Developing an Effective Hotel Mobile Marketing Strategy for Your Hotel

Written by Vikram on August 2, 2010

Google travel predicts that mobile reservations in 2010 will reach over $160M. Hotels can finally stop wondering when to start their Mobile Marketing programs.

Mobile web adoption is 8 times faster than the regular web adoption of the early 90’s! This means that more people will be accessing the web using their mobile devices instead of their desktop/laptop computers.

Here are the top areas that hotels needs to start focusing on to develop their online marketing strategies:

  • Mobile Websites
  • Mobile Search Engine Optimization
  • Mobile Pay Per Click Advertising
  • SMS Marketing and CRM Development
  • Location-Based Travel Apps

Mobile Websites

Hotels suffer from the curse of large-scale generic marketing machines with hundreds of clients under their umbrella. This is going to make mobile web adoption a big challenge for the hospitality sector. The term “mobile-friendly” is being used very loosely by marketing types who do not know how to implement a fully functional mobile website for hotels. Hotels need websites that work on different devices and platforms, giving the users the best possible user experience.

All the bells and whistles of the traditional web do not apply in the mobile sphere. Hotel mobile websites have to be simple, clean and to the point. I’ll address specifics in a later post, for those of you who are ready to make a truly mobile site for you hotel.

Mobile Search Engine Optimization

Mobile SEO for hotels and the travel sector is a very exciting playing field, as Google has been serving up some very interesting web results. Why don’t you try searching for “hotels in San Francisco” on your laptop, and then any mobile-enabled phone. The search results are very different! This can translate into a lot of SEO traffic for mobile-optimized websites versus the so-called “mobile-friendly” websites.

The basic principles and best practices for mobile search engine optimization for hotels are very similar to traditional SEO practices. However, some differences do come into play. Search suggestions are heavily used on phones, and the searches are shorter (15 characters on average). In addition, the majority of searches are location-based; therefore, optimizing your local listing in search engines is a must. Finally, one third of calls generated from mobile web have a local intent, so a phone number on your mobile site is also a must.

Mobile Pay Per Click Advertising

Mobile pay per click advertising for hotels is evolving fast and can generate excellent ROI. Those already engaged in pay per click advertising for their hotels must select the option in AdWords to show their PPC ads on iPhones and other mobile devices with full internet browsers. Here are some pointers for setting up successful mobile PPC:

  • Set your campaign targeting by country, region or city, or use custom targeting.
  • It’s always a good idea to separate your desktop and mobile campaigns to better optimize keywords, ad copy, and landing pages for mobile.
  • Advanced options for advertisers gives you the option to target specific mobile devices and carriers, both in the US and Canada. Make sure you select all the devices you where you want your ads to show up.
  • Adding a phone number to your ad text increases CTR by 5-30%, so don’t be afraid to use a phone numbers in your mobile ads. Remember that mobile web calls are 31% more likely to result in a booking than calls from other sources.

SMS Marketing and CRM Development

SMS marketing is one of the fastest-growing segments in mobile marketing for hotels. SMS campaigns have the best “open rates” on the planet – unlike emails that sit in people’s inbox or junk folder, SMS messages get opened right away. The most important factor to consider for SMS marketing us that it MUST be permission-based. NO exceptions! Nothing is more annoying than to get a text message from someone you don’t know. SMS is much more private than emails, and there are much stricter laws in place to curtail spam.

The key to success for a hotel using SMS marketing is to develop Mobile Guest CRM. This means that cell phone numbers must be collected at the hotel at various points of sale: front desk at check-in, in hotel bars and restaurants, etc. SMS advertising for hotels is great for driving incremental revenue. This is an exciting platform that hotels can start using right away.

Location-Based Travel Apps

Hotel guests are already using their phones to virtually check themselves in at your hotel’s location. These location-based travel apps use GPS technology to locate your guests. The app gives them the option to select a location (such as your hotel) or create a new listing. These virtual “check-ins” allow their friends to know where they are. Guests can also leave location-based tips, participate in social competitions, and unlock digital badges (Explorer, Mayor, etc.).

As a hotel, you can distribute specials and promotions through these location-based apps. Hotel managers must familiarize themselves with Foursquare, Gowalla, and Whrrrl. Yelp and Facebook are now aggressively going after location-based technology as well, making it one of the most competitive areas of the app world.

After years of anticipation and speculation, 2010 is finally going to be remembered as the year of the mobile web. Hotel owners and managers who answer the call (pun intended) of mobile marketing technology will be the ones to be highly successful and profitable in the years to come.