Are you current on what digital trends are working for your property and what trends are on their way out? Let RezStream’s Digital Marketing Manager, Liz, walk you through today’s digital marketing trends and how to apply them successfully at your property.
1. Top Digital Marketing Trends
Liz Day
3801 E Florida Ave. Suite 800
Denver, CO 80210
Sales: 866-360-8210
2. About Me
3801 E Florida Ave. Suite 800
Denver, CO 80210
Sales: 866-360-8210
• Liz Day
• Digital Marketing Manager
• California born, Illinois raised, and Colorado
transplant
• Went whale watching for the first time last
week!
www.rezstream.com
3. About RezStream
www.rezstream.com
• RezStream has been providing online solutions to the
hospitality industry since the company was founded in 2005.
• Located in Denver, Colorado
• 21 employees
• Majority of our clients are independently owned properties.
• RezStream’s hospitality solutions include:
• Reservation Software
• Online Booking Engine
• Website Design Services
• Digital Marketing Services
3801 E Florida Ave. Suite 800
Denver, CO 80210
Sales: 866-360-8210
4. 3801 E Florida Ave. Suite 800
Denver, CO 80210
Sales: 866-360-8210
www.rezstream.com
Today’s Traveler
5. 3801 E Florida Ave. Suite 800
Denver, CO 80210
Sales: 866-360-8210
Today’s Traveler
www.rezstream.com
6. 3801 E Florida Ave. Suite 800
Denver, CO 80210
Sales: 866-360-8210
www.rezstream.com
Today’s Traveler
7. 3801 E Florida Ave. Suite 800
Denver, CO 80210
Sales: 866-360-8210
www.rezstream.com
Today’s Traveler
8. 3801 E Florida Ave. Suite 800
Denver, CO 80210
Sales: 866-360-8210
www.rezstream.com
Top Digital Marketing Trends
9. 3801 E Florida Ave. Suite 800
Denver, CO 80210
Sales: 866-360-8210
www.rezstream.com
“It’s predicted that by 2018, the
number of bookings via mobile
will be closer to 38%.”
-SiteMinder
Responsive Website Design
10. 3801 E Florida Ave. Suite 800
Denver, CO 80210
Sales: 866-360-8210
www.rezstream.com
Responsive Website Design
11. 3801 E Florida Ave. Suite 800
Denver, CO 80210
Sales: 866-360-8210
www.rezstream.com
Mobile-Friendly Booking Engine
12. 3801 E Florida Ave. Suite 800
Denver, CO 80210
Sales: 866-360-8210
www.rezstream.com
Direct Bookings
13. 3801 E Florida Ave. Suite 800
Denver, CO 80210
Sales: 866-360-8210
www.rezstream.com
Direct Bookings
Free WiFi
Free upgrades
Free dining credits
Free breakfast
Free parking
14. 3801 E Florida Ave. Suite 800
Denver, CO 80210
Sales: 866-360-8210
www.rezstream.com
Direct Bookings
15. 3801 E Florida Ave. Suite 800
Denver, CO 80210
Sales: 866-360-8210
www.rezstream.com
Personalization
16. 3801 E Florida Ave. Suite 800
Denver, CO 80210
Sales: 866-360-8210
www.rezstream.com
Personalization
17. 3801 E Florida Ave. Suite 800
Denver, CO 80210
Sales: 866-360-8210
www.rezstream.com
“Search engines are among the
most popular online planning
sources for travelers, particularly
among leisure travelers.”
-Google
Search Engine Optimization
18. 3801 E Florida Ave. Suite 800
Denver, CO 80210
Sales: 866-360-8210
www.rezstream.com
Search Engine Optimization
19. 3801 E Florida Ave. Suite 800
Denver, CO 80210
Sales: 866-360-8210
www.rezstream.com
Search Engine Optimization
20. 3801 E Florida Ave. Suite 800
Denver, CO 80210
Sales: 866-360-8210
www.rezstream.com
Search Engine Optimization
21. 3801 E Florida Ave. Suite 800
Denver, CO 80210
Sales: 866-360-8210
www.rezstream.com
Search Engine Optimization
22. 3801 E Florida Ave. Suite 800
Denver, CO 80210
Sales: 866-360-8210
www.rezstream.com
Online Reputation
• 95% of travelers read reviews prior to
making a booking decision
• 3.9 times more likely to book a hotel with
higher review scores, given equal prices
• 76% of travelers are willing to pay more for a
hotel with higher review scores
23. 3801 E Florida Ave. Suite 800
Denver, CO 80210
Sales: 866-360-8210
www.rezstream.com
Online Reputation
24. 3801 E Florida Ave. Suite 800
Denver, CO 80210
Sales: 866-360-8210
www.rezstream.com
Online Reputation
25. 3801 E Florida Ave. Suite 800
Denver, CO 80210
Sales: 866-360-8210
www.rezstream.com
Partner Up
26. Conclusion
3801 E Florida Ave. Suite 800
Denver, CO 80210
Sales: 866-360-8210
www.rezstream.com
• Get a responsive website
• Utilize a mobile-friendly booking engine
• Focus on generating more direct bookings
• Personalize marketing messages
• Conduct search engine optimization
• Invest in managing your online reputation
27. Conclusion
Email: Liz.Day@RezStream.com
Direct Line: 303-872-0214
Get Connected:
• www.Facebook.com/RezStream
• www.Twitter.com/RezStream
• www.Plus.Google.com/+Rezstream
• www.RezStream.com/Blog
3801 E Florida Ave. Suite 800
Denver, CO 80210
Sales: 866-360-8210
www.rezstream.com
Editor's Notes
Google commissioned a marketing research company to conduct a travel-tracking study to better understand the role of the internet in making travel related decisions.
The Internet is the top source for both leisure and business travel planning.
Search engines are the most popular online planning sources for travelers, particularly among leisure travelers.
Although desktops continue to drive the most online revenue for our clients, smartphone users play an important role in each step of the booking/post booking process!
Currently, 8% of all online bookings are made through mobile devices.
However, it’s predicted that by 2018, the number of bookings via mobile will be closer to 38%.
Your website has to be designed to serve these customers more efficiently and effectively.
Benefits of a responsive website include:
Google’s recommended configuration.
When visitors come to your website and see that you are prepared for them no matter what device they are using, they are more inclined to book a stay with you.
It’s future proof: Websites that are designed responsively can adapt to any screen size – including those that aren’t even on the market yet!
According to a 2014 study from TripBarometer, only 45% of hotels accept mobile bookings.
The modern traveler on the go expects a mobile booking service to deliver a hassle free experience.
If you don’t have a mobile booking engine, get one today. Every day you wait, you lose business.
Your mobile friendly booking engine should include:
Allow users to search, view availability and book a room seamlessly.
Users should also be able to offer content, pictures and rates the way it is does for desktop users.
OTAs bring in distribution and reach. For small hotels especially this is of great benefit, because not all small hotels have the budget for marketing and branding.
“Book Direct Incentive”
This can be in the form of free WiFi, free upgrades, free dining credits, free breakfast, free parking or other perks
Empower your guest-facing employees to match any lower rate for the hotel found elsewhere and provide book direct incentives to lure direct bookers
Educate staff on the direct booking initiatives and programs and why the more bookings the property receives via the hotel website, the more profitable the property is, affecting salaries, bonuses, and the overall health of the property
“Why Book Direct Next Time” program
Target OTA bookers by offering a coupon upon checkout with 10% off on their next reservation or other book direct incentives
Search engines are among the most popular online planning sources for travelers, particularly among leisure travelers.
Leisure travelers are increasingly turning to search engines first.
Yahoo! advertising study, 87% of smartphone owners use a search engine at least once a day, and 51% of smartphone owners look for local information while on the go.
Google’s local 3-pack, a small map view which lists the three most relevant local businesses, now displays at the top of 93% of all location-based searches. This change is indeed a big one, as the 3-pack used to be a 7-pack
Ensure you have a clean, accurate UNAP (URL, name, address, phone number) profile across the internet
Make sure your hours of operation and photos of your business are always up-to-date and accurate
Claim your business listing on prominent local directories (Google My Business, Bing Places, Foursquare, Yelp, etc.)
List your business on niche directories that are specific to your industry
A great user experience overall is perhaps the most important aspect of SEO, and unique content has been central to SEO and the user experience since day one.
Once the customer moves down the decision-making funnel, at the “planning”, “comparing” and “transaction” stages, studies have shown that review sites have the most influence.
To get started, make sure you claim your account, your complete your profile to offer as much information as possible, monitor and promote
It’s crucial to focus on TripAdvisor, Google My Business, Bing Local, Yelp and other industry related websites like BedandBreakfast.com
Ideally, you want to respond to every review, but if that’s too challenging, it’s recommended to respond to the negative ones within 48 hours
The format should follow:
Thank the guest for their feedback
Highlight any positives
Respond to their complaints, i.e. explain how it will be addressed without being defensive
Invite the guest back
If need be, encourage them to contact the property directly by phone or email
If you’re not using a tech tool to help you out, online reputation management can easily take up your whole day.
There are a few tools that can simplify online reputation management.
If you don’t want to pay for a robust platform, you can use Google Alerts to be notified when your brand is being mentioned.
You don’t have the time to manage multi-channel marketing campaigns to maximize your bottom line- WE DO!
You have access to experts who live and breathe these tactics
With an agency, you get access to versatile professionals with proven backgrounds in business strategy, marketing, content marketing, communications, business strategy, graphic design, web design, internet marketing, and SEO. Because of these vast skill sets, they add great value when they contribute where needed.
You benefit from an outside perspective
Immersed in the day-to-day activity and wearing many hats so it’s challenging to see the forest for the trees.