While ReloShare began as a B2B technology platform that connects suppliers of corporate housing with companies that need to find housing for employees, unforeseen circumstances lead to the creation of a new platform that would cater to clients and sectors of the population that have always been overlooked.

When domestic violence spiked during the pandemic, and hotel rooms were going unused, Reloshare spotted the opportunity to simplify the B2B housing booking process for a new clientele– social services agencies who work on behalf of victims of domestic violence –and the need to target a new supplier audience– individual hotel owners.

ReloShare is a relatively new company that started as a hotel booking platform for corporate housing. Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic caused the corporate travel industry to become non-existent, forcing ReloShare to pivot their business model. At the same time business trips slowed, being home more led to an unforeseen problem: a spike in domestic violence. According to statistics, 1 in 4 women in America are victims of domestic violence, and finding truly secure shelter away from their abuser can be difficult because most hotels require identification upon check-in, leaving them at-risk of being traced. ReloShare saw an opportunity to use their platform for good and create a solution that could help address this problem.

ReloShare's idea was to leverage its technology platform to launch Alias Hotels, the world's first hotel booking platform that allows reservations to be made with complete anonymity. The platform's sole purpose is to connect vulnerable populations with safe accommodation. The objective is to create a new, innovative solution to help victims of domestic violence stay safe and secure.

The strategy was two-fold: first, to create a solution for domestic violence victims, and second, to get hotels to support this initiative. To achieve these goals, we targeted social service agencies, the go-to resource for victims of domestic abuse seeking help. By integrating Alias Hotels with these agencies, victims now have a way to escape dangerous situations quickly and anonymously. The company also sought to increase awareness and engagement among franchisee owners – the real decision makers when it comes to furthering the reach of Alias Hotels. To do this, we used an Artificial Intelligence tool to generate personalized videos that spoke directly to the hotel owners.

In order to help these victims, ReloShare found that the best approach was to work with social service agencies, the first point of contact for those seeking help. Through these agencies, victims could now access a safe and anonymous way to escape difficult situations. To grow the network of hotels, ReloShare launched a hyper-targeted campaign designed to gain attention of hotel owners.

To achieve this, we developed a custom Artificial Intelligence tool that generated personalized videos from the perspective of a victim of domestic abuse, directly addressing these decision makers. We launched this campaign by creating a wifi network at the largest hotel conference in America, using attendees login info to generate a personalized video. We also targeted them on LinkedIn, generating videos based on their profile data and reaching out to them privately. Our goal was to spread awareness and create a network of hotels that are “Alias Approved.”

This platform has been a game-changer for social services agencies dedicated to the health and wellbeing of victimized groups of people. There are currently 435 social service agencies who now have access to Alias Hotels, enabling and empowering them to book safe and urgent accommodation on behalf of victims.

Nearly 3,000 hotels have signed up to be Alias Hotels, resulting in more than 10,000 safe reservations made (averaging 14 SafeStays bookings per night). With every reservation, at least one person has access to protection that they didn't have before.

In a country battling for the rights and wellbeing of women, this work feels particularly poignant. Although domestic violence has always been prevalent, a contentious political environment mixed with the complexity of the COVID-19 pandemic, led to a rise in violence often referred to by the U.S. media as a “shadow pandemic”. The health and wellbeing of victims – particularly women — is a conversation that’s at the forefront of culture. This work showed private business owners how they can help, leading by example. ReloShare redesigned their business model to shift with culture and encouraged other businesses to do the same by becoming Alias Hotels.