Where to Budget Your Advertising Dollars in 2021

digital advertising trends

 

As 2020 is creeping toward a close, the travel and tourism industry will have had the most challenging year any vertical has seen.  And as you’re probably aware,Q4 means budget season is underway. Many sales and marketing executives are carefully trying to decide where they can allocate their marketing budget to see the best return on investment.

Emerging Ad Spend Trend

According to an article written by eMarketer, the travel industry digital ad spend will amount to just $3.24 billion at the end of 2020, an astonishing decrease of 41% year over year. Most of which has been spent towards search ad spending. Search engine marketing spend (think: Google, Bing, etc.) will account for almost 60% of the travel market’s digital budget, compared to other industries where search engine marketing makes up around 40% of their budget.

Want us to audit your SEO health for you? Contact our Director of Business Development, Jake, for a quote.

Why is Digital Advertising Important?

If you were trying to hit a target on a shooting range, wouldn’t it make sense to aim with a rifle rather than a shotgun? Similarly, digital search advertising precisely targets potential customers in search of your service and greatly increases your likelihood of success, rather than shooting in multiple different directions and hoping to hit your target.

According to Google, there are 3.5 billion searches made by users per day and the volume of Google searches increases by approximately 10% each year. 92% of these users will pick businesses found on the first search engine results page (SERP). Digital ads, when used effectively, will seamlessly integrate into your target customer’s internet browsing experience. The ads can then be personalized to maximize relevance toward your target audience, making it more effective than other mediums.

So, What Do I Do Now?

The increasing importance of digital search ads coupled with the current leisure “staycation” travel trend makes for a perfect blend of social and search advertising to warrant maximum success. Social advertising will give you the most reach with the lowest dollar and search advertising will allow you to most easily target your ideal customer. So, what do you do now? Ensure that going into 2021, digital advertising holds a large portion of your marketing spend. We’re hopeful for the revival of travel in 2021 and want to provide our friends with the tools to make it happen.

McConnell Marketing would be more than happy to help curate an effective and efficient digital marketing strategy – feel free to email Jake VanDerkar (our Director of Business Development) with any questions you may have.

,

4 Effective Strategies for Promoting Staycations

promoting staycations

 

As travel slowly starts to pick back up across the United States, one trend has emerged loud and clear: staycations. With COVID-19 leaving many still uneasy about traveling, families and couples are opting for the less-risky, yet still fun, mini vacation in their home state or city. What’s this mean for hotels? Your main source of revenue over the next couple of months (maybe even a year) may very well be coming from locals and nearby roadtrippers.

Audit Your Local SEO Performance

When done right, search engine optimization (SEO) can be one of the most useful tools for driving local traffic to your hotel. Take a quick audit of your existing SEO by looking at these four things:

  • Google My Business: make sure your listing is up-to-date and accurate; if you don’t have a listing, we can help
  • Name, Address, Phone Number: check that your NAP is consistent anywhere it’s mentioned – your website social media, etc.
  • Structured Citations: make sure your property has a listing on reference sites like Yelp
  • Reviews: encourage guests, in-person and online, to leave reviews after their stay; more reviews means more recognition

Want us to audit your SEO health for you? Contact our Director of Business Development, Jake, for a quote.

Take Advantage of Social Media

Social media marketing is a relatively inexpensive promotional outlet – perfect for properties working with slashed budgets. Reach staycation-ers in the area by running strategic ads targeted to those living within a specific radius of your hotel. Boost your timeline posts to specially curated local audiences. Push special discount codes (skip further down for staycation packages) through social or even promote daily restaurant deals. With social media, you don’t have to spend a lot of money to see a decent return.

Promote Meeting Space as a WFH Alternative

Over the last few months, millions of Americans have been uprooted from their traditional offices and likely re-planted at their dining room tables. Capture the attention of locals still working from home by offering a quiet, productive alternative workspace – your hotel. Emphasize amenities like in-room desks, fast Wi-Fi and ample conference space to seal the deal. Your rooms and meeting space could also be the perfect place to host home-schooling a few days a week.

Design Special Staycation Packages

Many hotels, maybe even your property, are turning towards custom staycation packages and special discounts to locals. At Inn at East Beach, you’ll see the California Resident Offer front and center on the Offers page of their site, a room rate discount, free parking and WiFi. Other brands like Mandarin Oriental have totally folded staycation packages into their re-opening strategies. Once you’ve curated the perfect staycation package, reach out and we’ll help you promote it. Think: digital advertising, strategic social media posts and even the tried-and-true direct mail campaign. Whatever your budget allows, we’ll work with you to get the most out of your staycation strategy.

These are just a few ways to target staycation-ers this year. Ready to start planning your marketing strategy? Give us a call or shoot us an email to set up a *virtual* coffee date with our Director of Business Development, Jake VanDerkar.

,

How to Communicate Safety and Cleanliness to Potential Guests (Without Spending A Lot of Money)

alt=""

 

In this new world we’re living in, the “build a hotel and they will come” plan unfortunately no longer works (did it ever really, though?). If your property has reopened or plans to reopen soon, it’s time to promote two amenities all guests expect to see – cleanliness and safety. Skim below for a few communication and promotion strategies.

Jam-Packed Events Are a Thing of the Past

Now isn’t the time to boast about a venue that can hold massive gatherings – crowded indoor spaces are the last thing businesses and potential guests want to hear during pandemic. Instead, emphasize your open-air outdoor event space (if you have it) and flexible seating arrangements that allow for optimal social distancing. Pay attention to the distance between chairs in photos and consider adjusting your old capacity chart numbers, especially on digital marketing materials, to reflect new distancing guidelines. Another pro tip: maintain positive relationships with your guests (they could be repeat visitors) by offering relaxed cancellation policies.

Keep Things Contactless

The more ways you can reduce or completely eliminate contact between guests and hotel staff, the better. Motion sensor sanitizing stations throughout your lobby make it easy for guests to keep clean without handling bottles or nozzles. Contactless check-in, an option that’s available at over 4,700 Hilton properties right now, allow guests to use their phones to book and enter their rooms (no more long front desk line).

Clean Touchpoints, Then Mark Them

Regularly cleaning commonly touched surfaces throughout your hotel and guest rooms is a no-brainer, but make sure it’s obvious to your guests. Place small table tents on counters, hang signs on doors and cover remotes with messages that indicate the space has been freshly cleaned prior to guests’ arrival. Small notes like these give guests peace of mind while staying at your hotel. If you’re in need of signage like this, send us an email. Regularly cleaned touchpoints can also be communicated to guests before they even arrive, with messages on your website or callouts added to your floor plans.

Overshare Details

In a COVID world, TMI is a good thing. Let potential guests know that you care about their health and wellbeing by sharing, then sharing again, your new cleaning policies and procedures. There’s hand sanitizer stations in the lobby? Take photos and post them on Instagram. Chairs are spaced six feet apart in all meeting spaces? Indicate that in your meeting planner guides. Surfaces are cleaned every hour? Design signs and post them on-property for all to see. Brands that are open about their adjusted procedures are the ones that will survive, and hopefully thrive, in this pandemic. Let us help you share your new procedures.

While most things have been uncertain during this pandemic, one thing isn’t: marketing is still necessary. Keep your potential guests in mind as you develop new messaging and materials that position your property as both safe and clean. Have questions about anything mentioned above? Reach out to our Director of Business Development, Jake VanDerkar.

 

4 Ways to Spring Clean Your Marketing in This “New Normal”

4 Ways to Spring Clean your Marketing

 

In recent months, COVID-19 has turned America upside down. As industries and individual businesses figure out how to navigate this new world, we’re here to help in any way we can. Scroll below for a few creative ways to “spring clean” your existing marketing practices to align with the new world we’re living in.

eCommerce is the New Shopping Mall

Yes! Welcome to the new and improved digital world. If you haven’t noticed, businesses are finding new ways to ramp up their digital presence. Grocery stores and other consumer goods organizations are starting to blend traditional shopping with eCommerce with things like contactless pickup. At grocery stores and coffee shops alike, consumers now have the chance to order their goods online, then visit the store to pick up their order. Not only does it save the hassle of shopping in-store, but it ensures safe socially distanced shopping. Another great example of eCommerce is at Body Temple Fitness Studio in Youngstown, Ohio. The gym recently introduced a digital studio that allows anyone interested to subscribe to a video-based workout program, straight from their home!

Did you Update Today’s Facebook Status?

If your business hasn’t maintained a solid social media presence in the past, now is the perfect time to rack up the followers. As millions of Americans are confined to their home, social media is the perfect way to capture their attention. With the ability to reach thousands of viewers by simply “boosting” your posts to the right audiences, Facebook and other social platforms are an inexpensive, yet effective way to interact with potential and current customers, while also continuing to build your brand. See how we leverage the power of social media with our client, Broadway Recovery Services.

Refresh Your Website, Literally

Websites are extremely important – especially in this day and age. Why? Even if your customers do not buy anything directly off your site, it is important to authenticate your business. Websites create a level of professionalism that show credibility to potential customers. An aesthetically pleasing and up-to-date website is necessary to keep a leg up on your competition and stand out. Visit our Work page to check out a few ADA-compliant websites we’ve designed recently.

Keep Your Messaging Mindful

Realize that this is a tough time for many, and some of your customers may not  have much of a budget right now. Some may have been furloughed, others may have lost friends or family, or experienced a number of other difficult situations in the past few months. When planning your marketing schedule, be sensitive to your target audience’s current situation.

Want to run a couple marketing ideas by our Director of Business Development, Jake VanDerkar? don’t hesitate to give him a call or send him an email! Jake would be happy to meet over a socially distanced cup of coffee.

Pantone 2020 Color of the Year

Instilling calm, confidence and connection, Classic Blue has officially been selected as Pantone’s Color of the Year. The Pantone Color Institute hopes to offer the world an “anchoring foundation” through Classic Blue, as we enter the new year.

 

All About Classic Blue

Think of what the sky looks like at dusk and you’ve got 2020’s Color of the Year, Classic Blue. It’s simple, timeless and used in all sorts of relaxed settings (think: spas). Classic Blue is a restful color that brings a sense of peace and tranquility, while also aiding concentration- something we could probably all use as we enter the new decade.

 

The Selection Process

For over 20 years, fashion designers, home furnishing curators and everyone in between looks to the Pantone Color of the Year for inspiration in the following year. So, a lot of time and thought goes into selecting just the right color. The Pantone Color Institute comb a variety of industries looking for trends that could inspire the year’s color. Influences might come from socio-economic conditions, upcoming sporting events, art collections, you-name-it. Overall, the color sets the tone for the following year.

 

Use Classic Blue in Your Sales Collateral

One of our favorite jobs as a hotel marketing agency is telling a brand’s story. How? Through selecting the right colors and patterns. If Classic Blue fits into your brand, or maybe might work for an upcoming event, let us help you incorporate it!