As a hotel owner or manager that’s in the ever-competitive modern accommodation industry, chances are that you’re familiar with the important concept of differentiation. With dozens to hundreds of different alternatives in any given area, it’s clear that the accommodation industry is facing the challenges of oversaturation. As a result, this has become a greater challenge for hoteliers to make their establishments stand out.
Thanks to the advent of modern technology, however, hoteliers are presented with increased opportunities to stand out from the rest of their competition. From video advertisements and coupons to social media campaigns and endorsers, there is a wide range of possibilities that any hotel can use to set themselves apart, but none have proven to be more effective than websites.
Why websites work best
No matter what form of accommodation you run, whether it is a B&B, five-star hotel, or a resort, there’s no doubting the fact that a website can help your marketing efforts tremendously with standing out. As opposed to solely relying on social media ads and posts to show what your hotel is all about, websites allow interested viewers and potential customers to experience and know your establishment on a deeper level.
Given the fact that websites portray more immersive user experiences that allow anyone to fully immerse themselves in what’s being talked about, it’s no secret that they work impeccably well when used in the context of hospitality. Although it may be easy to see how a website could possibly help your hotel stand out from the rest of the competition, taking the necessary steps to ensure that it differentiates effectively is a different matter.
Fortunately, gearing up your website to effectively act as a tool that helps your hotel stand out is a fairly easy endeavour that can be pulled off with the following tips:
1. Ensure that your website is mobile-friendly
With the on-the-go lifestyle becoming even more prevalent, the best way to reach more opportunities to stand out and get more bookings is to tap into something that modern travellers use the most: their mobile phones.
Implementing mobile-friendly design (or responsive web design) helps tremendously with ensuring that your website can be accessed by anyone who wants to learn more about your hotel. By enhancing your website with a mobile-friendly design, you’ll be able to accommodate various users and travellers that can easily be turned into long-term customers.
Aside from being user-centred and conducive for conversions, however, mobile-friendly website designs also work well for your SEO efforts as the amount of convenience it adds is an absolute plus for search engines. This also results in higher search rankings that help you stand out!
2. Utilise SEO and boosting
No matter how small or big your budget for marketing may be, it always helps to set aside a portion of it for your boosting while investing in other forms of content to enhance your SEO. With the help of a proper SEO and boosting strategy, you’ll be able to help your website stand out every time a user searches for hotels in your area, effectively allowing them to find your page in an instant and reserve faster!
3. Go for high-quality visual assets that help tell a story
At the end of the day, finding the perfect place to stay in for any vacation or getaway is a task that entails relying on using visual cues that show how it’s like to stay at the hotel itself, effectively making photos and videos important if you’re looking to stand out.
Before you start working on your hotel’s website and put it out for the world to see, it’s vital that you pay close attention to the quality of its assets and ask yourself the following questions:
- Do the assets I have to emphasise the strong points of the hotel?
- Are my photos and videos hampering the performance of my website?
- Do I have enough photos to use?
If you find yourself answering “no” to any of these questions, then it’s ideal to consider hiring a professional photographer and videographer to shoot your hotel for you or get a few stock photos to fill the gaps.
Conclusion
Ensuring that your hotel’s website stands out from the crowd is a surefire way to generate more opportunities for profit and greater levels of brand retention in the long run. By applying the three tips mentioned in this article, you’ll be able to maximise the potential of your website and keep your hotel at the top of the heap in terms of reservations and significance!
Planet53 provides affordable website design packages made for businesses big and small. Get in touch with us today to see how we can help.