Travel magazines, newspaper sections and websites have a huge impact on the decisions made by your potential guests. Everyone wants to have the best possible experience on their next vacation, so what better way to ensure that than to take the advice of the experts? Travel writers hold a lot of weight when it comes to the decisions of travellers. They are able to play the role of a trusted friend and test out destinations for travellers, deeming the trips worthy or not of the traveller’s time and money.
A destination writer can definitely contribute to the marketing strategy of the hotel. If your hotel is lucky enough to host a writer, then you have a great opportunity to showcase your wonderful property to thousands of readers. A writer would start evaluating your hotel way before arriving – right from the ease of booking which takes place through your hotel reservation system to the way a confirmation email has been sent or a call been made.
Once a hotel is featured in a spread of a major magazine like Travel + Leisure or on a primetime spot on the Travel Channel, it piques the interest of potential guests. Because the guess work has been done for them, guests will be more likely to book a property that has enjoyed the favourable reviews of a trusted travel writer.
You should not ever offer a writer extra services, benefits or additional perks. Create the same experience for them as you would all of your other guests, and allow your hotel to speak for itself. While you certainly want them to have an exceptional experience, don’t treat them exceptionally. This may do more harm to your reputation than good. The appearance of treating a writer differently from other guests can lead to accusations that you are bribing the writer for a favourable review. While most writers would not accept such offers or allow them to cloud their judgement, it is best to avoid special treatment. You can, however, leave a handwritten thank-you note in the room, thanking the writer for choosing your property. A small gesture like this will show that you appreciate their choice without being overbearing.
With every detail and service of your hotel being measured in a hawk-eyed manner by a travel writer that could turn opinions of prospective guests in any direction, your hotel needs to be well prepared. Hotelogix’s cloud based hotel management system comes to the rescue of unprepared hotels by offering an easy tool that increases efficiencies and eases challenges in managing the property, thus giving hoteliers more time to channelize their energies in creating wonderful guest experiences.
