4 Steps to Master Your Hotel Positioning Strategy

Discover four essential steps to master your hotel's positioning strategy and attract more guests by defining your unique value proposition, targeting the right audience, and adapting to market trends.

There are estimated to be more than 700,000 hotels in the world, with most of them concentrated in popular tourism hotspots. This number means that there is fierce competition to attract your guests and stand out as the one amongst 700,000 others. There are many ways to stand out: you can offer unique experiences through creative design and storytelling, conduct a competitive market analysis to offer the best value or focus narrowly on your target audience to refine your guest profile.

Before doing all of those things, though, the first step to making sure these approaches work is to have a clear understanding of where your hotel stands. This is precisely where hotel positioning becomes your best tool. In this blog post, we will discuss the whats and whys of hotel positioning and lay out 4 steps to master it.

What is hotel positioning, and why is it important?

Hotel positioning is the strategic process of defining and promoting your hotel's unique attributes, target market, guest profile, and unique value propositions (UVPs) to stand out from the competition. By identifying your target audience and highlighting your hotel’s unique features like luxury service, a historical location, or family-friendly amenities, you can create a strong brand identity that appeals to your potential guests. If the positioning is defined, the messaging should be consistent. A clear positioning attracts the right guests, leading to higher satisfaction, positive feedback, and repeat bookings.

Hotel positioning is important not only for attracting guests but also for reducing costs and saving staff time. By knowing your target audience and what makes your hotel unique, you can focus your marketing efforts more precisely, avoiding wasting your resources on ineffective campaigns. Plus, a well-positioned hotel streamlines operations by aligning services with guest expectations. When your staff understand the hotel's brand and target market, they can provide better, more targeted service, reducing time spent on unnecessary tasks.

Step 1: Defining Your Hotel's Unique Value Proposition

The first and most important step is to define your hotel's unique value proposition (UVP). This process involves innovative introspection and market analysis. Reflect on what sets your hotel apart. Is it your avant-garde design, personalized guest services, closeness to nature, experimental culinary experiences or a wide range of sporty activities your hotel offers? Whatever it is, ensure it aligns with your brand's unique offerings and your guests’ expectations.

Integrate your hotel’s unique value into its positioning and seamlessly weave it into every facet of the guest experience, from marketing materials to your in-room tablets or mobile app. Your UVP is not just a statement. It's a promise, a professional commitment to delivering an experience that your guests can't find anywhere else. Remember, a well-defined UVP is the cornerstone of a successful positioning strategy.

A good example of a clear UVP is the Lanesborough Hotel in London. The Hotel is incorporating its unique assets into its guest experience. Located in a historical Regency-era building, the hotel enhances its Regency theme with features like tea rooms hosting Bridgerton-themed tea parties and in-room tablets designed to match the Regency aesthetic. This thoughtful definition of its UVP immerses guests in the hotel's unique charm, making them feel part of its special atmosphere. 

Step 2: Defining Your hotel's Target Audience 

The next step is to gain a deep, insightful understanding of your target audience. It's about being helpful and tailoring your services to meet the specific needs and desires of your guests. Are they business travellers seeking efficiency and comfort, or are they leisure seekers looking for relaxation?

The process of defining your target audience for a hotel positioning strategy involves several key steps. First, run a comprehensive market research to understand industry trends and analyze competitors. Next, segment your potential guests into groups based on demographics, geography, psychographics, and behaviour. Develop detailed customer personas for each segment, such as "Business Barbara," a 40-year-old corporate executive who travels frequently for work, values efficient service, and needs amenities like high-speed Wi-Fi and meeting rooms; "Family Frank," a 35-year-old father who prioritizes family-friendly activities and kid-friendly amenities; and "Eco-conscious Emma," a 28-year-old millennial who seeks sustainable and eco-friendly travel options, values hotels with green certifications, and prefers organic, locally-sourced food.

Understanding generational guest behaviour can be particularly useful. For example, Millennials and Gen Z often value unique experiences, social media presence, and sustainable practices like offering guests to skip room cleaning. On the other hand, Baby Boomers might prioritize comfort, high-quality service, and sincere human connection. By recognizing these preferences, you can tailor your offerings accordingly—providing high-speed internet and Instagram-worthy spots for younger guests while ensuring older guests have easy access to amenities and in-person service. This nuanced understanding helps create a more satisfying and personalized experience for each guest, enhancing your hotel's appeal across different age groups.

Step 3: Balancing Broad Appeal with Niche Targeting

A successful hotel positioning strategy strikes a fine balance between broad appeal and niche targeting. While it's tempting to try to be everything to everyone, a more effective approach is to be boldly specific about who your hotel is perfect for. After all, you simply cannot please everyone. This doesn't mean excluding potential guests, though. It's about focusing your efforts on areas where you can truly be exceptional.

You can find innovative ways to address varying needs without straying away from your brand's core values. Investing time and resources in a well-crafted loyalty program can balance your broad appeal by creating targeted programs to make your guests feel special and exclusive. With your insight from analysing your guest behaviour, you can make a conscious voice to pick one or two core guest profiles and make your guest experience as customizable as possible. 

A great example of niche targeting is Kepler Club's airport hotels. Located at Sabiha Gokcen Airport, Riga Airport, and Kuala Lumpur Airport, these hotels combine lounge services with classic hotel amenities. Given their location, they specifically cater to travellers who spend extended periods at airports for obvious reasons. By using advanced technology like AI-powered robots and in-room tablets for digital directories, booking, and room service, they streamline check-in and check-out processes, allowing guests to relax more easily. This focused approach ensures they deliver an exceptional experience tailored to their specific audience.

Step 4: Evaluating and Adapting Your Positioning Strategy

It is no secret that hospitality is a very dynamic industry. Changes that could happen both globally and locally can greatly affect your hotel’s positioning strategy. What to do to navigate this ever-changing environment? One of the things you can do is to regularly evaluate the effectiveness of your positioning by gathering feedback, monitoring industry trends, and analyzing competitive movements. This feedback loop is crucial to remain innovative and ahead of the curve. If you observe a change in your guest feedback, you can pinpoint the problem rather early than late and adjust your UVP or your marketing strategies accordingly. 

Be ready to make confident, professional adjustments to your strategy to keep it relevant to your target audience. Remember that openness and willingness to change are key to staying in the competition. Looking ahead, AI is predicted to be integral to hospitality, with contactless check-in and check-out processes growing in popularity. Modern guest behaviour is evolving, and investing in technology to offer digital and modernized services could very well become the new industry standard.

Conclusion

Hotel positioning requires a strategic approach centred on unique value propositions and a deep understanding of your target audience. Defining and promoting these attributes effectively is key. It's not just about identifying your strengths but also about communicating them consistently across all channels.

Fostering a culture of continuous improvement among your staff ensures alignment with your brand values and equips them to meet evolving guest expectations. Engaging in sustainable practices and community involvement can also set your hotel apart, resonating with modern travellers who value environmental responsibility and social impact. By balancing broad appeal with niche targeting and being ready to adapt your strategy based on feedback and market trends, you can create memorable guest experiences that foster loyalty and drive repeat bookings.

_{Published on 1 August 2024}