SideStep today announced
a marketing partnership with Hyatt Corporation, a leading global hotelier.
Through this partnership, SideStep will drive consumers directly to
Hyatt’s Web site to book their travel.“SideStep offers a range of marketing programs to help us reach the
discerning travelers we target,” said Joan Lowell, Hyatt’s vice president,
distribution. “SideStep’s demographics are compelling—their core
customers are affluent, well-educated professionals who travel frequently.
By directing these prospects to the Hyatt Web site, SideStep not only
helps us to further develop our most cost-efficient sales channel, it also
enables us to forge direct relationships between travelers and our
brand.”

“SideStep provides our marketing partners with access to millions of avid
travelers—a reach that is unmatched in the travel search sector,” said
Don Smith, SideStep’s vice president, hotels. “We also offer a diverse
array of marketing opportunities, enabling travel providers to promote
their brands to consumers at all points in the travel planning process.
From the Hyatt Regency Kauai to the Grand Hyatt Bali,” Smith continued,
“Hyatt offers compelling hotel choices world wide. As their marketing
partner, we will help Hyatt to promote the distinctive attributes and
services that these properties offer to an audience that is eager to hear
the Hyatt story.”

SideStep will exchange product, pricing and availability information with
the Hyatt site via SideStepTotalConnect. With TotalConnect, SideStep can
efficiently communicate with a partner’s site using the travel provider’s
preferred protocol—XML, SOAP, HTTP, CORBA or even EDI. TotalConnect’s
power and flexibility enable new partners to begin working with SideStep
immediately—without making any technical changes.
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