Exploring Social Media Platforms and Their Benefits for Your Brand.

Twitter is best used to update guests about things that are happening right now, and because of this, it’s perfect for engaging with guests during their stay. Due to the ‘real-time’ response associated with Twitter, it is also the most used platform for customer service queries and complaints. A recent study by Twitter on UK users showed that 33% have used the platform for travel-related customer service issues, and from these interactions, 96% who had a friendly experience said they would return to the brand and 83% said they would recommend it. This just shows how effective communications on Twitter can be for brand exposure and loyalty.

Ranking as the 14th most used social media platform, just behind Twitter with 320 million monthly users, Pinterest is widely regarded as a strong platform for lead generation and bookings. Travel is within the top 7 ‘most-searched’ topics on Pinterest where users can create ‘mood-board’ bucket lists as well as researching new destinations. Unlike other social media platforms, users do not need to ‘follow’ pages or profiles to see and engage with content, as Pinterest works as a targeted search engine, similar to Google. This is a massive benefit for users as they can easily find relevant content and because of this, if correctly optimised and targeted, your hotel’s ‘pins’ will reach audiences already considering your hotel or destination. In fact, 87% of Pinners have made a purchase because of something they saw on the platform including booking accommodation.

Although you will spend most of your time focussing on B2C marketing, there are many benefits of marketing to businesses too, and LinkedIn is the best way to do that. If you’re a wedding venue or offer meeting rooms and corporate events, you should be sharing this information on LinkedIn. Join and interact with hospitality industry groups, posting content to these feeds as well as your own business page with effective trending and relevant hashtags. And make sure you connect with the right people such as wedding planners and local vendors for easy cross-promotion and heightened exposure.

It’s no surprise that Youtube has 1.8 billion users and is the second-largest search engine in the world. However, with an increase in video on social media platforms, user attention span has steadily reduced due to the over-saturation of this content. This means that your video needs to grab the attention of the viewer within the first 10 seconds or they’ll scroll on. Creating ‘thumb-stopping’ video content that effectively portrays your business is key, and will help to develop a stronger sense of place than imagery alone. Similar to Pinterest, Youtube is a search engine, meaning that users find content by searching key search terms. This is why every video must be effectively optimised with a relevant title, effective search tags and a relevant caption.

Although you will spend most of your time focussing on B2C marketing, there are many benefits of marketing to businesses too, and LinkedIn is the best way to do that. If you’re a wedding venue or offer meeting rooms and corporate events, you should be sharing this information on LinkedIn. Join and interact with hospitality industry groups, posting content to these feeds as well as your own business page with effective trending and relevant hashtags. And make sure you connect with the right people such as wedding planners and local vendors for easy cross-promotion and heightened exposure.