How to use Hotel Reviews for Viral Marketing
- Go to Review Websites like TripAdvisor, TravelPost, Trivago, Vinivi, Zoover, etc and find your favorite reviews.
- Copy the best phrase and page url for this individual review.
- Go to your corporate / company FaceBook page and past the sentence and url in there.
- On the review website respond to the review by thanking the guest for his compliment. Mention that you posted the review on your FaceBook page and that he should check it out.
- Chances are he will go there and click on the like button. Now all his FaceBook friends can see he liked your hotel.
ย
This is a very simple way to start engaging and communicating with your guests online. And the trick is that you let them spread the message for youโฆ This is viral marketing. Simple, right?
The next step would be to send and email after check-out to all guests asking them to write something about their stay on a selection of review websites. Not just TripAdvisor of course, but you have to make sure you get reviews on all review sites and travel communitiesโฆ
Here is a small list to get you started;
- TripAdvisor.com
- TravelPost.com
- Trivago.com
- Igougo.com
- Uptake.com
- Hotelicopter.com
- Virtualtourist.com
- Holidaywatchdog.com
- Vinivi.co.uk
- Zoover.com
- Holidays-uncovered.co.uk
- Globalhotelreview.com
- Mytravelguide.com
- Travbuddy.com
- Shermanstravel.com
- Hotelscombined.com
- Zoomandgo.com
- Hotels.about.com
- Triptake.com
- Hotelmotelreviews.com
- Hotelscoop.com
- Hotelshark.com
- Driftr.com
- Bootsnall.com
- Travellerspoint.com
Sorry, I kept on running into hotel review sites and travel communities. The list became longer than foreseenโฆ You need to check these websites to see which ones are strong for your destination and make sure your guests start sharing their experiences with fellow travelers.
To incentivize them you could award a free weekend each month for the review with the best picture of your hotel. There needs to be something in it for your guests if you want them to promote you.
Besides asking them to put a review on these travel websites, also ask them to post it directly on your FaceBook page. If you can get them to do it, itโs much better of course.
As you can see, it is quite simple to start getting involved in social networks and implement creative ways to promote your hotel. Most important is that you target you existing customers. They will be easier to engage. And to make it work in the end, they must spread the message to their friends.
I hope these tips in viral marketing are of help.
Share This Story, Choose Your Platform!
About the Author:
As CEO and Founder of XOTELS, Patrick Landman has made it his mission to turn hotels and resorts into local market leaders. XOTELSยด diverse expertise and deep-knowledge across revenue management consulting, hotel management, and hotel consulting, enables us to drive results for independent boutique hotels, luxury resorts, and innovative lodging concepts. Below you will find opinion articles written by Patrick Landman.