The Top 4 Hotel Marketing Mistakes to Avoid

Savvy hoteliers are generally more aware of hotel marketing strategies that will bring in more business for their hotel after conducting research or engaging in marketing experimentation. But, are they aware of the things to avoid when marketing their hotel? Many marketing mistakes have been made by even the largest and most successful hotels, making it beneficial for hoteliers to be aware of these common fallacies to avoid them.

The Top Hotel Marketing Mistakes

1. Ignoring your surroundings and failing to implement local marketing for your hotel

One of the most significant assets that a hotel has is the local area, so don’t make the mistake of not taking advantage of this lucrative asset for your hotel. Hoteliers that do not take advantage of turning significant events in the city into a hotel blog or special are missing out on additional revenue from travelers that are looking for a place to stay in the area. Hoteliers can also utilize famous landmarks or attractions in the city, such as the renowned music venue a few blocks down the street or the family-friendly amusement park that everyone in town goes to. For example, hoteliers could create a fun itinerary filled with a list of things to do during the day and night, offer a romantic package for a party of two or a family-friendly agenda filled with great things for the entire family to enjoy in the local area. The idea is to get creative with local marketing so you can attract travelers to book at your hotel; who knows, they may even return to stay at your hotel in the future.

2. Resisting change while hanging onto an outdated and ineffective website

The world wide web has changed drastically over the last several years, and hoteliers must act upon the advancements of the Internet. Due to these fast technological advances, hotels that still display their property on an older looking and inefficient website are a lot more susceptible to receiving lower percentages of hotel website conversions. Additionally, if your hotel’s website looks outdated, then your hotel property will also be perceived as outdated by online users. The lifespan of website content is a relatively short one, making it crucial to update the content and images generally within 36 to 48 months. Still, the sooner, the better it is for your website. The hotel’s website should not only reflect its onsite experience, but it should also be up-to-date with the current technology and changes in consumer demands.

3. Not having a presence across all 3-screens (desktop, tablet, and smartphone) in an age of fast-growing technology

Having an updated and fresh looking hotel website is not enough to sell your property in this present time of fast-growing technology. With the growing amount of users booking hotel rooms through smartphones and tablets, hoteliers that do not offer online experience across all 3-screens are mainly walking away from a relatively large portion of their business. Smartphone use for travelers is continuing to increase, making it essential for hoteliers to provide a mobile-friendly version of their website to capture this segment of connected travelers continuously. All in all, make sure your hotel has a presence across all 3-screens, from desktop to smartphone and tablet, and you’ll see that these platforms will pay off for themselves and provide more additional revenue.

4. Declining to look into the wealth of useful information analytics data can provide

Hoteliers that are not utilizing free analytical tools, like Google Analytics, are missing out on a lot of insightful and actionable data that can be used toward better marketing for your hotel. The information that these analytical tools provide will give hoteliers a better understanding of their customers. They can see where they are searching from to land on the website, which pages they visit and how much time they spend on it, which pages they are bouncing off of and much more essential factors to be aware of. Knowing this type of information will provide a better understanding of the online user experience and where hoteliers should focus their marketing budget toward. However, because there is a lot of information available and not every single metric can be measured, it is often better to focus on the bigger picture and look into monthly, quarterly, and annual numbers more closely.

Avoiding these common hotel marketing mistakes can save your hotel from losing a potentially large amount of direct bookings and hundreds, if not thousands of dollars to your property. Maximize your hotel’s marketing success by avoiding these costly mistakes and focus on increasing the ROI of your hotel with effective marketing strategies!