Producing successful advertising campaigns used to be quite a difficult prospect, particularly if you weren’t a big brand. Reaching out to consumers had to be done in print, on TV or on the radio and as such, it was typically only for those with the biggest budgets. But step forward the internet and everything changed. Suddenly the playing field was levelled and everyone had a chance at getting their message out there, no matter how small their business.
All at once, hotels of all sizes had access to a global pool of would-be guests, as long as they were willing to use online channels to talk to them. Today, we take the online world for granted and every type of accommodation has a website through which travellers can browse and usually making bookings.But this isn’t enough. If you want to really make more conversions you have to have a robust hotel digital marketing strategy that works across multiple channels and speaks directly to your audience. Customers now expect you to be available to them, not to have to come across you through their own research – and that means having online ads, chatter on social media, targeted marketing and much more.
Some brands worry about this, assuming that consumers are going to find it intrusive if they are actively targeted by marketing techniques, but this actually isn’t the case. In fact, although they will obviously have some privacy concerns, your would-be guests will expect you to know things about them and feel valued when you demonstrate this.Thanks to years of shopping on sites like Amazon where recommendations based on past browsing and purchases are the norm, travellers want suggestions about resorts, accommodation, services and activities based on their lifestyle and preferences. Capitalising on this and using digital can offer a whole-brand experience for web browsers that helps them to remember your name and might leave you at the forefront of their mind when they are looking to make a hotel reservation.
Remember, though, that you only have a few seconds – or what are known as micro-moments – to attract someone’s attention as they scroll through their news feed or check out the ads at the side of a web page.You need to keep your message concise and get it out there in a variety of different ways – such as Instagram, Twitter, email and YouTube – if you are to build a 24/7 platform that leads to great digital marketing results.Today, marketing is less about simply using search to get them to your website – it’s about throwing down breadcrumbs to lead them there of their own accord. If you’re not using digital marketing, you could find you’re being left behind by the competition.
