96 – Spring Workshop Takeaways

Episode Transcript

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Ryan Embree:
Welcome to Suite Location where hoteliers check out-in and we test out what is trending in resort marketing and advertising. I’m your host, Ryan Embree.

Ryan Embree:
Hello every person and welcome to a further episode of the Suite Location. This is your host, as constantly, Ryan Embree, Director of Advertising and marketing at Travel Media Group. And we have obtained a great episode for you currently. We do these episodes 4 times a calendar year due to the fact we essentially carry out four occupancy workshops for hoteliers. And this season’s workshop is titled “Business is Blooming: How to Increase Occupancy this Spring.” So this is our spring occupancy workshop. It’s one particular of my favorites since we are coming out of the winter, which is commonly a slower time for the market. And we’re finally starting up to see that expansion and occupancy. Now the springs the past few years have clearly been a small little bit unique with the pandemic and coming out of that. But with these workshops, we are talking about positioning your lodge digitally for achievements when vacationers are hunting and they are undertaking really a little bit of hunting, which we’ll discuss about here in second.

Ryan Embree:
So once again, these are occupancy workshops where we meet one-on-one particular with hoteliers in about a 15 to 20 minute session chatting about the hotel’s electronic existence. How are they positioning them selves coming into the year of spring break, holidays, May, Memorial day, a great deal of wonderful matters in the spring and really placing ourselves up also for the summer season where occupancy actually heats up. So with these episodes, what we like to do is, typically when I perform these workshops, we get some really good takeaways and insights from the hoteliers that we discuss about some typical themes and threads. So in the earlier, clearly we have talked about the staffing lack correct now, which has been hurting a great deal of folks. This is our 3rd time executing a spring occupancy workshop. Once again in 2020 and 2021, there have been incredibly unique discussions, which leads me to our to start with trend that we seen this workshop compared to other individuals, which was the positivity of the hoteliers that we were being chatting to. The optimism that was out there, that journey is returning.

Ryan Embree:
And as I discuss about these travelers doing searches, you know, I have received a actually remarkable stat that we came across, where by it states U.S. organic and natural Google search go to development by business in Q4 of 2021 vs . Q4 in 2020. And the proportion alter for travel was at 41%. So that is a good deal of eyes hunting and arranging and remaining encouraged to journey the moment once more. But as I caution the hoteliers that I spoke to on this workshop, they are gonna be on the lookout at your hotel’s digital presence a large amount in a different way than they did pre-COVID-19 and pre-pandemic. But development range just one, occupancy is rising. It is in this article. Whether or not we like it or not, transient leisure has normally been there the previous few several years and has been major the pack in restoration, but we’re also looking at small business, weddings come back again. So we’ll communicate a minor little bit about that later on, but the second development that I observed on these discussions that I was acquiring is, you know, we have been as an sector jogging all over, it feels like, attempting to figure out what to do to alter to this pandemic, this new standard that COVID has type of ushered into our market.

Ryan Embree:
And then on major of that, you have this staffing lack, correct? Inflation now beginning to hit household as very well, but we’re setting up to see issues kind of gradual down and hoteliers actually at last checking factors like their social media, their opinions, overview responses. And a lot of the hoteliers I talked to when we took 15 minutes to essentially sit down and consider a seem have been really amazed with what they saw. They probably experienced a front desk supervisor or a DOS that experienced left through these past two several years that was in cost of this things. And now it’s kinda laid dormant there. So I would encourage you if you’re listening to this, check out your Facebook, examine your hotel’s Instagram, LinkedIn, with any luck , you are on these websites, but check and see when the past time you posted, simply because time has been traveling by appropriate now and ahead of, you know, it, a lot of these posts that we have been seeing had been again in 2021 and vacationers are on the lookout now more than at any time for related facts.

Ryan Embree:
So if they see some thing again in, in 2021 or even 2020, it is not gonna be suitable to them. And it could indicate a negative connotation, damaging impact for the vacationers that are executing investigation. They are ultimately sitting down down and checking matters like their evaluate web pages and looking at on web sites like TripAdvisor, OTAs, Google, sites where tourists are creating reserving decisions that the past overview that they acquired was 6 months ago. We know ideal now that every thing is moving so fast. Omicron came in November and swept via the nation. And that improved the way that men and women understand touring and the degree of security of what that was. So all over again, check out like your lodge, social media, your popularity and review responses. That was a further thing we were chatting about, is acquiring the time to react to opinions. And I know for a lot of hoteliers listening to this, it could possibly be just one of people things at the base of our priority listing, but it is so vital suitable now when we speak about our next development, which is placing anticipations as opposed to meeting anticipations. And I’ll explain the distinction.

Ryan Embree:
So meeting anticipations is, assume about a traveler strolling into an financial state resort and expecting Ritz-Carlton support at an financial state level value. These anticipations are a tiny little bit much too significant, and it could be tough to fulfill people expectations. Environment expectations is a totally different discussion. Imagine of location anticipations as a person going for walks into your lodge in the summer months and expecting to appreciate that gorgeous pool that you have, and your pool’s closed for renovations. And they experienced no notion that that was the situation. That is a failure to established anticipations from a hotelier standpoint. So there is a extremely special change there. And when we talk about overview response is a person of the most impressive spots that we can set expectations for our long term traveler.

Ryan Embree:
Yes, it is very important to respond to the comments that is in entrance of you and to that traveler that took time outta their working day to go away you a assessment for your business. But it is also environment the anticipations for that potential traveler. So significantly has improved around the past two several years from breakfast, facilities, even resort procedures, the way we’re cleaning rooms, the way we’re interacting with guests. There could be travelers that when they come onto your assets have a absolutely various expectation. So if you are not placing individuals prior to their continue to be, then you are failing to established their anticipations. And that is essentially the variety a person motive that we are observing unfavorable evaluations on the web. As a good deal of you know, that pay attention to this, Journey Media Team has a React and Take care of option the place we react to visitor testimonials. We have now strike the unbelievable benchmark of responding to more than 750,000 assessments for our resort associates and are currently responding to a thousand visitor lodge critiques a day correct now in our headquarters.

Ryan Embree:
And the range a person purpose, the range just one reason that we are looking at these unfavorable testimonials appear in is due to the fact good expectations are not established. So if we can use assessment response as a way to talk and message to future travelers, which is gonna give us the prospect to established people suitable anticipations. And I’ll give you a rapid illustration if you are adhering to me. So just one of the things that has entirely altered and I suspect will choose a little little bit for a longer time changeover to get again to typical or pre-COVID is breakfast for our home, right? With the staffing lack, with individuals interacting, breakfast buffets, we ended up explained to to continue to be away from those people during the thick of the pandemic. Now we are at a place in which lodges could be at completely diverse spectrums of breakfast. Some could be ideal back again to wherever they ended up in 2019 with a giant hot breakfast buffet.

Ryan Embree:
Some others are still remaining conservative, breakfast on the go. If your visitor walks into your resort and does not know what they’re likely to get in the early morning, that is a failure to established expectations. And we’re viewing that from time to time in these reviews. So assessment response is a good way to established that. Social media, also. Fb, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, you wanna make sure that you are placing these correct visitor anticipations, because we’re seeing that yet again, definitely impacting hotels’ reputations that we’re working with. And then finally, the previous craze that we talked about with hoteliers for the duration of these workshops is just changing to the new usual. Seeing these teams appear back and what it’s likely to choose in order to receive their business. Weddings, past episode, if you are adhering to me the chance proper now for weddings and marriage blocks for our attributes is unbelievable profits likely out there.

Ryan Embree:
So what are you doing to check out to seize that and marketplace your hotel, getting edge of the bleisure vacation craze, suitable? The organization traveler that now performs from residence all 7 days and desires to begin their vacation early. They want to arrive out to the assets on Wednesday, Thursday, or on Wednesday with their family members so that the family members can love some of the facilities or attractions in your place. And they do the job from the resort, extending their vacation, extending the space evenings per remain. So how are we attracting? How are we adapting our advertising technique to capture this new regular traveler that we’re gonna see? And as I wrap up this episode below, I will say, it is been a quite tough few years to do this kind of spring workshop. And I have experienced to dig extremely, incredibly deep in analysis to try to discover some constructive news in the marketplace as it relates to occupancy and ADR, but knock on wood, if everything goes ideal, this spring, we are in for a monster spring and an even larger summer season.

Ryan Embree:
So the occupancy is heading to be there from travelers. But the question I want you to check with yourself is how do you want to be chosen? Do you wanna be selected because that traveler experienced originally desired to continue to be at the resort following door and they had been all booked or their price was way much too significant and they chose your hotel mainly because you have been possibility B or do you want to be possibility A, do you want your traveler to be enthusiastic about the stay that they’re gonna come on assets? Do you want them to develop into an advocate of your hotel right after they continue to be on property? Have you established proper expectations for this traveler when they step in by way of your lobby and approach the entrance desk, these are the variety of queries that you want to be inquiring, since once more, the occupancy will be there.

Ryan Embree:
But the difference in between traveler A that I just defined and traveler B is working day and evening. And after you get that type of snowball result of occupancy and advocates for your assets, it just furthers your reach and digital advertising and puts you at a aggressive advantage for expanding your occupancy. So if you have not participated in these workshops, as I pointed out prior to, we do them each individual single season. It’s one of my preferred components of my position right here at Travel Media Team. I would love to speak with you about your assets, about your locale. We know every single solitary hotel is unique. So which is what I like about these workshops. If you are interested in possessing a conversation about that, clearly you can access out to us at any time at travelmediagroup.com and we’d appreciate to communicate with you or up coming time we’ve got it in the summer season coming up. If you see that email operate across your inbox, plan a meeting with me, love to converse to you, but I am certain the next time we do these insights, we with any luck ,, fingers crossed, will have some excellent, excellent information to share. So thank you for all the hoteliers that participated in the workshop. Thank you for all for listening. And we’ll communicate to you subsequent time on the Suite Place.

Ryan Embree:
To sign up for our loyalty system, be positive to subscribe and give us a 5 star ranking on iTunes. Suite Spot is manufactured by Vacation Media Team with deal with art by Bary Gordon. I’m your host, Ryan Embree and we hope you savored your remain.