Is Your Email Marketing As Effective As It Should Be?
As the dynamics of tourism continually shift, change, and transform, flexibility is number one on any traveler’s itinerary and the number one priority for business savvy hoteliers. Comfortable accommodations are a source of security during unpredictable and often exhausting travels. Within that safe haven of warm breakfasts and fluffy pillows, communication is the one constant of the hotel industry. No matter how the face of travel, lodging, and tourism continues to grow and evolve, the spirit of hospitality lies in how hoteliers engage with their guests.
Email marketing is among the top ways for hotels to attract new guests and living in a digital world comes with the added benefit of global connectivity. This means email campaigns are the strongest tool for reaching thousands of potential guests from all over the world in a matter of minutes — or even less with email automation! Accordingly, improving the performance of email campaigns is a hot topic in the current hotel industry.
Read on to learn more about email marketing, increasing ROI for hoteliers, and keeping the values of hospitality at the forefront of guest communications.
Develop Focused Communications
Guests prefer the sense of a tailored experience that is curated precisely for their stay. This principle also applies to email marketing for hotels and motels. Whether your email campaigns are handled in-house or through a third-party agency, it's important to pause before hitting send. Take a moment to gather data on your targeted demographics. Email segmentation —dividing a large list of recipients into smaller subsections — is one of the best marketing tools in the hospitality industry. This personalization tactic allows email campaigns to be sorted into segments through data gathering and strategizing.
Nearly half of all consumers feel that they receive too many marketing emails. Set your brand apart from the usual inbox clutter by personalizing your email campaign. This is best accomplished with two key strategies:
- Demographic Data. Get to know your guests! Identify key demographics such as age group, travel type (solo, families, friends, couples), and core values. For example, are your guests most interested in discovering on-site experiences during their stay, or would an email promoting local foodie tours be more appropriate? Often, hoteliers will find that they have many groups within their guest list. So personalize your email to greet guests by name and tailor a campaign to multiple demographic lists rather than one broad marketing blitz. Experian found subject headers with guest names yield a 26% higher email open rate than those without. In addition, guests will appreciate being included in a specific campaign of unique interest to them. Doing a little more research on the back end requires minimal input and yields a far higher ROI than generic mass emails.
- Timing and Forecasting. No one likes to log on to a flood of emails, least of all busy business travelers. Consider key time frames to initiate email campaigns such as three days prior to check-in (a quick welcome message is always, well, welcomed!), seasonal updates for holidays and vacations, corporate keynotes on conference rooms and amenities, and specific interest emails based on prior stays.
Personal touches go a long way, whether it's extra towels or an extra special email message to your valuable guests! Furthermore, consider opt-in emails to give guests control and investment in the content they receive.
Key in on Key Metrics
Measuring the success of email marketing for hotels comes down to metrics. Identifying revenue drivers is paramount for ongoing success. Of course, ROI is the word hoteliers hear most often regarding the immediate profitability of initiatives. However, when it comes to email campaigns, it's important to look at three core metrics that go into a successful marketing campaign.
- Open Rates. The open rate is a measure of how many guests are viewing your emails. The average email open rate for the hospitality industry is relatively healthy, landing around 15-25%. If your hotel falls within the mid to high end of this bracket, you're in good shape to welcome some new guests.
- Click-Through Rate. Simply put, this is a measure of how many guests are clicking the relevant link in your email. This is an actionable part of any marketing campaign. The average click-through rate for most businesses is 7%. Within the hotel industry, these stats are higher with an average click-through rate of almost 17%. If your hotel is averaging or exceeding this number, a campaign may be considered successful. Click-through rate is a direct measure of effectiveness.
- Conversion Rate. The conversion rate is the number of subscribers who complete a follow-up action as a result of an email campaign. For hotels, this can be translated as increased bookings, new subscribers to blogs and other email lists, reviews left, and positive social media engagement.
Make a goal to check these metrics within 30 days of each email campaign and adjust accordingly to identify trends and patterns. Then, fine-tune your campaigns to continually grow and improve.
Always include a CTA (Call-to-Action) in your email along with an actionable item (booking, following a social media page, leaving a good review, making a reservation for on-site dining, or upgrading). Always include SEO-friendly keywords in the subject line and header. And always utilize the power of big, bright images and clickable pictures to entice guests into booking the ultimate vacation getaway.
Invest in Email Automation
Whether you're a small to a mid-sized motel or an expansive resort, email marketing automation is one of the best ways to streamline your operations. Automating as many processes as possible saves valuable time (and in turn labor costs). Additionally, it empowers hoteliers to dedicate their efforts where their skills are best suited, such as implementing core demographic data and tailoring email campaigns for maximum effectiveness.
A few of the key benefits of email automation include:
- Efficiently sends out mass email campaigns that appear personally tailored with minimal input.
- Cultivates leads.
- Improves targeting and segmentation.
- Acquires more detailed reporting and metrics data.
- Supports robust sales and engagement teams.
- Boosts brand awareness.
- Retains personalization.
- Minimizes typos and tech mistakes.
- Forces you to plan an email strategy prior to initiation.
Examples of email automation campaigns:
- Reservation confirmation – As soon as your guest has booked, have an automated email sent to them confirming their reservation. Provide all the important information regarding their reservation and take the time to inquire about any additional needs they might have.
- Pre-arrival email – Roughly five days prior send a pre-arrival email. Here is the perfect time to take the opportunity to upsell services and add-ons.
- Final pre-stay email – One to two days prior to check-in, remind your guest of when check-in is, and offer opportunities for any last-minute requests.
- Marketing material – If you share brochures, travel itineraries, wedding guides, or any other marketing material online, you should have a simple form capturing their name and email before giving them the full guide. Once you have their contact information, redirect them to the content on a landing page or as a PDF. Then a couple of days later, follow up with a series of emails about that topic to educate them on the experience you create.
- Birthdays – Capture the birthday of those staying at your property. Then on that day send a promotion encouraging them to bool a stay. The same can be said for capturing a special date for any occasion.
Email marketing automation for hotels is an amenity everyone can enjoy.
Contact us if you need help driving effective email marketing campaigns OR implementing an effective online marketing strategy at your hotel. Let us show you what services we offer and how they will improve your communication with guests and address all your email marketing needs.