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To blog, or not to blog? While a website still holds the position of being the one stop-shop information centre on any organisation, a blog adds the human touch, says Keshav Baljee.
One of the most resonating responsibilities of hospitality is to strike an engaging relationship with the guest during, and long after, his or her visit. The consequences of ensuring that your hotel brand and ground staff are able to build that rapport with every guest that walks in, are not only priceless but also the best way to grow your business; positive peer-to-peer review, repeat business, and invaluable feedback, is one of the most important keys to continuous improvement.
When the internet started to take over as the information source of the world, it posed a very important question, and a threat, to the world of hospitality. However, we see the emergence of internet-driven choices as opportunities. A negative article can potentially reach millions, but so can a positive one. We have long gone past the phase of apprehension, and have actively started to explore and leverage the space for our brand.
While social networking sites make for some of the fastest ways to reach out to a young audience, there are other platforms that add immense value, such as blogging. There seems to be much contention about the significance of blogs in the Indian scenario, given factors of internet penetration and participation of online Indians. We have done some initial experiments with blogging and see very promising results.
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Hotels can choose to delve in the online marketing space by using a variety of tools, most of which, like Pay Per Click, Viral marketing, Organic strategies, and social networking, offer instant gratification results which look great on the ROI charts. However, we needed a more strategic route to solidify our position as a leader. While the aforementioned tools did drive good results and expanded reach both in terms of numbers and features, we were on the look-out for something a little more substantial.
We have very interesting insights to share and social networking alone does not cut it. Blogging was the decisive solution. Useful and controlled, it helped optimise search engines, which is one of the most progressive advantages of blogging in the value it brings to SEO.
In fact, the company blog is featured prominently on our website, and we encourage visitors to have a look. Insights from our corporate revenue team reflect the fact that less than 20% of search engine users search for brands; optimising key words and tagging content appropriately is the magic solution to ensuring higher ranks and greater traffic.
Secondly, blogging helps network more efficiently, as traditional influencers like the media still hold primary importance when it comes to any marketing campaign. Blogs essentially give a forum to anyone with an opinion and internet access; it not only helps us in building a rapport for the company, but also enables us to speak on behalf of the industry.
Thirdly, it allows us to build personal credibility. While the website is the most important medium for sharing information on your company and products, the fact remains that websites are impersonal.
Any brand relying solely on this single-dimensional online presence risks remaining an impassive player in this age of word-of-mouth. When a single review can make or break your product, it only makes sense to participate, and deliver, your part of the dialogue.
Blogs are personal; most have real people writing them, talking about issues that are relevant to the reader, and reacting to real-time questions and discussions.
In the service business, especially hospitality, blogs take the task of engaging with the guest to the next level; one that is open for the world at large for consumption and comment.
Finally, blogs allow you to listen and engage with the guest. In a more traditional scenario, feedback forms and emails serve the purpose of constructive feedback - what has been sorely missed is the equation of discussion.
Blogs take the full-circle and add the crucial post-feedback reaction to this cycle. We find this source of information, the one directly generated by the guest/user, to be far more relevant than the conventional intelligence gathering methods. I personally enjoy blogging for the sheer pleasure of reaching out to people at a personal level. The blogosphere sure is an exciting space for exchange of ideas, opinions, and most importantly, knowledge.
I recently started blogging on behalf of Royal Orchid Hotels at RoyalOrchidBlog.com and the kind of response and reaction I’ve received so far has further reiterated the value of hosting a personal page. The readership profile of the blog not only includes industry peers, but also customers from across the globe. This interesting mix of readers ensures that not only our views are heard and appreciated by various groups of our target audience, but also ensures that discussions are balanced and opinions are tempered.
I do look forward to further contributing to, and participating in, this very dynamic space.
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COMMENT
Nice Blog!!! Thanks For Great Information