An Instagram presence is essential in the hospitality industry. Instagram simply provides you with the opportunity to consistently highlight the visual appeal of your properties.
Of course, an Instagram presence can only deliver the strongest possible return-on-investment if you have a strong following. Don’t worry if you’re not sure how to develop one. These tips will help you easily attract more hotel Instagram followers.
Tips for Attracting More Hotel Instagram Followers
Run a Contest
You want to cast as wide a net as possible on Instagram. Quite simply, the more people see your content (or content related to your brand), the greater the odds you’ll attract more guests.
A simple way to do this is to get your current followers to develop content for you. Consider running a contest in which users post photos of your properties with a relevant hashtag. If you offer a prize to the user who posts the best picture, there’s a good chance many of your followers will be happy to participate. For a small price (the cost of the prize) you’ll thus prompt a large group of people to create Instagram content related to your brand, with all their followers seeing it.
Coordinate with an Influencer
Influencers can be very helpful from a marketing perspective. That’s simply because people often trust them to a greater degree than the brands they are promoting. In fact, research indicates one out of every three consumers trusts an influencer’s recommendations more than an actual brand’s representation of itself. Thus, by finding a relevant influencer and hiring them to promote your hotels, you’ll reach a larger audience via a figure they already trust.
Don’t Focus Solely on Your Brand
Your main goal when posting on Instagram may be to highlight the beauty of your properties in a dynamic and engaging way. That means you’ll likely post images of your properties most often.
However, it doesn’t mean you should focus exclusively on your properties and brand. This limits your ability to reach potential followers who may not be as aware of your brand as others.
For instance, maybe one of your hotels is near the site of an upcoming music festival. Posting about the festival with relevant hashtags allows you to potentially reach people interested in attending it. As a result, they might not do more than simply follow you on Instagram; they might also consider staying at your hotel during the festival.
That’s just one example. When developing an Instagram strategy, it’s important to identify natural ways you can post about relevant topics that aren’t strictly related to your brand.
Aim for an Emotional Reaction
It’s much easier to attract more hotel Instagram followers when your current followers share your content. They’re more likely to do so if you post content that generates an emotional reaction.
For example, if you allow pets on your properties, posting a cute and funny image/video of a pet is an easy way to make an impression on your followers. They may wish to share the post as a result.
Most importantly, monitor your progress. You need to constantly pay attention to what types of posts yield the most engagement. Adjusting your strategy accordingly is key to attracting followers on a consistent basis.
