Congratulations! Not only are you opening up brand-spanking new hotel, you’re opening up two, at the same time, with the same address. Woah, what did you get yourself into?!
NB: This is an article from Cogwheel Marketing, one of our Expert Partners
Your dual brand hotel already offers separate public areas and room design, has separate budgets and maybe sales departments. But now you need separate addresses, phone numbers, websites and you guessed it, marketing plans.
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Creating a Digital Presence for Two Hotels in One Location
This is one of the most important steps when establishing your dual brand hotel on the internet for the world to see. Pay close attention.
When sitting down with an owner and telling them we need a separate phone number and address to provide online map listings for each hotel, it’s often a surprise.
In order for Google to recognize your dual-brand hotel as 2 separate entities, Google must have two separate addresses and phone numbers. I know, the city only gave you one address because it’s only one building. Don’t fret; there is a fix. Simply give your two hotels a suite number when building its online presence.
For example, you just opened a brand new Tru by Hilton™ hotel and Home2 Suites by Hilton™ at 456 Maple Lane. When searching for this address online, only one hotel will ever show up with the address. To bypass this when building your hotels online presence, Tru’s address is now 456 Maple Lane #A and Home2 456 Maple Lane #B.
**Make sure you build a consistent story with your new addresses across local, social and even your hotel’s website.
Establishing Hotel Offerings and Amenities
One of the best perks about staying at a dual brand hotel is the shared amenities. This is true for your online presence as well. If your hotel’s amenities are shared for both guests to enjoy, you will want to make sure each of your online listings includes the amenities of both hotels.
Does the Tru have a better fitness center because it shares its fitness center with the Home2?
Do you offer evening reception at your Hampton now because the Homewood requires it?
Does your Residence Inn have a swanky bar now that the AC is attached?
How great is it for a guest to see the Home2 they usually stay in also has a pool table in the lobby!?
If you answer yes to questions like this, make sure you include these positive attributes in your hotel descriptions, amenities across sites, sales collateral and even search engine optimization.
For you complicated hotel owners that wanted to build a dual brand hotel and not share the amenities together, make sure each of the hotel’s listings are completely accurate. For example, if one side offers a complimentary breakfast and the other doesn’t, ensure this is clear and precise on every single website and 3rd party listing.
Marketing Two Different Hotels in One Location
First things first, create TWO marketing plans and TWO budgets. Before you begin your marketing plans, clearly define the target market for each of the hotels. You will want to have separate target markets as they are not only separate hotels, but both brands are different in who its target market is intended for. For example, one hotel focuses on business travel while the other is an extended stay. Each hotel having different target markets will need separate types of marketing that is best for its targeted market.
Just because you have two different marketing plans, doesn’t mean you can’t pick up efficiencies. For example, if you’re running Expedia Travel Ads, you can target different stay windows. Also, if you’re running a Google Ads campaign to create awareness you can use your separate marketing budgets to combine your locations with more terms as both hotels offer more.
Don’t be afraid to mix and match either. Keep your mind open when doing keyword research for your hotels as you begin building campaigns or updating your SEO. What I mean by this is don’t forget you can look for and use terms such as “hotel with evening reception” for your Hampton that’s attached to a Homewood. As mentioned in the “establishing what is and is not offered” section, combine your amenities combining such marketing with perks of both brands such as a Tru offering bbq pits and an upgraded fitness center and the Home2 has a kid friendly breakfast with waffles and whipped cream.
Now that the challenges are laid out and we helped you think of how to build your marketing plans, and digital presence, opening a dual brand hotel doesn’t seem so scary, does it?
Congratulations on your new dual branded hotel
