When it comes to guest satisfaction, even championship-caliber golf resorts can’t rest on their laurels. Clients may welcome challenges on the course, but they expect easy going once they’re off the links and in their rooms.
Located in the heart of North Carolina, Pinehurst Resort offers all the outdoor appeal a guest could want; but the company also understands the importance of the in-room television to the total guest experience. So in May 2005 – just before serving as the site of the 2005 U.S. Open – Pinehurst upgraded its three historic hotels to a SIGNETURE TV® solution from LodgeNet Entertainment Corporation.
Quality Over Quantity With Targeted Free-To-Guest Programming
Pinehurst wanted a free-to-guest lineup that matched its guests’ interests and its own business goals. “We are a golf resort, first and foremost,” says Scott Brewton, executive vice president of operations and general manager. "The quality of the new programming has a far better reach and can only increase our guests' enjoyment when they're not on the course."
Brewton explains that Pinehurst’s new channel options of local and national news, weather and sports (including The Golf Channel) – plus general interest and children’s programming – accommodate all of the preferences of Pinehurst’s clientele and especially sports enthusiasts. “LodgeNet worked with us to put together a lineup that gives our guests what they want and expect," he says.
On-Demand Offerings Make The Entertainment Package Complete
For guests desiring entertainment beyond the free-to-guest lineup, all three Pinehurst Resort accommodations venues offer a rich mix of on-demand movies, music, videogames, on-demand TV programming and special interest videos. Most of these choices are enhanced with LodgeNet’s PowerPlaySM media playback controls, allowing viewers to pace their entertainment experience by skipping forward or back, pausing, or saving their place to return to later.
“We have seen a lift in incremental revenues by offering more on-demand options,” Brewton says. ”But the real benefit is keeping our guests happy with state-of-the-art programming and convenience. The expanded choices and convenient controls do a lot to support our reputation as a premier destination for golfers as well as their spouses and children.”
Channels Drive Marketing Opportunities; Guest Services Add Personal Touch
In addition to the free and on-demand entertainment, SIGNETURE TV provides Pinehurst with dedicated channels to support its branding and marketing programs. These include:
- A Welcome Channel that displays when the guest turns on the TV
- Two video channels designed to capture the attention of channel-surfers – one featuring a segment on the history of Pinehurst, and the other to show marketing videos and presentations now in development
- Two channels displaying text-based information (such as meeting schedules and promotions) that hotel management staff can create, edit, schedule and update in real time
SIGNETURE TV also helps Pinehurst serve their guests at a critical touchpoint with an Account Review and Checkout service. “By allowing guests to review and approve their charges from the room, we can help them stay on schedule and keep things moving at the front desk,” says Brewton. “That convenience has become especially popular with the sophisticated, tech-smart travelers who are a fast-growing part of our customer base.”
About Pinehurst Resort | Built in 1895, Pinehurst Resort is one of more than 150 clubs and resorts worldwide owned and operated by Dallas-based ClubCorp. Pinehurst boasts eight championship golf courses, including the world-renowned Pinehurst No. 2, site of the 2005 U.S. Open Championship. The readers of Travel + Leisure Golf ranked Pinehurst Resort as the “Best U.S. Golf Resort” in the magazine’s 2005 World's Best Golf Resorts reader survey.
About LodgeNet | LodgeNet Entertainment Corporation (
www.lodgenet.com) is the world’s largest provider of interactive television and broadband solutions to hotels, including resort and casino hotels, throughout the United States and Canada as well as select international markets. These services include on-demand movies, music and music videos, on-demand videogames, Internet on television, and television on-demand programming, as well as high-speed Internet access, all designed to serve the needs of the lodging industry and the traveling public. LodgeNet provides service to more than one million interactive guest pay rooms and serves more than 6,000 hotel properties worldwide. LodgeNet estimates that approximately 275 million travelers annually have access to LodgeNet’s interactive television systems. LodgeNet is listed on NASDAQ and trades under the symbol LNET.
CONTACTS:
Janeen Driscoll
Communications Manager
Pinehurst Resort
P.O. Box 4000
Village of Pinehurst, NC 28374
Phone: (910) 235-8710
janeen.driscoll@pinehurst.com
Ann Parker
Director of Corporate Communications
LodgeNet Entertainment Corporation
605-988-1000
communications@lodgenet.com
