People connected with hospitality industry undoubtedly know that direct bookings are far more profitable than through third parties, such as OTAs. The benefits concerning increasing direct bookings via your hotel website are plentiful and the whole process is worthwhile. However, it is quite time-consuming and simply difficult case, so as the hotel authorities’ efforts are frequently unsuccessful. The main obstacles consist in encouraging your guests and persuading them to book directly.
The question is - do you do something wrong? What mistakes do you make and how to avoid them?
Mistake #1: You are not engaged in remarketing
Remarketing - what is it?
Remarketing is the process concerning web technology, for example, concerning the cookies on your hotel website or targeting e-mail following the users who have already shown an interest in your property.
If you are not remarketing, you lose a great chance to attract potential guests’ attention. What is the solution to the foregoing problem?
Everything depends on your guests. While arriving at your hotel, they usually give you their e-mail addresses. If they do so, you gain a wonderful tool for remarketing. You can remarket not only through social campaigns, paid advertisements, but also via e-mail.
E-mail has the highest rate of return – if you have potential guests’ e-mail addresses, they consider booking their stay at your hotel. In a nutshell, the more elaborate remarketing campaign you conduct, the larger number of guests you encourage.
According to the research…
How to write the proper e-mails to the potential guests?
The following kind of e-mails should be sent a few hours or a day after a guest’s fails to book. You can ask guests whether they have forgotten to complete the process or if they are ready to make their booking now. You can also offer a discount or other boost.
Remember about highlighting the benefits of direct bookings!
Mistake #2: You do not place any photos and information about your hotel
Imagine that you are going to buy something online. You have to choose between two similar offers. However, there is one meaningful difference - the first offer contains a professional photo and the rich description of the product you are interested in, on the other hand, the second one has not got any of the above-mentioned details.
The question is - which one would you choose?
In all probability, your decision is certain. Pictures are one of the most significant parts of your choices. If it comes to your future guests - they will not be willing to book a stay at your hotel in case they do not know what it looks like. It is the reason why you should keep in mind putting professional photos and data on your website in order to make a great impression on those who are making their mind right now…
MISTAKE #3: You do not enrich your hotel website with technological trends
Technology is continually making a progress at a quicker pace than ever before. It influences numerous aspects of the hospitality industry - not only guests’ expectations but also hotel owners’ attitude towards their businesses. Technological trends lead to the improvement in each strand in the functioning of the environment related to the hotels.
These days, we are able to communicate instantly with hotel representative via online chat, open our room or check-in by making use of our smartphone, get essential information, comments, reviews or price values concerning hotel rooms… However, it is a tiny part of actual possibilities of the technology.
Nowadays, hotels are more willing to introduce numerous technological tools in order to gain guests’ interest. Obviously, such kind of hotel enriched with a wide range of technological facilities is far more appealing in comparison with the property which does not have any of the mentioned earlier.
It is sometimes very difficult to choose the most suitable technological solution for hotel website, although the selection is wide, so you will surely find something appropriate for your hotel website.
One of the most outstanding option could be Our.Guide widget. The application provides personalized travel guide which allow your guests to explore the surrounding places near the hotel. However, that’s not everything! The widget is endowed with the Trip Planner - it gives an opportunity to plan the trip on somebody’s own. In addition, using this app, the concierge and reception save their time and dedicate it to more substantial matters, such as: answering guests’ questions or providing customized service. What is more, Our.Guide application is rich in numerous useful features - for instance, it is adjusted to the disabled needs.
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