As we venture into 2024, boutique hotels must adopt innovative marketing strategies to stand out in a competitive landscape. Here’s an in-depth look at the top marketing tactics that boutique hotels can leverage this year, along with actionable steps and example scenarios to ensure successful implementation.
1. Leverage Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR)
Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) are reshaping how hotels engage with potential guests. These technologies provide immersive experiences that can significantly boost guest confidence and interest.
Action Steps:
Virtual Tours:
Implementation: Develop high-quality VR tours of your hotel rooms, amenities, and surrounding attractions. There are companies like Matterport.com that can do this for you. We can help arrange this for you, along with high quality photos.
Example Scenario: A potential guest from another country can take a virtual tour of your hotel, exploring the ambiance and room features before making a booking. This will increase booking conversion rate.
AR Experiences:
Implementation: Create an AR app or integrate AR features into your existing app. Offer interactive in-room guides, virtual concierge services, and augmented local maps. A more simple implementation would be to have scannable QR codes around interesting parts of your business - in the garden or by some artwork.
Example Scenario: Guests can use their smartphones to scan room features, receiving detailed information and engaging stories about the decor, hotel history, or special amenities.
2. Personalised Marketing with AI
Artificial Intelligence (AI) helps boutique hotels analyse guest data to deliver highly personalised marketing messages, enhancing guest engagement and loyalty.
Action Steps:
Email Campaigns:
Implementation: Use AI tools to segment your email list based on guest behaviour, preferences, and booking history. We suggest either Klayvio.com or Mailchimp.com
Example Scenario: A guest who frequently books spa services receives personalised emails about upcoming wellness retreats and special spa packages.
Chatbots:
Implementation: Integrate AI-powered chatbots on your website to provide instant assistance and tailored recommendations.
Example Scenario: A potential guest visits your website and interacts with the chatbot to find information about family-friendly amenities. The chatbot suggests room options, special packages, and local attractions suitable for families.
3. Influencer Partnerships and Social Media Marketing
Influencer marketing remains a powerful tool for boutique hotels. Collaborating with influencers who align with your brand can help you reach a broader and more engaged audience. Micro-influencers with 5000 or less followers can still drive brand awareness and bookings for your business. Smaller accounts tend to me more affordable and have a much more loyal fanbase. As a small boutique hotel, is it better to gift a smaller influencer a stay vs paying £10k+ for a larger one. It very much depends on the market you are after.
Action Steps:
Identify Influencers:
Implementation: Research and partner with travel bloggers, Instagram influencers, and YouTube personalities who reflect your hotel’s style and target demographic. You can either pay the influencer, or gift them a stay. Another good idea to try and generate bookings is to provide them with an affiliate deal, whereby they get a percentage share of the booking revenue.
Example Scenario: A travel influencer with a significant following visits your hotel, sharing their experience through Instagram stories and posts, tagging your hotel, and generating interest among their followers.
User-Generated Content:
Implementation: Encourage guests to share their experiences on social media using a branded hashtag. Feature their content on your channels.
Example Scenario: A guest posts a stunning photo of your hotel's rooftop bar on Instagram using your branded hashtag. You repost the photo on your official account, showcasing real guest experiences. This builds trust and a higher level of authenticity/social proof.
4. Sustainability as a Selling Point
Sustainability is increasingly important to travellers. Promoting your hotel’s eco-friendly practices can attract environmentally conscious guests and differentiate your brand.
Action Steps:
Highlight Green Initiatives:
Implementation: Showcase your sustainability efforts on your website, social media, and marketing materials.
Example Scenario: Your hotel’s website features a dedicated page detailing eco-friendly practices such as solar energy usage, recycling programs, and partnerships with local organic farms.
Eco-Friendly Packages:
Implementation: Offer packages that include eco-friendly activities, such as bike rentals, organic dining options, and nature tours.
Example Scenario: Guests book a “Green Getaway” package that includes organic breakfast, a guided nature hike, and complimentary bike rentals for exploring the local area.
5. Experiential Marketing
Creating memorable experiences can significantly enhance your brand’s appeal. Focus on unique offerings that reflect your hotel’s character and the local culture. This type of marketing appeals to both locals and guests. Try and create marketing campaigns around different demographics, this way you have specific nights for specific types of people. An example of this would be hosting a gin tasting evening with a local distilery. This will appeal to gin enthusiasts as well as locals who would be interested.
Another option would be hosting a talk with a famous athlete "A Night With X Athlete". Your hotel would then be attracting a completely different crowd to the gin example above, attracting a more outdoorsy type.
Experiential marketing is all about expanding your hotel's offering to different demographics.
Action Steps:
Host Events:
Implementation: Organise events such as local art exhibitions, live music performances, or cooking classes.
Example Scenario: Your hotel hosts a monthly “Local Music Night” featuring works from nearby artists, attracting both guests and locals.
Themed Stays:
Implementation: Offer themed packages that provide unique experiences, such as wellness retreats, culinary weekends, or adventure packages.
Example Scenario: Guests book a “Culinary Weekend” package that includes cooking classes with your hotel’s chef, a visit to a local vineyard, and a gourmet tasting menu dinner.
6. Data-Driven Decision Making
Utilising data analytics can help you make informed marketing decisions, tailoring your strategies to better meet guest needs and preferences.
Action Steps:
CRM Systems:
Implementation: Implement a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system to collect and analyse guest data.
Example Scenario: Your CRM system identifies that many guests from a particular city book weekend stays. You target this city with specific weekend getaway promotions.
Performance Metrics:
Implementation: Track the performance of your marketing campaigns using analytics tools and adjust strategies based on what works best.
Example Scenario: Analysing campaign data reveals that social media ads targeting young professionals result in the highest booking rates. You allocate more budget to these ads and refine the messaging.
7. Enhanced Mobile Experience
With the majority of travellers using mobile devices to plan and book trips, optimising your mobile presence is crucial.
Action Steps:
Mobile-Friendly Website:
Implementation: Ensure your website is mobile-responsive with fast load times and easy navigation.
Example Scenario: A potential guest easily navigates your mobile site, viewing room options, amenities, and local attractions without any lag or usability issues.
Mobile Booking:
Implementation: Implement a seamless mobile booking process, allowing guests to reserve rooms on their smartphones with ease.
Example Scenario: A guest books a room while on the go using your hotel’s mobile site, appreciating the simple and quick booking process.
Conclusion
Adopting innovative marketing strategies is essential for boutique hotels to thrive in 2024. By leveraging everything mentioned above, boutique hotels can attract and retain guests more effectively. Marketing in 2024 is much more personalised and experiential than 2013. Guests expect more, so as a boutique hotel owner, you have to adapt to the changing market conditions.
These strategies not only help promote your boutique hotel but also create lasting impressions that encourage repeat visits and positive word-of-mouth. Embrace these trends to ensure your boutique hotel stands out in the ever-evolving hospitality market.
If you would like to discuss these options in more detail and have Ammonite Hospitality help you implement some of these options, please send us a message at hello@ammonitehospitality.com
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