New To Marketing For A Hotel? Start Here.
Marketing is one thing. Marketing for a hotel is a whole other ballgame, now more than ever.
So put the kettle on, blend up some green juice, pour yourself a glass of wine — and maybe grab a pen and notebook, because this guide is Hotel Marketing 101.
In fact, you may want to bookmark it, save it, Pin It, share it, tweet it, email it to a friend or colleague… Feel free to do so! This guide is designed to be a handy reference that you can come back to, whenever you need it.
Owning and operating a hotel has never been an easy task, you know that! Getting the word out is hard enough without our OTA frenemies coming along and undercutting us left and right. 😠
The most successful hotel owners I know have the mindset of an entrepreneur: You test. You try new things. You might even break a few things along the way — but hey, there’s no success without failure.
(You’ll find all sorts of hotel marketing ideas on this blog, by the way.)
But where do you even start?
If you’re new to marketing for a hotel, or just want to better understand its role in the industry, you’re in the right place. Read on for a detailed breakdown of everything you need to know.
Table of Contents
I. What is the role of marketing in the hotel industry?
II. How do hotels attract customers?
III. What are some best marketing practices for hotels?
IV. What are the best tools and resources for hotel marketers?
V. Where can hotel marketers learn and network?
Final Thoughts
*Heads up, this post contains links to products or services I recommend, which I may get a small commission from.
I. What is the role of marketing in the hotel industry?
As a hotelier, what comes to mind when you hear the word “marketing?” Is it social media? Maybe print advertising?
The role of marketing in the hotel industry is not unlike its role in other sectors: it’s how we promote the business, attract customers, and sell our service.
For a hotel, marketing plays an essential role in how we optimize multiple revenue streams — from travelers looking to book a room to event planners who need function space and catering.
There are still traditional advertising mediums to consider, but these days, most hotel marketing strategy seems to happen online.
Hotel digital marketing is the process of establishing and maintaining your hotel's online presence. This means staying on top of hotel social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram, as well as Google and other search engines.
It’s not only about the bottom line, though.
Marketing is responsible for supporting commercial success, of course, but there’s also brand awareness to consider.
If you’re not part of a massive hotel chain, how do you even get in front of your target audience? How do you get the word out?
Marketing in a hotel is a unique role. You’re often a team of one, or operating like an in-house advertising and creative agency.
You also need to interact with every other department, from revenue management and sales or events, to F&B and the front office. Not to mention, there are also external business partners and media, and sometimes even agencies or a corporate office.
Read Next: Hiring In Hospitality: What To Expect As An Entry-Level Applicant Or Job-Seeker
II. How do hotels attract customers?
If you’re a hotel marketer, your main goal often boils down to this: Get more heads into beds.
Part of what makes the hotel business unique is that we have quite a few different distribution channels we can tap into to do this. Our customers come from all sorts of sources, including:
Your Hotel Website
For most hotels, direct bookings are the most important and most profitable.
An essential part of marketing your property is driving high-quality traffic to a hotel website with direct booking connection to your property management system.
✨ Your hotel website is your opportunity to shine. ✨
You own the content, so you can communicate your Unique Value Proposition directly to potential guests and tell your story in a way that feels authentic.
To get the most out of this channel you need to have attractive photography, compelling hotel copywriting, and a direct booking system that’s seamless and integrated.
Also, keep in mind that more and more consumers use multiple devices to plan, research, and ultimately, book their travels.
Your hotel website needs to:
be easy to use on mobile,
load quickly, and
provide a secure place to collect sensitive booking info from your guests.
It’s important to prioritize this channel in your annual hotel marketing budget.
That’s because performance largely depends on driving high-quality traffic through organic search, advertising, social media, and other online marketing efforts.
Read Next: Your Hotel Guest Experience Starts Online (Here's How To Make It Better)
Online Travel Agencies (OTAs)
Ah, every hotelier’s favorite topic… Calling OTAs “a necessary evil” sounds a bit dramatic, so I’ll stick to referring to them as a “frenemy.” 😉
OTAs are digital platforms that allow consumers to connect with different travel suppliers and book hotels, flights, rental cars, tours, and more. Every day, millions of global travelers use OTAs to book their business and leisure travel.
Some of the most popular OTAs in the world are Booking.com, Expedia, Agoda, Hotels.com, Priceline, Orbitz, Lastminute.com, Ctrip… and so many more!
OTAs make money by charging hotels a commission fee, usually a set percentage of revenue from each booking.
Fees vary by OTA and can also be negotiated at the brand level if you’re part of a larger hotel chain.
This model has its pros and cons, of course… as we all know…
But OTAs have HUGE reach. If you’re in a competitive market or don’t have brand awareness on your side, it’s likely that many travelers will never find you — unless you’re on an OTA.
Deciding how much effort to put into this channel is really up to you, but having a “healthy” distribution mix typically means earning a certain chunk of your business from OTAs.
Global Distribution Systems (GDS)
Global Distribution Systems or GDS are large online networks that connect a hotel’s room inventory and rates to travel agencies (including OTAs) as well as independent travel agents. This allows a hotel to manage connections to multiple travel agency systems by keeping their listing updated in one centralized place.
The most well-known global distribution systems are Amadeus, Sabre, Galileo, and Worldspan.
Costs differ by GDS but generally include a one-time setup fee and then a flat fee or commission per booking.
According to SiteMinder, “more than 600,000 travel agents use the GDS every day on behalf of companies to book flights, hotels, car rentals and destination activities.”
The GDS is an important distribution channel for attracting corporate business travelers, especially on a global scale.
Wholesalers
A wholesaler sources room nights from a hotel in bulk, packages them up, negotiates the rates, and then sells them to OTAs and travel agents.
So, yeah, another middleman.
Wholesalers are generally most helpful to large hotels looking to maximize occupancy. (Being able to expect a consistent, guaranteed occupancy rate is very attractive!)
One downside to this is rate disparity, thanks to all the mark-ups.
Many hotels also struggle with controlling when and where their inventory is available online — resulting in some very unhappy guests.
Tour Operators
Tour operators are a more specialized distribution channel. They typically focus on selling a complete vacation package, including the accommodation, flights/transfers, meals, and activities.
They’ll negotiate the individual components of that package, usually at a discount.
Tour operators tend to specialize in a specific location, like the Caribbean, Mexico, or southern Africa —or a certain type of experience, like golf, safari, or diving.
Whether your property engages with tour operators will depend on your location and the experience(s) you have to offer.
Offline
Even in 2023, some folks still prefer to pick up the phone or email someone directly. (Crazy, right?)
Not unlike the bookings you get from your hotel website, offline is a direct channel that saves you the commission fees of an OTA or heavy discounts of a tour operator.
If you don’t have a booking engine built into your hotel website — or you have a very small number of rooms — you might take inquiries via a contact form, email address, or reservations phone number.
LOYALTY PROGRAMS
While not technically a distribution channel, it’s important to factor in your customer loyalty program. If you have one!
Big chain brands like Hyatt and Marriott build massive ecosystems around collecting points and earning value through repeat stays.
Hotel loyalty programs benefit the customer because — well, they get rewarded for their loyalty with perks, upgrades, and even exclusive experiences.
Likewise, the benefit for hotels is increased customer lifetime value (CLV).
Customers enrolled in the loyalty program tend to spend significantly more at affiliated properties over the course of their lifetime.
Are you maximizing the profitability of each distribution channel? Get some ideas and start building your own hotel marketing plan, step by step, with my free template below. ⤵
III. What are some best marketing practices for hotels?
As a hotel marketer, deciding where and how to spend your time and resources is a challenge.
Most hoteliers choose to focus on tactics and long-term hotel marketing strategies that support their Direct distribution channels, as these tend to be the most profitable.
Not every hotel is the same, though.
Depending on your market and other factors, you might want to engage more with tour operators. Or, you might need to focus on OTAs as you have a limited hotel budget to use for brand awareness-building campaigns.
Speaking broadly, here are some effective hotel marketing best practices you can consider.
Content Marketing
I recommend starting here because well, content powers pretty much your entire digital marketing strategy.
What is content marketing though?
“Content” is anything that can be expressed through some medium, whether that’s written text, images, video, speech or audio. Think of it as storytelling, entertaining, educating, or informing.
Whether you realize it or not, you already create content every day in your role as a hotel marketer. What makes it “marketing” is how you distribute it.
What does that mean? Well, whatever your preferred content creation method — be it visual, audio, written text, etc. — you need to have a way to get in front of your audience.
If your hotel has a blog, think about how you can repurpose those posts for social media, email marketing, even advertising.
If you’re going to create a podcast, how will you promote it?
If you regularly create graphics, are they sized for use on multiple social media platforms?
There’s so much to say about content marketing for hotels — and I’ve said a lot about hotel content marketing in past blog posts, so make sure to stick around a read a few.
Read Next: 101 Content Ideas For Your Next Hotel Blog Or Social Media Post
Social Media
Hotels can use social media platforms for building brand awareness, connecting with current customers, advertising to reach new ones, and much more.
Honestly, having an active presence on social media is not just a “nice to have” anymore.
For any business trying to win customers in 2023 and beyond, social media marketing is 100% necessary.
So, do you need to start practicing TikTok dances in the mirror?
Or join every Clubhouse room you can find? (Case in point: As I update this article in 2023, does anyone even remember Clubhouse? Anyway…)
Please, NOOO. 😂
Don’t lose sleep over social media trends and hype.
Of course, it’s a good idea to pay attention as new apps and platforms emerge, but be ruthless with your time and resources. Focus on where your audience actually is — and be social there.
Understand that different social media platforms also have different uses. Inspiring visuals and video clips work well for Instagram and TikTok, while customer service is the main benefit of being on Twitter.
Get a plan and process in place for social, as managing multiple platforms can be pretty hectic. Here are my favorite time-saving scheduling tools for social media.
Read Next: These Are The 7 Deadly Sins Of Hotel Social Media Strategy
Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
You might’ve noticed, I talk about hotel SEO on this blog a lot… it’s my favorite topic. (Follow that link for allll of my past blog posts on SEO.)
SEO stands for “search engine optimization.” It's the practice of increasing both the quality and quantity of website traffic, as well as exposure to your brand, through non-paid (also known as "organic") search engine results.
People use Google and other search engines to find information, get answers to specific questions, and research products before they buy.
According to BrightEdge, 53% of all trackable website traffic comes from organic search.
That’s FREE traffic, from people who want what YOU have to offer. Are you getting your slice of that pie?
For hotels, there’s a lot of missed opportunity where SEO and content marketing meet…
When you understand which hotel related keywords people use and how competitive they are, you can create strategic content that targets early-stage travel intent.
(Psst… that’s how you get ‘em onto your website before they have a chance to click around on the OTAs!)
SEO should be baked right into your overall marketing strategy.
If it’s not, I highly recommend getting your head around the basics of hotel SEO — because you could be leaving money on the table by not getting a few simple things in order.
Watch the video below for 8 simple hotel SEO tips that you (yes, you!) can implement right now. ⤵
Paid Media (PPC, SEM)
Social media platforms and search engines like Google also offer robust tools for advertising, mainly PPC or pay-per-click. That means — quite literally — you pay every time a user clicks on your ad.
Sometimes, ad platforms charge by “impressions” instead, or every time a user sees (or scrolls past) your ad. Some platforms combine both.
While SEO is a strategy that pays off in long-term dividends, it can take some time to start seeing results.
Advertising offers a quick win… if you have the budget to support a continuous campaign.
There’s also display advertising to consider.
What you do with paid media, like Google Ads, will depend on how much you’re able to spend and where. You might want to read my previous post on how much hotels should spend on advertising.
Email Marketing
Email marketing is the channel that consistently delivers the best ROI across many different industries. On average, email generates around $40 for every $1 spent.
Impressive!
So what’s your plan? How are you getting more hotel email subscribers? How often do you send emails? And what do you send?
Don’t worry, I’ve done the legwork for you. 😉
Hotel email marketing isn’t about just pressing “Send” when you have something to sell.
There are a few different types of emails you should always send your guests, before and after a stay — and most of them can be automated!
One that can’t? Your newsletter.
Now more than ever, you should absolutely send a regular hotel email newsletter to your list. (Check that link for plenty of tips and ideas!)
Travel demand is building back up and your email strategy is a big part of how you’ll stay top of mind with future guests — and get in front of them with a compelling offer when it’s time to book!
Read Next: Hotel Email Marketing: 8 Emails Your Hotel Needs To Send Guests
Public Relations (PR)
There’s a common belief that PR equals glamorous parties and lots of schmoozing, and well — there’s a little bit of that, yes. 😅
The role of public relations has changed a lot though.
PR practitioners focus on building relationships with individual journalists, traditional media outlets, and even local community leaders. Now, there are also bloggers and online influencers to contend with.
By the way — don’t let a few bad apples spoil the whole bunch.
There are many “nontraditional” content creators who are a pleasure to work with, entirely professional, and deliver outstanding, engaging work.
You don’t need to entertain unsolicited “let’s collab!!” DMs or give in to ridiculous requests from anyone, even if they have millions of Instagram followers… frankly, none of us are interested in problematic hotel influencers. Yes, this is a hill I will gladly die on! Anyway…
Public relations is not the same thing as marketing, but the two are overlapping more, in new and exciting ways.
These days, PR has a larger role to play with SEO and content marketing. We’re seeing more practitioners ideating big creative campaigns with the intent of building links from high-quality websites and media outlets.
How your hotel and brand are perceived by the public will also be an important part of your business recovery.
Consumers want to know that you’ve handled COVID-19 responsibly and transparent, clear communication is more important than ever before.
Read Next: Why Social Proof Matters More Than Ever For Your Hotel
IV. What are the best tools and resources for hotel marketers?
The right marketing tools and tech can help hotel management professionals work smarter, instead of harder.
Thankfully, we have more resources available to us than ever before!
Seriously, I’ve tried a LOT of tools in my years working on property and as a freelancer. Sometimes the fanciest, most expensive tech brings with it the most headaches. 🤣
Since I get asked for recommendations often, here are a few of my tried-and-true favorites.
*Heads up, this post contains links to products or services I recommend, which I may get commission from.
Email Service Providers
I’ve tried a lot of email providers in my day, including some fancier Enterprise-level solutions with all the bells and whistles.
Here’s my stance:
If you’re an independent property with a small list or small budget, go with Mailerlite*. It’s simple, straightforward, and budget-friendly. (Free for your first 1,000 subscribers!)
If you plan to send out regular email newsletters and want to segment multiple lists based on interests, I think you’ll really like Convertkit*. You don’t need fancy templates to keep your list engaged. It’s also very affordable with plans starting at $29 USD/month.
If you’re a bigger hotel in need of a more robust system, I suggest using Revinate or your preferred CRM. As you grow, you’ll want to make your email strategy more personalized, which requires preference data from your booking system or property management software.
Of course, hotels operating within a large global chain may run into some restrictions here. It’s always best to reach out to your corporate office to clarify your options before investing in a new email provider.
Automation
There’s so much potential for hotels to better use automation in their marketing.
Here are a few ideas that caught my eye:
Increase your productivity with Zapier. It connects thousands of different web-based apps by creating automatic workflows (called “Zaps”) between them. You can get a lot done with the free version, too!
Generate incremental revenue with Oaky. True story: I’ve been a fan of Oaky since experiencing their product firsthand as a customer when I booked a little boutique hotel in Rotterdam a few years ago. It’s a great system for upselling hotel room upgrades, welcome amenities, or other add-ons designed to increase hotel revenue.
Automate your messaging with Asksuite. Chatbots are so cool, honestly, and still underutilized by the hotel industry. Streamline your responses, automate your most frequently asked questions, and eliminate the headache that is your DM inbox.
Automation is not elimination, by the way.
Marketing in a hotel involves so many moving parts. Anything that helps you work more efficiently means you have more time to be effective.
SEO tools
Believe it or not, optimizing your hotel website for search can be done on a budget.
It’s a little harder to do completely for free, but there are a few tools out there that definitely make it possible.
If you want the basics and plan to do all your keyword research at once, I recommend a combination of two things: 1. Download the free Moz Toolbar to see useful SEO insights while browsing the web, and then 2. Get yourself a free 10-day trial of KWFinder and pull data on as many keyword ideas as possible.
If you want a more affordable tool that still has everything you need and more, I recommend KeySearch*. Plans start at $17 USD/month, but you can also get it even cheaper with an annual plan and/or by using coupon code KSDISC to save 20%. I am indeed an affiliate because I use it and love it for my own business! If you find my website through a Google search, heads up: it’s because of KeySearch*.
Sign up for KeySearch here* and get 20% off with coupon code KSDISC.
Creative + Design
I consider myself a pretty creative person but please don’t ask me to design a flyer or a social media graphic. 😖
Words have always been more my thing...
So allow me to introduce you to a few of my favorite marketing design tools:
If you don’t want to pay for or learn Photoshop, use Canva.* The free version does a lot, but if you have a team, upgrade to Canva Pro and collaborate on projects with multiple team members, save specific color palettes and branding elements, access thousands of fonts, create gifs and animations, and more.
To find unique graphics and support freelance designers, use Creative Market* CM is a one-stop shop for all sorts of design needs. You can purchase affordable, professional, pre-made templates like social media graphics, slide decks, icons, styled stock images, fonts, pre-built website themes, and so much more. It’s worth signing up for free just to receive the free design goodies they send out each week!
*Heads up, this post contains links to products or services I recommend, which I may get commission from.
V. Where can hotel marketers learn and network?
Marketing hotel properties or for a hotel group changes constantly. We’ve all certainly learned how to “pivot” since 2020…
Keeping up with new marketing strategies, social media platforms, and hotel trends, as well as spending time learning most in-demand marketing skills all require effort.
Online Courses
There are all sorts of FREE learning opportunities on the internet. Heck, if you can use Google, you can learn a whole lot.
That said, no amount of Googling can replace a proper course with structure, practical exercises, and accountability.
That’s why I’ve created two online hotel marketing courses, both designed with hoteliers — and the hotel business — in mind.
Want more traffic and direct bookings? Check out Simple Hotel SEO. 📈
Want to build a better social media strategy? The Hotel Social Media Masterclass is for you. 👍
I also understand that you might not have the budget or resources to enroll in an online course right now.
You’ll find a huge list of free hospitality management courses, video trainings, and other online learning resources here on this blog, too.
Read Next: Free Online Hospitality Management Courses You Can Take Right Now
Network with other hoteliers
If you’re new to hotel marketing, my number-one advice is to find yourself a mentor.
Even if it’s not a formal mentor-mentee dynamic, having someone you admire to bounce ideas off of and challenge you to grow is always a good thing.
If you’re NOT new to marketing for a hotel, and you’re reading this anyway, I’d challenge you to offer up your own experience to someone earlier in their career. As they say, a rising tide lifts all ships.
Here are a few more hotel networking resources:
When I lived in the U.S., I joined HSMAI, Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International, and got a lot of value from it. HSMAI offered numerous networking and learning opportunities, both online and in person. I particularly enjoyed their annual Digital Marketing conference!
A similar organization for the U.K. is the Hotel Marketing Association.
Another new-to-me group is Raizup (formerly WHTT). In our industry, on average, just 26% of senior executives are female. Raizup’s mission is to inspire, leverage, and retain female talent in the hospitality and travel-tech industry. That’s a mission I can get behind!
BTW, I spoke on a Raizup panel about marketing careers in the hospitality industry. Click that link to watch the replay on YouTube!
Read Next: Top Hotel Marketing Blogs & Websites to Read Right Now
Final Thoughts
Marketing for a hotel involves so many things!
Our industry — and therefore, our role in it — is unique. But it’s also incredibly rewarding to work on creative projects and hotel marketing campaigns that relate to our shared love of travel and hospitality.
Did I miss answering any of your questions in this guide? Let me know in the comments below.
Don’t forget, you can also grab a free copy of my hotel marketing plan template here. ⤵
*Heads up, this post contains affiliate links. If you decide to make a purchase using my link, I’ll get a small commission at no extra cost to you. I only recommend products and tools that I use and love. Thanks for supporting my business—and iced coffee habit.
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Updates: May 2023