Over the years there has been an increase in the number of hotels that include influencer marketing as one of their marketing strategies. When we used this strategy properly, can increase the brand awareness of the hotels and attract more guests to the hotel. But when not used properly it leads to failure and even leaves a negative reputation on the hotel. Both the big hotels and the budget hotels are using this strategy to attract more guests to their hotels. In the below section, we will discuss some of the things a hotelier should know before diving into influencer marketing.
Before deciding on the right influencer to work with, you should first do your research and make sure that the influencer you are considering is the right one for your hotel brand. Consider this: Does the influencer fit well with your target market and your hotel brand values? When you find an influencer that suits your brand, he/she will likely be willing to partner with you, and when they eventually promote your hotel, the message will feel real and authentic.
When deciding on an influencer to work with, make sure you did not deceive by the number of followers on their social media pages. You should look deeper and find out what they posted, the quality of their posts, the general theme of their posts, and the level of engagement on their posts. Check what people are commenting on their posts. Are the comments from real people or bots putting up spam comments on the post?
As you are checking out potential influencers, the influencers will also check out on you. They want to see how well you manage your social media pages. Your content qualities, how well you interact with your guests, and how well you respond to their questions and reviews. This will help them to decide whether to work with you. So, you need to up your social media game if you are serious about using influencer marketing.
Read: Hotels Should Implement These 5 Doable Social Media Strategies
There is usually this question about how hotels should compensate for their influencers. This is usually tricky to answer. Most times hotels offer their influencers free stay at their hotels, free facility use, or free spa and massage session. In return, the influencers are expected to post about the hotel and their experience during their stay in the hotel. If you are a big hotel and you are concerned about the influencers not doing what has been agreed upon, you can use a PR agency as an intermediary.
In measuring success, you should look beyond the booking. You should consider checking things like the traffic to your website, the new followers or likes on your social media pages, your hotel brand awareness, etc. instead of worrying about the number of booking each influencer gets for your hotel.
Read: How Hotels Can Increase Direct Website Traffic