UNA Purchasing Solutions Partners with Hotel Engine to Boost Benefits

hotel

UNA Purchasing Solutions is a group purchasing organization (GPO) that works to represent the collective purchasing needs of thousands of corporate businesses, nationwide. By leveraging their purchasing power with a variety of national suppliers, UNA works to improve efficiency and offer lower costs to their members. Additionally, they bring balance to the negotiating equation because of their established relationships and buying power with distributors and suppliers.

UNA empowers their members to save money and reduce their monthly spend. The company works with a variety of industries and verticals, with a focus on four segments: small- to medium-sized businesses, associations, cooperatives, and hospitality groups. Through outsourced solutions, UNA streamlines processes, cuts down on resource usage, and lowers indirect spending in areas such as office products, food purchasing, small package delivery, furniture, IT, and even human resources.

However, UNA had a problem: they lacked a reliable partner in the travel space. They were looking for a company that could offer an easy-to-use, on-demand technology solution to their members. More specifically, UNA was in search of travel technology with tracking capabilities that could provide the company with metrics such as revenue and number of users. “We didn’t have an agreement or a partner with the necessary capabilities,” said Anthony Clervi, President of UNA. “We needed an easy tracking mechanism.”

On May 19, 2016, Hotel Engine and UNA Purchasing Solutions made their partnership official. Hotel Engine’s members-only, online hotel booking platform and centralized dashboard were a true match for UNA’s unique needs. Hotel Engine filled an immediate void by providing UNA with the ability to track all users utilizing the platform under their GPO partnership. The Hotel Engine platform enabled UNA to import existing members to create accounts and user profiles. Additionally, Hotel Engine’s inclusive quarterly reporting greatly increased visibility.

In addition to streamlined processes and improved tracking abilities, Hotel Engine’s commitment to customer service has defined the partnership. Hotel Engine provides dedicated marketing support that includes the creation of co-branded marketing collateral and automated email campaigns. These branded partner portals and unique sharing tools facilitate an efficient, simplified rollout process.

Hotel Engine’s agile technology model enables them to implement solutions that cater to specific customer needs. Additionally, their vast network allows them to negotiate exclusive discounts on hotels across North America, Europe, and Latin America, for both leisure and business travel. Since UNA rolled out Hotel Engine as an employee benefit in May 2016, they have experienced incredible volume. “We’ve had a lot of members that have ramped up their spend every month,” said Clervi. “The ease of use, and extraordinary discounts that Hotel Engine provides have filled the need for having a reliable travel source in our benefit offerings.”

UNA has experienced a tremendous response from their customers. The partnership has enabled the company to offer flexible lease terms, tangible discounts, and an easy-to-use platform to their members. “Members have ramped up from 10,000 per month, to 50,000 per month,” said Clervi. “And we are adding hundreds of new members to the platform each quarter.” As Clervi points out, Hotel Engine’s fast response rates and dedicated customer support allow UNA to provide the highest level of service.

Since the partnership was established, UNA has experienced, “A lot of wins compared to other suppliers and vendors that we work with, [including Hotel Engine’s] urgency, creativity, tech availability, and assertiveness,” said Clervi. Ultimately, Clervi identified major wins that have resulted from the Hotel Engine and UNA Purchasing Solutions partnership: the ability to scale, exclusive discounts, and ease of use from the end user.

Hotel Engine’s vast partner network, smart technology, and passionate people enable them to offer a full suite of tools and features for businesses to optimize and manage their hotel programs. It truly is the hotel-booking platform built for business. Like UNA, Hotel Engine is committed to providing highly curated experiences that cater to the unique needs of their customers. “Hotel Engine is hungry to grow and that shows,” said Clervi. “[Our partnership is] a triple win: It’s a win for us, a win for Hotel Engine, and most importantly it’s a win for our customers.”