Say what you will about Social Media, but it has become an integral part of life. Not just personal life, but professional life as well. If an individual doesn’t have Social Media accounts, they think they’re coming off as “cool” but in reality, they are just out of the loop. The same goes for a business of any kind. If a company isn’t on an active across various Social Media platforms in 2018, the “cool” factor goes out the window and they are in immediate jeopardy of the irreversible brand and financial damage.
According to HubShout’s 2018 Social Media Conduct survey, which explores topics such as the First Amendment, controversies, and professional online behavior, Social Media is actually changing the way English is spoken across the U.S. and the globe. In fact, thanks to the prevalence of digital communication, people are not only more likely to frequently use misspellings, slang, and text abbreviations (abbrevs) on their Social Media posts, but the number of people who admit to “never” using these verbal shortcuts has actually decreased by 5% (36.3% overall).
But what about Social Media for businesses like Hotels?
If a Hotel doesn’t have multiple Social Media accounts in 2018, does it even exist? Essentially, no… no, it does not exist.
YES, Hotels absolutely need engaging Social Media accounts for all kinds of reasons — and not just to stay “hip.”
Here are a few essential reasons why your hotel should consider improving, or at the very least, implementing your hotel’s Social Media presence:
Drive revenue
A common argument when it comes to hotels using social media is that the return on investment (ROI) for these digital platforms are difficult to measure, so hotels consider not spending time, money, and resources on it. That attitude is not great for business, however, because paying attention to Social Media can drastically improve revenue streams for hotels of all shapes and sizes.
“The challenge most marketers have is on deciding which metrics matter when it comes to dollars,” said Elvis Lieban, product marketing manager for NetBase, which tracks Social Media usage for top luxury brands. “Attributing a dollar value to likes on Instagram isn’t the right way to think about it.”
According to Hotel Management, measuring whether or not a hotel is accessing their actual target audience on Social Media is a much better use of time. If a Hotel’s Social Media is engaging with its actual target demographic, that could result in an increase in bookings.
“The best way to start figuring out the equation is to start analyzing and measuring your brand’s social media activity and performance,” Lieban added.
Strengthen your brand
Hotels can use Social Media to let their target demo know exactly who they are as a company and what they stand for. You’ll be able to control every post, every stare, every image, and every bit of content on Social Media, so you can craft the perfect brand for your hotel. Perhaps you’re hoping to connect with a luxurious and high-class customer base, convey that message by displaying relevant content through your Social Media. Or maybe your Hotel caters more to hardworking families, start sharing those Disney videos a little bit more and watch your brand grow!
“Hotels need to pay attention to the conversations around their brands online, and they need to get involved,” added Lieban. “This is an opportunity for hoteliers to start doing more to ignite those passions and stoke more conversations around travel.”
Improve customer service
Perhaps the most important aspect of the hospitality industry is customer service. If your guests don’t feel appreciated during their stay or deal with rude, unengaged, or lazy employees, they might never return. Even worse, complain about your hotel on their own Social Media accounts. Though you need to encourage your actual Hotel staff to remain as friendly as helpful as possible, social media can still help nip some of those inevitable problems in the bud.
You can’t make everyone happy, but you can apologize to guests who didn’t enjoy themselves on Facebook or Twitter, which will likely help strengthen your relationship with your customer base and improve your overall customer service.
“All it takes is one unsatisfied customer going viral to bring a lot of unwanted attention to your brand,” said Lieban. “Sometimes just recognizing a person is enough to keep the conversation from turning negative. These customers don’t want to pick up a phone and call the customer-service line.”
You shouldn’t just stop at actually having Social Media accounts, however. You’re going to need to remain active and engaging if you want to actually stand out on your various social media platforms across the digital realm. Here are some important aspects to consider implementing your Hotel’s Social Media strategy this year:
- Posting videos — People love video content, so give it to them. Every once in a while, post a few behind-the-scenes videos to show your customers what you’re doing to maximize their enjoyment during their stay.
- Providing real-time weather updates — If strong weather conditions could potentially impact travel plans, do your customers a favor and provide them with accurate and helpful weather reports.
- Updating your customers right away — Don’t leave your customers in the dark. If you have any news of any kind, let your Facebook friends, Twitter and Instagram followers, and LinkedIn connections know right away.
Keep in mind, though you should remain active on social media, you should refrain from posting anything controversial at all times. A single bad taste post can ruin your hotel’s reputation for good.
“Silence is a true friend who never betrays.” — Confucius.
From a Social Media Consultant’s standpoint, the Social Media Community can offer Hotels a one-stop-shop for managing their Social Media marketing such as the community infrastructure, database, listening functionality, profile management, collaboration, content marketing and management, and of course, the analytics.
A Social Media Community will help your Hotel to grow smarter and faster when you focus on the value proposition and collaborate in effective ways.
If your Hotel need help to put it all together then make sure to the let us know.
Today’s Social Media Management tools provide advanced options that will help Hotels with these tasks. If you need a quality team the help your Hotel pulls this off, then get in touch with my partners at Founders Media.
With the right team behind your Social Media efforts, it can become cost-effective and generate a new revenue stream for your Hotel.
To get your Hotel started here are a few FREE gifts and resources from me and my partners Founders Media.
1. FREE access to my Hospitality Gone Social Vault (Click Here to Unlock)
2. FREE ebook from Founders Media (Click Here to Unlock)
3. FREE 21 Days To Social Media Mastery for Hotels email course (Click Here to Unlock)
4. FREE access to #HotelPodcast — A Podcast about Social Media Mastery for Hotel (Click Here to Unlock)
5. FREE access to our Facebook Group — Hospitality Gone Social (Click Here to Unlock)
HubShout is a team of enthusiastic and focused analysts, developers, designers, marketing specialists, account managers, and writers who have a passion for technology and digital marketing solutions that drive sales for their clients.
About the author
Are Morch is the founder and owner of Are Morch — Hotel Blogger and Social Media Consultant. Get more from Are on Facebook | Twitter | Google Plus | LinkedIn | Pinterest | Instagram
Originally published at aremorch.com on June 7, 2018.
