9 Proven Optimization Strategies for Hotel Websites

June 9, 2022 Nicky. M
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9 Powerful Optimisation Strategies for Hotel Websites

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Your hotel website is one of the most integral parts of your guests’ customer journey. It is, therefore, no secret that you should not only create an effective consumer-centric website but be intentional about optimising it for increased engagement and conversion. The question still remains, however, what can you do in terms of implementing actionable optimisation strategies for hotel websites within this hyper-competitive hotel industry?

Why It’s Important To Have an Optimized Hotel Website?

The hotel industry is a highly competitive field operating within an increasingly evolving digital age, this presents a unique opportunity for hotels to drive more traffic to their website by curating their website for their target audience. The following contains strategies for optimising your website and maintaining a competitive advantage.

Your website is your hotel’s ID with an imprint of the property’s identity laid out in visual form. Stratos Jet projects that an estimated 700 million people will make online bookings by 2023 meaning that you need to optimise your website if you are targeting this proliferating market share.

1. Responsive template

Understanding the current business growth trends is knowing that digital is dynamic – and your website is no different. Essentially this means that more people are booking on their devices and your website needs to be versatile enough to cater to guests that are booking via different screens such as smartphones, laptops, tablets etc. Moreover, guests must be able to navigate on these screens seamlessly to maintain and enhance their user experience. This is one benefit of using RoomRaccoon’s website builder which has dynamic templates for all digital screens.

2.High-resolution images

First impressions are defined when potential customers visit your website. Images are important markers when travelers are choosing a property because they provide reassurance and incite a desire to stay at your hotel. A study by Jeong and Choi (2004) found that customers have a more positive attitude toward hotel websites with good quality images – this is an attitude a guest establishes in minutes, so you must make it worthwhile with the best images available.

First impressions are defined when potential customers visit your website. Images are important markers when travellers are choosing a property because they provide reassurance and incite a desire to stay at your hotel. A study by Jeong and Choi (2004) found that customers have a more positive attitude toward hotel websites with good quality images – this is an attitude a guest establishes in minutes, so you must make it worthwhile with the best images available.

3. Add videos or a 3D virtual tour

Videos provide an effective visual aid as they allow you to process data quickly and allow your guest to understand your property better. Videos are effective optimization strategies for hotel websites because they are highly effective in increasing your guests’ perception of your hotel by 74%. You may also consider adding a 3D virtual tour that lets site visitors get a realistic view of your property.

4. Linking your social media to your website

Linking your social media channels is essential in optimisation as it is a signifier of community and, in a greater sense, credibility. This also assists in improving your ranking with Google’s algorithm and other search engines. When you link your social media to your website, it makes it easier to share cross-platform content, which can lead to more visibility, and.. who doesn’t like more visibility?

5. Post guest reviews

According to Hotel News Resource, 95% of travelers or potential guests read hotel reviews before booking. As a result, it is essential to make reviews readily available on your website so that guests may develop trust in your property’s value and credibility. Always manage your guest reviews by responding to the positive reviews with gratitude and negative critiques with accountability, remorse, and sincerity.

6. Create a clear call to action

More than just providing valuable information to your guests on your website (which is very important), be sure to create an inviting call to action. This is essentially inviting your guests to complete an action like booking or inquiring. Examples of this would be “one time only rate,” “book now,” “limited time offer,” or “book direct and get 30% off.” It is recommended that you have only one call to action per page to ensure that you don’t have many messages that can confuse your guests.

7. Credibility checks

The Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA) released a cybersecurity report in 2018 that stated holiday bookers lost more than $7 million to fake sites and scammers. It is quite a concern for online bookers whether or not websites are secure and credible. You can reassure guests that your website is credible by including SSL certificates and credit card security badges. Add any other credentials to your website to assure guests of your quality service.

8. Integrate a booking engine

Embedding your website with a booking engine is a crucial tool in optimization. Once your guest has navigated your website and wants to book – it should be easy for them to make a reservation through your booking engine.

The booking engine should give them information on rates and availability and include all necessary information, such as room descriptions, services, and amenities, as this could increase your conversion ratio.

The RoomRaccoon booking engine makes it possible to have a detailed booking engine and a booking engine that is directly linked to your website.


BOOKING ENGINE DEMO

9. SEO strategies

Are you looking at optimising your website so that you can attract more guests from Google? SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) is a process of improving your site’s organic position across major search engines, like Google or Bing. This essentially looks at ranking properties according to the search engine’s algorithm.

Research shows that 33% of people click on the first search result meaning you can take a few actionables using SEO to rank better in organic searches:

  • Write unique page titles and descriptions – Assists with providing the most accurate information of what information can be found on your page and why guests should visit your site.
  • Add words or phrases associated with your property – This increases your visibility by using words/phrases that your guest would use to locate you.
  • Keyword-rich content – Provide pages of informative articles and blogs for people looking for information online. Using these platforms is a great way to use keywords you are targeting e.g Luxury hotel in Toronto.
  • Quick loading time – Photos and videos are important for your property’s website because guests want to see what they are booking. It is however important to note that excessive images can lead to slow loading times on your website making it rank lower in search results.

Final thoughts

It’s pretty clear how saturated and competitive the hotel industry is. Therefore, there’s never been a better time to explore effective optimisation strategies for hotel websites than right now. This will get you more traffic to your website and actual ROI in terms of conversions.

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Nicky. M

Nicky is RoomRaccoon's Senior Content Manager, combining a love for travel with a practical approach to improving hotel performance through tech and insightful tips. Join her journey where travel, hospitality, and technology meet.

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