Ms. Dietrich

Social Media & PR

Using Social Media to Increase Your Hotel's Guests

By Gini Dietrich, Founder & CEO, Arment Dietrich Inc.

With all the talk of Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, Flickr, the downfall of most newspapers, and a down economy, it's no wonder hotels are looking for new and interesting ways to engage with and attract more guests.

A great example of how hotels are using social media in a down economy comes from Maya Meinert on BNET.com. She says: "When a friend of mine, who keeps a blog that covers restaurants, told the Twitterverse how she had a sub-par happy hour experience at Hyatt's Andaz hotel in Los Angeles, the hotel (whose Twitter handle is @andazweho) offered her a free meal at its restaurant. Andaz says it also made sure to correct my friend's grievance - that her party wasn't served enough bar food. How's that for customer service, social media-style? And not only are hotels using Twitter to interact directly with its guests, they're also using the platform to generate general interest by giving away free stays and other goodies."

What is social media?

Let's start at the beginning. Social media is a shift in how people discover, read, and share news, in**formation, and content. It is a great way to test your messages, spur conversation, hear what your guests are saying, get your audience engaged, and meet future guests.

Social media, and highly engaged consumers, have turned traditional marketing on its head. Not only are consumers actively seeking information in these channels, if you don't pay attention to them, all your hard work in traditional channels can quickly be undone.

And...93 percent of Americans expect the companies they do business with to have a social media presence - and that includes hotels.

It's not to say you completely abandon traditional channels. But, now that you have created the awareness, what do you do with it? Have you delivered the service that guests are demanding? How do you continue to engage guests, build the relationships, and ultimately deliver on the promise your hotel was founded on? Go beyond traditional channels to find and leverage brand evangelists and buzz agents, because those that love your hotel and keep coming back will tell everyone about your brand online.

First things first, if you're a franchisee, contact your corporate headquarters to push for a corporate-wide social media campaign before starting your own. Other hotels in your brand may have tools already created so you don't have to recreate the wheel. If you're the franchisor or an independent, consider creating a corporate social media brand and then distributing it to your franchisees. Just like your traditional branding, advertising, and public relations, you must have a consistent social media voice.

Tools to engage

• Web site
  If you don't have access to updating your Web site, make a few small suggestions to corporate communications in order to keep content fresh and consistently updated.
  
  Guests want information that is interactive and offers them ways to engage with your hotel. Don't only offer guests the option to stay at your hotel, suggest days where the rates may be slightly lower, or ways to dig deeper in search options in order to choose the exact room they want. Any tools to have the guest feel as though they were an important part in picking a hotel will add to your exceptional customer service.
  
  Allow your guests to post photos and reviews of the excellent times they had at your hotel. This will make them feel as though they are part of your hotel and a guest referral can work better than most advertising. But also let them post negative reviews. Use those as an opportunity to apologize, make things good, and turn those guests into your biggest advocates..
  
  You can always learn from feedback the same way you do from comment cards or focus groups..
  

• Facebook
  Many adults claim they joined Facebook to keep track of their children online. But Baby Boomers are the fastest growing demographic on Facebook and moved beyond keeping tabs on their kids and grandkids.
  
  Begin by creating a Facebook fan page specific to your hotel location. This allows guests to see photos of events and amenities throughout the seasons, local activities around your location, guest appreciation and referrals, travel tips, online promotions, and any great media stories you've had and want to share with the traveling community. Update your Facebook page at least once a day and guests will appreciate the consistent engagement, but even more so, you'll give them reasons to keep coming back to your page and even become a new guest at your hotel.
  

• Twitter
  There's the old saying, "there's no such thing as bad press." While there may be some truth to that, the audience hearing the good and bad is a lot larger due today to social media. Twitter started out as a way to "text" the world, and has turned into a forum for just about everything. If you aren't familiar with Twitter, you can bet that your guests are and they appreciate those that engage with them in valuable conversations. If someone tweets that they had a bad experience at your hotel, engage with them immediately and offer a solution to their problem.
  
  It's as important to understand what to say, as it is to monitor what others are saying. If someone is searching for a great hotel, they may go on Twitter asking for suggestions. If you see this, you may possibly offer them a discount at your hotel, or a free night's stay. This is very easy, quick, and you quite possibly made the guest loyal to your hotel brand just by engaging with them in a few short minutes. When using Twitter, remember to target your market in order to follow the right people, update your tweets frequently, and keep content fresh and new while offering a call to action. This is similar to a message board or customer reviews. Consistently monitor so you know what guests and futures guests are saying and offer something so they have a reason to stay at your hotel and keep coming back.

"Do's" and "don'ts" of social media

Just as easy as it is to engage guests, you can also turn them away if you are too sales-y. Make sure you understand who your audience is and use that information for your benefit, don't insult guests by being too anxious or sounding like a commercial. And to avoid this, offer them more than just your brand. Consistently post information and ask for feedback about the hotel and tourism industry, travel tips, or interesting facts, in order to give your audience a reason to contribute. Don't be afraid of negative comments; instead turn those into learning experiences and ways to better serve future guests.

Seven habits of highly-effective online communication

1. Be proactive

2. Know your mission and messages

3. Prioritize the time you are online

4. Make relationships mutually beneficial

5. Listen, don't just talk

6. Collaborate and engage

7. Elevate your thinking by engagement

The most important thing to remember when engaging with guests online is to be honest and remain professional while still having a personality. You are representing your brand and you may be the first a new guest hears about your hotel. Leave a lasting impression.

Gini Dietrich is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Arment Dietrich, Inc., a firm that uses non-traditional marketing. The author of Spin Sucks, Gini has delivered numerous keynotes, panel discussions, coaching sessions, and workshops across North America on the subject of digital marketing tools. One of the top rated communication professionals on the social networks, Gini was recently named the number one PR person, according to Klout and TechCrunch, on the channels, and number one on Twitter, according to TweetLevel. Ms. Dietrich can be contacted at 312-787-7249 or gini.dietrich@armentdietrich.com Extended Bio...

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