Social Media

social media channels are important in digital marketing. Here are 11 steps to boost social media marketing strategies for hotels in 2024

 For hotel social media marketing is crucial for increasing visibility, increasing direct orders, and increasing brand visibility. With so many guests regularly connecting to social media for travel inspiration, it has become an integral part of any effective marketing strategy.

Posting content on a variety of channels regularly allows potential and returning customers to interact with your brand, demonstrating its value. This interaction creates a deeper relationship with users, ultimately leading to more orders through a consistent and customized approach.

In this article, we will explore the best hotel social media marketing strategy , discussing how to create a comprehensive social media strategy and tailored strategies for specific social networks.

What is social media marketing for Hotels?

A social media marketing strategy for hotels involves strategically using platforms such as X, Facebook, TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, or LinkedIn to interact with customers. Its goal is to build your hotel brand, increase sales, and drive traffic to your website.

Social media marketing for hotels encompasses various types of efforts:

• Content Marketing/Content Creation: Creating and sharing valuable content to attract and engage your audience.
• Advertising/Sponsorship: Promoting your hotel through paid ads and sponsored content.
• Influencer Marketing: Collaborating with influencers to reach their followers and promote your hotel.
• Social Media Management: Regularly posting updates, responding to comments, and managing interactions on social media platforms.
• Paid Social Media Marketing: Investing in paid campaigns to reach specific audiences and achieve marketing objectives.

These strategies aim to engage existing customers, nurture leads, and attract potential guests considering their travel options.

Why is hotel social media marketing important?

Social media marketing for hotels is important because travel is considered a popular choice.

Guests love to share their travel experiences on social platforms and get inspiration for their next trip there. This trend is strong among younger demographics: 40% of Gen Z prefer non-Google ways to research travel, and 90% say social media influences their purchasing decisions.

Hotels often focus on visual platforms like Instagram and TikTok to showcase their guest experience and attract potential customers.

Here’s why social media is important for hotels:

1. Massive Active User Base: Platforms like Instagram (1 billion monthly active users), Facebook (nearly 3 billion), and Twitter (340 million) provide the largest possible daily audience.
2. Influence in Travel Decisions: Many travelers use social media to decide where to go, stay, and book time. A study by Expedia found that 30% of Americans are influenced by social media when booking a trip.
3. Post-travel sharing: Millennials primarily share vacation stories (97%) on social media, influencing others’ travel choices. 40% agree that social media photos influence their travel decisions.

A strong social media presence with platforms where potential guests spend a significant amount of time when planning their trip is crucial. Even without advertising costs, hotels can build a large following and communicate effectively with the traveling community.

As the number of online bookings increases every year, it pays for hotels to embrace social media to increase visibility and guest engagement.

11 Effective Social Media Marketing Strategy for Hotels

Your success with social media depends on how you use it. Do you know what platform your audience uses?

Let’s explore some ways to get more people interested in your hotel:

1. Identify your target audience

Start by knowing who you want to be with. This can make a big difference in the success of your efforts.

Different groups use social media in different ways. For example, older men use it less, while younger men use it more often.

Think about who might want to stay at your hotel. Are you near a lake and good for weddings? Or are you close to an airport and get lots of business guests?

Consider such factors as age, gender, background, income, and reasons for travel. Knowing this will help you choose the right social media sites and create posts that attract the right visitors.

2. Define Your Hotel’s Brand and Unique Selling Points

Once you know who your guests are, you will understand what sets your hotel apart. This is called your unique selling points (USPs). Knowing these is important for social media marketing because it helps attract the right leads.

For example, if your hotel is a golf resort, your main attraction is likely to be your golf course, especially for golf enthusiasts planning a weekend with friends. But guests will also want to know about other amenities such as your spa, gym, and restaurants where they can relax after a day on the course.

3. Choose the best social media platforms for your hotel

Understanding who uses different social media channels and what types of content are popular can help you make the right choices for your hotel.

Facebook, for example, has a diverse user base, including many 25-34-year-olds. Interestingly, the number of users over the age of 65 on Facebook is growing rapidly.

In contrast, TikTok is popular with young users, especially those aged 18-24. LinkedIn, on the other hand, is mostly used by professionals aged 25-34.

Knowing this demographic can help you decide which platform matches your hotel’s target audience. A hotel that appeals to young travelers may perform better on TikTok, while an airport hotel that caters to travelers will find LinkedIn more relevant.

4. Share Great Quality Photos and Videos

Using high-quality photos and videos is really important, especially on platforms like Instagram and TikTok where visuals are key. Hotels can increase their chances of getting bookings by 15% just by using nice photos on their websites.

When you include pictures in your social media posts, more people like and comment on them. According to a statista survey, 66% of people find videos the most interesting thing on social media, followed by pictures at 61%.

The good news is, there are tons of things you can show in your photos and videos. Here are a few ideas to help you get started:

• Show what happens behind the scenes in your kitchen or at the front desk.
• If you have a garden, share pictures of gardening activities like pruning roses or harvesting pumpkins in the fall.
• Share mouth-watering pictures of your best dishes to give your followers a taste of what they can eat at your hotel.

5. Understand your audience

When you know what your audience cares about, it’s easier to come up with helpful, interesting, and unique content. What will your followers get behind your back? They will learn new things or get tips and suggestions about your city.

 Here are some ideas for different travelers:

• Vacationer: They should be interested in learning about the best restaurants, coffee shops, and famous places in your city. You can create an entertaining series of the top five places to visit. 
• Event planners: Event planners want to know what your hotel can offer their event. Share photos of venues, videos of past events, or reviews from customers who have used your venue. 
• Corporate Travel Manager: This manager looks for hotels that best cater to business travelers. Showcase your co-working spaces and office layout in photos and videos.

6. Build User-Generated Content and Reviews to Enhance Your Hotel’s Online Reputation

Guest photos and videos, called user-generated content, are photos and videos of when people share your hotel stay. It can be used to brand your hotel or use a different hashtag. This allows you to notice your hotel with minimal work. 

People are about 4 times more likely to book a hotel with a better rating and are willing to pay more for it. However, only 22% of guests write reviews themselves. But if a hotel asks for a review, 80% of guests will book one. 

Look for ways to encourage visitors to leave comments on social media. For example, you can post signs around your hotel telling guests to add you to their posts and use your main hashtag.

7. Post at the Best Times to Get More Views on Social Media

Posting at the right times helps more people see your posts. Different social media sites have different best times to post. Here are some basic tips:

Weekdays:

• Monday: 9 a.m. – 12 p.m.
• Tuesday: 9 a.m. – 2 p.m.
• Wednesday: 9 a.m. – 1 p.m.
• Thursday: 9 a.m. – 12 p.m. and 2 p.m.
• Friday: 9 a.m. – 11 a.m.

Now, let’s look at the best times for specific social media platforms:

Facebook:

• Wednesday: 3 p.m.
• Thursday & Friday: 1 p.m. – 4 p.m.
• Saturday & Sunday: 12 p.m. – 1 p.m.
• Best days to post: Monday to Thursday
• The worst day to post: Sunday

Instagram:

• The entire week: 6 a.m. – 9 a.m., 12 p.m. – 2 p.m., and 5 p.m. – 6 p.m.
• Best days to post: Tuesday and Wednesday
• Worst day to post: Sunday

TikTok:

• Friday: 5 a.m. and 1 p.m. – 3 p.m.
• Best days to post: Tuesday and Wednesday
• Worst day to post: Sunday

YouTube:

• Any weekday: 2 p.m. – 4 p.m.

LinkedIn Company Pages:

• Tuesday: 10 a.m. – 11 a.m.
• Workdays: 7:30 a.m. – 8:30 a.m., 12 p.m., and 5 p.m. – 6 p.m.
• Best days to post: Tuesday to Thursday
• Worst days to post: Weekends

X (formerly Twitter):

• Tuesday: 9 a.m. – 2 p.m.
• Wednesday: 9 a.m. – 1 p.m.
• Thursday: 9 a.m. – 2 p.m.
• Friday: 9 a.m. – 12 p.m.
• Best days to post Tuesday to Thursday
• Worst days to post: Sundays

8. Collaborate with Travel Influencers to Boost Your Hotel’s Visibility

Travel influencers travel the world, staying in various hotels and sharing their experiences with followers. According to American Express, 75% of travelers say social media has inspired them to visit specific destinations. Additionally, 67% of marketers plan to increase spending on influencer marketing campaigns by 2023. 

If you want to partner with a travel influencer, imagine them staying in your hotel and sharing positive reviews. Start by becoming a travel influencer on social media, including those your competitors are doing business with. 

Once you have a list, reach out to them via email or social media. Clearly explain how the collaboration will benefit both parties and discuss compensation packages.

9. Talk with Your Followers to Build a Strong Hotel Community Online

It might seem simple, but many hotels post content without talking to their followers. Engagement is important. It helps people find you, makes guests happy, and gives your online presence a personality.

Facebook looks for “meaningful engagement” to decide which posts to show more. This means they boost posts that people interact with a lot.

What is engagement? Here are some ways to engage with your followers:

• Like and favorite comments
• Reply to comments and posts
• Reshare or tag partners and guests (with their permission)
• Mention specific followers in reshares

10. Measure Your Success

To know if social media is working, you need to check how well your posts are doing. Compare your posts from this month to last month, and this year to last year.

Decide what success means for your hotel. Is it more bookings or more followers? Here are some things you can track:

• Follower growth
• Engagement metrics (likes, shares, comments)
• Reach and impressions
• Conversion rate
• Click-through rate (CTR)

You can track this manually by looking at likes, favorites, and shares. You can also use tools like HubSpot or SproutSocial. Social media platforms like YouTube, Facebook, and TikTok have their own analytics tools you can use.

11. Tell a Compelling Story Through Your Hotel’s Social Media Channels

Storytelling helps you succeed on social media. This means sharing the story of your hotel, how it started, day-to-day anecdotes, and your values. Storytelling makes connections and makes people want to follow your account.

Here are some storytelling ideas for social media:

• Background: Share the history of your property, including any famous guests or significant events. If you have any ghost stories, share those too!
• Guest experiences: Share stories and experiences of past guests. Include testimonials, photos, and video interviews where guests talk about their stay.
• Campaigns: Create themed storytelling campaigns around a specific idea. For example, a “Week of Wellness” campaign could share stories about wellness activities, healthy dining, and guest experiences focused on well-being.

Attract Guests and Build Brand Awareness with These Social Media Marketing Tips

Social media is like an online version of your hotel. This means your hotel’s social media should show your values, looks, and personality. If you do this right, you will have a better online presence and get more bookings. 

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