2019 Budget Season: What Hotel Technology Hotels Should Consider
2019 Budget Season: What Hotel Technology Hotels Should Consider
It seems like you were shoulder-deep in 2018’s budget season just yesterday. But somehow, some way, here you are again. Pulling your hair out trying to figure out how to best allocate resources to ensure a successful 2019.
When it comes to driving guest engagement, boosting loyalty, and driving direct bookings, it’s important you budget for the right technology so you can achieve your goals and exceed expectations no matter what unexpected challenges the new year brings your way.
Keep reading for expert tips on what to consider as you build your hotel marketing technology budget for next year.
1. Guest Data
Every hotel is sitting on a goldmine of guest data. The PMS stores everything from stay history and booking preferences to languages spoken and dollars spent. However, too many hoteliers are not leveraging this awesomely powerful data that should be the cornerstone of any marketing strategy. It’s important to have easy, real-time access to your guest data so you can make informed marketing decisions based on who your guests are and what they value.
2. Guest Communication
Hotel CRM and email marketing technology is becoming more and more critical to reach and stay connected with guests. While most hotels are great at building strong connections with guests while they’re on property, it is equally important to engage with them throughout the entire lifecycle, from pre-arrival to post-stay. Bridging the physical and digital worlds with email marketing guarantees strengthened relationships with guests by staying top-of-mind and sending relevant campaigns, which ultimately results in boosted loyalty and increased direct bookings.
3. Personalization
Instead of focusing on loyalty programs to drive direct bookings, hoteliers should personalize the guest experience including communications to encourage repeat bookings and boost loyalty. In a recent study by Oracle, 73% of those surveyed prefer loyalty programs that do not depend on points and rather focus on personalization, activity, and engagement.
A platform that collects guest information such as past stay history, guest preferences, demographics, location, and more enables hoteliers to send personalized communication that guests genuinely care about. When they feel understood and valued, guests will choose your property to stay again and again.
4. Marketing Automation
Marketing automation provides hoteliers with the opportunity to send the right message to the right person at the right time. From pre-arrival to on-property to post-stay campaigns, these are highly personalized one-to-one campaigns that are automatically sent based on where the guest is on the customer journey. We like to refer to these as ‘set and forget’ campaigns because they can run in the background without much ongoing maintenance. Triggered, automated campaigns can include birthday offers, ‘we miss you’ promotions, and upsell opportunities.
At the rapid rate at which hotel technology is evolving and competition is growing, the time is now to invest in an all-encompassing CRM and email marketing platform that is easy-to-use, industry-specialized, and guaranteed to deliver direct revenue results. If you’re interested in learning how Revinate Marketing can become the centerpiece of your 2019 marketing strategy, reach out for a demo today.
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