The 10 marketing mistakes you might_be_making_for_hoteliers

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0344 800 8424 [email protected] www.briefyourmarket.co.uk

It doesn’t matter what you are selling. From carpets to hotel rooms, from chemicals to shoes – you need

customers to survive. At its core, marketing fits with sales to engage, retain and entice customers.

We all know this.

But are you stuck in one method of engaging, when there are a variety of exciting paths you could be taking to

really ramp up your engagement? The methods that we discuss in our guide to the 10 marketing mistakes you

might be making may differ from the selling messages you may have been used to, so don’t be despondent.

These are easy to implement and can really shake up your hotel’s marketing.

Newsletters are fantastic. Stats have shown 68% of marketers agree e-newsletters are the top email

messages which helps to achieve their business goals. But a newsletter on its own is not an email campaign,

especially if you are sending infrequently. Stats have also shown that the sweet spot for email sending

increases when you send over 5 campaigns in a 3 month period. With BriefYourMarket.com, the amount of

emails you can send to your customer is unlimited- however, we recommend you try not to overdo it, as you

could end up with a rapidly growing list of unsubscribes!

Newsletters need to work in conjunction with lead generation closely, and to create lead generating activity,

you need a marketing campaign with all the features possible to get people to take the next step – to log

their details, to email you, to fill in a form, to download a guide. A newsletter is the perfect tool to inform

and engage, but what other steps are you taking? Could you throw into the mix a weekly ‘sales and offers’

email or newsletter? Could you promote specific campaigns towards VIP’s, recent guests, or to people who

are no longer using your services? Can you use direct mail?

Research has shown that marketing that spans 2-3 channels has an average of 24% more engagement.

There are a few possible reasons for this. The first is that your customers are all different people with

different preferences- and this includes what communication channels best work for them. For example,

those who work 9-5 may prefer email communication as they aren’t usually home when the post arrives,

and your younger audience may tend to prefer receiving SMS. The only way to find out is to do your

research.

Another reason is that, using a multi-channel approach, in order to establish your brand in the minds of your

customers, and become a familiar name that they associate with credibility and trust.

Can you pick one of your products and solutions and rebrand it? Re-introduce it, market it with great

imagery, and build an email campaign around it? For example, your hotel could have a ‘Great Food Week’,

involving a pre-event build up via email and social media. There could be a call to action for your guests to

ask their questions to your head chef in advance.

Another idea is a week of food related offers – a free chocolate basket in every room. You could run a series

of how to cook like a chef blog posts and emails. You could go send direct mail to the local community in

advance, or on the week, inviting them to try your restaurant with a free taster evening. And why not have

your own hashtag? With BriefYourMarket.com, emails, newsletters, surveys, SMS, direct mail and letters are

all on one easy to use platform- so you can have it all without needing to break the bank or go to multiple

providers.



The days of shooting an email campaign out and it being read and acted on are gone. You have to test your

subject line, your content, your images, your landing pages. Piloting is another great word for it – so you can

establish what is working. With BriefYourMarket.com you are able to test send your emails to a small group

(your marketing team, for example), so you see what your customer would receive, and can amend as

necessary.

In terms of approach, traditional subject lines we see tend to lack some of the excitement that many

consumers are now seeing in their inbox. The difference in opens and click through when you go way

outside of your comfort zone in terms of a call to action or subject line can make a HUGE difference on your

rates. The proof really is in the numbers. Take a risk- see if it pays off!

Do you fully understand your customer and your proposition? If you understand your proposition, creating a

call to action becomes a lot easier.

This isn’t the features of what you provide, rather looking at your proposition as to whether it saves time, or

saves money or relieves stress. Most things really slot into these 3 propositions and your calls to action

should match these.

If we look at a product or service, no one wakes up and says ‘I need a hotel that has got a sale on”. Instead,

their thought process would look more like: “I’m stressed and I need a break.” You need to really push the

core benefits of what you do or what you can offer.

A customer’s problems and therefore reasons for choosing to stay at your hotel, use your conference room

or get pampered at your spa are ever-changing and dynamic. You have to embrace change in marketing and

to be at the forefront of what’s happening. What some people miss are the external influences that also

have a huge impact, so you have to stay on top. You need to be first in the line to advise people.

Is a new delicacy trending? Do you have valuable information to impart? Your customers have a passing

interest in what’s going on – but busy schedules and other interests means they don’t always have their ear

to the ground. Be their ears, tell them what’s happening and why this affects them. Provide them with a

reason to book.

A great source of current stories are websites such as the BBC Homepage or Twitter’s ‘trending’ section.

According to Content Plus, 70% of consumers prefer getting to know a company via articles rather than ads,

so guides, lists and top tips emails and newsletters, packed full of meaty content, can be really helpful- and

very much appreciated. For example, in your next email message or newsletter article, try including a

customer guide to ‘getting the most out of their stay’ or ‘things to do in your area’.



We see this a lot with a “Call us” or ‘get in touch’. A great call to action and a landing page are critical. A

great landing page should include all the information on your email with an excitable tone – are they getting

a great deal, saving time, or getting more money from a stay in your luxury rooms or a visit to your

restaurant?

A great call to action should stand out, and be highly prominent in your message. If it arrives as part of an

email or newsletter, it should also be clickable, so the customer instantly goes to the next step if they’re

interested. You also want to highlight any time sensitivity- giving your call to action a sense of urgency that

encourages the reader to act quickly, feeling time-pressed. For events, like an evening with a tribute band,

or a cocktail making evening, play up the exclusivity; for example, ‘Sign up now- only 10 places left!’

For ‘book now and get in touch’ calls to action, try something like ‘Talk to us!’

If possible, try to personalise your call to action depending on the segment that will be receiving your

message. A study conducted by HubSpot showed that targeted calls-to-action had a 42% higher view-to-

submission rate than call-to-action that were the same for all readers.

You need to have a second call to action – perhaps to book, sign up, watch a video. Whatever best

complements your message.

Your focus is to attract guests- and to get these you have to really have to generate qualified opportunities.

Your MD, Head of Marketing or any other stakeholder isn’t the only one who needs results. You need to

track your results too. If you can’t report on the value you and you marketing is offering your hotel, it makes

for difficult conversations later, and also means that you are effectively marketing in the dark.

Reporting is critical for understanding what you’re doing right, and what could be improved upon.

Whenever you can, delve into your stats to get a more in-depth insight to how your campaigns are being

received. Whether you’re reporting on unsubscribes, website traffic, enquiries, open rates or engagements

with your social posts and online presence, these metrics can help tailor your future campaigns and help you

decide on whether or not you’re going to continue with what you’ve been doing- or if you should shake it up

a bit.

A relationship is a two-way thing, which means you need to listen to your customers and actively encourage

their feedback, instead of just talking at them or upselling to them all of the time.

Some companies shy away from requesting feedback, not wanting to read anything critical about their

brand. However, the truth is that negative feedback can even more valuable than positive feedback. After

all, the truth may hurt- but it can also help you to find out what went wrong, and how to fix it.

The important thing about collecting feedback is to find out how your guests’ expectations differ from their

perceived experience. In today’s day and age, customers are quick to take to the Internet and sites like

TripAdvisor when they feel strongly about the service they’ve received at a hotel or restaurant. You can

easily mitigate a negative review by taking steps to find out how you’re doing,



and addressing those less-than-fantastic experiences head on. Imagine your customer’s delight when you

follow up with a personalised apology and a discount on their future booking or visit.

You don’t have ask 20 questions. In fact, short and sweet works best for surveys and questionnaires, helping

you to get more accurate answers that haven’t been rushed. Depending on the nature of your guest’s visit

(spa, overnight stay, attending a conference) you should go for the basics. Ask about the helpfulness of your

reception staff, the cleanliness of their hotel room, the choice of your spa facilities. Surprises and trends are

often spotted in answers to those fundamental questions- particularly if you embrace the free choice

question.

The BriefYourMarket.com survey feature allows you to choose from a variety of question types, from rating

to multiple choice, so you can choose what best suits the aim of your survey.

Also, if you have an impressive online review score, you should definitely showcase it in as many of your

communications as possible. After all, research has shown that 70% of customers consult ratings or reviews

before they make a purchase.

Your customers are all individuals, and they’ve signed up with you for different reasons. No brand can be

everything to everyone, and stats shows that targeted campaigns have twice as much success as general

campaigns that hit everyone.

Many companies worry that, by only targeting a segment of their database, they will alienate the rest of

their contacts. But that simply isn’t true.

In order for your marketing to make an impact, the customers you market to need to match your campaign.

That means you need do your research. Many people feel that scattergun marketing, an approach that

involves casting as wide a net as possible, is the best method. However, although this will generate a

handful of leads, most of the people your marketing hits will not be interested, which means a significant

amount of your budget would have gone to waste.

This is because, with a targeted campaign, you’ve already identified your most likely guests, and therefore

you have a better chance of attracting a significant amount of interest. With BriefYourMarket.com, you can

segment your database into lists- and you can send as many emails as you like. Try targeting prospects with

one campaign, targeting business travellers with another, and then, perhaps a couple of weeks later, focus

on couples or spa lovers.



Choosing when to market to your customers is half the battle- and often much easier said than done. To find

out what time is best for the majority of your customer base, you will need to do your research.

Interestingly, many companies choose not to send on a weekend - feeling that Saturday and Sunday are

‘bad’ days, which actually means less clutter from competitors in the inbox and a good chance of your

message being opened and looked at in detail.

Other studies point to Thursdays, and there's always a logic that Friday is 'too near to the weekend' and

Monday is 'too busy', but for a hotel these days could be perfect. For example, on a Monday an offer on

your luxury rooms could be very well received by those who feel their weekend has passed too quickly!

Similarly, a text that arrives on a Friday morning could appeal to those interested in taking up last minute

deals.

Try to put yourself in your customer's shoes - when are they likely to be looking for what you are offering?

Do they work 9 -5? Are you telling or selling? If it's a deal, maybe a send between 9am and 12 might catch

their eye. Unfortunately, you’ll never please everyone, but finding that optimum hour might just delight the

majority.

The follow up is absolutely crucial. Many of the people who didn’t respond to your first campaign may show

more interest after your second or third message. This is because your brand will become more familiar to

your prospects at this point, and they will therefore feel more trusting towards you and hopefully more

willing to hear what you have to say- so don’t give up after just one try. Also, a critical point we’ve already

mentioned is that your mailing list is made up of very different people. This is something that can’t be

emphasised enough. Some will love email communication, some will prefer post. The only way you’ll find

out is if you mix it up a little.

A study conducted by the Association of Sales Executives revealed that 81% of all sales happens on or after

the fifth contact- so don’t be disheartened if, on your first try, you don’t get the results you expected. Just

keep at it and, if nothing changes, consider mixing it up a bit.

Got a question? Why not drop us a line on 0344 800 84 24 – we’d love to hear from you!

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The 10 marketing mistakes you might_be_making_for_hoteliers