Think you need some ideas for your digital marketing strategies for your hotel? You’ve come to the right place!
We understand that hotels today are faced with increasing competition – not just from other hotels, but from online booking websites. This creates new challenges for your digital marketing strategy. However, you can overcome this challenge by rethinking your approach to marketing. Something that can disrupt the traditional booking process and get you ahead of the competition and in front of your customers.
Here are some winning digital marketing strategies for your hotel:
- Identify your USP
First, identify your hotel’s USP. Answer the question, what makes your hotel unique, and stand out from the competition? Is the location of your hotel its main selling point? Does it have a restaurant that is especially well-known for its food and ambiance? Is the architecture of your property unusual and attractive?
Once you identify your hotel’s USP, focus your marketing efforts on this aspect. Also, make sure to provide an amazing experience to your guests. Help them create favorable memories in association with your hotel so that they keep returning for more.
- Ensure your hotel ranks high in search
Your hotel must have an online presence if travelers are to discover you and book with you. So, a fully functional website that offers information is essential. However, make it easy for your customers to be able to discover your website. Ensure it is accurately listed on Google.
Also, make sure your SEO is on point. Read our article on what is SEO-optimized content to help you create content that your audiences will be able to find. Local SEO will help a great deal in raking high on searches too. So, put some digital marketing efforts into this aspect. Aim to appear within the first five rankings on Google. You could also allot a fraction of your budget to paid search to promote an event at the hotel or for a special promotion.
- Chatbots for your hotel website
Instant messaging is the choice of communication of your customers today. You may have all the information they need on your website. However, they will still prefer to have that information given to them through interaction. They will not hunt for it on your site. Why? Because it’s simpler, it’s instant, and answers all their queries.
This is exactly why AI-powered chatbots for hotels are in increasing demand. Simply because they assist and assure your website visitors. Most often, they convince them to book directly with you. Even if they can’t, they collect valuable information that your sales team can use to follow those leads.
Quicktext is one such guest communications system. It has proven to increase direct bookings and enhance guest experience. Zoe, their AI-powered chatbot, engages website visitors in 8 languages. She converts anonymous online visitors into qualified leads and customers. Read our article on artificial intelligence for the hotel industry to give you a more detailed picture of its benefits.
- Video marketing
Before someone books with you, they would love to catch a glimpse of what their stay might be like. You could seal the deal with a virtual video tour. This will help them envision the value your hotel will offer them.
Not only does the experience add a wow factor, but it also scores you brownie points for innovative and fun digital marketing strategies for your hotel. Introduce the hotel staff as well and connect way before they stay with you. Think about how you can humanize your approach. Hotels are all about people after all.
- Create a guest testimonial video
People mostly check online reviews and ratings before making a booking or buying a product. There’s nothing more convincing than a guest speaking well of your hotel and recommending it to others too. So, creating a guest testimonial video would be a great way to present your hotel to potential guests. It would introduce them to everything your hotel has to offer.
You could request your guests to share the experience of their stay with your hotel during the time of check-out. Such videos are easy to share and post – with the consent of the guest, of course. Find an original way to involve your guests. Put your creative hat on!
- Social media
82% of customers place their trust in companies that are on social media. So it’s a good idea to have your presence on relevant social media platforms.
Social media also gives you the ability to reach a wide audience. You can speak directly to your guests, receive their feedback and build long-term relationships. Use social media insights to further fine-tune your digital marketing strategy. They will also help to identify opportunities based on leads.
- Turn your hotel guests into brand ambassadors
Having guests recommend your services can create good prospects for your business. In fact, word-of-mouth recommendations are key to influencing purchase decisions. Keeping this in mind, you can turn your hotel guests into your brand ambassadors. For this, you can provide useful and valuable information that makes for great shareable content. Like blogs, YouTube videos, social media posts or even newsletters.
You could even develop a referral program, as referrals are the most preferred approach to lead generation. Other means could include loyalty programs, discounts to guests posting videos or pictures on social media, or even incentives to people booking directly on your website.
- Mobile marketing
Mobile technology has become irrevocably integrated into our lives. For hotels, it means that investing in mobile marketing strategies is now a must. A responsive hotel website is simply not enough anymore. You need to consider the entire customer journey. Then, identify the mobile moments that your hotel can use to reach and engage with the customer. It works best when used as an integrated, multi-channel platform to engage, and retain customers.
Mobiles provide travelers with instant information, news, reviews, inspiration and more, on the go. They will, no doubt, turn to their mobiles during every stage in their travel journey.
- Start a hotel email newsletter
Newsletters help keep your subscribers informed about new amenities, offers, and discounts. You can put together an email newsletter that goes out at regular intervals. You could link old blogs to the newsletter to increase your website traffic, as well as to inform or entertain your guests. It’s also a great way to offer discounts based on the demography of the email subscriber group. Ensure that your content is personalized and dynamic, and shareable. You could add videos too!
- Destination icon
Most travelers pick a destination first, and the hotel, after. You could intertwine your brand with your city, such that you are a perfect example of what the city has to offer. Focus on locally sourced food, and local art in your property to attract travelers. You could also create tour packages that capture the spirit of the city. Such offerings would be irresistible to guests who would like to soak in the local culture. Ensure that this is effectively communicated over social media and other digital channels.
You could adopt a few of these digital marketing strategies for your hotel, successfully. You may need to tweak your strategies in line with your digital marketing objectives, your target audience, and your business goals. Of course, you must always measure the results of your digital marketing efforts, readapt if necessary, and move ahead accordingly.
At Them You & Me, we help in the digital transformation of businesses. If you’d like to discuss digital marketing strategies for your hotel, or have any questions, give us a call.
To know about what we do and the digital marketing services we offer, please visit our website.
