Jump-start the Year with a 1st quarter marketing plan

Posted 30 Nov 2009

1st quarter tends to be a slow time of the year for most hotels. However, that’s no excuse to slacken your drive for better market share. With many of your competitors falling into a post-holiday haze, you have an excellent opportunity to boost your market presence through differentiation. Simply, there’s no easier time to stand out from the crowd.

Differentiation is targeted marketing. You’ll need three things: an audience, an offer and a voice. Here are some suggestions for each:

Determine your target audience (who are you going after):

  • Leisure guests (local feeder/drive markets)
  • Reunions
  • Religious retreats
  • Conventions

Possible Promotion/Special Offer Ideas:

  • Local Residents offer (Staycations, “Be a visitor in your own state”; offers to include hotel & attraction combo)
  • Valentine’s Day (Valentine’s day is on a Sunday-could get great weekend business-offer a romance package)
  • Spring Break
  • Last Minute Offers (72-hour sale to fill holes, last minute freebees)
  • Special discounts for length of stay (20% OFF, 3+ nights, etc.)
  • Group Packages (for SMERF Groups, i.e, reunions, youth sports, military, religious retreats)

Determine the voice for the promotion:

  • Create a landing page and a call-to-action on your current site – No additional cost
  • eMail Marketing
  • Local Partner Ads
  • PPC Campaign
  • Blogging – No additional cost
  • Promote through Social Media pages – No additional cost
    • Twitter and Facebook are excellent for last-minute deals. Throughout the season, you can Tweet a “Deal of the Week” (or month).

These are simple steps on your end, but they mean a lot to the end user, i.e. your future guests. It’s a fresh year; many travelers have a renewed interest in conservative spending. By providing a well-targeted promotion this quarter, you’ll encourage these travelers to find your hotel in the crowd. That means more revenue at this difficult time. More revenue, as we all know, is what it’s all about.

Contact your relationship manager at WRS to get your 1st quarter promotions up and running as soon as possible!

Posted by admin
Categories: Tips for Hoteliers

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