivated to understand one another’s goals and work together for mutual success (e.g. Resort Operations and Marketing impacting resort stay satisfaction).
4. Create alerts and closed loop processes for addressing customer concerns: When a customer indicates a poor experience on a survey, alerts allow teams to respond and address the issue, preserving owner loyalty.

Consumer research is an essential tool with many applications that can support growth and shareholder value for timeshare companies.