Email Lead Generation for Hotels: How to Create a Hotel Lead Magnet
Your email list is one of your most valuable marketing assets. It’s one of the best ways to generate leads for your hotel, whether you need to book more groups or simply reach more potential guests — that’s why you need to create a hotel lead magnet.
How do you currently approach hotel lead generation? According to the latest stats, 85% of B2B marketers say it’s their most important content marketing goal.
The best way to grow your hotel’s email list is to implement what’s called a lead magnet.
In reality, very few hotel sales teams use lead magnets to build their email lists and generate more leads for their hotel. This is a shame, because, “Subscribe to our hotel newsletter!” might be one of the weakest calls-to-action ever…
As a customer, I want to know: What’s in it for me? Why should I give you my email address? What value will I receive in return? I don’t care about your new brunch menu if I live 2,000 miles away…
Lead generation for hotels should be a top priority in your marketing strategy. Creating lead magnets for hotels is one of my favorite ways to help properties grow a targeted, high-quality email list.
Allow me to explain what exactly lead magnets are, why they need to be an essential part of your hotel email marketing strategy — and how you can set one up in less than a day.
*Heads up, this post contains links to products or services I recommend, which I may get commission from.
Prefer to watch? Check out the video version below!
Wait, what’s a hotel lead magnet?
If you’re not familiar with the term, you’re probably wondering what the heck a ‘lead magnet’ even is. Lead magnets aren’t some new thing. The concept is a decades-old staple in online advertising.
A lead magnet is a freebie. You’re giving something (valuable!) away in exchange for the customer’s contact information — and permission to email them more in the future.
Your lead magnet is that essential first step in building a lasting customer relationship.
Lead magnets work because you're:
Giving something valuable away (like knowledge or a framework)
Demonstrating your unique value proposition
Providing instant gratification to the customer
Think of it like asking for someone’s phone number. Once you get those digits, you don’t want to be too aggressive or spammy. Strike up a conversation and provide value!
Hotel sales is no different.
Nurturing relationships — with actual people — is what generates sales leads, whether it’s in the form of group business, leisure travelers coming to your destination, or locals who may be interested in your outlets.
Keep nurturing these relationships and over time, they turn into more revenue for your hotel.
What kind of lead magnets work for hotels? (Plus, 9 ideas!)
Right now, hotel lead generation seems to be limited to offering a discount code incentive.
Many big chain hotel brands offer 10% off BAR to entice customers to sign up for their loyalty program.
But if you’re part of that big chain, does your individual property really benefit from this? And, are you even able to communicate with those customers, or does the chain control your mailing list?
It’s true that members of hotel loyalty programs tend to have a higher lifetime customer value — for the brand.
If you’re interested in growing a subscriber list that’s genuinely interested in what your specific property has to offer, undercutting your rate with a discount code is not the most effective lead generation for hotels.
You should make growing (and owning) your own email list a top priority, along with sending out regular hotel email campaigns.
9 Hotel Lead Magnet Ideas
Here are a few lead magnet ideas for hotels:
Curated itineraries for your location — tailor these to your audience personas
Family travel ebook — again, super-specific to your destination and only if relevant for your audience
Local language cheat sheet — translate useful phrases travelers ought to know
Seasonal packing guide — this would be one of the best lead magnets for resorts
Checklists — like for planning a wedding or corporate retreat (or anything else that would help your guests)
Local business guide — help travelers find the best local restaurants, small businesses, etc.
Interactive quiz — these work for business OR leisure, just get creative!
Trend report or case study — these are particularly great for B2B
The classic discount — effective, but again, why train your customers to only book when it’s cheaper?
There are so many different ways to create a compelling lead magnet for a hotel. The main thing to remember is you want to deliver content that’s useful and relevant to your audience.
Here’s an example… and a shameless plug. 😅
Since I specialize in copywriting and hotel marketing, I created a simple hotel SEO checklist that anyone can use to audit their own website content.
It’s completely free, easy to use, and most importantly, relevant to my audience. Check it out below! ⤵
How do I set up a lead magnet for my hotel?
Setting up a lead magnet is easier than you might think.
However, hotels operating within a larger chain or brand might find the process a bit more challenging. You might not even have much control over the hotel emails you need to send. It’s best to collaborate directly with your corporate office to ensure you’re adhering to official brand guidelines.
Here’s what a hotel needs to have in order to set up a lead magnet:
Your lead magnet content
Ability to edit your website
An email system to deliver your content
Yep, that’s it!
Here are those setup steps explained in more detail…
Step One: Create your lead magnet content
Start with one of the hotel lead magnet ideas I mentioned above and create your content.
Feeling stuck on the writing side of things? Not sure which idea would be best for your audience? Consider hiring a hotel copywriter to help you out — I know a good one! 😉
If you’re creating a downloadable PDF, I recommend using Canva* or Photoshop to design something professional and on-brand.
You can also check out Creative Market* for lots and lots of lead magnet templates!
*Heads up, this post contains links to products or services I recommend, which I may get commission from.
Step Two: Add an opt-in form to your website
When it comes to the placement of your signup form, consider your audience and objective.
If your lead magnet is designed with groups in mind, it makes sense to place the opt-in on a relevant page, like Meeting Rooms or Events.
Many experts suggest placing your lead magnet on an “exit intent pop-up.” That means, if a user is about to leave your website, a pop-up appears along with an enticing offer that tempts them to stay — and subscribe.
It’s a popular approach, but I caution clients to keep their pop-ups to a minimum, for a number of reasons.
Mainly, they’re annoying. 🙃
Too many pop-ups can also create a poor page experience, which may soon hurt your SEO rankings, too. If you haven’t already, make sure you read about the 2021 Google Page Experience Update.
I recommend giving your lead magnet opt-in prominent placement on the page itself, like within the content or right above your website footer. (You’ll notice that’s exactly what I do on my own website, BTW.)
Finally, incorporate a clear call-to-action in the copy that goes with your lead magnet opt-in: “Sign up below to receive X” or “Tell us where to send your free X,” for example.
Step Three: Deliver your freebie and grow your list!
If you’re going the route of a free download, the final step is to set up an automated “trigger” campaign using your preferred email marketing platform.
This means that when a user signs up on your hotel website, they’ll automatically receive an email with a link to your free download.
This type of email campaign can be completely automated — just like your booking confirmation email — you only have to set it up once. Then, watch your subscriber list grow on auto-pilot!
But wait…
Is that it…?
Of course not!
Getting new email subscribers for your hotel is one thing — keeping them engaged and getting them to book is another.
Don’t neglect your email list, especially as it starts growing at a steady clip.
There are other types of hotel email campaigns you need to build into your strategy, and you should send out a regular hotel newsletter at least once a month.
How do I make sure my hotel stays GDPR compliant?
Disclaimer: I am not a legal expert and this post does not constitute legal advice.
The EU General Data Privacy Regulation (GDPR) laws went into effect on May 25, 2018. GDPR impacts hotels in the European Union as well as hotels welcoming European guests.
At this point, you’re probably wondering if a lead magnet is GDPR compliant. The answer is actually… no, not exactly.
GDPR requires specific consent that’s clear and freely-given. So if a European user signs up to receive your lead magnet, you can’t just add them to your regular hotel newsletter list too. Under GDPR, you need to ask for — and receive — consent.
The ability to communicate with prospects is a big reason you’re creating a lead magnet in the first place.
How can hotels stay GDPR compliant when using a lead magnet?
Here are four options to consider:
Add an (unchecked) check box to your signup form, asking if the user would also like to receive occasional marketing communications from you.
In the automatic email containing your free download, include a link to a separate signup form where the user can also consent to receive your newsletter.
On the lead magnet itself, incorporate a call-to-action for the user to also sign up for your hotel newsletter.
Rework your copy to show that the lead magnet is a bonus available to newsletter subscribers. Make it clear to the user that they’re signing up for your newsletter but will also receive your lead magnet. (This is probably the simplest method, IMHO.)
The key here is separate, clear consent.
If you can, it’s also a good idea to segment your list into two groups: one for known non-EU subscribers and another for everyone else.
You can then target “everyone else” with a campaign asking for specific consent for your newsletter. That way, potential EU-based subscribers will be giving their consent clearly.
GDPR is a tricky topic, so here are a few more resources you may find helpful:
Which email marketing platform is best for hotels when setting up a lead magnet?
Again, hotels operating within a large global chain may run into some restrictions here. It’s always best to reach out to your corporate email marketing contact to clarify your options.
If you have the ability to choose your own provider, here are two of the best email marketing platforms for hospitality businesses:
Mailchimp: Best For Beginners
If your hotel is just starting out with email marketing or has a small list, I recommend Mailchimp.
Why? Mailchimp is completely free for up to 2,000 subscribers, with some limitations. Mailchimp’s pricing plans stay pretty affordable even as your list grows.
Mailchimp has a pretty straightforward, drag-and-drop campaign builder.
That said, things do get a little wonky once you start trying to customize automated emails and build multiple opt-in forms. The back end is way less intuitive if you’re new to email marketing.
Overall, Mailchimp is a good start, but it's far from perfect.
They don’t make it easy to segment your customers by interest, which is important if you want to send more targeted messages through marketing automation. (And you do!)
But free is free, and Mailchimp is a solid option if your hotel needs a simple solution to communicate with a small list.
Convertkit: Take Things Up a Notch
If your hotel has a bit of budget or a larger list already, you should definitely consider Convertkit.*
Like Mailchimp, Convertkit pricing is also based on your number of subscribers. Unlike Mailchimp, Convertkit only counts each subscriber once, no matter how many lists they appear on.
If you want to put the same customer onto multiple segment lists, Mailchimp (annoyingly) counts each one as a new subscriber. You’ll be surprised how fast you hit 2,000 subscribers because of this…
In general, Convertkit* is a much more robust email marketing automation platform. Those multiple segment lists I just mentioned? That’s key to organizing your subscribers based on their interests as well as your business needs.
Audience segmentation is key to sending hotel email marketing campaigns that your subscribers actually want to open, read, and engage with.
Covnertkit makes it easy to divide your list into multiple smaller categories, like Weddings, F&B, General Interest, etc.
Convertkit also has a sleeker dashboard and easier user interface, in my humble opinion.
I usually recommend independent hotels start building their email list with Mailchimp because of their free plan. Until Convertkit went and launched a free plan of their own! Game changer.
Sign up for Convertkit here* and start your free 14-day trial.
Some of the features included in Convertkit’s free plan* are:
Mobile responsive designs
Manage up to 1,000 subscribers
Unlimited Email broadcasts
Subscriber tagging
Seamless Unsplash integration (Unsplash is one of my favorite stock photo resources for hotels)
Of course, Convertkit’s free plan* does have its limitations.
If you want to unlock more powerful email marketing features like automated email sequences and useful integrations with other digital marketing tools, you’ll need to upgrade to a paid plan. But the good news is, it’s not nearly as dear as you might think.
Convertkit* paid plans start at just $29 USD a month — and include customizable forms, drag-and-drop campaign templates, unlimited email sends, and many more valuable email marketing features.
Sign up for Convertkit here* and start your free 14-day trial.
How should I promote my hotel lead magnet?
Once you’ve created a lead magnet for your hotel, the most important thing to do is get it on your website.
If you don’t have the ability to edit your own website, you’ll need to work with your webmaster or web design agency to get it implemented.
The great thing about lead magnets is that they’re evergreen. Once you have it up on your website — on a relevant page or pages — you really don’t need to go out of your way to promote it much.
Lead magnets are an effective way to change warm traffic (users who are already interested in your property) into a qualified lead.
A basic hotel lead magnet funnel has three parts:
Lead acquisition — SEO or social media marketing can help you get visitors onto your website who would be interested in what you have to offer
Lead magnet — Provide your helpful freebie and make it easy for folks to sign up
Lead nurturing — Engage those new email subscribers with consistent newsletters and occasional offers
Don’t skip the acquisition part of this process!
Let’s say you created a useful meeting planning checklist. You can always ask your hotel sales team to share the lead magnet with their LinkedIn network.
Of course, hotel lead generation isn’t just about meetings or events... The same concept works for a consumer-focused lead magnet. Tap into other traffic sources, whether it’s free content marketing, search engine optimization, or running a targeted Facebook ad promotion.
Final Thoughts
If you’d like more information about creating a lead magnet for the hospitality industry, feel free to contact me!
Hotel lead generation is a critical part of your business recovery strategy post-COVID. If you’re not seeing monthly growth in email subscribers, you should consider implementing a lead magnet ASAP.
What did you think of this post? What else do you want to know about hotel lead magnets?
Let me know in the comments below!
P.S. Here’s another way to see a lead magnet in action. I created a free hotel SEO checklist for you, which you can download instantly here. ⤵
*Heads up, this post contains affiliate links. If you decide to make a purchase using my link, I’ll receive a small referral fee at no extra cost to you. I will only recommend products and tools that I use and love. Thanks for supporting my business — and iced coffee habit.