Social marketing makes way into hotel industry Hotel Motel Management

Social marketing makes way into hotel industry - Hotel & Motel Management Page 1 of 3 Wednesday, Mar 19, 2008 Search Social marketing makes way into hotel industry Home Online Tool Box e-Newsletters H&MM In Print Trade Shows For Subscribers For Advertisers Contact Us RSS Feeds Product Directory Classifieds Products & Services Real Estate Careers Purchase Classifieds About H&MM Site Index Sep 18, 2007 By:Russell Shaw National Report–Odds are favorable you’ve heard of TripAdvisor, a travel-related Web site that among its varied features, lets hotel guests comment on their recent stays. No in-room coffee maker? Steak overcooked in the hotel restaurant? Along with buckets of positive and, yes, negative comments, your guests’ reactions are there for all—including potential guests considering booking your location—to read. Then there are sites such as Facebook and MySpace. Not only do they allow users to post their professional and personal profiles on the Web, but both are reporting an increase in businesses that post searchable profiles as well. Taken collectively, these are but a few examples of what’s called social marketing. This is often referred to as a Web 2.0 technology; Web 2.0 being a phase in the development of the Web where users, and not just professional content creators (such as your marketing communications department) write Web-based, Google-searchable content. When applied to the lodging industry space, these efforts are frequently referred to as Travel 2.0/SocialMarketing. Hotels should not discount the buzz of Travel 2.0/Social Marketing. It is here and growing in popularity. How hotels decide to address it and what technologies they will invest time and money into should be a thought out plan—much like the approach to any good marketing initiative. Lorraine Sileo, vice-president of research for PhoCusWright, says that in initial discussions with lodging chains or individual properties exploring the social networking landscape, a key question she encounters is, “when do I invest and what do I invest in. I tell a lot of them that your first stage ought to be how to integrate social networking communities onto their own sites.” Going in, Sileo says a key attitude should be giving the site’s contributors, such as hotel guests, the leeway to speak honestly about certain properties. As do others, Sileo subscribes to the view that reasonably unfiltered content from hotel guests will carry more credibility with prospective guests than mounds of promotionally glowing copy will unto itself. Apparently, hotels are buying into this notion of reader comments about their properties on social networks offering a type of credibility that even the most attractive marcom-authored hotel sites cannot. “One hotelier tells us that the content (they) produce isn’t that useful anymore. Traveler-produced content is more trusted,” Sileo added. “I would say don’t get caught up with the buzz and hype,” said Jack Feuer, president of online marketing consultancy Digital Marketing Works. “Focus on your objective, and on an online marketing plan to test, measure and learn” (what works). H&MM's quarterly round up of hospitality industry sales and marketing news and analysis Featured Events H&MM Marketing Report Quarterly Online merchandising tools grow more sophisticated By Russell Shaw Maximizing revenue from electronic channels: The http://www.hotelmotel.com/hotelmotel/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=457980&sk=d8a676f29... 3/19/2008 Social marketing makes way into hotel industry - Hotel & Motel Management Page 2 of 3 “My advice would be to get the greatest bang for the buck. It’s not a matter of pure dollar investment. Feuer is a big TripAdvisor fan. He likes the site’s ability to give hotels real-time customer feedback, and the resulting opportunity to correct flaws. For example, if your hotel’s restaurant menu is routinely criticized on TripAdvisor, that may point to action that should be undertaken. He says he regularly attends quarterly or even monthly meetings with hotel clients where TripAdvisor comments are regularly brought up. Tracking tools for public comments are available via TravelClick as well as through other service providers. That said, the prospects negative comments on TripAdvisor and other sites (including hotel blogs and forums on a property’s Web site) may appear risky for properties that have traditionally tried to tightly manage their message. Feuer’s response? Deal with it. “This is a new world, and you have to adjust,” he said. “We can’t control our message. The new reality is that the consumer is shaping our brand through discussions on the Internet.” The upside to user-generated content on social networks and other sites is that many prospective guests may place even more credibility in reviews written by fellow consumers than they might in slick marketing copy written by hotel staffers or ad agency types. Scarlett Dooley, marketing communications manager of the Kahala Hotel and Resort in Honolulu, likens guest-submitted online comments to time-tested guest comment cards. “From an operation standpoint, it is similar to guest comment cards (we distribute to our) guests,” Dooley said. “It is one way for the operations department to see what is happening, and improve your processes if guests don’t like something.” Dooley says she also regards social networking from a search engine optimization standpoint- as how internal as well as external social networking sites and blogs can help improve search engine results ranks- and improve business as a result. Dooley cited a blog-type of content feature on the Kahala’s Japanese-language site as a method to direct readers out to the main Kahala information (and booking) pages. Not yet a participant in Facebook, Dooley is evaluating that option for the Kahala. As for MySpace, she repeats the often-held assumption that it skews somewhat younger with somewhat of a younger demographic than those who make travel decisions and purchases. Another social media option that is starting to be talked about is video and photos of hotel guest experiences. Go on such sites as Flickr or YouTube and you may be surprised to see photos and videos that your guests have taken during their stay. And as Feuer notes, the option to post property videos and photos on these sites is available to hotels as well. Doing so creates extra visibility for your brand beyond your own site. It’s also possible to link from individual Flickr or YouTube content to your site’s home page or even reservations page. About the Author five common mistakes of asset managers By Scott Farrell Increased business is just a phone call away By Howard Feiertag (More...) 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