Zhiketong Technology

Established in December 2014 by founder and CEO Liu Hua, Zhiketong Technology has carved a substantial niche in China's digital marketing landscape for the high-end travel sector. Liu's previous six-year tenure at eLong provided him with a keen sense of opportunity, recognizing early on that WeChat held immense potential as a primary traffic gateway, akin to Baidu in the PC era. This foresight led to the creation of Zhiketong, a firm dedicated to empowering four and five-star hotels and prominent tourist attractions to build and manage their own direct sales channels.

Zhiketong operates on a "transactional SaaS + service" business model, a hybrid approach that combines a robust software platform with comprehensive operational support. The company assists its partners, which include prestigious brands like Ritz-Carlton, Marriott, Hilton, and Park Hyatt, in setting up and running direct-selling stores within the WeChat ecosystem. This strategy aims to reduce reliance on third-party online travel agencies, build a private traffic pool, and enhance direct customer acquisition and retention. The platform facilitates the digitization of products, marketing, payments, and customer support, addressing key industry challenges such as high customer acquisition costs and inefficient sales channels.

The company's service offering is a full-suite digital marketing solution. It provides clients with tools for intelligent data analysis, customer management, and online store design. Beyond the software, Zhiketong delivers hands-on services including operational support, advertising planning and placement, and strategies for leveraging traffic from various channels like Douyin and Xiaohongshu. This comprehensive package has attracted a significant portion of the market, with reports indicating that over 85% of China's five-star hotels utilize Zhiketong's solutions. By late 2020, the company was serving over 17,000 clients and processing a total monthly transaction value exceeding RMB 700 million.

The firm's growth has been backed by substantial venture capital investment. Since an initial angel round from eLong in 2015, Zhiketong has successfully closed multiple funding rounds, including a significant $50 million Series D in November 2020. This round was led by Vision Capital and CYTS Hongqi Fund, with participation from notable investors like Sequoia Capital China, Shunwei Capital, and IDG Capital, bringing its total raised capital to over RMB 800 million. Headquartered in Beijing, Zhiketong has expanded its physical presence to over 40 offices nationwide, employing hundreds of technical and marketing service professionals.

Keywords: hospitality marketing, hotel SaaS, WeChat marketing, travel technology, digital marketing China, direct booking, tourism marketing, customer acquisition, SaaS platform, hotel direct sales, loyalty programs, revenue management, Liu Hua, e-commerce solutions, travel tech, guest retention, private traffic, online travel, hotel technology, visitor attractions marketing