In today’s competitive UK hospitality industry, hotels must continually seek innovative hotel marketing tips to attract and subsequently retain guests. Why? Effective marketing strategies can significantly improve hotel revenues and profitability.
So, whether you are a seasoned hotelier, a new hotel owner or a general manager, understanding how to optimise your marketing efforts and achieve your hotel’s goals should be at the very top of your to do list.
In this article, I outline the role of a hotel marketing strategy, the benefits of a great hotel marketing strategy and provide 12 proven hotel marketing tips that can help you to increase revenue and drive more bookings.
The Role Of A Hotel Marketing Strategy
A hotel marketing strategy can serve as a roadmap for a hotel’s marketing efforts, guiding its activities to achieve specific business objectives. It’s primary role is to increase revenue and occupancy by attracting and converting prospective guests into paying customers.
The key objectives of a hotel marketing strategy may include:
- Brand Awareness: Increasing visibility and recognition of the hotel brand.
- Revenue Generation: Maximising revenue through effective pricing strategies and targeted promotions.
- Competitive Advantage: Differentiating the hotel from its competitors and positioning it as the preferred choice.
- Customer Acquisition: Attracting new guests through various marketing channels.
- Customer Loyalty: Building strong relationships with guests to encourage repeat business.
How Do Sales And Marketing Work Together?
Hotel sales and marketing are closely entwined and consequently, they must work effectively together if the hotel is to realise its true revenue potential and achieve its goals. For example, the marketing team will set the stage by creating a favourable environment for potential customers and then the sales team takes the lead in closing deals with prospective guests.
Below are the key objectives of each team:
- Marketing: Creates awareness, generates interest and builds desire for the hotel’s products and services, attracting prospective customers and positioning the hotel within the marketplace.
- Sales: Converts leads into paying customers by closing deals and building relationships with guests. Sales teams often rely on marketing efforts to generate qualified leads and provide them with the necessary information to effectively pitch the hotel’s products and services.
In every hotel, there should be a strong relationship between sales and marketing teams as effective communication, collaboration and most importantly, alignment, can lead to increased revenue, improved customer satisfaction and a more sustainable business for the long-term.
The Benefits Of A Great Hotel Marketing Strategy
A well-crafted hotel marketing strategy can significantly impact your hotel’s success. Here are five of the greatest benefits:
- Enhanced Brand Awareness: A well-executed marketing campaign can help to build your hotel’s brand recognition and reputation, making it more appealing and memorable for/to potential guests.
- Higher Revenue Per Available Room (RevPAR): A strong marketing strategy can help you implement effective pricing strategies, cross-sell and upsell tactics and targeted promotions to increase the revenue generated per available room.
- Improved Online Visibility: Effective online marketing techniques such as search engine optimisation (SEO) and social media marketing can improve your hotel’s visibility in search engine results and increase your online presence.
- Increased Occupancy Rates: By effectively reaching your target audience and showcasing your hotel’s unique selling points, you can attract more guests and boost your occupancy rates.
- Stronger Customer Loyalty: By providing exceptional guest experiences and maintaining consistent communication, you can foster loyalty amongst your customers, leading to repeat business and positive word-of-mouth referrals.
12 Hotel Marketing Tips To Improve Revenue
In the hotel industry, it is essential to implement creative marketing strategies that attract more guests and increase revenues. Below are 12 hotel marketing tips that can help your hotel to stand out and thrive:
- Focus On Local SEO: Claim and optimise your Google Business Profile, ensuring that all information is accurate and encourage customer reviews. Optimise for local search terms by using relevant keywords such as “best hotels in [city]”, “hotels near me” and collaborate with other local businesses such as attractions and restaurants for cross-promotion.
- Implement A Strong Social Media Strategy: Choose the right platforms. Identify where your target customers are most active (e.g. Facebook, Instagram, TikTok etc.). Engage with your followers by responding to comments, messages and reviews and share visually appealing content by posting high-quality photos and videos of your hotel, its amenities and local attractions.
- Leverage Online Travel Agencies (OTA’s): Optimise listings. Ensure accurate information, compelling descriptions and high-quality images. Manage your availability and rates and synchronise appropriately across all OTA partners such as Booking.com. Utilise OTA marketing tools and take advantage of appropriate programmes and promotions.
- Monitor & Analyse Marketing Efforts: Use analytics tools to measure social media engagement, track booking conversion rates and website traffic. Calculate the return on investment (ROI) from your marketing campaigns. Make data-driven decisions by using insights to evaluate and continually refine your marketing strategies accordingly.
- Offer Packages & Promotions: Create value-added packages by bundling rooms with additional products or services. Run seasonal promotions and offer discounts or special offers during the off-season. Leverage loyalty programs by rewarding repeat customers with exclusive benefits and offers.
- Offer Unique Amenities & Experiences: Differentiate yourself from competitors by providing unique amenities and/or experiences tailored to appeal to your target customers and targeted market segments. Highlight your unique selling points and promote your hotel’s distinctive features in your marketing material.
- Optimize Your Website: Ensure your website has a mobile-friendly design and is easy to navigate on smartphones and tablets. Integrate a booking engine that provides a seamless user experience on your website and ensure your content is clear and concise by using engaging and informative language to describe your hotel rooms and amenities.
- Partner With Travel Influencers: Identify influencers who align with your brand. Collaborate with Instagrammers, travel bloggers and/or YouTubers by offering complimentary stays and incentives for them to promote your hotel. Measure the impact by tracking the results of your influencer partnerships.
- Provide Exceptional Guest Experiences: Train staff to provide excellent service by ensuring that they are friendly, helpful and knowledgeable. Pay attention to detail. Exceed guest expectations and address their needs promptly. Encourage positive guest reviews from satisfied guests on platforms such as Google and TripAdvisor.
- Stay Up To Date With Industry Trends: Follow hospitality blogs and news to stay informed about the latest best practices and trends. Attend industry conferences and events to network with other professionals and learn about new hotel marketing strategies. Continuously adapt your approach and be willing to experiment and adjust your marketing strategies as required.
- Utilise Email Marketing: Build an email subscriber list by collecting email addresses from both guests and website visitors. Send targeted promotions by offering exclusive deals and providing personalised recommendations. Keep guests updated by sharing events, news and special offers.
- Utilise Paid Advertising: Target potential guests using Google Ads based on their location and search intent. Use Social media advertising to reach your target audience on platforms like Facebook and Instagram and deploy retargeting campaigns to reach out to visitors who have previously shown interest in your hotel.
Do You Need To Increase Revenue At Your Hotel?
At MavREV, we specialise in providing an outsourced revenue management service at a fraction of the cost associated with employing a revenue manager to independent hotels, inns and serviced apartments in the UK. We create effective revenue strategies to help your property reach its true revenue potential.
Interested? Contact us now!
