Who Is Your Competition for 2018?
You probably notice new properties in your city every year.
They come to town looking to capitalize on a new segment of the population. Perhaps they cater to the luxury guest, or perhaps they cater to the weekend traveler.
Whichever the case may be, it’s important for your property – hotel or bed and breakfast – to make note of the new properties and to ask yourself, “Who is your competition for 2018?”
By asking yourself this question, you can position your property to be competitive in a very crowded marketplace.
Let’s look at how you can stay on top of your competition and keep tabs on what they’re doing so you can do it better.
Sign Up for Emails
The first thing you want to do once you’ve decided to monitor your competition is to join their email lists.
Head over to their website and sign up to receive their newsletters and specials.
This helps you know several things:
- How often they’re sending emails.
- What they send to people after they sign up.
- If they send an automated string of emails.
- Information about their specials and events.
This is a must-do, so you can stay on top of their marketing and modify yours as needed.
Utilize Social Media
Next, head on over to their website and take a look at the social media platforms your competition is using.
Visit each of those pages and either like or follow their news feeds.
Make a goal to check out their social media pages at least once a week. This helps you know not only what they’re posting but what. You can also see how many followers they have and if their users are active.
Take note of the types of content they’re sharing and posting. Are they getting more traction then you are on your own social media platforms? If they are, then perhaps it’s time you listen better so you can plan your content to attract the most engagement. 
Read Their Blogs
If you haven’t visited the websites of your competition recently, now is a good time.
Again, you want to schedule website reviews on a monthly basis. This helps you gauge how often they’re adding and changing content and adding specials and events.
In addition, you want to read their blogs. Either subscribe to their feeds or visit their blogs regularly.
Have they become the travel expert in your city? If so, it’s time to make a strategy to set your property apart.
Consider your own unique value proposition and blog about it often. For example, if the highlight of your property is a mid-afternoon reception on the veranda with free drinks and appetizers and a live band, you want to blog about things related to that.
For example, you might blog about the local music scene, wine information and food.
When planning your blog – both articles and videos – think about what sets you apart. Then, write about these things for the most traction.
Don’t forget to share links to your blog on your social media platforms.
Create Google Alerts
One of the easiest ways to keep tabs on your competition is by setting up Google Alerts.
This means that whenever someone mentions a competitor’s property online, you learn about it. For example, when they get media coverage, send a press release, write a blog or run a promotional campaign, Google alerts you.
You can also set up Google Alerts for your own property, so you can listen in on what others are saying about you online.
Network
Do you have a local professional’s group? Perhaps you have a professional lodging group? Or, consider joining the Better Business Bureau or Chamber of Commerce.
It pays to join and then go to these industry mixers. You’ll learn about the challenges your competition faces, what’s working for them, and how they handle their marketing.
Networking is a superb tool as it can set you apart from the competition as the leader in your town.
Fine Tune Your SEO
SEO (search engine optimization) is an ongoing tool for your business.
Begin by searching for lodging in your area. Use several different terms and then look at where you fall on the search engine results pages. Harness the power of online keyword tools to find popular search terms.
Is your competition showing up higher than you? Are you even on the first page? If your website is failing in the SEO arena, you want to get on top of it as soon as possible.
Your goal is to be at least on page one and hopefully in spots one through three. SEO is ongoing, so add this to your monthly calendar for review.
You can even use a tool called SPYFU. With this tool, you can download your competitors’ most profitable keywords and ads for both paid ads and organic search.
SPYFU can help you stay on top of search engine results pages and utilize your marketing budget in the most financially sound way by providing suggestions on keywords and much more.
Do a SWOT Review
Another good tool to learn more about your competition is to conduct a SWOT review to learn your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats.
You want a strong competitive analysis to help you identify where your property can grow in relation to your competitors. A SWOT review helps you take current market conditions into account as well.
We like the SWOT review especially because you can uncover new, untapped opportunities for your hotel or bed and breakfast.
Final Thoughts
When you know who your competition is, you can maximize the success of your marketing strategy and ultimately your bottom line. (tweet this)
It pays to know what your competition is doing and what you’re up against. Are they advertising more than you? Are their rates less than yours? Do they offer more amenities?
Most importantly, you want to know if they’re succeeding. This means continually monitoring their progress, so you have all the information you need to increase your hotel bookings.
By using this smart marketing technique, you ensure that your hotel stays on track to overcome the competition and move to the top of the market.
At Hotel Propeller, we build functional, beautiful websites that utilize your star ratings to help you stand out in the crowd. You’ll find everything you need to attract guests to your website and compel visitors to make a reservation. Take a look at our showcase and contact us today.
Images: Bernard Tuck and Haley Phelps on Unsplash
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