Hyper-personalized hotel website content for mobile?

Much has changed in all aspects of life since COVID-19, including a dramatic shift in the world’s digital behavior. Strict lockdowns, stay-at-home orders and social distancing efforts have prompted many to resort to their devices as a way to distract themselves from all the chaos. More time spent at home and stress inevitably created an increase in internet use. Statistica recently shared that 70% of internet users are no longer on their devices due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

It’s not just TVs, tablets and computers that have gained unprecedented popularity. Mobile is now taking the No. 1 spot in terms of users, with Datareportal’s Digital 2020 April Global Statshot Report revealing that 52% of webpage requests in March 2020 were from mobile devices only. As the report points out, 12% expect to maintain their current digital habits even after the situation is over.

Based on the analysis of The Hotels Network data collected globally, we observed a similar trend in terms of hotel bookings. Mobile bookings have clearly gained a larger share of total direct bookings in recent months, from 29% in January 2020 to 41% in July 2020. The numbers don’t lie, all we see is increasing mobile users and bookings. So now the question is: have you optimized the marketing messages on your hotel’s website for mobile?

Hotel brands personalize the experience of mobile users

In a world where the use of smartphones is increasing day by day, having a functional website on mobile is far from enough. To get the most out of your mobile site, take advantage of personalization and targeting tools to ensure the right content is presented to the right audience on any device. Let’s see how these 5 hotels used The Hotels Network platform to apply hyper targeting rules and maximize direct conversions.

Hard Rock Hotel San Diego

Always radiating passionate energy and enthusiasm, Hard Rock hotels span the globe with an uncompromising dedication to hospitality. Following their motto “Love All-Serve All”, they have applied this exact spirit to their website to ensure that every unique visitor has the perfect direct booking experience. A staple of their strategy, the Hard Rock Hotel San Diego has launched a series of personalized Smart Notes optimized for mobile bookings at key touch points along the booking journey. Mobile users spend 25% less time on hotel websites than their desktop counterparts. Therefore, by displaying personalized messages highlighting the benefits of direct booking or selling suites based on user behavior, they were able to effectively deliver the right information to the right customer. .

Green Hotels

Since its inception, we have been following EcoHotels closely, a responsible and sustainable hotel community offering an alternative to the mainstream large online travel agencies (OTAs). Understanding that bookers can easily switch from their website to other OTAs and metasearch engines, they have included a price comparison widget on their booking engine page. Collapsible into a side tab, the feature displays real-time information without interfering with organic content. With this tool, customers no longer need to switch apps or open another web page to shop.

Anantara

Anantara’s luxury properties have grown to reach a variety of unique destinations across the globe, from lush islands, bustling cities, to relaxing desert getaways. Always seeking to organize extraordinary personal experiences for each guest, Anantara has brought her beliefs to life on her website. With the intention of bringing the Anantara experience to even more people, the chain launched a welcome layer optimized for desktops and mobiles. Specifically targeting non-logged-in members, the clear and simple message is displayed the moment the user accesses the website. Showing the benefits of joining their loyalty program, Anantara DISCOVERY, the layer entices visitors to sign up to get their passports for rewards and unforgettable trips. Working towards its goal of growing its loyal customer base, Anantara was able to leverage its high volume of mobile traffic and create not one, but multiple personalized messages to do so.

Marlin Hotel Dublin

Activity and communication are key factors in maintaining customer engagement and making them loyal brand ambassadors. Especially in these times when too much is on the table, Marlin Hotel, the trendiest hotel in the heart of Dublin, wanted to seize the opportunity to reach a wider audience with its newsletter. By capitalizing on the email capture tool, the property created a mobile-friendly layer on the booking engine page inviting interested bookings to register. Using this feature to build a large pool of opt-in contacts, Marlin Hotels is now able to send news, specials and exclusive promotions via email. Additionally, with its personalized reporting dashboard, the hotel can understand which email capture messages have contributed to more conversions, and from there launch organized email campaigns to each audience.

H10 Hotels

Mobile users have traits and behaviors that are different from customers using other devices. Understanding that this audience deserves to be segmented, H10 Hotels has created its offers by intelligently targeting specific user groups. Part of their range of specials is their mobile-exclusive offer, triggered when the page loads, visible only to mobile bookings. Displayed using an integrated inliner design, the brand is able to ensure that the message looks like organic content, a great way to convey messages without interrupting the UX. Many mobile users tend to explore options rather than book, so by communicating that the offer is exclusive to mobile users, the brand can encourage that audience to take action and book immediately.

Is it now easier to understand the importance of personalizing your hotel’s mobile site, meeting the unique needs of mobile users? Looking at the changing trends, it is highly likely that the volume of travel related bookings made on smartphones will only increase from here. OTAs have been on the scene for a long time, launching mobile promotions for quite some time now – one reason why hotel websites need to step up their game and go beyond satisfying a basic and functional website on smartphones.

Whether you are looking to increase mobile conversions, build your marketing contact base for mobile users, or just want to fine tune your website UX, focusing on personalization and hyper-targeted messaging on mobile is essential for your direct channel growth strategy.

About the hotel network

Working with more than 10,000 hotels worldwide, The Hotels Network offers its customers a comprehensive growth platform to fuel their direct channel. By leveraging a suite of built-in tools and analytics, hotel brands can attract, engage and convert guests across the user journey.

In addition to price comparison, review summary, and a full suite of customization options, THN’s Oraculo product leverages machine learning techniques to predict user behavior, then automatically personalizes the message and l offer for each user. The company’s latest innovation, BenchDirect, is the first benchmarking product for the direct channel, providing hotels with unprecedented competitive data that completely changes the rules of the game.

THN’s mission is to improve the online booking experience, develop direct bookings and strengthen the relationship between hotel brands and their customers.

For more information visit: www.thehotelsnetwork.com or contact [email protected].