Even hotel chains can market well online

Now that the Spring conference season is in full swing, I have been traveling a lot as I present at events in cities all over the US. Anyone who is on the road often, staying in hotels 50 or 100 nights a year knows that the little things are important. For me, interesting style in hotels and even a bit of funkiness is stimulating and keeps me sharp. Typical chain hotels bore me. You know the type, everything is predictable, even the restaurant has the same name city-to-city in many chains.

A few days ago I had the pleasure of staying at the Hotel Allegro in Chicago. Typically, it was booked for me by the sponsor of the speaking gig I had the next day. The Hotel Allegro is part of Kimpton Hotels and I loved it. It’s a well-restored older hotel property with the wonderful old-time bits kept such as the mail drop slots on each floor and the large chunky bathroom fixtures.

Great stuff, I'm thinking, but how does a hotel chain market such interesting details to people like me who prefer uniqueness to American-style chain hotel blandness? It starts with the Kimpton Hotels tagline: "every hotel tells a story." Nice. I get it. The tagline works because it tells me that each hotel is different.

What I really liked is that in each room there is a catalog where you can purchase things that the hotel uses to furnish the rooms. Called Kimpton Style the catalog is also available online. This is great web marketing. I always love the "show don’t tell" approach to marketing on the web. By selling things like lamps, mirrors, drinking glasses, bathrobes, and toiletries, Kimpton Hotels delivers a powerful message in a subtle way: "the fixtures, furnishings, and Amenities at our hotel are so great that you will want to use them at home." How much better is this low-key approach than the typical nonsense about hotel rooms that you find online?

This way of showing what your company is about through web content works for many businesses. How about yours?

Comments

[Chris McMahon]

My wife and I statyed at a Kimpton in DC (Hotel Helix) last year and it was a nightmare.

Beds too soft, dried blood on the wall and bedsheet, super small bathroom, the carper in the halls was worn and the paint in the halls was so thin you could see the wallpaper underneath, only 1 of the 2 very small elevators were working (the avg. wait for that one to get to our floor or the lobby was about 15 minutes) and roomservice closed at 9pm.

We wound up leaving the next morning even though our reservations were for 6 nights. The staff didn't even bother to ask why we were cutting our stay short.

[Jen]

I've stayed at 2 Kimpton hotels - Hotel Madera in DC and Hotel Marlowe in Cambridge. Both stays were terrific - the hotels were clean, eclectically decorated and the service terrific. We look for a Kimpton hotel everytime we go away, and always stay at the Hotel Marlowe when we are visiting Boston.

The websites, however, leave a bit to be desired. The design attempts to match the flavor of the hotel and generally succeeds, but the usability and details of the navigation and general HTML construction miss a few marks.

[Hotel website design]

Really good hotel to stay at, Real feel good environment....more

[hotel search engine optimisation]

Hey its good.Normally hotel chains are launched for attracting travel agents with special offers, incentives competition and other goodies..

[Melbourne Hotels]

Travel agents are the marketing tools of a hotel business. If they market well the subject, the hotel will be full every time. Attention to detail is very important.

[hareydouglas@gmail.com]

Hey its good.Normal hotel chains, travel agencies with special offers, incentives, competition, and other goodies to be shot.

[alvinsmith]

I agree with you that travel agent is the important element of hotel management. This post is really well written. I have share it with my friends.