Optimized Content for Hotels’ Social Media: 5 Important Tips

Social media has become an essential marketing platform for hotels and optimizing social media content increases reach and the likelihood of direct bookings.

The fact that 4.62 billion people worldwide use various social media channels demonstrates the importance of these platforms today. Almost 75% of all consumers also use them as a source of inspiration when shopping and planning their trips. This makes a presence on social networks an absolute must for hotels today. After all, it allows you to reach your target audience better and pique their interest, leading to even more bookings. But to achieve all this, optimized content and a solid strategy are crucial.

Why it is important to optimize social media content and TARGET the right audience

With social media, you're usually pursuing one of two goals:

Increase reach: you want your target audience to hear about your hotel and consider when it’s time to plan their next trip. The more interesting your content, the more likely you will achieve this goal.
Generate traffic: the next step is to attract social media users to your hotel website. There are several ways to do this.
1. Link to your homepage so visitors can learn more about your hotel.
2. Redirect guests to a landing page where they can subscribe to your newsletter, for example.
3. Lead directly to the booking screen to enable instant reservations.

Whether you want to increase your reach or generate more page views, "just posting" is not enough. On social media, countless other companies are fighting for your customers' attention.

You can only win them over with a strategic approach. This means optimizing your content and your strategy by targeting the right audience. This applies both to individual posts and your profile as a whole.

5 steps to OPTIMIZED social media content

1. Offer added value

On social media, people expect different types of added value. Your target group must understand the benefits of your post right away to keep them interested. People typically quickly scroll through posts that fall short of this expectation.

As a hotel, you can deliver added value in the following ways:

Travel inspiration: what images of your hotel or surroundings could inspire guests about your destination?
Specific information about your hotel: what features set you apart from the competition?
News about your hotel and the surrounding area: what festivals or events are taking place in the near future?
Offers: do you offer a package for short stays at the end of the summer?
Entertainment: what funny stories can you share about everyday events?
Behind-the-scenes insights: how is a big banquet actually prepared?

A target group analysis tells you the interests and needs of your audience. Reflect these in your content to consistently offer added value and present your hotel more attractively.

2. Use high-quality images and videos

Users today expect excellent quality, especially on visual platforms like Instagram. Therefore, invest sufficiently in content creation. Images must be high-resolution, well-exposed, and in the right format. Only then will they be displayed correctly to users and have the desired effect. Low-quality images, on the other hand, look sloppy and unprofessional.

Drink by the Pool Again, the added value and a clear link to your hotel should be quickly apparent.

What this means in practice: a picture of the magical sunset is beautiful, but users do not necessarily associate it with your hotel. Clearly show that this view can be enjoyed from your terrace, and you send a clear message: "Enjoy these moments with us!"

If possible and appropriate, use pictures with people. Then it's easier for potential guests to imagine themselves on-site enjoying your service.

Emotionally appealing images, such as photos of weddings organized at your venue, are also very effective.

3. Interesting and relevant text and captions

Social media users don't want to read a novel in the caption or post, except perhaps for their favorite influencers. Therefore, make your texts as short, clear and relevant as possible.

The added value should also be clear right at the beginning, preferably within the first 125 characters. After that, users have to click "read more" to see the rest. If you haven't been able to generate interest by then, it won't happen. If you want to promote an offer, mention it right away so it doesn't get lost.

Asking readers questions in your copy is another way to encourage interactions with your content. A call-to-action can also get you more responses or clicks. Include one at the end of your post and encourage readers to like, comment and share the post, subscribe to your newsletter or follow you.

Last but not least, hashtags make your posts easier to find. On Facebook, one or two is enough. On Instagram, you're welcome to use more.

4. Match the content to the channel

Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube - each of these major platforms has its own style and appeals to a slightly different audience. Users expect different types of content everywhere. So you can't share the same thing everywhere.

Let's take Instagram as an example. Inspiration through visually appealing content is at the top of the list here. Users are often on this platform to get new ideas and inspiration. Facebook, on the other hand, is used differently. There, people look to businesses for up-to-date information (e.g., opening hours, address, etc.), announcements, and customer reviews.

Always keep this in mind when creating posts for the respective platforms.

5. Follow a clear strategy

Social media should support your marketing and sales strategy. For this to work as well as possible, you need a consistent image across all channels. The visual language, color selection, style and tone of your content should be similar everywhere.

Then you can also properly integrate your channels into your marketing. For example, if you've just put together a new special offer, you might promote it primarily through Google Ads. But why wouldn't you also share a few well-planned posts on your social networks for it? It costs you nothing and gives your offer more reach.

Conclusion

As you can see, it's not rocket science to optimize your social media content. The most important thing is to first create clarity about how you want to appear. Then follow our tips and you'll be well on your way to a coherent online presence that will win over more potential guests.