Tray, Inc. announced today that they have been awarded the 2012 PODi Best Practices Award for digital printing, in the category of Marketing Resource Center for client DoubleTree by Hilton-TM. These prestigious awards recognize outstanding examples of digital printing and relevant marketing strategies. Entries are judged on a combination of criteria, including measured results, value proposition, functionality, scalability, relevance, creativity, and innovation.
DoubleTree by Hilton-TM (and Embassy Suites) hired the strategic partnership of Tray Inc. and MSP to build a comprehensive, single-source, web-to-print toolkit for their international brand. With programming assistance from eIntegrity, they were able to build and deliver the toolkit solution for DoubleTree in less than four months.

Hilton Worldwide brand is comprised of more than 250 hotel properties around the world. Prior to 2011, when a DoubleTree property wanted to order customized printed collateral or branded on-property materials for their hotel, they were faced with many different procedures. They envisioned a comprehensive toolkit where all promotional materials could be ordered from one place including on-demand digital, offset, large format and specialty items.

The new solution built by Tray and MSP, called "DOT 2.0," allowed the client to upgrade their toolkit and consolidate vendors. It also simplifies procedures to make it easier for properties to efficiently order the printed materials they need. The robust solution was completed in less than four months. Portal users can order over 250 items including door hangers, menus, key cards, conservation cards, stationery, and vehicle signage.

DOT 2.0 is fully accessible to employees from all areas of DoubleTree properties - from GMs and Directors of Sales to Directors of F&B and Front Desk Managers - any hotel employee with Hilton OnQ intranet access can order the items he or she needs - and any employee can re-order an item that was placed previously. This is especially important in an industry with a high employee turnover rate where the person who created a piece of custom collateral may no longer be with the organization. The accessibility of previous orders by property location saves time and money when re-ordering a complex item like a 20-page In-Room Menu or In-Room Directory.

"This is a huge win for any large brand with multiple locations," says Brian Burlace, President of Tray Inc. "DOT 2.0 has become a "one-stop-shop" for all DoubleTree brand information and materials. What once took 14 days from the time of order is now delivered in 2 days," Burlace notes.

The toolkit built for DoubleTree was so well received, that Tray and MSP were awarded contracts to build toolkit solutions for five additional Hilton Worldwide brands - Embassy Suites, Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts, Conrad Hotels & Resorts, Hampton Hotels and Hilton Garden Inn. To learn how an ordering portal can help your organization, please contact Brian Burlace 410 689 0707 or [email protected]