According to an estimate by STR Global, there are 187.000 hotels in the world that are offering more or less 17.5 million rooms. So it’s immediately clear that the hotel industry is extremely competitive, where offering quality services at the right price point is fundamental, but not sufficient. In fact, is necessary to be different, reach the clients and convinced them to come back. Because of this, the marketing component is essential. Of course, good reviews are an indispensable component for potential guests to decide where to spend their holiday. Furthermore, the presence online of the hotel’s website, which should be easy to navigate, with good pictures and with all the necessary information, is for sure a tool to convince the potential guest. In this guide, we give you five pieces of advice you can follow for perfect digital storytelling for your eco-hotel.
Keyword: raise emotions
The modality that the majority of the hotels use to advertise themselves is the visual one, so for example with pictures of the rooms or of the offered services. The secret to standing out in the group of accommodations online is to raise a strong emotion in the potential client. In this way, he or she will be inducted to choose the hotel. To do that when a characteristic or service of the hotel is presented is necessary to point out its benefits, experiences and emotions that these can generate in the guests.
For example, if your hotel has a spa, you can point out that everyday life is stressful and that in your hotel the client can relax or be pampered thanks to the treatments offered and regenerate finding again mental peace. Or if you are offering a weekend package for two people you can say that is a romantic escape with the partner to find intimacy again and spend some quality time together.
If this person is considering your eco-hotel, probably is someone interested in sustainability. So, don’t forget to mention the characteristics that make your hotel eco-friendly and so how you are contributing into making the world a little bit greener.
Now we will analyse our suggestions in a more detailed way, but don’t forget that always the heart of a successful strategy is to raise emotions.
1. Use an emotional language
The language in this case is very important. In fact, is thank to it that is possible to attract and fascinate a visitor to the website. Usually, hotels’ websites have a section “Plan your trip”. Here, the visitor will find information regarding the hotel and how to plan the trip but also information regarding what to visit in the surroundings, what to eat, which activities can be done etc… If you want to attire more attention to who is looking at your webpage, you can use a title such as “Get ready for the adventure” in order to raise interest and curiosity. In short, you have to use words and adjectives that can raise emotions in the user.
2. Pictures of empty rooms? No, thanks
Usually, the pictures published on hotels’ websites present a common mistake: are empty. They don’t have people in it. Remember to publish good pictures but with guests in them. In this way who are looking at the picture can relate to the person represented and imagine how it will be living that experience.
So, if for example, your hotel has a restaurant, you should publish not only pictures of the dishes or the dining room, but also of people who are eating and drinking cheerfully. In this way, the potential client can imagine himself eating these delicacies and drinking an excellent wine. Of course, the people in the pictures should represent the target clientele of the hotel. So, if your hotel is suited for families, be sure that there are children in the pictures or if your hotel is more formal and for adult people, make sure that these people are dressed elegantly. Of course, all the people in the pictures need to smile and make it clear that they are having a good time, having fun and relaxing.
3. Make it possible for the client to tell their experience
One of the determinant factors to choose a hotel is the reviews. Everyone checks them before booking a holiday. The contents generated by the users, called UGC (User Generated Content) are very important for your hotel’s storytelling. Besides, the reviews make sure that these contents are also videos or pictures on social media. Make sure to interact with the content the guests have posted. In this way whoever is looking for the hotel on reviews websites or social media, can notice the importance the hotel gives to its clients.
Usually is said that the client is always right. Sometimes this is not true. However, don’t be afraid of negative reviews. Don’t fight with these people but try to take advantage of this negative review. How? Answer the concerns and discontent politely, and try to make these people change their minds about your facility. In this way, thank to a positive answer to the critics, you can improve the perception of your hotel. Furthermore, negative reviews can make you aware of problems you didn’t know about and increase your SEO, since they raise trust and legitimacy of your hotel.
4. Give a face to your hotel
Representing your hotel’s staff can help to give a more human dimension. In this way, the potential client will already know who he or she will meet during his/her stay. In this way, it will be possible to create a connection between the potential guest and the employees.
Associating a name or a voice with a face can be a very powerful tool to create a link between two strangers. You can think about publishing on your hotel’s website a section with the pictures, names and occupations of your employees. In this way, the client will already know the people he/she will communicate with.
5. Create stories everywhere
Make sure to use emotional language, pictures and everything we have talked about until now not only on the official hotel’s website but also on other websites such as OTAs (Online Travel Agencies) you use. In this way, you will amplify your storytelling also for whoever doesn’t use the official website during the reservation phase.
In conclusion, it can be said that the fundamental element for having successful storytelling is raising emotions. In this way, your eco-hotel can stand out more compared to the competition.
