Hotel Social Media On A Shoest
May 9 2010 22:32:56 By:restaurant From: Views: 30 0 comments
By Adam Kirby, Associate Editor -- HOTELS, 4/1/2010 12:00:00 AM
Just because an individual hotel lacks a big budget for social media does not mean it cannot compete for followers and fans—even in a hyper-competitive market like Las Vegas.
The marketing budget for Las Vegas Hilton is miniscule when compared to multi-property powerhouse rivals like MGM Mirage, Harrah's Entertainment and Wynn Resorts. And despite being relatively late to the social media party, the hotel has picked up enough incremental business from Twitter and Facebook to convince once-skeptical executive management to fund a full-time social media coordinator position.
The Hilton’s first “tweet-up” last year drew 130 participants to the hotel—the vast majority of them as first-time guests. “It caught the attention of our executives—they said, 'Wow, you did this with nothing?’” says Peter Arceo, executive director of casino marketing. “These have become loyal customers spending money at the bar, talking about the hotel. That was the buy-in [the executive team] needed to fund this.” Monthly tweet-ups keep growing in size.
In less than a year, @LasVegasHilton has accumulated more than 23,000 Twitter followers. While other properties in Vegas complement social media marketing with heavily promoted contests, viral videos and even digital Twitter billboards, the Hilton has no social media budget, so it instead focuses on building personal relationships with brand advocates that extend beyond the computer screen into real life. “We’re trying to build solid, loyal fans and followers—people who want to come here,” Arceo says.
A shoestring budget is no excuse for a hotel not to jump into social media, Arceo says. Very likely, an existing hotel employee would be willing or even eager to champion the property in the social media realm. “Nine times out of 10, I promise you there is someone on property—it could be a housekeeper, your greenskeeper, your valet—they could be your best voice for your property, and they might not even want to be compensated,” Arceo says. “They might just want to be known as the social media voice on your property.”
That is more or less how Brian Simpson came to manage the @RSHotel Twitter account for The Roger Smith Hotel, a New York City boutique that has developed a reputation as one of the most social media-savvy properties in the world. Simpson was a 30-year veteran of hotel food and beverage before transitioning to the role of director of social hospitality last year. “The key is to find the people that are passionate about the property and then teach them to use the tools,” he says.
Some hoteliers might be understandably uncomfortable with letting staff speak on behalf of the hotel on social media sites. But putting excessive restrictions on employees’ social media interactions limits their ability to respond to consumers in an authentic way. Existing employee conduct codes should be adequate to curb any commentary that is grossly over the line of good taste, Simpson says.
Like at Las Vegas Hilton, the social media strategy at The Roger Smith is less about the online presence itself as it is using the online tools to connect with people offline. “Once you meet people offline, that becomes a relationship, not just a Twitter follower,” Simpson says.
Direct comments to: adam.kirby@reedbusiness.com
Marriott Uses Celebrities To Promote Renovations On Twitter
The UK division of Marriott International is promoting the completion of a ￡120 million refurbishment project across 41 UK hotels with an innovative review campaign via Twitter.
Marriott has invited several well-known Twitter users, including celebrities and journalists, to communicate their experiences at selected properties to followers live on the micro-blogging site. “We wanted to communicate this news in an original and forward-thinking way that would resonate well with our guests,” says Osama Hirzalla, Marriott’s vice president of brand marketing and e-commerce for Europe. Because of social media’s immediacy and presumed authenticity, Marriott hopes the strategy conveys a message of confidence in its product.
Participants are personally invited by Marriott to review a refurbished hotel of their choice. Beyond that, however, they will experience the property in the same way any guest would, Hirzalla says. “All we ask in return for their stay is that they tweet regularly about their experiences at the hotel, providing a good overview of the refurbished property and its services. It’s just like any other review, really, only communicated instantly via Twitter to their followers.”
The campaign is believed to be the first organized Twitter promotion of its kind in the hotel industry. “By using Twitter effectively and by leveraging Facebook, in addition to our more traditional communication channels, we have been able to reach many more thousands of members of the general public with news about our refurbished hotels,” Hirzalla says.
UK celebrities who have participated so far include TV presenter Gail Porter, actor Noel Clarke, actress Kaya Scodelario and E! Entertainment network personality Sam Mann. Among the hotels reviewed to date are London Marriott Grosvenor Square Hotel; Forest of Arden, A Marriott Hotel & Country Club in Maidstone, Kent; London Marriott County Hall Hotel; and Liverpool Marriott Hotel City Centre.
The campaign launched in January, with initial plans to roll out over the course of three months. “We have received a lot of interest from both celebrities and journalists active on Twitter wanting to review a refurbished Marriott hotel, so it is definitely something we would consider extending and developing into an ongoing campaign in the UK,” Hirzalla says.
The marketing budget for Las Vegas Hilton is miniscule when compared to multi-property powerhouse rivals like MGM Mirage, Harrah's Entertainment and Wynn Resorts. And despite being relatively late to the social media party, the hotel has picked up enough incremental business from Twitter and Facebook to convince once-skeptical executive management to fund a full-time social media coordinator position.
The Hilton’s first “tweet-up” last year drew 130 participants to the hotel—the vast majority of them as first-time guests. “It caught the attention of our executives—they said, 'Wow, you did this with nothing?’” says Peter Arceo, executive director of casino marketing. “These have become loyal customers spending money at the bar, talking about the hotel. That was the buy-in [the executive team] needed to fund this.” Monthly tweet-ups keep growing in size.
In less than a year, @LasVegasHilton has accumulated more than 23,000 Twitter followers. While other properties in Vegas complement social media marketing with heavily promoted contests, viral videos and even digital Twitter billboards, the Hilton has no social media budget, so it instead focuses on building personal relationships with brand advocates that extend beyond the computer screen into real life. “We’re trying to build solid, loyal fans and followers—people who want to come here,” Arceo says.
A shoestring budget is no excuse for a hotel not to jump into social media, Arceo says. Very likely, an existing hotel employee would be willing or even eager to champion the property in the social media realm. “Nine times out of 10, I promise you there is someone on property—it could be a housekeeper, your greenskeeper, your valet—they could be your best voice for your property, and they might not even want to be compensated,” Arceo says. “They might just want to be known as the social media voice on your property.”
That is more or less how Brian Simpson came to manage the @RSHotel Twitter account for The Roger Smith Hotel, a New York City boutique that has developed a reputation as one of the most social media-savvy properties in the world. Simpson was a 30-year veteran of hotel food and beverage before transitioning to the role of director of social hospitality last year. “The key is to find the people that are passionate about the property and then teach them to use the tools,” he says.
Some hoteliers might be understandably uncomfortable with letting staff speak on behalf of the hotel on social media sites. But putting excessive restrictions on employees’ social media interactions limits their ability to respond to consumers in an authentic way. Existing employee conduct codes should be adequate to curb any commentary that is grossly over the line of good taste, Simpson says.
Like at Las Vegas Hilton, the social media strategy at The Roger Smith is less about the online presence itself as it is using the online tools to connect with people offline. “Once you meet people offline, that becomes a relationship, not just a Twitter follower,” Simpson says.
Direct comments to: adam.kirby@reedbusiness.com
Marriott Uses Celebrities To Promote Renovations On Twitter
The UK division of Marriott International is promoting the completion of a ￡120 million refurbishment project across 41 UK hotels with an innovative review campaign via Twitter.
Marriott has invited several well-known Twitter users, including celebrities and journalists, to communicate their experiences at selected properties to followers live on the micro-blogging site. “We wanted to communicate this news in an original and forward-thinking way that would resonate well with our guests,” says Osama Hirzalla, Marriott’s vice president of brand marketing and e-commerce for Europe. Because of social media’s immediacy and presumed authenticity, Marriott hopes the strategy conveys a message of confidence in its product.
Participants are personally invited by Marriott to review a refurbished hotel of their choice. Beyond that, however, they will experience the property in the same way any guest would, Hirzalla says. “All we ask in return for their stay is that they tweet regularly about their experiences at the hotel, providing a good overview of the refurbished property and its services. It’s just like any other review, really, only communicated instantly via Twitter to their followers.”
The campaign is believed to be the first organized Twitter promotion of its kind in the hotel industry. “By using Twitter effectively and by leveraging Facebook, in addition to our more traditional communication channels, we have been able to reach many more thousands of members of the general public with news about our refurbished hotels,” Hirzalla says.
UK celebrities who have participated so far include TV presenter Gail Porter, actor Noel Clarke, actress Kaya Scodelario and E! Entertainment network personality Sam Mann. Among the hotels reviewed to date are London Marriott Grosvenor Square Hotel; Forest of Arden, A Marriott Hotel & Country Club in Maidstone, Kent; London Marriott County Hall Hotel; and Liverpool Marriott Hotel City Centre.
The campaign launched in January, with initial plans to roll out over the course of three months. “We have received a lot of interest from both celebrities and journalists active on Twitter wanting to review a refurbished Marriott hotel, so it is definitely something we would consider extending and developing into an ongoing campaign in the UK,” Hirzalla says.
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