In the age of the internet, consumers have never had more access to products, services, and businesses of all shapes and sizes around the world. In many ways, this has been a positive for businesses, particularly small businesses. It has given individual vacation rental owners and small boutique properties the opportunity to reach the same wide customer base as larger resorts.
At the same time, the digital era has brought some new challenges to hotels and other tourism businesses. While consumers can now see great reviews from previous customers, they can also see the negatives. Though the internet has given smaller properties a greater global reach, it has also caused an influx of options and greater competition. Where consumers might previously have chosen to stay at the same hotel year after year for their vacation, they can now shop for the best deal or the latest trendy property.
Understanding the challenges and unique opportunities of the digital era is key to building customer loyalty in a new world of hotel and vacation rental bookings. The team at Vibrant Management are experts in helping businesses craft a winning digital presence and an online marketing strategy that boosts bookings. If you’re ready to start growing customer loyalty in the digital era, there are a few ways we can help. Keep reading to learn more.
Loyalty Programs
There was a time when giving guests a great experience was enough to keep them coming back to your property year after year. While that’s still an important element to building brand loyalty, in the age of the internet it may not be enough on its own.
Now, travelers can search through endless images of other beautiful properties. They can use booking sites to check out discount rates and deals on their stay. Even social media creates a constant stream of competition.
While you should continue to provide guests with an incredible experience they’ll want to repeat, offering a loyalty program is a great way to increase the odds of a guest returning to your property. On average, between 30 and 60 percent of room revenue at resorts that offer a loyalty program comes from guests who are a part of that program.
A program that offers rewards to guests for coming back may be just the thing that convinces them not to look elsewhere when it comes time to plan a getaway.
Offer a Simple, Seamless Booking Experience
It’s no secret that internet users have a short attention span for websites that load slowly. You’ve likely heard the statistic that you have just seconds to capture a web visitor’s attention before they move on to a different site. Although this is likely true of many users, building customer loyalty online not only means having a fast and responsive site but also a simple and seamless booking experience.
Guests, and especially return guests, should never have to worry about facing a confusing or stressful booking experience. From shopping available room types to booking on a mobile device, every step should be straightforward and stress-free.
Another great way to ensure that your booking experience is positive for guests is to also make it easy to modify or cancel a booking. Offering a flexible booking policy, making that policy clear, and making it easy to modify a booking are all important features that guests look for in a property today.
Managing Your Online Reputation
We’ve talked a lot in the past about the importance of managing your property’s reputation online. From encouraging online reviews to responding to negative press, your reputation on the web can make or break your property’s success.
The best way to ensure that your online reputation doesn’t take a negative turn—and potentially harm the customer loyalty you’ve already built—is to have a strategy in place for managing your reputation. The best way to do so is with the help of a professional property manager. They can help you develop a strategy for how to respond when you receive negative press, how to address customer complaints, and even how to implement a plan for future improvements to your property, staffing, website, and more.
Building customer loyalty in the digital era means staying ahead of the curve. Letting a bad review spread or failing to address negative press in a timely manner can have a domino effect that’s tough to recover from.
Let the Team at Vibrant Management Help Your Business Improve Your Digital Strategy
In many ways, building customer loyalty in the digital era is more confusing and difficult than ever before. But the opportunities to create loyal, happy customers and to connect with a wide audience have never been greater. And the best way to do so is with a little help from the experts.
From improving customer loyalty to building a winning website to gathering online reviews, the team at Vibrant Management can help you build a winning digital strategy. Schedule a free consultation today to learn more.
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