Hospitality Marketing Solutions For Your Biggest Challenges

It is no secret that the hospitality industry has taken it on the chin for the last few years. 2020 made anyone who flexed some level of hospitality marketing skill really show what they were made of. Considering the world essentially stood still for a chunk of time, anything and anyone related to travel anxiously wondered whether or not there was going to be an industry left.

Fast-forward to today, and the hospitality industry has bounced back in a major way. Hotels, airline travel, restaurants, and entertainment venues have all started seeing big jumps in popularity, with many reporting pre-pandemic levels. But for all of the good vibes, plenty of businesses in the industry failed in the last nearly three years of the pandemic. What’s more, plenty of other businesses are still having issues.

In terms of marketing solutions for the hospitality industry, the first real step is identifying the major hurdles the industry has to overcome. Recent surveying has indicated the following areas that warrant addressing:

Leisure Travel vs Business Travel

In many respects, the business travel model of the past is steadily becoming extinct. As new, more efficient modes of communication have been developed, the need to spread personnel and resources does not seem as necessary as before. However, the leisure travel sector has really exploded in major ways. For many, feeling cooped up for the last few years made it seem vital to get back out into the world. Hospitality models that valued catering to the traveling business person are now at a great disadvantage and need to find a way to reassess their focus.

Balancing Attracting Talent & Utilizing Automation

Many businesses in the hospitality industry shed staff in order to survive the last few years. The issue they now face is finding enough staff. Some have raised wages and offered other perks. However, others have actually looked into ways of using automated processes to take care of certain tasks so as to not have to hire staff. The latter doesn’t usually sit well with current or prospective staff, so businesses have to find ways to balance the two.

Showcasing Value in the Face of Little to No Deals

The midweek hotel deal and the last-minute hotel deal were once ideal ways for travelers to get some serious savings when traveling. Other hospitality industries found ways incorporate savings programs and other deals that got people in the door. Three years after the harrowing events of 2020, deals are just not fiscally doable for many businesses. As such, hospitality businesses have to find ways to show what value they have and why their pricing is fully worth it.

“Boomer” Hotel Ways

The hospitality industry, like everyone else, got hit with a major dose of reality in 2020 — they got way too comfortable with the status quo. Over the last decade or so, newer, more exciting ways of booking travel have taken hold. Promises of greater amenities, more options, and a true “home away from home” experience all made the old ways seem truly old. The hospitality industry is now in a position where it not only has to keep up with similar competition but also has to keep up with the new kid in town. 

So, what hospitality marketing solutions work to help overcome these major challenges? In short, it is about growing a brand and standing out. Of course, this isn’t an easy thing to do and certainly something that won’t happen overnight. More importantly, it takes the right team to make it happen, the likes of which many hospitality businesses just don’t have. That’s where MindEcology comes into the mix.

We are an Austin advertising agency that does more than just worry about marketing — we’re all about data-driven strategy. Let our team here at MindEcology show you the difference the right kind of strategic work can have on your operation.