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Online Marketing Secrets Revealed Here's how to avoid the common mistakes when playing in the online marketing arena. Tuesday, December 02, 2008 Tom Griffin

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Online marketing is quickly changing. Web 2.0 and the rising promise of social media that comes with it is creating a new paradigm from which hoteliers can create business. Emerging technologies and social networking are reshaping the landscape for the hotel industry and smart operators and marketers are embracing this virtual world of opportunity.

As you consider the most effective ways to reach out to your customers, it’s essential to review the critical mistakes most hoteliers in order to avoid falling into these pitfalls and vanish into the marketing abyss.

With apologies to Dave Letterman, here is my Top 10 list:

Mistake #1    Creating Dud Deals: Make sure your deal is worth having and make sure it is available when consumers call. When you create a deal, make sure it has impact. Consumers are savvy and there is ample opportunity for them to compare what you’re offering with other web destinations. Even the budget-conscious buyer can recognize value when they see it, so make the deal work for them in terms of real value, not just dollars. It needs to be timely, priced competitively, and authentic. Nothing turns a consumer off faster than trying to snag a good deal, only to find it doesn’t really exist.

Mistake #2    Marketing without goals that can be measured: Start with specifics and alter your marketing approach to meet those goals. Social media offers lots of opportunities to reach consumers in new, low-pressure ways. It takes the hard-sell out of the equation. But if you don’t approach social media with a target with which to measure performance, you’re swimming in a sea of uncertainty. Set goals, measure them with your yardstick of success, and make changes if you’re not meeting the target. Establish your metrics in advance: what click-through rates do you expect, what sales do you need from this channel, and what kind of buzz do you expect to generate? Measure relentlessly to understand what is – or is not – working for you.

Mistake #3    Making advertising budget cuts in a down economy: Use your advertising dollars in more unique and creative ways. Cutting your advertising budget in a down economy may save you some money in the short term, but it is often counter-productive to generating the kind of revenue you need to stay competitive in a tough market environment. Instead, use your creativity to negotiate for better space and use your resources to effectively build better consumer relationships. Pasting a banner ad onto a popular website at high pay-per-click rates may not be the most effective way to reach the consumer. Study the marketplace with an eye to what attracts buyers. Then tailor your response with knowledge-based assessments.

Mistake # 4    Leaning too heavily on brand association: Individualize your unique points and offerings. Your association with a major brand is helpful in many ways, but the results are often geared to favor major players within the brand, not individual properties. You must leverage that well-known brand, but go beyond it to differentiate yourself by using your own unique characteristics to attract the buyer you’re looking for: are you on the beach, next to the theater district? Sell your amenities and what is special about what you have to offer. You’re already going to attract those loyal to the brand, now focus on reaching out to those who are less tied to brand messaging than other criteria – like what your particular property has to offer.

Mistake # 5    Inconsistent messages: Leaving visitors to ponder what you’re trying to say leads them away. Mixed messages are the bane of online marketing, and failing to avoid them will leave consumers feeling “mixed-up.” Make sure you are consistent with content and imagery across all channels — print, broadcast, online, sales and marketing, advertising, PR, etc. Communications are not only an external goal, but an internal goal: make sure your marketing team, your reservations team and your on-property team are all – literally – on the same page. They need answers, need to understand the offers and need to work to insure they can connect the consumer with the deal quickly and effectively. That is simply a matter of effective communication between divisions, all working toward the common goal of delivering  not only the offer - well-polished and on time – but a consistent message about the company and all its offerings in the marketplace. That is what consumers want – and expect.

Mistake # 6    Misunderstanding your audience: Failing to tailor message to the audience misses the mark. Before you can sell to an audience, understand who is out there listening. Understanding your audience is a contextual exercise, and the context between traditional internet media and social media can be vastly different. One thing is clear: the audience cares less about who you are and what you have done, than they do about your appreciation for what is relevant to them — their needs. Investigate the research on social media users: what do they like and dislike. Shun spam email, rely on opt-in responses from customers, don’t waste money on non-opt-in lists and be respectful to those who have opted-in. You’re in the No Harassment Zone.

Mistake # 7    Taking the easy road: Failure to be strategic and integrate marketing touch-points results in lost opportunity. The easy road is rarely the high road, and it will often lead you away from the sea of commerce. Casting your bread upon the waters of Google may only feed the fish who surf there. Be strategic and integrate your message throughout your website, not just on your homepage. Your newsletter should be a click away from wherever your reader docks. Provide opt-in opportunities everywhere a consumer goes. Your social networking tools don’t have to be expensive. Set goals, and make cost a part of every equation. 

Mistake # 8    Failing to leverage brand loyalty: Don’t miss an opportunity to make consumers brand ambassadors. Location, location, location, the old mantra from the days when the retail outlet was the marketplace, has been replaced by a single word: Loyalty. Leveraging loyalty by convincing customers to return for a repeat of their positive experience is critical. Satisfied customers are brand ambassadors. They tell others what they liked. With social media, word of mouth is worth its weight in gold.

Mistake # 9    Pulling the plug too soon: Give your online marketing time to work. Be patient with your online marketing efforts. Rome took centuries to build; you don’t have that much time, but you can invest more than three days before you assess your success and alter course. If you stick only your toe in the water, it may take a while to tell if it’s hot or cold. Jump in and you’ll know right away. Test your results, but wait on a conclusion. Nothing is worse than a dinner half-baked. Prepare for the feast, serve the masses, and then ask how they enjoyed the meal.

Mistake # 10    Over-“tech-nification” of your marketing: Keep it simple for users. Technology is a beautiful thing, but don’t lose sight of the trees while admiring the forest. Keep it simple for the user and be appreciative of their visual orientations. Don’t try their patience with slow-loading photos and don’t assume one-size-fits all. Browsers are different: respect the diversity, and don’t be misled by the whiz-bang devices that IT departments love to show off. If the search engines can’t index your offer, you’ll be headed nowhere — fast.