Get Started in Online Hotel Sales and Marketing

How to Get Started in Online Hotel Sales and Marketing

The key to getting started in effective online hotel sales and marketing is your attitude to the job. By necessity you have to engage with the Internet and other electronic distribution channels, so the approach that you take to this task is important.

Get Comfortable Using the Internet
To technically-challenged hoteliers it can be intimidating to deal with the installation of software, managing relationships with GDS systems or travel websites, overseeing the development of a website, or using an online system. If you find yourself in this situation

The best way to get comfortable with the Internet is to use it.

you should know that you don't have to be technical to know how to use the Internet, any more than you have to be technical to use a telephone or TV. However you do have to be comfortable using the Internet. You have to see what your competitors are doing online, understand how your customers are finding and booking your hotel, and have some idea of search engines and how they work. Even if it is only to use consultants less expensively and more efficiently, or to oversee a staff-member responsible for your online hotel sales and marketing, you have to get reasonably comfortable using computers and the Internet. And the best way to do this is to use it.

Adopt the Right Approach
Its important not to approach the Internet and electronic distribution channels with a negative attitude. You could look at the electronic revolution in travel and hotel bookings as a hassle, a development that has forced you to respond to the increasing amount of money that you are paying out to discounters or online agencies. But its not helpful to approach it in that way. Instead why not look at the positive sides of the Internet and the potential it has to develop your business?

Imagine if taking an online booking was a simple and straightforward as taking a telephone booking currently is. Imagine if you did not have to pay a commission or give a discount on most of the online bookings your receive, and simply used intermediaries to fill rooms that would otherwise be empty. And better yet, imagine if you could effectively market and sell your hotel online better, or before your local competitors, and thus take business from them. Imagine getting to a situation where all this could be done simply and easily on a daily basis, as part of the routine of your hotel. If handled correctly, the electronic revolution in travel and hotel booking can be very positive for your business.

Get to Know the World of Internet Hotel Marketing
If you are comfortable using computers and the Internet, and have a positive attitude, the first thing to do is to get a knowledge of the online hotel sales and marketing 'space'. Visit websites, read articles, papers or books, read reviews of relevant software and systems, download and read a report or presentation. Visit your competitors' websites, look at local tourist, business and community websites. If you are travelling yourself, book online. You don't have to become the world's biggest expert in all the intricacies involved in online hotel sales and marketing, but its important to get an overview of what is happening online in the parts of the Internet that travellers, agencies and hoteliers use.

Getting comfortable with computers and the Internet, developing a positive attitude to using the Internet in your business, and finding out what is happening in the area of online hotel sales and marketing are all vital precursors for a successful online marketing effort, whether you are a big hotel or a small one, whether you use services and consultants, or do it yourself. Get these right, and the rest of the job will be much easier - and more effective.

1. Get comfortable using computers and the Internet.
2. Develop a positive attitude to the task.
3. Learn about the world of online hotel marketing and sales. Start by browsing the articles, reviews, links and other information on Hotel Sales Online.
4. Get an overview of electronic hotel marketing and sales channels.
5. Consider commissioning a comprehensive audit of your website and its position in the online market.