While consumers tend to want a website to provide the information they’re after as quickly and succinctly as possible, long-form blog posts are a little different.
The content featured throughout the main pages of your website should clearly display quick answers to consumer questions, so you don’t run the risk of losing their attention, your blog should be the place where you delve deeper into the character, identity and individuality of your hotel.
Blog posts are engaging articles that add value to your website by highlighting topics and experiences relevant to your hotel. Whilst the rest of the copy on your website should remain relatively minimal so it’s easy to absorb, blogs offer the opportunity to share longer-form pieces of writing that provide your readers with a depth of information, giving you a space to showcase your brand and communicate your offering on a deeper level.
The vast majority of content on the blog page of most websites is news stories. Internal business news is a great place to start when it comes to drafting blogs, as it gives your visitors an insight into the way you function, and adds some personality to your online image.
Hotels can also use their blog to showcase the local area, their menus, or activities and events that appeal to their target market. All of this works towards convincing potential customers that you’re legitimate, reliable and different, which swaying them towards making a booking.
Whilst news stories are a great place to start, they don’t give the full picture, and too often this is the only content we see on blog pages. There’s much more potential to tap into when considering topics to cover in your posts, such as putting a focus on some of your unique selling points (USPs).
For example, one of the main selling points for The Peacock at Rowsley is their location on the historic Haddon Estate in the Peak District. With this in mind, their blog posts draw attention to the surrounding area, focusing on features such as local walking trails, events coming up in the Peak District, and seasonal photo galleries.
Draw further attention to the main selling point of your hotel for the benefit of potential customers who may need some extra convincing as to why this is the establishment they want to stay at.
The destination isn’t the only factor you should focus on, you can write about anything you think will be likely to interest and excite potential guests and give you an advantage over your competitors, such as the following:
Blogs have the power to draw consumers in and encourage them to spend more time browsing your website, leading to greater awareness and an increase in online conversions.
Once you’ve made a post live on your website, you need to put it out there to get it seen by as many eyes as possible. You can use blog posts to enhance your social media content, tying it into any current activity on your channels. For example, if you’re trying to upsell rooms for Valentine’s Day you could pair this up with a blog post that talks about romantic spots in the local area to give potential customers an extra nudge towards booking for this period.
Promoting blogs through social media is a great option in cases where imagery of your hotel’s interior isn’t enough to communicate your unique offering. As Siteminder says, “It’s easy for upmarket hotels to use beautiful photography to sell their rooms online, but even if you don’t have the most breathtaking interior you can still use personalised content to convert clicks to bookings.”
Not only can blog posts work to enhance your social media content, but they can also boost your SEO rankings. By fully optimising your posts specifically for search engine discovery (such as adding meta titles, descriptions and keywords) then you will increase the chances of your page being found when your audience search for relevant phrases and topics.
Regularly updating your website with well-written blog posts should be a key part of your overall marketing strategy, as it enhances other elements of your digital presence, drives traffic to your website and, most importantly, adds personality and depth to your brand.
You'll receive an email update every 2 weeks with insight and advice to support you in your digital marketing journey. We treat your email address with care, and you can unsubscribe with just a click.