Why hotel digital marketing should not just be about the hotel

“Travellers spend an extensive amount of time looking at travel content during the 45 days prior to booking — 303 minutes on average, or just over 5 hours,” according to Expedia Group’s Path To Purchase report. This window provides marketers with ample time to captivate and engage, but what are these prospective guests looking for?

Inspire with the dreaming phase

From the moment someone is inspired to go on holiday, the dreaming phase begins. At this stage, people may be saving all kinds of content they come across as travel inspiration on social media, including recommendations from family and friends and reviews by influencers. But the key thing to note at this stage is that nearly 3 in 5 travellers are not yet set on a particular hotel or location - the top thing they are looking for is destination inspiration (65%), closely followed by that crucial place to stay (49%).

Hotels should therefore reach people with aspirational destination content featuring beautiful settings and experiential content, to appeal to these users at the start of their planning journey.

Persuade with the planning phase

Once people have been inspired to travel to a particular destination, they begin to put plans into place. It's at this stage, that hotel digital marketers should focus on sharing memorable imagery that sets your hotel apart. When people plan, they’re considering dates and activities to make their dreams a tangible reality.

The goal is to become shortlisted with an enticing vacation that is just a few clicks away. Don’t underestimate the importance of aesthetics, as 40% of millennials reportedly select destinations based on the Instagrammable potential. Remember, planners will be looking for reviews and tagged content of your hotel, so be sure to encourage guests to post UGC. Marketers should also take the guesswork out of the planning process by making information readily available, from booking links, promotions and availability.

Diverse Content is More Engaging

By branching out with a broader range of content, your marketing team will have more exciting content to work with and create a strategy that truly captivates audiences.

Put yourselves in the shoes of your guests and think about the experiences they want to have when they leave your hotel, such as local bars, restaurants, markets and shopping. Walks, views, family-orientated activities for everyone to enjoy and quiet little romantic spots for couples.

Audiences favour authenticity, and guests expect hotels to have more substance than simply their offering. If there is hotel-only content featured in your hotel digital marketing strategy, it may come across as limited, as travellers tend to visit destinations as a whole, not just hotels.

External Content Connects the Community

Additionally, a sense of community is important for modern-day guests. When people view your channels, it helps if they can envisage the entire experience of a trip, and a lot of guests like to feel like part of the local community and have meaningful interactions with locals, not just a tourist.

So it's important for hotels to creatively emphasise the local connection that these guests desire, from local farm-fed food featured in the hotel breakfast to the team at the hotel and their personal recommendations for things to do.

Make UGC Work for You

User-generated content (UGC) is one of the best ways to share traveller perspectives while showing appreciation to your guests. These first-hand accounts are highly regarded by audiences as being genuine reflections. At a time when social media platforms are making it easier than ever for people to create, UGC can be high-quality content akin to that of influencer content.

Read more: What is UGC and how can brands utilise it?

Hotel digital marketing should aid the dreaming and planning phase by including as many details and perspectives of the local area as possible, not just the hotel. Neighbouring content can provide a holistic overview to potential guests about the full experience that awaits them.