Luxury Hotel Marketing Tactics to Target Three Key Guest Types

in Content Marketing, Destination Marketing Organizations, Email Marketing, Hotels & Resorts, Search Marketing, Social Media Marketing by Kristen Noonan
Luxury-Hotel-Marketing-Tactics-to-Target-Three-Key-Guest-Types

Every luxury hotel knows these three guest archetypes and wants to engage and appeal to them. Here, we share the top luxury hotel marketing tactics for reaching them at the top of the funnel.

The “dreaming” stage of the traveler’s journey is when the traveler is thinking about taking a trip without a particular destination or timeframe in mind. This stage is at the top of the funnel and particularly valuable in luxury hotel marketing. Capture their attention with some stunning photos and your potential guest may just skip the other steps and fly right to your booking engine.

We’ve zeroed on how to market to travelers during the dreaming phase by starting with three common luxury hotel guest personas. Then, we present a sample tactic for paid, earned, and owned media outlets. The result is a quick cross-section of some of the tactics you want to make sure you have nailed down.

1. The Lacrosse Mom

The Lacrosse Mom is an upper-middle-class, trend-following leader in her family. She wants a vacation that’ll be fun and engaging for the kids, but still interesting enough for her and her partner.

Marketing Tactics to Optimize

  • Paid – Influencer Marketing: If influencer marketing brings to mind millennials and Generation Z – you’ve got it all wrong. The LM lives for scrolling Pinterest and swiping through Instagram. There are tastemakers – like these “Influencer Moms” – in their 30s and 40s with large followings who are a perfect partner for reaching the LM.
  • Earned – Online reviews: Make sure your presence is updated on TripAdvisor, Yelp, Expedia, and the like, and constantly scan for new reviews. The LM wants to know that she’s not just going on any old vacation – she did her homework and is staying at a resort with “amazing reviews.” Address any negative reviews promptly and effectively, and promote the glowing ones on your social channels.
  • Owned – Email Marketing: Because she likely booked the trip and is the contact between your hotel and her family, the LM’s email address is very valuable. Build and maintain segmented email lists of guests who stay with you to encourage them to return at strategic times.

2. The Jet-Setting Baby Boomer

Whether retirement has hit or not, the Jet-Setting Baby Boomer (JSBB) has a good sense of what he’d like to do on his getaway and will conduct careful research. He appreciates a good deal, but he’s willing to splurge for bucket list–type activities and luxurious accommodations.

Marketing Tactics to Optimize

  • Paid – Pay Per Click: The JSBB’s research will largely take place on Google and considering his willingness to click search ads a strong PPC campaign is a key ingredient for capturing the JSBB’s attention.
  • Earned – PR: Legacy publications are still a trusted source of information for the JSBB – think magazines, both national and regional. Maintain a good relationship with journalists and publications. You can help them by being a source, for example. You never know when they could feature you in their next story.
  • Owned – Content Marketing: Going hand in hand with the aforementioned SEM strategy, building and maintaining a robust content strategy is key. The obvious place for you to produce your own content is on a blog, but it can also be elsewhere on your website. Having a trove of informative, interesting stories will keep the JSBB on your site for longer, increasing your chance of conversion.

3. The Rising Corporate Star

The Rising Corporate Star (RCS) does everything fast, from her morning routine to climbing the corporate ladder to booking vacations. She’s not the corporate warrior of old – this 30- or 40-something values her time away from the office. She doesn’t need to meticulously review her options, she doesn’t need to penny pinch, and she doesn’t hem and haw: She pulls the trigger when met with an offer that’s sufficiently easy and attractive.

Marketing Tactics to Optimize

  • Paid – Retargeting: Get your message in front of the RCS enough times and her impulsivity could take over – especially if she’s already visited your website.
  • Earned – Social Mentions: If the RCS has a vacation in the back of her mind and she sees a friend mention something regarding her own fabulous stay, it could be just the nudge she needs to book. Give your guests a reason, like gorgeous visuals, to follow you on social media.
  • Owned – Mobile Website: As we established above, time is precious to the RCS. Those few minutes of downtime on a commute could be when your luxury hotel catches her eye. If your website isn’t optimized for mobile and she’s browsing on her phone, she’ll bounce to the next option. Be prepared.
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