Here are 3 tips on how to maintain your hotel or hostel’s online presence during COVID19…

We know that marketing your travel brand during the pandemic is not easy and it can be tempting to go offline.

Conjuring the motivation to invest time in your brand’s marketing when bookings have flatlined is difficult – but it really is vital that you maintain your hotel or hostel’s online presence during COVID19. 

With people spending way more time at home than usual, internet usage is much higher than normal. While people are not able to explore the world at the moment, they are trawling the web for content that keeps them busy and offers an escape from the uncertainty of the current situation.

You may currently be closed for business but the online world never sleeps therefore it is the ideal time to stay connected and boost awareness of your brand by providing valuable content for people while they are stuck at home.

Let’s think about it – bookings have been cancelled, flights have been halted and the world is uncertain as to when we’ll be allowed to travel again. Now, you may be thinking, ‘oh great, thanks for cheering me up’, but actually, this can be turned into a huge positive.

While people will be down about their plans being cancelled, they’ll also be eager to get out and travel as soon as we’re allowed to again. This means there’s a pretty high change that a lot of time at home will be spent on online, researching and planning their future travels.

We call this the research phase of the traveller’s purchase funnel however in these current times, we are expecting this phase to be much longer than usual. By going offline and waiting for this all to ‘blow over’, you are missing out on a key opportunity to connect and engage your target audience and inspire them to eventually book with you for their post-pandemic trip.

This is not the time to be ‘selling’ the experience you offer. Instead, the focus should be on building brand awareness with authentic messaging that drives traffic to valuable content on your website.

So, how do you implement this and start actioning our advice?

1. Tidy up your act

Portraying the right image to your target audience is a vital aspect of effectively boosting brand awareness to the people you want to reach. Now is the time to sit down and go through your website, note down areas for improvement in terms of design and content and figure out ways to improve your online user experience.

Ask yourself:

• Is it immediately obvious when users book when they land on the website?
• Is the site mobile-friendly? (If it isn’t, this is your first priority)
• Are there clear call to actions as you scroll down the website? E.g ‘Book now’, get in touch’.
• Are the images on the site high-quality and do they portray the brand in the best way possible?
• Is the copy easy to read and portray the personality of the brand effectively?
• Could the loading speed of the web pages be improved?
  
  

Tidying up your website and improving areas that you have never had time for before is a sure fire way of people spending longer on your site and in the longer term, boosting direct bookings.

You could also spend a little time sorting out your social media profiles. While you might be thinking, ‘but how is that really going to help?’, you’d be surprised at how quickly people can be put off from a brand by simply looking at their social media platforms.

To avoid this, spend a few minutes optimising your profiles by:

• If you haven’t already, switch your Instagram profile from a personal profile to business account.
• Check your contact information is up to date including your phone and email address.
• Choose a relevant, on-brand profile image – no selfies, blurry images or random building pictures. We recommend using a photo of your logo.
• Ensure your Instagram bio explains who you are and what you do – you only have 150 characters to describe your hostel so keep it concise, include keywords as well as your branded hashtag and display your direct booking offer. 
• Choose one filter to use on all of the photos you share on Instagram.
• Optimise your Facebook tabs and ensure the ‘Book now’ button is added to the top of your page.  
  
  

2. Curate and optimise content

Focussing on SEO could be one of the most valuable areas to invest your time in during the pandemic. With many brands in the travel sphere abandoning their market efforts, there is a huge opportunity to boost your site’s visibility within organic search.

Working on SEO does not bring instant results – instead, they can take a long period of time to take effect and to see the return on your investment (whether that is time or money).

This means that taking the time to optimise your website and create blog content during this period, will put you at an advantage in the long term as more and more people begin to plan their travels again. Improving your site’s ranking on search engines will help you stand out from your competitors when the travel ban lifts (it will lift, hang in there!) and people are deciding where to head and where to stay.

It’s also an effective way to grab people’s attention in the short term too when combined with your social media efforts. While people are at home scanning the internet, publishing high-quality blog content and travel guides will keep your business relevant and in your guest’s minds. By capturing the attention of people who are daydreaming about their future travels, it is likely they will remember you when they come to book their next trip. 

Working on your SEO and improving your organic search engine ranking could genuinely ensure that your business survives and thrives after the pandemic.

3. Get social

Maintaining visibility on social media during the pandemic is vital. While communicating with your followers and providing a seamless online customer service experience is key, it’s also a great opportunity to have some fun.

While the whole world is going through a difficult time, social media still acts in the same way to boost brand awareness among your target audience. Despite some of the content you usually share perhaps not being as relevant, we know people are spending an increasing amount of time on social media so, it’s time to get creative.

In terms of reaching new audiences online, we suggest you switch up the travel hashtags that you usually use. Carry out some research on what other travel brands are using as well as influencers that have previously stayed – or you would like to stay – with you. 

Sharing your destination guides or blog content on travel Facebook groups are also a great way of reaching your target audience. We do not recommend publishing any promotional posts though as this is usually against the guidelines and could result in being removed.

In terms of the actual content you share on your social platforms, take the experiences you offer online. So if you’re in a foodie destination and serve up family meals for guests, you could film a series of local cooking lessons on IGTV, Facebook or – if you’re feeling brave – Insta Live. 

If your property usually has live music on a weekend, ask past acts or DJs (or maybe even one of your talented staff members), if they could perform a set live on Instagram.

For activities you offer such as yoga and fitness classes, you could film tutorials at beginner, intermediate and advanced levels for people to complete at home.

If you’re reading this thinking that you either don’t offer these kinds of experiences or you simply don’t have the resources or time to carry it out, think about what your destination is known for. 

From famous authors and musicians from the area local food delicacies, list some of the best things to come out of your location. From there, share each category on your social platform so your followers can experience your destination at home. For example, for a couple of our clients we launched a #ScotlandToYourSofa and #LondonToYourLivingRoom series.

Another effective yet free idea to bring what you offer online is by curating themed quizzes for your followers to get involved with on Instagram. It allows you to engage with your audience and build up a loyal community while giving you the opportunity to showcase the experiences you offer.

Maintaining your brand’s online presence during the pandemic will pay off in the long term as you connect and build your loyal community who will then think of you when they can travel again.⠀
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If you don’t grab the opportunity to stand out, a competitor will and you’ll be three steps behind during recovery mode.⠀

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