When Your Hotel Website Isn’t Working
Is your hotel website hurting your business instead of helping?
Let’s face it, with so much competition we need to do all we can to win business in the tourism industry. The truth is, many hotels haven’t put the time or money into their website to match their property. Often times, hotels have the latest technology, bedding and furniture, but their website doesn’t showcase the property, outline their features, or entice consumers to book a stay. In many cases, hotel websites can actually hurt their business.
Here seven things that may be hurting your business instead of helping:
- The one size fits all approach to travelers
Couples seeking a romantic weekend have different needs than a business traveler. Ensure you are showcasing the benefits you offer to each target market so that they can make an educated decision when booking their travel. With so much technology available, you can easily gather demographics and preferences on each guest prior to arrival and customize their experience upon check-in. This will allow your staff to greet guests and make them feel at home by offering them all of the offers and services they would be most interested in. For example, if a couple is joining you for a weekend getaway, upon arrival you could remind them of your concierge services and local attractions and dining. However, if a business traveler is checking in, you would highlight your newspaper delivery, Wi-Fi access, and business center.
- Less than stellar visuals, video and photography
Visuals are key in tourism, especially video. The purpose of visuals is to differentiate yourself from the competition and showcase your property by providing an “experience” when they view your website. It’s not enough to take your own photographs of the guest rooms. Hiring a talented photographer and a stylist is well worth the money in creating photographs and videos that will create an enticing need to visit your property.
- Insufficient showcasing of event space and property information
If you are looking to bring in business from event planners for small parties, weddings or corporate meetings, you need to clearly outline the space you have to offer. Ensure you provide as much information as possible, utilizing technology to create 360 videos, diagrams, menus, dimensions and photos.
- Lack of customized experience for customer when booking
If you’ve gotten a traveler to your website, it’s essential to customize the experience as much as possible and make it as seamless as possible. Previous travel behavior and demographics should be used to assist them in their booking and reduce cart abandonment. It’s important to test this environment often and monitor technical glitches to avoid frustration on the consumer’s end.
- Pricing and promos are confusing or difficult to find
Given the amount of online booking sites such as Travelzoo, Groupon and the like, travelers expect a good deal and they want it to be as easy as possible to reserve. It’s important to create a user experience that is simple and direct, and test it frequently for errors. A misdirected link or technical glitch could cost you a customer. In addition, if you are offering promos, make sure they are easy to find and use various mediums to communicate them, including: social media, mobile marketing, SEO and direct email campaigns.
- Overlooking Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Ensuring your website is visible, comes up in searches, and is easy to locate is essential. Search Engine Optimization (SEO) can help increase your organic (unpaid) search. A few steps you can take are utilizing metatags/key words, ensuring you have relevant page titles and content, and sending your sitemap to Google to make sure they index your pages.
- Incompatibility with mobile and tablets
Currently, 43% of all traffic to travel websites now comes from mobile (Nucleus Brand Consultants) and that number is expected to increase over the next two years. If your website isn’t configured to optimize a mobile platform, that should be a top priority. An app or easy online booking on mobile should also be on your list.
Your website is the virtual front door to your hotel and the best place to make a lasting impression. The benefits of creating a site that is visually appealing, easy to navigate, and customized to each client can greatly increase your business.
