Marketing in any form and shape takes a lot of effort and commitment. When you are starting, it could be fuzzy and confusing, most especially with the numerous marketing terms flying left and right. In this post, we will be discussing how to market your hotel business in Nigeria using marketing strategies that work.
Avenues to Market Your Hotel Business In Nigeria
Know Your Target Audience
Who is your audience? Who are you catering to? Who are your ideal guests? Your answer to these questions determines the kind of approach you should take in marketing your hotel business. It also dictates the kind of platforms you should maximize and the kind of features your hotel needs to have.
For example, if your target audience is travelling professionals, your hotel should be close to conference halls and business hubs. Also, ensure to have fast Wi-Fi and provide options like early check-in and airport pickup.
Build A Strong Online Presence
If you are not visible online, you do not exist. As stern as this sounds, it is the truth. The average hotel user will conduct an online search before asking a friend for recommendations, so you need to ensure you are noticeable online.
Start by designing a responsive and captivating hotel website. Ensure the site is easy to navigate for users who are not tech-savvy. Some of the important sections to include on your hotel website include room categories and pricing, amenities, gallery, reviews/testimonials, and a contact/WhatsApp button.
Also, ensure to optimize your website with SEO keywords, detailed descriptions, and a blog section that educates your audience. The website is your first impression, so you need to ensure it is beautiful and captivating.
Partner With Online Travel Agencies
Partnering with online travel agencies is one of the easiest ways to get visibility for our hotel. These agencies often interact with many tourists and travelling patrons who need a place to stay. Partnering with them will give your hotel higher visibility and traffic that may be difficult to keep up with. Additionally, these people trust the travel agencies, so it will be easier to ride on that connection to your hotel.
To maximize partnership with these agencies, always ensure that your pricing and availability are updated in real time. Also, encourage your guests to leave reviews and respond to these reviews positively.
Use Social Media to Drive Bookings
Social media is one of the most powerful marketing tools you should employ for your hotel. Ensure to maximize platforms like Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, and TikTok to publicize your brand. Ensure that all your content is relatable, engaging, captivating, and easy to understand.
You could consider content like room tours, breakfast buffet, guest testimonials, and promotional content. Partnering with influencers could also be helpful in publicizing your hotel and driving traffic to your site.
Encourage and Manage Online Reviews
Reviews are powerful in determining whether or not a guest will come to your hotel, so you need to ensure that section is not blank. Guests may forget to give a review, so you need to remind them. To make it easier, you could include a QR code for reviews and follow up via emails and whatsapp.
As you request reviews, you need to be prepared for both positive and negative. No matter how condescending a review sounds, ensure to respond politely and professionally. Also, ensure to apologize when your hotel is in the wrong.
Implement Email Marketing and CRM
Email marketing is a goldmine several hotel owners are sleeping on. Many businesses and organizations do not know how fast and how much email marketing leads to conversion.
Starting your email marketing journey could be as simple as building a guest database. Each time a guest visits, get their emails as part of the personal details you collate. Also, seek their permission to send promotional content and updates via mail.
Offer Promotions and Unique Packages
One of the fastest ways to get clients is by publicizing a promotion. Most Nigerians are constantly on the lookout to reduce costs, and a promotion is one way to get positive responses. As simple as a 10% discount or weekend deal could go a long way in getting you more clients. You could also maximize festive seasons to run promotions.
Just like promotions, you could increase your client base by offering unique packages. You could partner with a restaurant to offer a discount on meals. You could also have a special package for a unique set of people. For example, you could run a Valentine’s package or a honeymoon package for couples.
Host Events and Collaborate With Local Brands
Hosting events is one of the ways to market your hotel. As you publicize the event, guests will be forced to locate the venue, and this will lead them directly to your doorstep. Ahead of these events, it is important to prepare your staff and environment to give a lasting impression to everyone who walks in through your door.
While some events will be organized and sponsored by your hotel, others are best organized with other brands. You could consider events like workshops, exhibitions, brand launches, and networking events.
Maximize Traditional Marketing
Traditional marketing is not obsolete! It is no longer as prominent as online marketing, but it is still effective for hotel marketing in Nigeria. Ensure to maximize channels like radio jingles, flyers, banners, and magazines. Also, make use of prominent billboards in the vicinity of your hotel.
When using these channels, it is essential to make the content as captivating as possible. For the visuals, make use of high-resolution, attention-grabbing pictures, while the audio channels should use interesting and memorable sounds.
Measure Results and Optimize Your Strategy
Your marketing strategy is only as effective as your measurement of the results. At intervals, take out time to track how well your strategy is yielding results. During this check, confirm which avenues are converting more clients and intensify efforts on them. Also, confirm the weak channels so you can discover how to improve the strategy.
Conclusion
With the right strategy, your hotel can become successful and famous. In this guide, we outlined strategies you should be using to market your hotel in Nigeria. Dive in and thank us later. To discover more articles on hotel business management, subscribe to our newsletter.
