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Hotel marketing had evolved significantly in the last decade. The hospitality sector is one of many industries that has been transformed by the rapid advancements in digital technology. Although technology can tremendously help hoteliers to attract as many travelers as possible, the market has become more competitive than ever. In this article, we will provide insights and strategies on how to develop an effective marketing plan for your new hotel by utilizing digital advertising.
Conducting A Market Research
Before starting to market a new hotel. Hoteliers must gather key information about the market and their target audience. Through market research, a new hotel can tailor their efforts and create more effective campaigns that connect with potential guests. Some methodologies to conduct market research includes online surveys, focus groups, and competitor research.
Online Surveys
The digital age, allows new hotels to use cost-effective ways to gather a large amount of information. Today, the majority of people are connected to the internet. New hotels can use tools like Google Forms or SurveyMonkey to create surveys that ask the target audience about their preferences and habits.
Pricing and amenities preferences are some of the crucial information to collect for a new hotel. There are many ways an online survey can be distributed (both free and paid). For example, a new hotel can run ads on Google Ads to distribute online surveys to different platforms such as YouTube and Google partners network. The Meta networks such as Instagram & Facebook allow hoteliers to distribute online surveys with ads or organically.
Focus Groups
This methodology involves gathering a small group of the target audience for a discussion. Offering compensation is a good way to motivate your target audience to participate. Hoteliers may gain valuable insight into what motivates people to choose one hotel over another. This information may assist new hotels to identify what makes a hotel stands out in the area, allowing them to determine their differentiation.
Competitor Analysis
First, create a list of competitions. This can be your new hotel’s competitions that directly operate around their location or competitions that target the same target audience. Examining the competition’s tactics and strategies will give valuable insight into what your competition is doing good at and what can be improved. Improving your competition’s practice & strategy and applying them to your strategy will allow your new hotel to stand out from the competition.
Identifying Your Target Market
To maximize the efficiency of your marketing efforts, you must narrow down your target audience and direct your resources toward attracting them. But how can you identify your ideal guests and their purpose for travel? Where do they reside and how do they come across your property? In order to answer these questions, you must engage in market research to segment guests into specific groups with shared traits. Once these groups are identified, personalized messaging can be delivered to each targeted audience for the best possible results.
Determine your Brand Tone & Identity
Developing a unique and authentic brand identity is an essential factor in a successful hotel marketing strategy. But first, you must identify what kind of hotel are you, in and how you position yourself in the market. It’s important to create a clear and compelling description and brand tone in order to differentiate your brand from competitors. Your brand should dictate the tone, style, and personality of all marketing materials, such as online and print marketing resources and email campaigns. Remember to always be consistent with your brand tone on all communication platforms.
Build An SEO Friendly Website
Today, most bookings are done online. Most travelers do research on Search Engines before making holidays trip. This is why Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is crucial for your new hotels. SEO will help new hotels to gain organic visibility.
To ensure your website’s SEO is excellent, start by conducting thorough keyword research to comprehend what your target audience is looking for. Transform those relevant keywords into compelling copy for your hotel and location. Also, make sure that your website loads fast and is mobile-friendly, as this is crucial for both SEO and a good user experience.
Link building is another essential part of SEO, and one of the best ways to achieve this is by collaborating with OTAs and metasearch engines. These are some of the first places travelers explore when searching for accommodation. Not only does this kind of link-building drive direct bookings, but it also enhances visibility and helps your website rank higher in organic search results.
TO LEARN MORE ABOUT: How To Start A Keyword Research For Your Website
Make Sure Your Hotel Is Registered On Google’s Local Listing
Over 92% of the global search on search engines is made on Google. Creating a Business Page on Google will allow your hotel to be listed on Google’s hotel list. When a potential customer does a Google search, your hotel’s NAP (Name, Address, Phone Number) will be shown. Additionally, you are able to add your amenities information, upload property images, and customize other information relevant to your hotel. We believe it is absolutely necessary for a new hotel to have a Google Business Page. Your new hotel will also be eligible to run Google Hotel Ads.
To list your hotel on Google’s Business Page.
Utilize Search Engine Marketing
By placing ads on search engine results pages, new hotels can ensure that their brand is visible to people who are actively searching for hotels in the area. For this one, we will primarily discuss the Google platform. Google provides multiple campaign types for new hotels to choose from. For example, Search Ads allow new hotels to target specific keywords & queries. This means advertising on Search Engine provides new hotels to advertise to potential guests that possess the intention to book a hotel.
Google Hotel Ads are directly linked to a hotel’s Google Business account and are integrated within Google’s Hotel Finder platform (discussed previously on Google’s Local Listing).
To Learn About Google Hotel Ads:
Google Hotel Ads Guide: A Comprehensive Guide For Hoteliers
Utilize Social Media Marketing
Social media has become a fundamental aspect of people’s daily routines. Its importance cannot be overstated and presents hotels with an enormous opportunity to draw in potential guests. The amount of reach to potential guests a hotel can advertise to using social media is enormous. Integrating both paid and organic social media management can be very impactful for a new hotel to build brand awareness.
We have written an article discussing different social media techniques hotels can utilize to promote their brand. To Learn More: Social Media Techniques For Hotels To Engage With Customers And Promote Their Brand
Don’t Miss Out On Opportunities From OTAs
With so many people turning to Online Travel Agents (OTAs) for all their travel needs, a new hotel is recommended to be present in OTAs. OTAs are widely used by travelers to compare hotel options based on their preferences such as prices and amenities. It is important to choose which OTAs your target audience will most likely use.
Influencer Marketing
New hotels can capitalize on the large following of influencers to expand their reach and cultivate a larger following. For a new hotel with a smaller budget, working with micro-influencers can be as beneficial. The important thing to remember is to do a background check on your chosen influencers as well as analyze important metrics such as engagement rates.
Measuring Success
Setting and measuring the success of a marketing campaign is crucial for any hotel looking to improve its strategy. The goal of measuring your campaigns is to identify and measure the success of your campaigns and improve them if they do not perform as expected. Here are two ways to measure the success of your marketing campaign for your new hotel.
Setting Goals and KPIs
To measure your marketing campaign’s success, start by setting specific goals and key performance indicators (KPIs). Goals should be your campaign’s overall objectives, such as increasing website traffic or generating more bookings, while KPIs are the specific metrics you use to track progress toward these goals.
When setting goals and KPIs, be specific, measurable, achievable realistic, and time-specific (SMART). For example, instead of having an unclearly defined goal such as “increase website traffic,” adjust your goal to be more specific such as “increase website traffic by 15% in the next 2 months.”
Having a SMART goal allows you to track progress more accurately and make necessary adjustments along the way.
Metrics & Tools
Measuring the success of your marketing campaign is crucial, and tracking metrics is an essential component. To monitor progress toward your goals and KPIs, there are several metrics that you can track for a new hotel marketing campaign. These metrics include website traffic, social media engagement, conversion rate, and ROI.
Website traffic is an important metric that can help you understand how successful your marketing campaign is. You can track website traffic and user behavior using tools such as Google Analytics and Hotjar.
Read Also : Ultimate Guide of Google Analytics for Hotels Business Success
Social media engagement is also a critical metric to track, especially for new hotels. Likes, shares, and comments on social media posts can help you gauge your audience’s engagement with your brand.
Another key metric to track is conversion rate, which is the percentage of website visitors who take a desired action, such as booking a room or signing up for a newsletter. Tracking conversion rates can help you evaluate how effective your website is at converting visitors into customers.
Calculating the ROI for your marketing campaign is the ultimate measure of success. ROI can help you determine how much revenue your campaign is generating relative to the amount you’re spending on marketing.
Tools like Google Analytics, Facebook Insights, and Hootsuite can help you track and measure these metrics, allowing you to identify areas where your marketing campaign is succeeding and where it needs improvement. By analyzing your metrics regularly, you can make data-driven decisions that can help your new hotel thrive in a competitive market.
Conclusion
Marketing a new hotel is a formidable task that requires a certain finesse to achieve the desired outcome. The crucial first step in creating an effective marketing campaign is thorough market research that delves into the psyche of potential guests. With a clear understanding of the target market, their needs, and preferences, one can create a customized marketing plan that leverages the right mix of traditional and digital marketing channels such as digital advertising, social media, influencer marketing, and OTAs.
It’s vital to set specific goals and key performance indicators (KPIs) that enable one to measure the success of the marketing campaign. By tracking metrics such as website traffic, social media engagement, and booking conversions, one can continuously optimize marketing efforts to achieve the desired outcomes.
Lastly, the implementation of the tips and strategies discussed in this post is highly encouraged. By doing so, a strong brand presence can be established, and more guests can be attracted to the new hotel. If further assistance is needed, it is highly recommended to contact a digital marketing company for expert guidance and support.
