Last updated on August 6th, 2024 at 07:38 am
People have so many choices available today.
From AirBnBs, to Home Sitting, VRBO, hotels of all kinds — it can feel nearly impossible to make your hotel stand out.
But when you want to grow your business, standing out so you can start capturing attention and then convert that attention into loyal patrons is critical.
If you’re wondering how you can stand out (and how you can compete), this guide will help.
In it, we’re going to show you 7 proven hotel marketing strategies that are guaranteed to generate more attention and help you start turning more customers into loyal patrons who return again and again.
Send Email Campaigns To Your List
To get started, you’ll want to send email campaigns to the people you already have on your list.
They’ve probably visited your hotel before and will likely be thinking about making a return to the area.
Since they’ve already experienced your business, staying top of mind with them is one of the easiest ways to create return customers and, unfortunately, many hotels aren’t actually doing this.
Email marketing can be one of THE most effective marketing strategies you’ll ever use since you’ve already paid to acquire the customers and sending out emails is relatively cheap (or even free).
It doesn’t have to be hard, either.
To get started, you’ll want to include a signup form on your website so people can subscribe.
Then, when you’re ready to start emailing your subscribers, you can send everything from promotional emails (like the one below)…
…to information about your property and why people would want to visit the area.
You can also announce a new property launch, the services available at your hotel, or even just a season’s greetings email, like the one below.
The key here, though, is to email your audience.
And, if you don’t already have a list of subscribers to email, to start collecting those emails on your website sooner than later.
If you want a simple way to start building your list, you can use a tool like ClickFunnels to set up your first landing page and then use other strategies in this guide to begin collecting emails.
To get started now, click here to begin your free ClickFunnels trial.
Then, once you’re in, you can choose from our library of email templates.
Or you can start creating your own emails from scratch using the drag-and-drop visual editor.
You can also create forms for people to input their email in exchange for a discount on an upcoming stay, to join your loyalty program, or even to receive a free gift card.
(We’ll touch on those strategies in just a bit.)
Be Present On Social Media
Once you’ve set up your first funnel and are actively collecting emails (and emailing your list), the next strategy revolves around bringing more people to your funnel pages — and inviting them to join, too.
Because while email marketing can be incredibly effective, you’ll want to be present on social media to make sure you’re actively growing your list of subscribers.
Since social media is so visual, it gives you a perfect opportunity to share your business.
To make the most of your effort on these platforms, though, you don’t just want to share your location.
You also want to share stories, showcase the area, highlight things to do, and remind people why they would want to stay at your hotel — instead of your competitor’s.
Establishing a strong presence on social media is a great way to stand out — and the more engagement you get, the more popular your hotel appears.
This, alone, can convince more people to book with you when you’re using this strategy in the right way.
To help make that happen, here are a few tips.
First, optimize your profiles on each of the platforms you’ll be using.
You can include your value proposition, link to your website, and showcase highlights.
You can also show off your rooms, facilities, amenities, meals, and more.
Your creativity really is the limit.
Take a look at the Aman Hotel’s Instagram page:
If you’re down on occupancy, you can also post last-minute offers to help increase your bookings.
You can share customer stories to increase your social proof, like the example below from the Mudhouse Boutique in Manali, India.
When you’re sharing content, appeal to what people want when they come to your area.
Show how you’re the key to them getting what they want.
And then make sure you’re as active as possible.
Then drive people to your website so you can collect their information and stay in closer contact with them using your email list.
Differentiate Yourself From Other Hotels
The last thing you want to do when you’re trying to bring more people into your hotel is act like every other hotel in your area — with the same boring, worn-out marketing styles and messages.
If you want to stand out, you need to be different from what everyone else is doing.
That means you’ll want to establish a unique identity and value proposition based on something that only you can do.
This uniqueness can be based on a bunch of different factors, too.
From your location, to the services you provide, the amenities you offer, your hotel’s design, the customer experience, or even your brand story.
You can even differentiate yourself based on your negative traits!
A famous example of this is the “Hans Brinker Budget Hotel” in Amsterdam, famously branded as “The worst hotel in the world.”
Just saying this makes people want to look and dig deeper to see how it could possibly be the worst.
It also helps attract the right audience, as weird as that may sound.
Since their marketing was geared towards young, adventurous backpackers who prioritized low costs and a humorous, unconventional experience over luxury or comfort, the targeting generated by this statement helped them stand out to a particular segment of the market.
It also generated a ton of buzz since visitors to Hans Brinker came to the hotel with low expectations, expecting a subpar experience — which then became a talking point and a sort of rite of passage for budget travelers.
You can even see it plastered across their homepage.
Standing out doesn’t have to be this extreme, though.
For instance, Kimpton Hotels’ pet-friendly policies help them stand out.
They have made a name for themselves by not just allowing but warmly welcoming pets.
They offer amenities like pet beds, food, water bowls, and even a list of nearby pet-friendly restaurants and activities.
The key is to figure out what makes you different, and how that can attract your ideal visitor, and then lean into it throughout your marketing strategies.
Delight Your Customers
After someone has booked a stay you have a prime opportunity to convert them into a lifelong visitor.
Many hotels take these bookings for granted, leaving people to their own devices after reserving a room.
If you’re looking to compete in your local area, though, you want to take full advantage of the time period directly after someone books with your hotel and before they arrive at their room.
You can use your email list to send out email messages that let them know about things to do while they’re in your area.
You can also introduce them to new places to eat.
You can notify them about shows, shopping, you name it.
Help them plan their trip BEFORE they arrive at your hotel and they’ll remember you for being useful.
Then, once they arrive for their stay, make sure they’re greeted with a warm welcome.
Do small things for them that make their stay more warm and inviting, like DoubleTree by Hilton.
DoubleTree’s Warm Cookie Welcome gives each visitor a warm, freshly baked chocolate chip cookie when they check in for their stay.
The Ritz-Carlton has a “$2,000 Rule”.
Employees of the Ritz-Carlton are empowered to spend up to $2,000 to solve any guest problem or enhance their stay without needing managerial approval.
For example, if a guest mentions that the water tap in their bathroom is running, employees could give the guest a free breakfast to make up for the inconvenience.
No questions asked.
Now, if you’re a smaller hotel, you may not necessarily be able to grant your team and staff the ability to spend up to $2,000 to impress your patrons, but you can get creative.
If you receive multiple of the same complaints, go above and beyond to address those issues.
If a patron seems unhappy or unsettled about something, have your team get to the bottom of it and do what you can to rectify the situation.
These small things add up and, in the hotel business, customer service is everything.
Get this right and you’ll have people talking about what you’ve done all over the internet, like the DoubleTree Warm Cookie Welcome.
Market Your Location Well
While your bigger overall goal may be getting people to book into your hotel and enjoy their stay, you have to stop and remember that you’re playing a role in their overall trip or vacation.
So even though you want to take center stage, you’ll also want to take a step back and frame your hotel within the larger context of the destination they’re visiting.
Whether that’s the proximity to major tourist locations, unique local cuisine, or breathtaking natural landscapes, the area surrounding your hotel can be as big as the draw to your hotel, itself.
People aren’t just coming to stay in your hotel.
They’re typically coming to experience a different location.
That means if all you’re showing are your rooms, it may not be as convincing to travel to your area or stay in your hotel.
To do this, you can start by using storytelling.
This is especially effective in your advertising.
Since every location has a story to tell, incorporating that story into your marketing can help you create a compelling narrative for potential guests.
Not to mention it’s incredibly entertaining and educational — which is something guests love.
While many hotels in your area may offer similar amenities, your location is unique to you.
By using storytelling to market this uniqueness, you can differentiate your hotel from your competitors and appeal to guests who are looking for an experience that only your location can provide.
For example, the Salthouse of Sri Lanka showcases surfing, nature, yoga, a lush tropical environment, and highlights the beauty and serenity of the location.
These images could attract guests who are looking for a peaceful retreat or an exotic getaway.
For another example, take a look at OceanEye, Sri Lanka.
The imagery they use starts the story.
Then the captions they include for each image help carry the story forward.
This all adds together to get people excited about where they’re visiting — and, since it came from your hotel’s marketing campaign, you get to carry that excitement into their stay with your hotel.
Create A Customer Loyalty Program
When you’ve worked so hard to get someone’s attention and then get them to book a stay with your hotel, you want to make sure you’re rewarding them.
A customer loyalty program is a great way to keep them coming back when they visit your area again.
By creating repeat customers, building long-term relationships, and encouraging your guests to become brand ambassadors, you can dramatically cut your marketing costs — while generating better results.
Loyalty programs allow you to gather valuable data about your guest’s preferences and behaviors.
Then, this data can be used to personalize their experience when they visit, offering tailored promotions and services to help make each stay even more special.
Here’s an example of a great customer loyalty program in action:
Each of the rewards offered to loyal members help add up to save them money, make their stay more enjoyable, and eliminate some of the frustrations and headaches they may experience with other hotels.
For instance, offering a late checkout to loyal members, while other hotels may charge an extra fee for late checkouts, can be the determining factor in whether or not someone will stay with you.
Having wifi access, members-only rates and offers, and making sure there are no blackout dates with your hotel and the promotions you run are other great incentives and help keep people loyal to you.
You can also bake in tiers for your loyalty program so the longer people stay a member, the more perks they get access to.
As members begin moving through the tiers, the perks and rewards become even more attractive, creating a compelling reason for guests to consolidate their travel with your hotel or chain.
Rather than just copying what other hotels are doing, though, spend a bit of time thinking about what guests in your area (and to your hotel) really want from their stay.
Then do what you can to include those as perks in your loyalty program.
As you’re doing it, remember that small costs incurred in your loyalty program are saved by not having to spend that money on attracting a new patron.
That means you can afford to spend a bit of money creating an attractive loyalty program since that money won’t be spent on upfront marketing to bring that patron back to your hotel again and again.
Introduce Gift Cards
Gift cards can make up a broader part of your loyalty strategy and offer guests a way to share their experience with family and friends — which can, in turn, introduce new guests to your hotel.
Even as a small to medium hotel, you can use gift cards to increase your yearly bookings.
To get started, you can offer them at checkout or through email after a patron’s stay.
For email, you’ll want to drive people to a landing page on your website where they’re able to purchase the gift cards themselves.
For example…
And if you aren’t already using landing pages to help grow your yearly bookings, you can create your first landing page in minutes using ClickFunnels.
Click here to start your free trial now.
Then, when you log in, you can select from a wide variety of professionally designed, fully customizable templates to match the look and feel of your hotel and marketing strategies.
You’re able to customize everything using our visual, drag-and-drop editor.
Then, you can offer both physical gift cards that can be shipped directly from an order form on your landing page, or digital codes that can be delivered via email after someone orders.
You can give gift cards for off-peak timings to help increase bookings during the slow season or to provide additional perks to help boost your occupancy.
The key with these hotel marketing strategies, though, is to keep your hotel’s uniqueness front and center with everything you do.
Showcase the area that people are coming to visit and tie your hotel into the surrounding area.
Then spend as much time (and money) as you can promoting your hotel across social media platforms to help draw attention and get other people talking about your business.
Stay in touch with your customers (and customers-to-be) via email and engage with them on social media when they engage with you.
When you put each of these strategies in place, your hotel bookings will increase year-over-year as long as you’re keeping a customer-centric approach to how you serve your patrons!