Hotel guests prefer reasonable prices for decent services in a comfortable and tranquil environment during their stay, while hotels want to promote their quality services to more people and increase their income especially through group bookings. You can meet the expectations of both guests and properties simultaneously by taking advantage of online channels.
Group bookings offer reasonable prices for guests, while increasing the occupancy rates and income of properties with the same method. Here are tips for properties to benefit from the advantages of group bookings.
Follow the events in your region
Follow the events going on around your hotel’s surroundings. Keep checking the local newspapers and websites publishing news stories from your region. You can create special campaigns for communities visiting your region for sports contests, cultural events and other contests, and announce the necessary information about them on your website.
Prepare your hotel for meetings
Companies will prefer you if you have the equipment and technological infrastructure required for events like company meetings. Your hotel can become aluring with meeting halls equipped with modern furniture, high-speed Internet access, a teleconference system and widescreen monitors. Create an impression of a property suitable for business travels by promoting your hotel through online channels like your website and social media. Announce that you have all kinds of necessary capabilities for a successful meeting.
Pay attention to wedding organizations
Create a separate section for wedding organizations on your website, so you can have a simple, clear and creative website design to inform people who are preparing for weddings. If possible, include photos from the previous wedding events in your property, post-wedding stories, comments and discount information about the accommodation options for guests invited to the wedding. Make sure to use Twitter and Facebook tags so that such information can be shared on social media.
Distribution of tasks in your marketing department
Distribute tasks among your employees for the marketing of the areas of your property that you want to further promote . This way, you can ensure that your employees can focus on marketing activities for their own fields more easily. For instance, assign an employee from your marketing department for the promotion of a -let’s say- entertaining restaurant and a night club. Inform the companies and organizations like chambers of commerce in your region, so they prefer your hotel for their events like the New Year, feasts or foundation anniversaries.
Launch online group booking campaigns
Launch discount campaigns related to online group bookings and collaborate with e-commerce companies. According to Eric Pearson, Vice President for the E-Commerce Group of InterContinental Hotels, online sales bring a “win-win-win” case for customers, hotels and the InterContinental group. The company cooperates with websites like Kayak.com and Expedia.com and offers flight + accommodation campaigns for groups of 10 and more people.
Tapping into these tips, you can plan and realize your special group accommodation campaigns and many changes through HotelRunner. Create your account now to see the HotelRunner platform’s contributions to your property and enjoy online sales.
