HOTELMARKETING.COM

5 ways to increase bookings without resorting to flash sales

July 16, 2012 | Hotel Marketing

While a flash sale can be a good way to fill a room that would otherwise go vacant, hoteliers may be best served redoubling their efforts with tried and true marketing techniques that come at significantly less cost.

1. Check your images. Have you put your best foot forward in terms of the photos of your hotel, both on your own site but also on OTA’s and other sales and marketing venues? Intent Media research has shown that providing multiple, compelling photos are one of the most reliable ways to land bookings.

2. Review your search campaigns. Don’t simply monitor them: take time to avoid over spending, and also account for under-spending and seasonal changes in clicking and booking patterns. Focus in particular on terms that have either high clicks/low bookings or low clicks/high bookings, as well as terms that have seen significant swings in performance. Even relatively small investments of time can be critical to making sure you are getting your full share from this channel.

3. Boost your OTA performance. Take advantage of cost-per-click programs that are now offered by most OTA’s. While it may seem counterintuitive to market on an OTA beyond simply being listed, it’s now possible to do so in a very cost-effective fashion. For example, the Sponsored Search Network run by my company allows hoteliers to land the top search result on sites likes Orbitz and Travelocity and only pay when they get a click.

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