Best Email marketing strategies for Short-term Rentals and Small Hotels
Email marketing is becoming an increasingly effective tool in the hospitality industry. The statistic shows that emails are 40 times more useful in receiving new direct reservations than Facebook or Twitter posts.
We present to you the key elements you should get into place to increase your success with email marketing for your vacation rental property…
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Get the right tools
For a more effective campaign use one of the top email marketing platform such as Mailchimp or GetResponse. With the use of these programs, you can view the number of emails that were actually opened, clicked links and the people who unsubscribed. They also help in designing your email and gives it a professional look with the use of predesigned templates that you can be easily edited.
Additionally, choose a property management platform that can integrate with email marketing tools. That way your database of guests is automatically feeding the campaign and you can easily incentivize your guests to come book with you again. Nuevah is a cloud best PMs offering email marketing integration with both MailChimp and GetResponse.
2. Treat your target audience exceptionally
Anyone who signs up for your newsletter should be treated special. Ask your guests for feedback after their stay and make sure that you customize the campaign for them.
Remember, email marketing is not about filling the potential guests’ inboxes with marketing fluff. You need to earn the privilege to access their mailbox with content that offers value. Give them exclusive seasonal promotions, special offers for their birthday etc.
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Keep your content short and engaging
The content is the most important thing that you must focus on if you want your campaign to be successful. It should consist of a short and creative subject that will encourage individuals to open the email. It should be something that they will relate with and be interested in getting more information.
Remember, don’t push the booking but include a call to action “book now” button in your email. This should link with your internet booking engine where your guests can easily book directly.
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Create emails with responsive designs
Not everyone will open your email on a computer, so make sure that the design of your email is responsive on all devices. The emails should be legible on any screen size that your target audience might be using.
Also, do some strategic planning to improve legibility and attractiveness.
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Set up your frequency
How often you send your emails should be dependent on your plan and marketing strategy. However, you should know that your property or hotel is not a news publication and no one is expecting your daily or weekly notification from you.
It’s enough to schedule a monthly or bi-monthly, but you can interrupt this if you have some important announcement to make.
Never skip a month because people might forget about you when booking their next trip.
Conclusion
Nobody wants to see more advertisement in their inbox that’s why you should avoid them at all cost. Target people who want to hear from you and give them something that they will appreciate. Use the emails to learn more about your guests. Reward the participation with meaningful interaction and be of help to them. By doing this, you can be sure that your campaign will be successful and your bookings will skyrocket.
