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By Kathleen A. Cullen, Senior Vice President, PHG Consulting
Hotel marketers are already thinking about creative new campaigns to help capture travelers once coronavirus-related restrictions are lifted. Some hoteliers have continued communicating with guests to keep them informed of the hotel’s status and provide relevant, fun programming, while others are waiting until they get closer to reopening.
Marketing campaigns will have to be timed appropriately to ensure alignment with a consensus that it’s safe to travel again. Yes, consumers will be looking for deals, but more importantly, they will want hotels that provide them with a sense of health and cleanliness. Now is the time for marketers to review content on all channels and all forms of communication to ensure that it is being presented from an entirely new perspective:
- Should your hotel consider a new section on its website that addresses healthy and safe business practices? Legal counsel should be considered.
- Review hotel imagery through an entirely new lens. Should hotels start including images representing cleanliness or the sanitation process? Also, displaying groups of people close together may not be ideal to lead with anymore.
- Are your reservation sales agents — onsite and call center — armed and ready to speak to safety, cleanliness, and spacing concerns?
- Communicate how your hotel is transforming its physical spaces to accommodate more room in public areas.
- Consider written content on all channels. Ensure that content on channels such as website, GDS, and OTAs represents the right descriptions of any new safety practices, change of services, and amenities.
- Have the check-in and checkout processes been revised to allow less human interaction or touchpoints? If so, make sure that this is being communicated in all areas.
Excerpted from New Rules to Be Market Ready, by Kathleen A. Cullen, a new white paper available from HSMAI and PHG Consulting. For additional information, insights, and tools, visit HSMAI’s Global Coronavirus Resources page.