Up until only a few years ago, the digital space wasn’t very complicated – we had a focused approach to our digital strategy, concentrating heavily on SEO and PPC.
Fast forward a few years and the rapid progress of digitisation has resulted in interconnected online and physical experiences. This means as digital marketers we need to be adept at mobile, Metasearch, video, paid social, display, remarketing, conversion optimisation – the list goes on!
As a hotelier, trying to keep up-to-date with these advances can be tough, but here at Avvio, we think that it can be done by really getting to know your guest from the first interaction they have with you. Take some time to think about the ways in which your target audience consumes your brand and the ways your followers are engaging with your hotel online.
Take a few minutes and ask yourself:
- Are you spending money on digital campaigns but are still unsure of their efficiency?
- Have you been too ‘last minute’ when planning your seasonal campaigns and promotions?
- Has your digital agency not been proactive in analysing your performance, channels and markets and devising a strategy and plan?
If you answered yes to any of these questions then your digital marketing is in need of an overhaul. Like the saying goes ‘Fail to plan, plan to fail’!
Here’s where you should start:
- Maximise return on investment for your digital channels
With so many channels available, there’s huge choice and often a substantial budget requirement to match. Whilst it would be great to be active on every channel, you probably don’t have unlimited budgets, so instead you’ll need to mindful of selecting those that suit your property best and align to your goals. We know how much it costs us to get bookings from third-party channels such as the OTAs, but do we know how much is it costing us across the various digital channels when it comes to direct business? Work on a cost per acquisition (CPA) model which doesn’t restrict you to budgets for certain channels and allows you to really made headway on your direct bookings.
- Plan in advance
The key to an effective digital strategy is in creating and following a content calendar. You can organise a content calendar in whichever way works best for you and your business. Digital campaigns can help to drive content around key events, dates and seasons so that you can improve brand awareness and maximise audience interest all year round. Remember: different audiences have different needs. Aligning your content towards your audience’s needs is crucial to increase engagement and ultimately conversion.
- Analyse your data
By setting up regular reports that track metrics that are most important to your marketing team, you’ll be able to measure the rates of traffic, engagement and acquisition your content and paid search generate. Analysing this data can help you to delve into your guest’s browsing behaviour and map user trends. These insights will help you optimise your digital strategies for the year ahead which in turn should help maximise your profitability and increase your property’s booking revenue.
If you’ve been doing very little online up until now, we wouldn’t expect you to commit to every channel.
It’s important to analyse the industry, your guest demographics and your competitors to see what will work best and to help you profitably build your digital presence – without over-committing.
Once you have a defined plan of action the real fun can begin! There are likely to be actions around content, new channels, initiatives, seasonal campaigns and suggested budgets. Avvio’s team of skilled E-Commerce Managers can do all of this with you and will help you understand the results through regular calls and strategy meetings. We pride ourselves on the level of analysis and customised approach that we provide for each of our customers.
To find out what our E-Commerce team can do for your hotel, speak with our award-winning and Google accredited team today.
