A, B, C. Always Be Communicating

The media landscape is evolving faster than ever. Every few months (or weeks), a new wave of products, tools, and strategies rolls in, and the tide is always high. Hotels now have the opportunity to deploy a multi-tiered approach to their social strategy, allowing frequent communications across multiple channels.

Platform Update: Instagram and Facebook

You may have read that the amount of time spent on Instagram has decreased since 2020. However, large numbers of users continue to join the platform. Because time spent has decreased, it’s critical to be strategic when planning your content. Your content mix should include a healthy combination of video and static images. Defining your content pillars will help Meta find your business’s correct place within the algorithm. Since users are closing out of Instagram faster than they have in the past, boosting your posts to push them to the top of the feed is imperative.

Facebook continues to be a great place to market your hotel. The cost of advertising is the lowest among social platforms, and the targeting capabilities are the most extensive. While your target market may no longer be posting to their Facebook feed, that doesn’t mean they’re no longer using the platform. Facebook communities continue to grow YoY. Whether it’s a group for a popular podcast or a neighborhood community, users are visiting Facebook for these pages and increasing opportunities for advertising.

Next Level: TikTok Rising

While time being spent on Instagram has decreased, time being spent on TikTok is increasing. TikTok now leads all platforms in terms of time spent on it per day. Now is the time to define how your hotel fits into the TikTok world. Brands such as Hyatt and Auberge Resorts have recently joined TikTok, opening the door for properties to follow suit. TikTok prioritizes content that feels more authentic vs staged and polished. Successful hotel campaigns include short-form videos taken by associates giving tours of rooms. Partnering with influencers and/or creators is a great way to test the waters of TikTok.

The 3 must-haves to include in a social media scope of work:

1. Constant Content. All successful social media campaigns begin with strong content. A healthy mix of video and static images will help find your hotel’s placement within the social algorithms. Well-produced assets can lead to successful advertising campaigns, increased engagement, and discovery. This content is effective when captured by your social team but more effective when it is produced by professionals who are immersed in social content. Partnering with influencers and creators provides interesting creative and the added bonus of tapping into their following for increased awareness.
2. Cross-Channel Customer Service. As you prioritize customer service while guests are within the walls of your hotel, you also need to prioritize across social platforms. Every platform your hotel is present on should feel like an extension of the quality of service received on property. As you have associates available to guests 24×7, you also need monitoring of your social platforms 24×7. With that monitoring comes a game plan for how to address the results of monitoring with guests. That thread ending with a ‘Thank You’ goes a long way to increasing trust for your brand.
3. Actionable Advertising. All of the most beautiful content in the world won’t achieve your marketing goals if it’s not being seen by anyone. It’s vital to dedicate advertising funds to your social strategy. As the purchase funnel tells us, awareness is the first step to conversion. It is also important to remember to keep paid campaigns changing–not stagnant. Paid media for hotel social media and social commerce is not a ‘set it and forget it’ situation. There are always opportunities to revise and increase returns and a good plan incorporates evolution.

2023 Planning Tips

With budget season upon us, what should hotels be considering for the coming year? As much as we’d love to see all partners try every aspect of social media, the biggest thing to consider going into 2023 planning is your larger marketing objectives. Everything being done on social should be an extension of the efforts being made internally. We recommend keeping Facebook and Instagram as your core platforms, with supplementary platforms added in as they fit. Setting aside funds for additional video production is key going into next year. Strong content is always the first step to achieving all your social media goals. Because the reason your customers go to social media daily is because they crave fresh content. Always Be Communicating, and your brand will always be compelling!