It’s not easy to run a hotel - there is a lot to think about, and many things that have to fall into place to ensure you’re as successful as you need to be. However, if you can get it right, being a hotel owner can be a highly lucrative way to make a living, and it’s an interesting one too - no two days are going to be the same.
One thing you will need to know how to do as soon as possible how to encourage more guests to your hotel. Without guests, it won’t matter how great your hotel looks or what facilities it might have, you’re not going to make any money. In fact, when it comes to the hotel industry, without guests, you’ll actually be losing money, and that’s the last thing any business owner wants. With that in mind, here are some great ways to encourage more guests to your hotel.
Look After Your Website
If you are personally looking for a hotel, it’s highly likely you’ll start (and probably end) your search online. You’ll look at a range of different website, compare the hotels you’re interested in, and make your booking, all without having to leave your home or even get out of your chair. Remember that if you do this, other people will too, so if you look after your website, you’ll be able to capture this market.
Of course, just having a website is never going to be enough, and you need to ensure that it’s user-friendly, attractive, has plenty of information on it, and is optimised for both SEO and mobile at the very least. Even better, you can have an online booking system or a chatbot that answers guest queries. Do as much as you can with your website and always keep it up to date so that guests know you’re paying attention and that your hotel is still in business. This is a lot of work, which is why any sensible hotel owner will engage a hotel website design company to help them. In this way, you can go on with running the hotel while your website is taken care of, bringing you more guests.
Use The Power Of Social Media
Websites are important, but they might not be the only place where your potential guests spend their time; they may well also be on social media. Therefore, you need to be on social media too. Social media gives you the perfect opportunity to interact with your guests and show them that you are a real person. You can give them plenty of reasons why they should choose your hotel and answer all their questions for them, helping them to make their final choice and book with you.
If you can maintain an active presence on sites like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and perhaps TikTok (this will depend on your target market, of course) by sharing interesting posts and going live from time to time, you’ll build up a good customer base of followers. Again, this will be time-consuming, so it might be worth hiring a full-time social media manager or outsourcing the work if need be.
Have Compelling Offers
If you want to stand out above the other hotels in your area, you’ll need to offer something different. One way to do this is to have some compelling offers that your guests aren’t going to be able to resist. You might offer special family rates, for example, or you might have free equipment for business travellers to use. Perhaps you give away breakfast to every guest or you leave a bottle of wine and a gift in their room. It might be something linked to car hire, restaurant discounts, or day trips.
The beauty of this idea is that your offer can be anything as long as it’s something your guests are going to find valuable. It doesn’t have to cost a lot either because value isn’t always connected with money. Think about what you can offer that no one else can, and then ensure you talk about it in your marketing.
Encourage Positive Guest Reviews
Something that will help people to choose your hotel when they are looking for somewhere to stay is positive reviews from previous guests. Some guests will leave these reviews as a matter of course, but you might need to have a system in place to encourage others to write a quick review or leave a star rating. This might be a thank you card when they check out, or a follow-up email a few days after they leave.
Show appreciation for positive reviews by responding to them, but don’t ignore negative reviews - resolve any issues publicly if possible, as this shows potential guests that you care about your hotel and the people who stay in it.
