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Social media marketing for hotels and resorts

Posted on November 20, 2018September 21, 2021 by Alex Wilks

It isn’t unheard of for a customer to book a hotel or resort by means of an external booking site such as booking.com or trivago.com. In fact, it’s probably the most common method of booking people use. How you choose to position your hotel on your website and through social media channels helps potential guests to recognize your brand and steer them in the direction of your online presence. It’s all about presenting the right content, in the right place, at the right time that makes what you have to offer so desirable. But, just how do you choose which social media networks to use and how do you decide what content to post?

Choosing the right social media channels

Firstly, it’s important to know that there is no one-way street when it comes to social media marketing. What works for one hotel’s branding may not be the same case for another. You may operate a hostel that caters specifically to lower budget traveling. On the other hand, your business may be targeting business people that travel for work. Which social media channel you choose should be reflective of your target audience and geared towards engaging with them. Here are a few questions you could ask yourself before getting started:

How many social media channels do I have the time and money to run?
Which social media channels do my customers use the most?
How can I integrate my social media marketing strategy across the channels that I have chosen?

Once you answer the above questions you will be able to narrow your scope to a couple social media channels that appeal to your target audience.

Choosing the right content

In order to dominate your social media marketing strategy, you’ll need to post intriguing, eye-catching content that makes customers want to click and explore. The top social media channels for hotels and resorts are Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest. It’s also recommended that you keep up-to-date on TripAdvisor as well.

Facebook is the perfect general-use social media network for hotels and resorts. This platform allows you to add extra tabs, gain followers, post pictures, memes and stories as well as contact your guests easily and conveniently.

Instagram, on the other hand, is incredibly important if you hope to draw in customers by the use of visual content. You want people to get excited about your hotel and by posting beautiful images of your local sites, activities, dining and rooms, you’ll be able to help paint a picture to your guests about what they can expect upon booking.

That being said, Twitter is a great tool for hotels to conduct their customer service or any other time-sensitive updates and events.

Lastly, Pinterest allows user to spend time pinning images of places and hotels they would like to visit sometime. Who knows? Maybe your unique hotel will be added to boards used by people all across the world?

What social media channels do you think would work best for your hotel and why? Tell us all about it in the comments section below.

Email marketing strategies for boutique hotels

Posted on November 13, 2018September 21, 2021 by Alex Wilks

Many boutique hotels engage with their customers by direct messaging them before, during or after their stay. Although this tactic possesses its own list of benefits, it does not leverage the same edge as email marketing.

Possessing email marketing strategies are incredibly advantageous for boutique hotels to reach out to both new and existing clients. Considering smartphones are a part of most people’s day-to-day lives, often checking emails are as well. Here, we’ll explain why e-mail marketing should be a major part of your customer engagement strategy.

Why is it valuable for boutique hotels?

For starters, many potential customers are hesitant about giving their phone numbers to online booking sites out of the fear of being constantly bombarded with ongoing promos. Ironically enough, people are usually okay with giving out their emails, because they tend to be less invasive than a phone call or text message. By taking advantage of email marketing, your company has the power to kickstart a consumer relationship with potential or existing guests without worrying about scaring them away. They will simply respond or open the email when they have some extra time.

Emails encourage engagement

Once a customer decides to book a stay at your boutique hotel, you should begin by immediately reaching out with a message about their trip itinerary. This helps to build loyalty with your guests.

Yet, sometimes you need to be strategic when it comes to sending emails. If someone books their accommodation months in advance, perhaps a simple “thank you for booking with us” would suffice as your immediate email. This can then be followed by a reminder email about a week before they visit and another email about two days prior as a helpful reminder. On the other hand, if a guest books only a week in advance, you may want to send them a more detailed email listing any details that they may need to know before their stay. Most customers appreciate it and will often wait for an emailed confirmation to appear in their inbox.

Personalizing your email marketing

It’s really important to stand out. For smaller hotels, that could be as simple as personalizing your emails. The best way to utilize your email marketing strategy is by using old data that you’ve collected through prior email marketing campaigns. This allows you to collect information about the approximate age, sex and location that your guests are traveling from. This data has the ability to tell you lots about your customer demographic and how you can change up your emails to better entice them.

For example, if you notice that a lot of women are booking with your hotel, perhaps including a promotional code for your spa services would be an added offer that guests would enjoy finding in their inbox.

Your collected data should also be able to tell you if people are staying at your boutique hotel with their families or if they come on business.

How to get started

Often boutique hotels hire professionals outside of their hospitality management team to handle the development of their email marketing strategies. For many, this frees up their time so that they can dedicate it to another aspect of the business.

How do you manage your email marketing? Tell us in the comments section below.

Must-write topics to cover on your e-commerce blog

Posted on November 6, 2018September 21, 2021 by Alex Wilks

A variety of content is incredibly important when you’re crafting an e-commerce blog aimed at enticing new customers and keeping your current ones interested. Although quality content is key, it’s equally as important to have a regular blogging schedule that you can maintain and carry out each week. The more you write, the more you may find that your once full page of ideas is now scarce and non-existent. But it doesn’t have to be that way. There are always new topics to write about or subjects that can be re-written from a different angle. So, pick up that pen or get back to your computer with the help of these inspirational ideas.

Write a post about your products

Even though you probably have detailed product descriptions telling your customers what your products are all about, you can create a blog that specifically details how the products can be used. In a single blog post you can highlight multiple products that may possess a similar purchasing trend. This allows you to discuss their purpose further and even include some behind the scenes photos. It’s the perfect way to entice your customers to read your content without blatantly throwing an advertisement in their direction.

Write a how-to post

How-to blog posts are fun to write and best of all they are interesting to read as well. Often you may sell a product that has more than one practical use and this is a foolproof opportunity to show consumers what they are. For example, if you own an electronics company you may want to write about how-to troubleshoot outdated electronics. Obviously, you want to encourage them to click on your products, especially if they are having trouble with their current ones, but simply share your expertise with them and add a tagline at the end saying, “If you’re finally fed up, check out our line of…”.

Write a post on industry trends and news

It’s important to keep one eye open when it comes to trends or news that develop pertaining to your products. This asserts your position as a leader in your niche and is a good way to show your audience that you’re knowledgeable and up-to-date with your industry.

Write a list post

With Christmas just around the corner perhaps it would be beneficial to write about the top five items on your website that everyone would want to see if their Christmas stocking this year. This is an easy way to draw attention to your products, because often times people are scrambling around at Christmas to finish shopping for everyone on their lists. You’re just giving your customers a nudge in the right direction.

Do you struggle with writing in general? Do you have a stressful schedule and need help with your blog? We’re happy to say you do have options. Many startup companies often seek outside help to manage their e-commerce blog in order to ensure the quality is kept consistent and the writing is professional.

How do you come up with refreshing ideas for your e-commerce blog? Tell us in the comments section below.

What is social selling and how can it help with your sales?

Posted on October 30, 2018May 31, 2019 by Alex Wilks

The traditional methods of sales have transformed over the years and evolved into a more contemporary approach known as social selling. E-commerce business owners are utilizing the power of social networking to connect, communicate, engage, research and build up trust with potential buyers. The best part of this new selling technique is that people feel less targeted and annoyed, which can usually convert into an increase in sales. But what elements comprise the design of social selling?

What is social selling?

Social selling is a sales process that takes place by using the various social media platforms to reach out to your consumer market. Comparable to a casino slot machine (lots of misses and an occasional hit) social selling is a tactic used by businesses to push sales. Although campaigns have the ability to organically appear on buyers’ news feeds, they also have the potential to get missed in the mayhem of scrolling through.

Needless to say, most consumers find social selling to be an all-round pleasant experience when compared to the in-your-face methods of traditional selling. Social selling is also about creating a following just as much as creating sales. Generally speaking, consumers feel like the price point of a product or service are better if the sales approach isn’t as forceful.

Why is social selling beneficial to your company?

Before the massive wave of internet-friendly sales, sales people dominated this interaction between face-to-face. Now many people turn to the internet to meet their shopping needs, because they feel as if sales people have become too pushy and believe that they are simply trying to sell their product and not inform the public in the process.

To an extent this may be true. Back in the day all that salespeople needed was lots of sales skills and little to no product knowledge. Yet, social selling has revolutionized consumer access to product information. Not to mention the high-quality content is engaging to buyers.

Savvy sales professionals, both through traditional means and online, have become familiar with what their consumers want through the use of social listening and social sales. Instead of being the customers only means of information, e-commerce business owners now know that there is a plethora of facts available after a quick Google search. This allows them to curve their sales judgement and rethink their sales approach.

Needless to say, products are still advertised (more uniquely as a matter of fact), only buyers now have the chance to browse, seek out the best deal or product and read reviews all from the comfort of their own home. Social selling is the new approach to sales in the modern era.

How has your company benefited by using social selling as a selling strategy? Tell us in the comments section below.

The marketing benefits of social listening

Posted on October 23, 2018October 16, 2018 by Alex Wilks

There are many elements that should be involved in your social media management process. Part of what drives buyers to make purchases is your ability to connect with them and put a face behind your product. When people feel that a company supports their values, they are inclined to give their loyalty as a customer. By using social listening as a means to understand consumers you are taking full advantage of a key social media marketing benefit.

What is social listening?

For those of you who are not accustomed to hearing the term, social listening is the process of being aware of online conversations that are taking place amongst your customers (and potential buyers) through the use of their social media platforms. By familiarizing yourself with this practice, you are allowing it to be used as a tool to collect valuable data on topics, industries and brands.

Social listening vs. social media monitoring

Although both terms suggest keeping tabs on your buyers, social media monitoring is not the same practice. Though they are similar, social media monitoring is when an e-commerce business owner, or a hired social media professional, simply watch social media channels for mentions or comments about their brand. However, social listening involves a more in-depth insight into this conversation.

Interestingly enough, there are conversations that you may find valuable as a business owner that are taking place without appearing in your notifications tab. Actually, studies suggests that only 9% of Tweets that converse about your brand are happening opening on social channels. That means around 91% actually happen without you even knowing. Through the use of social listening you’re able to track keywords, phrases, events and organizations that correlate with your branding. This kind of social media digging provides you with a stronger social presence and other beneficial insights that will aid you in better connecting with your target audience.

What are some other benefits of social listening?

Strategy measurement: Strategies are simply a trial and error process. If something isn’t working, make a new plan. Social listening allows you to measure social engagement and see what is generating the most optimal results.
Content marketing: Since a successful business is measured by your ability to deliver good content, social listening will help you to reach your target audience by crafting posts that they care about.
Build a reputation: One of the most beneficial elements of using social listening is the prompt ability to handle a social media crisis. While positive mentions are the most ideal, negative mentions do happen and it’s important to tackle these issues to ensure your brands longstanding reputation.

If you don’t have the spare time to add social listening to your social media strategy consider speaking with a member from our team to help you with the process.

Have you integrated social listening into your social media strategy? Tell us all about it in the comments section below.

Why do you need a social media strategy?

Posted on October 16, 2018September 21, 2021 by Alex Wilks

The decisions you make regarding your e-commerce business have the ability to steer your company in a successful direction. In order to start defining your brand online, you need to make use of an effective social media strategy, an essential building block that will allow you achieve your target goals. Whether this detailed plan of action is focused on understanding your customers, creating innovative sales content or generating a presence within your niche, a concise social media plan will help you to stand out from your competitors. Here are a few reasons why a social media strategy is an effective way to manage your brands online reputation.

Many purchases are influenced by social media

There was a time when businesses only used social media to spread brand awareness, but that era of engagement has involved into something new and more marketable. Currently, more companies than ever before have invested in major social platforms in order to lure potential customers to their products and services.

For example, e-commerce businesses use Facebook to create ads, manage a posting schedule and keep an eye on their analytics. Not to mention, social media users often rely on their social feeds to provide them with recommendations based on their search history. The perfect way for them to find their way to you.

Lack of strategy gives your competition an advantage

Now that you understand how frequently a social media strategy is used and how effective it can be on influencing purchases, it seems silly to not have one. After all, without the appropriate framework, you’re basically handing your competitors your business.

Investing in your social presence by planning, prioritizing and executing active content will allow you to better communicate with your audience and will provide you with some steady insight into how you can set more appropriate business objectives.

Everyone is on social media

Now, this is probably the most valid reason of all… many people are already on social media. Your friends, colleagues, family and future customers are already probably active on at least one social media account, so, what do you have to lose? Why not strategically connect with your audience through means of social media?

If you’re not incredibly tech savvy or you don’t understand how to work your way around the popular social media networks, speak with a representative from Trek Marketing and find out how to get started.

Are there any other reasons as to why an e-commerce business should lay out a social media strategy? Tell us in the comments section below.

A quick guide on how to conduct a competitive analysis on social media

Posted on October 9, 2018September 21, 2021 by Alex Wilks

Social media is the heart of modern communication. It gives business owners the power of outreach and the ability to spread beyond the simple means of selling at a community market or relying on the word-of-mouth of friends. Although the use of social media to gain product hype is not a new concept, the use of competitive analysis is still relatively contemporary. Using this tactic as part of your social media strategy is a crucial element that will help you shape your competition and understand how to market your product or service.

What is competitive analysis?

Competitive analysis is the evaluation of your competitors, the assessment of their strategies, the determination of their strengths and weaknesses and how it all compares to your business. In the context of social media, it’s looking at your competitor’s social accounts and better understanding the methods that they are using to create a social media landscape within your industry.

How do you conduct a competitive analysis?

In order to understand the scope of your competitor’s success on social media, you will first need to gather as much information as you can on them. Who are they following? How often are they posting? What kind of content are they posting? Which social accounts are they using? Once you’re able to answer these questions, gather the data together and compare between each competitor and your current social media strategy.

How do you find out who you competitors are?

For many businesses this is an easy answer, but for others you may need to do a bit of digging around. Just remember that Google is always a good tool to help answer your questions. By typing in keywords or phrases you will be able to see who ranks above you — BAM, your competition. Be very specific in your search efforts and also take into consideration that your competition may not be local.

Another great method that will aid you in determining your competitors is to use your audience’s social following. Chances are they are following brands that are similar to yours and might be exceeding you when it comes to sales.

Once you make a pool of potential competitors, narrow your list to a few of the strongest ones. From there you can start investigating.

What social networks are they on?
How big is there following?
How often do they post?
Are their followers engaged?
What are their strengths/weaknesses?
How are they a threat to you?
Where are your opportunities to grow?

After you have gained some useful information on your competitors, your creative process will begin. Remember to be inspiring and not merely duplicating what your competition is already doing well. Also, it is best practice to look for a bold, unconventional and unique way to approach your future engagement. Stay organized and keep at it. Establishing a strong social media presence takes time and competitive analysis is only a single step in your journey.

If you need a little motivation to get started, consult with a professional about your social media strategy and have them dedicate the time to complete a competitive analysis for you!

Did you find our tips helpful? Tell us in the comments section below.

How do you build a successful brand?

Posted on October 2, 2018September 21, 2021 by Alex Wilks

Creating brand awareness is one of the most important things you can do as an e-commerce business owner. Familiarity and accountability generate devoted customers and establish a relationship that will grow through proper marketing, word-of-mouth and organically as your company expands. Naturally, brand building is so much more than a fancy website, an eye pleasing logo and an assortment of advertising, it is about establishing a target audience and focusing on their needs.

The first steps of brand building

First and foremost, you need to determine who your target audience is. Although you want anyone and everyone to buy your products or services, selecting a more narrow-focused audience will allow you to target how you will reach them, tailor your messages and accommodate what they need. The key part is to be as specific as possible. For example, college students who enjoy the outdoors. You’ve narrowed your demographic to include educated people, between the ages of 18 to roughly 30, that enjoy spending time surrounded by nature. This will allow you to cater your marketing approach to appeal to them and perhaps even other consumers along the way.

Create a mission statement

When you’re aiming to create brand awareness, you’ll have to craft a clear statement that expresses what your company is passionate about. Once you establish your target audience, you will be able to form a message that intrigues them. For example, the brand Nike has a clear, distinct message to their demographic, “Our Mission is to Bring Inspiration and Innovation to Every Athlete* in the World”, with a footnote indicating, “*If You Have a Body, You are an Athlete.” Those are some pretty smart choice of words when it comes to brand building.

Research, research, research

It’s naive to think that your brand is the only unique one, especially in a world of endless competition. However, dedicated time to research what is already being done is really worthwhile. Study how your competitors have effectively built their brand and identify how you can use the same processes within your own company

Hire professional help

A quality marketing team or professional graphic designer will be your saving grace when it comes to building brand awareness. They will work with you to reach your target audience by resonating your message through social media, newsletters and blog posts, all while creating an innovative logo and an attractive website design.

Do you have any other tips to help e-commerce businesses build their brand awareness? Let us know in the comments section below.

How do you build your advocate community online?

Posted on September 25, 2018September 21, 2021 by Alex Wilks

There’s no arguing the power of social media. Large-scale communication, access to an enriched research database and the most exponential collection of time-wasting videos. Social media is a beautiful thing. Yet, followers and likes do not directly determine your customer’s loyalty to your brand. The real question is, how does a brand effectively build a community of advocates?

Provide motivation for customers to advocate for you

The first thing you need to do in order to build a social presence is to create a benefit program that will motivate your happy customers to promote your brand. Craft yourself a list of customers that have expressed positive feelings about your brand in the past. Approach them by emailing them and asking them to complete an act of advocacy, such as leaving a review. The most important thing is to recognize them for their efforts. Maybe even by giving them some really cool swag so that they can personally represent your brand moving forward. Be sure to not constantly hassle the same few people, as they will get tired of doing you favors.

Really get to know your customers

The most important factor to consider when you build a social presence is that customers appreciate when you take the time to get to know them. Learn as much as you can about their needs, goals and challenges. If you’re hoping they will advocate for you, then you need to know more about what makes them tick.

Involve your entire marketing team

When you build a social presence all your gears need to be turning in the right direction, and that includes all the members of your team. Think of all the people that represent your brand — sales team, customer marketing, product development etc. — and consider how these team members can also use positive brand advocation. For example, perhaps your advocates know new potential customers that they could refer to your sales team. It’s a win, win for everyone!

Treat your advocates well

Bottom line, if you treat your advocates really well they will feel emotionally connected to your brand and be more excited to share your products or services with the world…especially if you give them product samples. Just remember if you have happy people advocating your business, that positive energy could go a long way in terms of how you build a social presence and spread your brand awareness.

Are there any other tips you can offer to ensure success when you build an online advocate community? Tell us in the comments section below.

Third-party software tools that help with social media marketing

Posted on September 18, 2018September 21, 2021 by Alex Wilks

Social media is one of the best methods of getting your message out into world. With a wide reach to your targeted audience, branding on social media networks is almost a necessity for any e-commerce business wanting to assert their knowledge in their field. Needless to say, social media marketing can be a little overwhelming if you don’t have access to the appropriate third-party software tools. Whether you want to have the ability to repurpose old content, engage with your audience regularly by means of a posting schedule or have more time to focus on your other business arrangements, third-party software tools have the ability to retain a social presence without dedicating an endless amount of time every day.

Hootsuite

If your business has a presence on multiple social media accounts (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram etc.) then Hootsuite will make it simple to post, schedule and customize to each of your social feeds from one easy-to-use platform. You simply add all of your social accounts, craft a post in the post manager section and schedule that post for as far in advance as you need.

Hubspot

This third-party software tool is beneficial for tracking which posts and channels are driving your sales. Not only do you have the ability to post and schedule content to your social media, but you can also monitor your channels closer and track the data.

TweetDeck

If you are on a tighter budget due to e-commerce startup costs then TweetDeck is the perfect third-party software tool for you. Although it is only used to post to Twitter, the free, multi-columned layout makes it easy to follow conversations, retweets and future scheduled tweets all from one screen.

Sprout Social

Comparable to the more widely used third-party software Hootsuite, Sprout Social allows you to monitor your client’s social media mentions, engage with your brand advocates and schedule your future content.

Google Analytics

Data can be gathered from your social media platforms by the use of Google Analytics. That gathered data has the ability to break down traffic and conversions in order to find out which social feeds are converting into sales and which ones need to be revamped.

Content Calendars

Although this suggestion for a third-party software tool does not require you to subscribe or purchase any complex software, it is recommended that e-commerce businesses create one in Google Docs or Microsoft Word. If you plan out your content in advance you have a distinct advantage that ensures you are present on your social media without needing to worry about coming up with unique ideas every day. This will give you more free time for other aspects of your business that require it.

Have you used any of these third-party software tools for your e-commerce business? Tell us about your experience in the comments section below.

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