How can Hotels get the Best ROI from their Marketing Budgets?

“When budgets are reduced (it does not have to be inevitable; hotels that continued their spend are seeing the benefits of maintaining their presence now) it helps focus the mind on what return you want to see for your money. This can be a very good time to properly review what you have been doing. If your strategy has been to feed your sales funnel with broad marketing messages and big target audiences, it’s time to understand your “who” and at what stage in your online and offline guest journey they book.

We have seen some shifting market segments as well as channels. Direct business is growing exponentially. New bookers are searching for new experiences. We have seen a huge uptick in data for email marketing, and an immediate response to a sign up with a value-add has increased website conversion by 20% simply by communicating on a website that value and loyalty go hand in hand. Retargeting with personalised content is always a winner. Your website MUST be inviting with clear paths to book. Reducing the number of confusing rates, packages and tactical promotions will guide a guest to the correct experience.

When you understand what markets are booking and when, it’s far easier to tailor your proposition. It’s still important to be visible on your distribution channels. A guest may discover you on a third party site and seek your website out to assuage any Covid safety concerns or look for an alternative experience. Let’s not forget that you are in control of generating demand, not simply responding to it. Tapping into your guest psyche with an “always-on” campaign, clear brand values, superb content and inspiring experiences. Post-Covid, connection, communication and collaboration are valuable, so when you can keep that message running, authentically, it’s memorable.”

“Marketing is about giving your prospect EXACTLY what they want and a marketing strategy will differ according to a hotel’s location, its accommodation style, etc.

If you are a General Manager or an internal marketing lead within the hotel industry, you need to take a step back and look at what is happening in your immediate surroundings; the culture of your city, the ebbs and flows of society, what people are speaking about and the current Covid19 regulations.

The world has changed and so have the expectations of our guests. My advice? Scrap what you think you know about your target market and approach your business with fresh eyes. This is THE biggest differentiator between market leaders and market survivors. They are founded in the depth of research they do to understand their target market so they can truly begin to craft offers that the target market can’t refuse.

How you do this is an entirely different thing. At a bare minimum, you should spend the next month understanding your local market, reading comments on local social media accounts that have an engaged following and having coffees with people outside your industry who might be your ideal customer so you can truly understand their ‘frame of mind’, i.e., their hopes, dreams, what they fear most right now and their current pressures.

When you get into the mind of your ideal customer, you begin to know what and how they think. From a place of deep research you can begin to deploy offers that they can’t refuse because you’re giving them exactly what they want.

This is marketing that drives ROI – based on deep research and thinking like your end consumer to the point they start saying “I felt like you were talking directly to me, you knew what I was thinking”. Speak to their needs, capture their attention and treat them well and you’re more likely to make them a return customer both in high and low season.”

“The most cost-effective way to drive revenue is to return to those guests who have stayed previously and enjoyed their stay. It’s a lot cheaper than having to attract people who have never stayed at your property. You also don’t have to spend as much time and effort trying to convince them of the merits of your hotel. You just need to make them a good offer or perhaps suggest something they haven’t done before. An effective CRM that integrates with your PMS is a must-have as it ensures a steady flow of GDPR approved email addresses and allows you to track performance.

Another tip is to segment your databases so that you can offer the right kind of packages to different audiences, for example, a “stay and play” offer to golfers, a package with tickets to a theme park for families etc. This ensures that you increase the conversion level of your bookings and you’re also more likely to see people read and continue subscribing because they feel the offers are relative to their interests.”

“For driving the best ROI possible, I would suggest the following:

1. Outsource. Yes, this will cost more in the short term, but if you get the right contractor, you will get someone who is incredibly experienced, adaptable and who is working across all areas of the industry, so they can bring a wide range of ideas, thoughts and new concepts to the table. They are seeing so much more than just your hotel, so they can share insights with you as to what is & is not working elsewhere.
2. Free. Look at what you can use for free. You don’t always have to pay for the full stack. Sometimes you can get away with using the free option. It will be nearly as good, and it will cut your costs.
3. Review. Look at what you are paying for and consider switching suppliers or trialling new products. Check your contracts and shop around. Switching systems has never been easier, so take the leap and downgrade to something cheaper that is just as effective. You will probably find that you aren’t using all the applications in the systems you are paying for at present.
4. Train. Use tools such as Coursera and Udemy to upskill yourself so you can increase your knowledge and understanding and also get some fresh new ideas.
5. Relationships. We cannot do face-to-face right now but human contact has become incredibly important as we all retreat from our offices to home. Pick up the phone and call someone rather than email them. You might be the only person that your client has spoken to and has had a conversation with (i.e., not typed!) all day – and that will mean far more to them than any email or thank you gift. Relationships will drive your business forward right now.
6. Try. What worked in 2019 is not working in 2021 so be the brave and courageous person you are and try new things. Do not be afraid to fail. Who cares if that social media campaign flopped; learn from it and try again.
7. Mental Health. Take care of yourself first and foremost. Your own mental health and positive outlook will be the most important driver in growing ROI. Shift your mindset and look for the positive in every day.”

“When it comes to driving the best ROI possible, we are firm believers in flexible marketing budgets. As long as the investment drives a healthy ROI, why would you limit your budget and marketing spend by a predetermined amount?

Besides, in these unusual times with low market demand, investments in brand awareness will be required. It’s really important to be top of mind once guests begin booking and travelling again. During times like these where your competitors are cutting budgets, lie the biggest opportunities to make an impact and win market share. Timing is key.”

“Getting the free (or low cost) basics right first – making sure your owned channels are optimised, that all your content is updated on your website, your google listings are updated and where suitable, all Covid-19 protocols are outlined. Make sure you have planned all your social media content and include video and great imagery. Become laser-focused on your key target customer and market and on keep your marketing messages tailored to their specific needs. Next, you can think about spending money on the media channels where you can find your customers.

Pre-campaign, define your goals and make sure to measure your success. Most hotels can get some good impact from targeted paid social media advertising (but again this depends upon your target audience) but it’s important not to forget the role that PR is playing also, as there is good traction to be gained by leveraging positive PR both online and offline. Evaluate what has worked well for your business in the past; determine what is still a relevant channel and segment. Learn from that and build on small wins.”

“In the last year, with marketing cuts reflective of occupancy cuts and everything else, we’ve had to adjust our spend. The first place we looked was paid advertising. With driving traffic being “the only way” for a while, we limited our ad spend to drive market travel. We doubled down on email marketing, which is one of the most cost-effective ways to drive incremental revenue, by targeting past guests who know and trust the property.

We also went heavier on social media, leaning on cost-effective influencer partnerships with those who shared our audience/demographic, to share experiences on-property instead of needing to sell via traditional advertising methods.”

“In the vacation rental industry, budgets are dedicated to more direct bookings and brand awareness. At Smiling House we are keeping in touch with daily posts on social media, including Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook and also lately through Audio talks on Clubhouse.

Now more than ever, it’s time to stay focused on your target market audience, as we are approaching high-end individuals and travel professionals, we are advertising in very select magazines and always preferring content awareness over a beautiful advert.”

“I think hotels need to go back to basics. In some countries, hospitality organizations have been hit very hard by the pandemic and GMs of these properties are considered lucky if they have a marketing budget. I think that in this post-pandemic time there will be a ‘bounce’ in the short term – i.e., lots of reservations in the summer for holiday destinations – but the real challenge is going to be the medium-long term for non-holiday destination (i.e., city hotels/business hotels).

My two cents on the table for what is of most concern to marketing relates to:

(i) relationship building in terms of engagement at all levels – this does not really require a budget per se, but a clear attention to detail and to the customers
(ii) post-pandemic reaction by aligning the product and the communication with needs and wants of travelers – for example with a clear attention on sanitization and
(iii) look at the future in terms of sustainability and circular economy to tackle our next challenges and what the next customers want.”

“At the moment, we have a lot of time to optimize, update, review and reconsider our marketing content and strategies through a deep analysis of our performances. Did that picture, that virtual tour or drone video work? Did it produce shares or conversions? What is driving traffic?

If yesterday’s data “helped”, then today’s analytics, alongside proactivity and flexibility, are a must, especially when nobody knows how and what type of demand will pick up.”

“From my experience, the best investment is in direct engagement and creating true connections with guests. Review management marketing consistency in answering all reviews in a personal, engaging way. If you answer reviews, you can include links and promote direct bookings. This is the time to review your marketing strategy to drive direct business effectively.

Engage on social media. Research who is posting & tagging your hotel and make sure you connect, re-post and re-target this group. They are active ambassadors. True stories sell.”

“The best thing we can do is keep the brand out there and build our reputation as an industry expert. The press is eager to source travel stories at the moment and we have renegotiated our rates with all our PR agencies; we’re using them less, but we’re getting lots of coverage.

We are also leveraging B2B contacts with social media tools such as Clubhouse and Linkedin to cast our net a little wider.”

“Hotels need to ensure that they are up to date with all the digital presence. This means ensuring their website is up to date with all the right pictures as well as content – and more importantly, reviewing what measures they have put in place to ensure safe travel. It is also important for hotels to look at their social media strategy and presence. This could be done in-house or by engaging with a social media expert for a few hours a week to ensure that you have the best images and messaging to attract clients.

Now is the time to ensure that when people are looking for experiences and new places, they can find your hotels. Give potential clients examples and insights into what they can do locally when they stay in your hotels. Some hotels are giving guests a day’s photoshoot in a key location to keep the memories or offering a day out with a local guide. All of these types of experiences can then be promoted on your digital channels.”

“Work with your revenue and sales team to focus on gaining market share from the comp set. Marketers need to understand what segments the competition has that your hotel does not and create plans to be exposed or convert that segment. When you have gained share, you can focus on channel shift from OTAs to increase profitability.

Leverage data from CVB, Google Trends, Kalibri and CBRE to see what is happening in each specific market and adjust your spend/targeting accordingly. Watch flight schedules as well to see when travel from certain cities is brought back.”

“Hotels should not overlook the importance and value of influencer marketing. Done well, hotels can work with a multitude of micro-influencers who can really bring the hotel experience to new and local audiences. Some might work for trade, others might have a fee. Either way, you can create some exceptional content and expand your marketing reach if a hotel partners with the right influencers.

Especially now, if occupancy numbers are still low, hotels have the inventory to offer rooms. Influencers can also help create a story about the hotel experience. Choose influencers with the demographics that fit your property the best!”

“In the current climate, the best way to make the most of a hotel marketing budget is to focus on ensuring that you are well known in your local market. You need to be the preferred recommendation for when family, friends, etc. travel to your local area. This is now an opportunity to get on the road, collaborate, network and look for merging opportunities.”

“When I look at the smaller hotels, the marketing budget is often very small. Therefore, it’s hugely important to be creative. Think in terms of possibilities and distinguish yourself through “personal” attention and service. Be active in approaching your guests. Ask for the e-mail address at check-in and make the effort to send the guest a thank-you email after check-out. Here you can, for example, promote your hotel again or offer a fun (playful) promotion, add a discount code that they can use themselves or give to friends with a direct online booking.

Don’t just sell your hotel, but also sell your environment and make your guests feel like they want to come to you. Use Instagram to link guests to you and increase your reach. Make sure your own website is well designed and user-friendly.”

“Hotels are facing cuts because this pandemic has made them realize that costs must be reduced to allow them to stay open (or at least not close permanently). How they can ensure that their marketing budget is spent wisely?
There are two important aspects:

• the digitalization measure
• the safety measure

These definitely hold the most value in terms of investment. Firstly, they’re needed to help you stay on the same page as hotels that have already addressed these aspects. Secondly, the more hotels can show they’re digitalized and taking care of future guests, the more ROI can be converted in the loyalty of those guests.

Whenever I consult hotels on how to drive the best ROI possible, the first thing I suggest is that they invest in digital and safety. Talking about such investments can sometimes feel worrying for hotels, but the sooner action is taken, the sooner results can be achieved.

Another aspect is related to the guest experience. Guest experience cannot be measured like we would F&B or room revenue; we cannot calculate the results in terms of numbers immediately, but in terms of satisfaction. A satisfied guest is the one driving the revenue. They are a free marketing tool that will increase the hotel reputation through great reviews, word of mouth and recommendations to others. The happy guest can guarantee an increase in terms of returning and booking a stay again, using extra services and in generating awareness about your hotel.

When talking about loyalty, digitizing the loyalty program and implementing a digital content management system can make direct sales channels an essential element of the business. How? Through the digital content management system, we can better understand our future clients’ habits and therefore create suggestions for future trips and exclusive experiences for loyalty program members to directly increase the ROI.

The digitization includes the use of Artificial Intelligence, advanced CRM, the use of programmatic marketing and the use of efficient landing pages – all can lead to a good result in terms of ROI. Additionally, targeting the audience through accurate segmentation can help identify the most suitable clients for each campaign and define opportunities for new promotions. Hotels seeking to drive the best ROI possible have to focus on these KPIs:

• increase revenue through the digital channels
• increase the number of bookings

The steps to follow are:

1. Obtain guest email addresses to grow the database.
2. Define the Buyer Personas and develop campaigns based on these specific personas.
3. Optimize the website to increase the number of users visiting the website and booking through it.

The strategy solution can be enclosed in the method I call OPCM which stands for:
– Online marketing
– PMS (Property management system integrated)
– CRM integrated with PMS
– Marketing-centred strategy”

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