Social media is here to stay, and used correctly, it may even increase room occupancy at your bed & breakfast!
How will potential guests decide to book one of your rooms. It’s likely that they are checking out your social media in addition to review sites like TripAdvisor, Facebook, Google+, and Yelp.
These sites are a valuable source for travelers, however the authentic reviews that they collect are just as valuable to your bed & breakfast.
The proof is found in a study done by Medallia of 4400 properties which discovered that:
- responding to a few more reviews resulted in an increase in occupancy rate;
- responding to 50% more reviews resulted in 2x the occupancy rate growth of properties that didn’t try to respond to more reviews; and,
- responding to reviews faster boosted occupancy rate.
You can even turn negative reviews into a positive for your bed & breakfast.
Social media’s value goes far beyond just guest reviews. Sites like Twitter and Instagram also play an important role for small accommodation providers.
Pertinent tweets are now even included in Google mobile search results! This means that your bed & breakfast’s Twitter account has the potential to reach more travelers who search for keywords you use when they’re on the go.
And bed & breakfasts are finding creative and innovative ways to use social media. Not just to attract bookings but also to encourage sharing when guests are at their hotel.
Here are a couple inspirational examples.
Four Seasons Dallas
The Four Seasons in Dallas, Texas, installed a social wall as part of their fourth of July promotion.
The screen displayed social posts that guests were sharing in real-time. It made guests want to get to know each other, as well as want to be seen on the wall!
By the end of the holiday, the hotel was mentioned or involved in over 243,000 social media impressions, and reached an audience of over 100,000 users.
1888 Hotel
In Australia, the 1888 hotel devised a creative strategy using Instagram.
They take it even further by having a ‘selfie space’ in the lobby, and offering guests the opportunity to win a free night’s stay if they take a great shot of the hotel. If their instagram account has over 10,000 followers, they can instantly redeem their free night.
What can your bed & breakfast do to jump on the social media bandwagon?
Social Media is an Opportunity
You should choose to view social media as an opportunity for your bed & breakfast – not as a task to be completed!
- Join online review sites and start managing your reviews properly.
- Encourage reviews so that there is a consistent stream of positive ones on your profile pages.
- Turn your Facebook page into a source of direct bookings.
Today, with COVID casting a shadow over all activities, travelers are increasingly using social media to research and share their trips. So, you need to be where they are, and use social media to shape their opinions of you.
If you want more tips on how you can create an engaging online presence for your business, follow the IAA Bed and Breakfast Blog and our Facebook Page.
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