WEB WATCH: Are you in the right relationships?
by Andreas Roell
June 1, 2010
Changes in
how consumers
book and plan their travel have altered how successful marketers engage
with
their guests. The integration of review and rating forums, reduced
spending
capacities and elevated communication expectations are playing a
significant
role in how guests decide where and how to book their next trip. These
trends
are evolving as users become more active in the online space, and now
leisure
travelers rely on online tools and Web properties to assist their
purchase
process.
According to eMarketer, in May 2009, 34 percent of leisure
travelers visited search engines first to start their planning and booking
process.
Only 7 percent of these travel planners visit individual hotel Web
sites as their first stop.
On average, people visit a minimum of three Web sites before
booking a trip or making a reservation.
For marketers in the casino hotel industry
these behavior trends are significant when planning effective online strategies
to increase reservations and reach occupancy goals. While these statistics
could imply that guests are fragmented across the Internet, leaving marketers
at a disadvantage, it actually creates a world of opportunity to carve out a profitable
niche for your property.
Reading ratings and reviews is an important step on the potential guest’s path to making a reservation. Even
more than stand-alone hotels and casinos, guests are looking for a complete
package to satisfy their gambling, entertainment, dining and sleeping needs in
one location. A good review about one of these components could encourage
potential guests to book with a property.
The opposite scenario is also possible, but
unflattering reviews provide a unique opportunity to cultivate relationships
with engaged (albeit disgruntled) guests. The instinct to be weary of review
forums is valid, but marketers can use them to their advantage by being
transparent with their potential and past guests. If uncomplimentary reviews
surface, consider them an opportunity to re-market your property to guests who
care enough to post a comment. Especially if the conversation is hosted on your
Web site these candid discussions will be a draw for guests to your site. They
will see your property as honest and will be more likely to be open in
return.
Aggregators like Expedia and Hotels.com
function much like the travel agencies of the past. They make planning and
booking a trip easy and offer travelers assurance that they are getting the
best deal. Aggregators play a significant role in reserving and planning a trip
because they simplify the comparison process. While aggregators might siphon
traffic from hotel and casino Web sites in the beginning, they lack the unique
content and interaction that guests crave before making their final decision.
In short, even if users go to an aggregator this does not mean that they will
book there. Casino hotels have the distinct advantage of being able to brand
and promote their properties from a more holistic perspective than aggregators
and booking agents. Guest make their decisions on several factors — one of
which is the price that aggregators provide — but marketers can use their Web
sites to capture users further down the consideration funnel and drive online
reservations.
One method to capture this traffic is search-engine optimization.
Search engines are, by and large, where guests initiate their online purchase
decisions. For example, after they visit an online booking agent they will
likely return to their favorite search engine to conduct further research. Make
sure guests can find you at search engines to capture this traffic. Investigate
the keywords that drive your conversions (not just traffic) to optimize your
initiatives and make sure everything is running as efficiently as possible.
Emphasize the amenities that mean the most to your guests, and invest in
content that will garner top rankings for these words.
To augment your SEO efforts use paid search-engine marketing to
capture users as they progress down the conversion process. The use of paid
search and SEO is a powerful combination because it reinforces your authority
for queried keywords. It signifies to potential guest that your property
relates to their keywords, which boosts your click-through rates.
Once guests book and visit your property make sure you have a
solid program to retain them as future guests. Social media and e-mail are
innately built for customer-retention marketing because they require little
engagement commitment while reinforcing your brand. Depending on other campaigns, use your CRM outlets to
cross-promote events that entice guests back to your property. It also helps to
build profiles and personas around guests to add personalized touches as much
as possible.
The good news for casino hotel marketers is
that guests engage with brands online and have a predictable conversion
process. The key is to decipher and track how your particular guests engage
with properties during their consideration process and use it to your
advantage. .
Andreas Roell
andreas.roell@gearyi.com
Andreas Roell is president and CEO of Geary Interactive, a
full-service digital
marketing firm founded in 2000. With offices in Las Vegas,
San Diego and New York, Roell has built a successful
online company specializing in Web development, media buying/planning,
search
engine and e-mail marketing. He can be reached at (619) 239-5953 or via
e-mail
at e-mail at andreas.roell@gearyi.com
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