Why Hotels Need To Focus on Their Digital Marketing Strategy

Digital marketing is just as important to the hotel industry as it is to all the other industries. That means that as the marketing industry changes, the hotel industry has to change as well. Digital marketing today not only involves an information flow from business to consumer, but from consumer to business as well. Group influence is a factor, and content is community-driven rather than business driven. There is a lot less control over marketing than there once was. As a result, today there are two main strategies that hotel industries use for their digital marketing:

Pull Digital Marketing (Inbound Marketing) – With this type of marketing, hotels put information online that customers can locate from search engine searches, online listings, blogs, ebooks, reviews, and social media platforms.

Push Digital Marketing (Outbound Marketing) – With this type of marketing, businesses are reaching out to potential clients using methods such as email marketing text messaging, TV ads, billboards, and flyers among other things.

A hotel’s digital marketing tools and methods often depend on which overall strategy of marketing they are using. Here are some techniques that can be implemented into your overall digital marketing strategy:

1 – Search Engine Optimization
SEO is a crucial part of any hotel’s digital marketing strategy. When people are looking for something, they often turn to search engines. Search engine algorithms determine which websites are the most relevant and of high-quality and churn them out on the results page. There are so many factors involved: the people engaged with a website’s content, information provided, comments, reacts, links, and a lot of other things. You have to make sure that your website constantly is updated with new information so you can be viewed by search engine algorithms as a reputable source of information. This way, potential customers are more likely to find your site when you pop up on their first page of search engine results pages.

2 – Mobile Accessibility
Another major part of a hotel’s digital marketing strategy is mobile accessibility. An increasing number of people are choosing to browse on their phones, so it’s important that you ensure your website and information is easily accessed on mobile devices. Plus, your customers will probably be sharing about their experiences at your hotel with their mobile devices. Make it easy for them to tag you on their photos or reviews so even more people can find you!

3 – Social Media Platforms
Social media platforms are a wonderful place for you to market your brand. You can tell your hotel’s story here, and allow glimpses into the more personal aspect of the hotel – the people who work there, what goes on behind the scenes, etc. This gives visitors a much more personal look at your hotel.

Another reason to make use of social media is because it is an amazing ad platform. These platforms have accurate ad analytics, tools to reach the audience, and are extremely sticky. It’s definitely a worthwhile component of a hotel’s digital marketing strategy.

4 – Email Marketing
Though email marketing may seem a little bit outdated, we assure you that it is still a highly effective tool to add to your digital marketing arsenal. What you want to be achieving with email marketing is solid branding, brand awareness, lead generation, and revenue generation.

5 – Blogging
Blogging is a great way to gain a reputation for being a great source of information. It also helps you to tell the story of your own hotel. It will increase traffic to your website and help you cultivate connections to your customers. Finally, it’s also a major contributor to SEO, so it may just help your rank increase!

6 – Community Building
You’ve probably seen some business social media pages where the business is interacting with their audience. There is definitely a reason. As we have already mentioned, communication with digital marketing flows both ways, rather than just from the business to the consumer. That means that it is important for you to interact with the community on your social media pages.

The people who make up your social media community are those who are possibly going to become your brand ambassadors. They will be the ones who tell other people about your brand. It’s free marketing. Honestly, who doesn’t want that? Treat them well, and they will spread your name for you.

Conclusion
As people look for places to stay on their next vacation, it is extremely likely that they will turn to the internet. The sales funnel for the hotel industry is extremely complicated, and travel search takes a long time. A lot of people start looking up places to go for their next vacation and leave still being undecided about where to stay.

Consumers want easy access to information. They want innovative and creative brands. It is no different when they are seeking hotels. You must take that in mind as you formulate your digital marketing strategy.

Remember: If you aren’t online, you’re already behind. Get to work on your digital marketing strategy today!