By 2027, the global hospitality market is projected to reach $5.81 billion, and with such incredible growth, you need an effective hospitality marketing strategy to stay competitive.
The question is, what are the elements of a top-notch hospitality marketing strategy, and how can you build one that suits your business?
A great hospitality marketing strategy should revolve around the customer. By showcasing your unique selling points and highlighting the customer experience, whether through your unique accommodations, tourism activities, or culinary connections, you can build awareness, increase bookings, and create loyal customers.
In this guide, we’ll take a look at all there is to know about hospitality marketing, why it’s important, and explore 13 strategies to help you create a bulletproof marketing plan for your hotel.
Effective branding begins with a clear understanding of your mission, vision, and values. All of these elements should be condensed into your authentic brand story.
While the art of storytelling is a skill all its own, it doesn’t mean you can’t start by developing your brand’s identity.
Start by identifying your customer segments and their specific needs and wants to assess if your value proposition aligns with their expectations. In doing so, you can refine your offerings and seek out new marketing opportunities.
For instance, some hotels will focus on the MICE segment, as it’s one of the most profitable in the industry. From there, they’ll build a brand identity around the types of amenities that segment is looking for.
Every guest interaction should align with your brand’s identity. Reinforce your core values both online and in person.
Train your staff to provide service that reflects your brand’s standards, especially in conflict resolution, whether at the hotel or on review platforms.
Guest feedback is crucial. This includes knowing how to respond to negative reviews effectively.
Offering the right accommodation to the right clients at the best prices and times is one of the best ways to market your hotel.
To get this right, there are often data and analytics involved. These insights can help:
The value of a strong online presence should be pretty clear by now.
Guests extensively research hotels online, so it’s essential for your hotel to maintain a positive digital presence from all angles.
While building this presence involves thoughtful planning and execution, some elements are more important than others.
As we said before, in hospitality marketing, the customer experience is everything. It’s what drives both new and repeat business.
A well-designed website, with attractive, consistent visuals, easy navigation, and engaging content, can optimize the user experience and encourage visitors to explore further (and hopefully, book).
Positive reviews are what drive conversions in the hospitality industry.
It’s always a good idea to encourage your happy guests to share their experiences on platforms like Yelp and TripAdvisor, and then highlight those reviews on your site.
This not only helps with your credibility but also gives potential future guests a feeling of assurance when choosing your hotel.
Most website visits last under 53 seconds, and with such short attention spans, it can be difficult to keep visitors engaged.
The key here is often interactive content.
Beyond your basic imagery and long blocks of blog post text, you want to integrate content that keeps users clicking. For example, you might consider a map where potential guests can check out local destinations by scrolling around or a high-def video of your hotel’s most stunning features.
Learn the secrets to driving more traffic to your hotel website, generating more leads, and ultimately increasing sales.
Content marketing and SEO are two of our main focuses here at Mediaboom.
Because over 80% of consumers look to brands to entertain them, solve their problems, and offer unique experiences, having diverse content as part of your hospitality marketing is key.
As a bonus, this type of marketing in the hospitality industry generates three times more leads for 62% less cost.
Figuring out what kind of content will work requires some strategizing.
Search intent is what drives SEO. We like to think of it as the “why” behind user searches. When we know what people are searching for, we can attract more organic traffic.
This is where keyword research comes into play.
You can use tools like Keyword Finder or SEMrush to explore long-tail keywords, keyword difficulty, search volumes, and locations, while also tracking and optimizing your strategy for better results.
Content should offer value. The most successful hoteliers often focus on broader, destination-based content.
For example, if you look at the blog for one of our clients, Luxo Italia, you can see that they’ve highlighted local experiences, like hidden authentic eateries and private tours, establishing themselves as a trusted authority in Italy while attracting and engaging potential visitors in their target audience.
Once you have a decent understanding of SEO overall, you can focus on On-Page SEO.
This involves optimizing elements on your website, such as content, code, and internal links, to improve user experience and search engine visibility. Here is an overarching view of what SEO entails:
Check out our On-Page SEO guide for an ‘essentials’ checklist.
Since over 75% of consumers don’t go beyond the first page of Google, a strong local SEO strategy is just as important as a broad one.
Hotels have to optimize their site for location-specific keywords to improve visibility in local search results, as that’s what people will be looking for.
Our Local SEO Guide for Hotels takes you through a checklist of everything you need to know!
While many are comfortable with on-page SEO, technical SEO is where things start to feel daunting.
This is because it involves optimizing your site’s backend, including elements like site structure, page speed, and mobile-friendliness.
The ultimate goal. however, is to enhance search engine crawling, indexing, and ranking, so you can improve your site’s visibility and performance in SERPs.
Check out our in-depth Technical SEO Guide to learn more.
Seeking to elevate your luxury business? Let Mediaboom guide you. Secure your exclusive, free consultation with our luxury marketing experts today.
Digital channels are now leading the way for hotel advertising and promotion.
With ever-evolving technology, there are endless paid media platforms, services, and techniques you can use to highlight your hotel’s unique features and attract more guests.
Let’s look at a few hospitality marketing strategies you can consider implementing.
Next to PPC, social media advertising is one of the most cost-effective marketing strategies. There are many ways to include social media in your digital marketing plan:
Finally, we have display advertising, which you’ve likely seen in the form of banners, images, and links sprinkled around sites and search platforms. The goal of this tool is to drive consumers to your hotel’s website for more information or bookings.
To this day, email marketing is one of the most powerful tools in the hospitality industry, with global revenue expected to reach $17.1 billion by 2027.
It’s the perfect vessel for driving bookings and nurturing leads, not to mention maintaining customer relationships.
Plus, if you have a strong CRM, you can personalize and optimize every email interaction.
Whatever your content and marketing strategies may be, make sure they align your with social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube, and TikTok.
For example, you might share stunning images of your hotel’s destination to drive engagement on Instagram or focus on UGC on TikTok. Both of these strategies, while inherently different, should focus on the same value proposition.
It’s also important to add that consistency is crucial. Posting daily or several times a week will keep your feed active and visible on your followers’ timelines.
Over 80% of TripAdvisor users read around 6-12 reviews before booking. If your online reputation isn’t up to par, you’re likely falling behind.
This is where reputation management comes in.
Here in the U.S., you can focus on key review sites like TripAdvisor and Google to make sure your messaging and reputation are consistent across all channels.
However, if your business relies on a specific market (e.g., India, China, UK), you’ll want to keep an eye on that country’s leading review sites to gain a fuller understanding of your guests’ opinions.
Learn the secrets to driving more traffic to your hotel website, generating more leads, and ultimately increasing sales.
With public relations, you can better align with your customers and give them a deeper understanding of your brand.
It might be worth having a PR team to create news releases about your services and handle any bumps in the road.
Whether you choose to do this alone or work with a professional (and we can’t stress this enough), don’t forget to keep your messaging consistent across all channels for the best results.
Who doesn’t love a good partnership, especially when it’s beneficial for both sides.
In the hospitality industry, many businesses will team up with local attractions for discounts to bring in more guests or work with relevant online businesses to improve their website’s SEO with valuable backlinks.
Many even collaborate with influencers by offering free stays in exchange for them sharing their experiences on social media.
Sponsoring a hospitality event is a smart way to boost your brand’s visibility and connect with your audience.
To make it work, however, you have to be clear about your goals, pick the right event, and find relevant sponsorships.
Partnering with respected local businesses or big-name brands builds trust and adds appeal. Put on a good event with a social media presence, and attendees will spread the word to their friends and family.
So, how do you know if your hospitality marketing campaign performed like you dreamt it would?
Data analytics can give you a better idea of what worked and where there’s room for improvement.
Beyond your standard operational KPIs, such as cost per occupied room (CPOR), average daily rate (ADR), and revenue per available room (RevPAR), there are KPIs specific to marketing that you’ll want to keep an eye on.
For example, it’s important to track KPIs like return on ad spend, social media engagement, and email open rates to gain insights for future campaigns.
In hospitality marketing, ROI tells you how well your marketing dollars are working. In short, it’s the difference between what you earn and what you spend.
A positive ROI means your efforts are paying off, while a negative one shows a loss. Factors like seasonal booking, local events, and the economy as a whole can sway ROI. Luckily, new technology makes tracking ROI based on these factors easier.
From CRM systems and Google Analytics for insights to revenue management systems for smart pricing, there are endless tools for ROI tracking and management.
Customer feedback is one of the best tools for improving marketing strategies in hospitality.
Many successful hotels use in-depth customer experience tools to easily collect and analyze feedback, allowing customers to essentially guide their decisions and drive improvements.
Of course, trying to be efficient with feedback data from hundreds of sources can feel impossible, especially if you don’t have the time, resources, or bandwidth.
Luckily, there are plenty of streamlined feedback management systems on the rise, many of which are AI-driven, helping hospitality businesses build loyalty and encourage repeat visits by analyzing and articulating feedback data into actionable strategies.
Whether it’s adapting to new customer behaviors or leveraging technology, staying on top of hospitality marketing trends can help you stay ahead.
Experiential marketing comes in many forms. However, in hospitality and tourism, we usually view it as a unique way to create memorable interactions with guests.
From branding events to on- or off-property experiences, experiential marketing gives customers unique ways to interact with your hotel, whether in-person or online.
If you want to enhance your brand’s reputation and spark conversations, it’s time to start embracing sustainable and socially responsible practices. Studies show that 84% of consumers don’t want to interact with brands that have poor environmental practices.
Find ways to implement waste reduction, energy conservation, and community outreach, and highlight those practices in your marketing materials.
The global AI market is projected to grow at a 19% CAGR from 2023 to 2032, according to Precedence Research. Not only can AI streamline hotel operations, but it can also offer valuable insights for future marketing.
For example, today, many travelers book through aggregators or leave hotel websites without booking. AI can address this by simplifying interactions and saving time.
Think chatbots for instant guest communication or personalized recommendations based on location and demographic data.
Learn the secrets to driving more traffic to your hotel website, generating more leads, and ultimately increasing sales.
If we learned anything from the big shift in 2020, it’s that even the most experienced hospitality managers will never be able to guess how customer behavior might shift.
Rather than relying on speculation, we need to start turning to data for clear insights. Begin viewing your website analytics and booking data to spot trends. Who’s still booking, and who isn’t? Which market segments are growing or lagging? Are there key geographical patterns?
With these insights in hand, you’ll be able to fine-tune your marketing strategies for better results.
The best hospitality marketing revolves around personalized messaging, smart market segmentation, and using visual platforms to tell stories.
Top hotel marketers know how to highlight a hotel’s key offerings and build lasting customer relationships.
Even user-generated content, such as reviews, are becoming core pieces of modern marketing strategies, as they help create a customer-focused approach.
Mediaboom partnered with Marina Inn at Grande Dunes, focusing on a digital transformation to enhance the resort’s luxury online presence.
The initiative included a website redesign, SEO optimization, and a custom WordPress CMS to streamline content management.
This ultimately boosted user experience, engagement, and bookings while reflecting the resort’s upscale ambiance.
Mediaboom collaborated with Musha Cay, owned by David Copperfield, to create a visually stunning and highly functional website that showcases the island’s unique luxury.
The redesign focused on immersive user experience through custom animations and streamlined navigation.
It was complemented by strategic SEO enhancements to elevate online visibility and captivate prospective visitors, effectively mirroring the exclusive and enchanting atmosphere of Musha Cay.
Seeking to elevate your luxury business? Let Mediaboom guide you. Secure your exclusive, free consultation with our luxury marketing experts today.
If you’re willing to adapt and innovate, there are endless possibilities.
With an in-depth understanding of hospitality marketing tactics that work, strategies that prioritize customer-centric and data-driven approaches, and the current travel zeitgeist, your hospitality business can thrive.
Of course, finding success with any great marketing strategy starts with having an experienced agency on your side.
Let our team of luxury hospitality marketing experts help you build a custom plan to broaden your audience and open your hotel brand up to the higher echelons of the industry.
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