Guest engagement at your hotel will be achieved by making the guest feel a particular way when they interact with your products and services.
Taking a trip is generally a fun and exciting event that everyone is looking to enjoy.
Travelers have very precise expectations for what their trip will entail and much of it revolves around a personalised story.
Engaging guests from the start and offering a seamless and enjoyable experience will enhance the likelihood of them returning, referring a friend or leaving a great review.
The following are some of the most effective hotel guest engagement strategies before, during, and after their stay at your hotel.
Pre-arrival
- Have an up-to-date website
Having a user friendly website helps guests to find information and book a room with no trouble.
Your website must include useful and engaging content including your messaging, high quality photos and videos with meta tags.
You also need to add links to your booking engine on every important page such as rooms, offers, and gallery.
Once a guest has booked, send them an email and let them know how delighted you are that they have chosen your property for their stay.
Get them excited by saying there will be a personalised gift or experience awaiting them on arrival.
Share details of your hotel and local activities have they might be interested in.
It’s a great opportunity to ask them about their desires and start the journey to loyalty.
Post check-in
- Personalised gifts on arrival
If your guests are on a family break, personalised cookies waiting for them on arrival are a great gift.
If they are on a romantic trip, a bottle of wine and chocolates will please them.
If they are repeat guests, use your CRM to understand what they enjoyed during their previous stays and tailor a gift to suit their needs.
Once guests have settled in, send an email to say welcome them and let them know the best way to contact you if they have any questions or requests.
You can also ask them did they like the gift left for them in the room?
- Engage with guests socially
If your guest engage on social media during their stay at your hotel, make them feel extra special by engaging back.
Thank them on social media for any posts or stories with an informal friendly tone which is in line with your brand.
It’s also a fabulous opportunity to use their posts on your website as user generated content.
After guests check-out
- Encourage them to complete a survey
Use an online survey to understand what they enjoyed about your property and what needs improvement.
You can use this information for future personalised offers for them and of course to make your luxury offering even better.
Respond to any reviews on your website, Google My Business, TripAdvisor or any social media platform.
In this way you will show them you are open to their feedback and opinions, encourage loyalty and create ambassadors for your brand.
Conclusion
Travel is all about experiences, whether it is for business, leisure, adventure or family breaks.
If you want to stand out in your guests’ minds and create loyal guests, personalising their journey and showing that you care about pleasing them is the solution.
Building longer lasting relationships with guests is the key to loyalty and loyalty is the key to growth.