As your guests start to plan their Christmas and New Year getaways, it’s time to plan how your hotel can capitalise on the seasonal travel market and maximise revenue this holiday season.
NB: This is an article from eTourism
With competition as fierce as ever, your property needs to fight against the lure of low prices on the OTAs by creating irresistible offers that drive Christmas travellers to book direct.
In today’s blog, we’ll look at 4 ways you can engage your audience and drive more bookings this Christmas period.
1. Create Fantastic Offers
This is the one time of year you can guarantee your guests’ inboxes are overloaded with marketing messages from brands, so your content will really have to hit the mark to get attention.
Perhaps the most important challenge here is crafting an enticing subject line which will inspire your audience to click. Your subject line should be concise, eye catching and above all clear – travellers should know in an instant that your email contains an un-missable, limited time offer – “Escape for Christmas – 25% off today only,” for example.
Visually interesting emails and non-promotional messaging are another great way to attract attention. For example, you might run a series of themed emails around Christmas travel, offering tips for saving money, keeping the kids entertained on- flight and the best places to go Christmas shopping in your city. Don’t forget to track your open and click-through stats so you can use the data to improve and optimise going forward.
2. Tap Into The Spirit Of Indulgence
Christmas is all about indulging in a little luxury, so it’s a great time to give optional extras such as room upgrades, massage and spa services and food hampers an extra promotional push.
As always, segmentation is key. For example, you might want to reach out to guests who’ve booked one of your spa packages previously with an extra special discount that will have them looking and feeling their best during the festive season.
3. Amp Up The Anticipation
Christmas is all about excitement, so use your hotel’s marketing to amp up the anticipation with advent-calendar style snippets of themed content in the countdown to the big day.
Video is particularly powerful when it comes to tapping into the spirit of festive excitement. Consider posting a brief, daily video showcasing how you’re preparing for the season at your property, whether it’s picking the perfect tree for your reception area, putting up fairy lights by the pool or designing your new Christmas menu. You can also create content chronicling how your city is getting ready for the celebrations. Short videos of bustling Christmas markets and malls and twinkling beachfronts will help capture an image of a vibrant and memorable destination in which to spend the season.
4. Don’t Forget Your Blog
Don’t forget to infuse your hotel’s blog with a little festive sparkle by promoting up and coming markets, Christmas light-switch on events, Santa’s Grottos and New Year’s fireworks.
Since your aim is to encourage guests to book direct, it’s also important to use your website to promote exclusive packages which are only available with a direct booking.
How are you using your marketing to tap into the pre-festive buzz and drive more Christmas bookings?
