When we think of the Burj Al Arab, we think luxury.
Being the only 7 star hotel in the world, this is not a destination which you would look at for the occasional sleep-over.
Nor could you walk in with your beach slippers, curious to have a look at the interiors.
Even for a cup of tea, you would need to plan ahead, and more importantly, cash in on the special occasion.
However, exclusiveness does not mean inaccessibility, if you ask the hotel that is.
The Burj Al Arab is now going out of its way to “open people’s eyes” to the experiences the hotel has to offer.
“We recognised that many in the local community felt that Burj Al Arab was inaccessible.
“Our aim was to challenge this perception by showcasing the extraordinary culinary and spa experiences that are available at Burj Al Arab and opening people’s eyes to the fact that the restaurants and the spa are indeed accessible,” a spokesperson of the hotel said to Emirates 24|7.
Get your Group On
The first sight of an exclusive hotel like Burj Al Arab on a group-buying website might be a little surprising.
It should not be, thinks Groupon Dubai, which offered its customers the possibility of a visit to a dream world of luxury.
Groupon calls it an “innovative marketing tool”.
Taking the discount element out of the equation, and focusing on the promotion of the experience, the website functions as medium for exposure, rather than a discount portal.
“Luxury brands live off their image and certain exclusivity. Groupon lives off its image as a lifestyle shopping site that brings you the best things to do, see and try out in your city.
“In order to maintain that image, both the luxury brands of the world and Groupon invest a lot of time and money in marketing to their target group,” said Alexander Kappes, CEO of Groupon Dubai.
Groupon specifies its target group as the 25- to 40-year-olds, university-educated, working professional with a high disposable income. However, for high-end clients such as the Burj Al Arab it can be more specific through the distribution of the Groupon Premium newsletter; a newsletter to a selective customer base, possibly interested in higher-end offerings.
Noteworthy is that the premium deal is void of the discount which has characterised the interest in group-buying websites.
This time it is not the price element that should draw people to try the Burj Al Arab experience.
“For our premium label customers, the offer is about the unique experience and about trying out something new,” said Alexander Kappes, CEO of Groupon Dubai.
“Burj Al Arab strived to extend the accessibility of its 7-star premium services to a wider 'but targeted' pool of prospective customers and Groupon was the most effective medium to achieve this through using our exclusive premium newsletter.”
“The initiative was also aligned with our ongoing ‘Back to Burj’ campaign that focuses on welcoming the local community back to our hotel and invite them to try our extensive offerings,” said the Burj Al Arab spokesperson. “The offer was not discount-led - our main goal was to raise the awareness about our exclusive offerings at Burj Al Arab.”
High tea
The offerings were available on Groupon on the June 5 and 9, 2013 and included a Assawan wellness package with high tea from Dh555, Friday Brunch at Al Muntaha restaurant from Dh919, a seven-course Afternoon Tea at Sahn Eddar for two or four people starting from Dh599 and a Moroccan Night at its Al Iwan restaurant starting from Dh699.
According to Alexander the initiative was successful. “Our Newsletter open rate was the highest we have ever seen and all of the offers were picked up very quickly!” he said.
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