Fuel Hotel Marketing Podcast

Despite search engines doing their best to push organic results down and replace them with more paid ads, every hotel still relies on a steady stream of free traffic from organic search engine results. SEO can be very daunting due to the vastness of what it entails. Search engines look at hundreds of factors when determining which results should rank at the top of the results page for any given keyword. In this episode, we discuss some of the basic block and tackle on-page aspects that can have a significant impact in your overall search ranking.. In The News Verizon Buys Yahoo! For 4.8 Billion http://money.cnn.com/2016/07/25/technology/yahoo-verizon-deal-sale/index.html Brands Can Request Verified Twitter Accounts http://www.marketingtechnews.net/news/2016/jul/20/brands-can-now-apply-verified-twitter-account-it-opens-everyone/ Millennials Lead the Way in Travel Agent Usage: http://www.travelagentcentral.com/trends-research/asta-millennials-lead-way-travel-agent-usage-56823 Westin Hotel Running Club

Your social fan base can be one of your hotel’s best assets and word-of-mouth exposure can be priceless. However massive social exposure is not always a good thing… So what do you do when a guest tweets a photo of bedbugs, or someone posts a scathing review on TripAdvisor? In this episode we discuss the three tactics for mitigating the damage when the social stuff hits the fan (S-SHTF) and even turning it into a win. In The News Expedia Purchases Photo Sharing Site: http://www.digitaltrends.com/photography/expedia-acquisition-acquires-trover-travel-photography/ This combined with Orbits and CheapTickets expanding their reviews to rental cars is a sign that the OTAs are looking to chip away at the TA market share Google releases new ways to edit Google Maps listings. https://maps.googleblog.com/2016/07/more-ways-to-share-your-street-smarts.html How many hotels have jumped on the Pokemon GO Bandwagon http://www.ryansolutions.com/blog/2016/pokemon-go-hotels/?utm_source=email&utm_medium=buttonDBBOXr&utm_

Pokemon are everywhere and Pokemon Go is everywhere in the media right now and everyone is trying to get their own little piece of attention from this world-wide phenomenon by trying to newsjack these imaginary monsters. This is the inspiration for an episode dedicated to newsjacking. What is Newsjacking and how can your hotel benefit from it? In this episode of the Fuel Hotel Marketing Podcast, we offer examples of great newsjacking and also where it may have gone terribly wrong for some folks. We give our opinions and offer some simple do’s and don'ts. In The News http://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Hotel-News/Hotel-guest-satisfaction-plateaus-as-perks-become-standard https://skift.com/2016/07/12/airbnb-scores-another-corporate-travel-win-with-amex-global-business-travel-deal/ Show Notes: Our Pokemon newsjack: http://www.fueltravel.com/blog/7-ways-pokemon-go-can-benefit-hotels/ When to Newsjack Timing is everything if you want to be effective at newsjacking. Like most things that involve time, the

In this week’s episode of the Fuel Hotel Marketing Podcast, we dig into the world of social media. What social media platforms are right for your hotel? What types of posts should your hotel be making? Which hotels are doing a good job on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and SnapChat? Find out below. Question: Which social media channels should my hotel be on? - Zoe C Facebook 72% of adult internet users use Facebook (58% of entire adult population) 1.44B monthly active users More women than men (77% vs 66%) Skews younger, but stats remain impressive (82% of users 18-29… 56% of 65+ use Facebook) US top country, strong presence worldwide (US = 15% of users) https://www.facebook.com/business/news/audience-insights http://www.pewinternet.org/2015/08/19/the-demographics-of-social-media-users/ http://sproutsocial.com/insights/new-social-media-demographics/ Organic reach ~5% https://www.facebook.com/business/ads-guide Best Facebook Ad Formats For Hotels - http://www.fueltravel.com/blog/the-best-facebook-ad-format

In this week’s episode of the Fuel Hotel Marketing Podcast, we keep it short and sweet. We’ve been a little distracted this week with our local college baseball team, the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers, winning the college world series and all that. It’s also a holiday weekend in the USA, so we’re looking to clock off early and go hang out on the beach with an ice cold libation. For that reason, we’re going to cover a few news items but not dig into a specific topic. We hope that y’all are ok with that. We’ll be back next week with an in depth look at social media for hotels. SHOW NOTES: In The News: Facebook Algo Update - 7 Changes To Watch For http://www.fastcompany.com/3061481/seven-ways-facebooks-big-algorithm-change-will-affect-marketers-and-publishers Actual Update Announcement →well http://newsroom.fb.com/news/2016/06/building-a-better-news-feed-for-you/ TripAdvisor - Hotel Business vs Tours & Attractions Business https://skift.com/2016/06/30/beyond-tripadvisor-hotel-bookings-its-tours-and-restau

Your friends from the Fuel Hotel Marketing Podcast took a trip to New Orleans this week for the Hospitality Industry Technology Exposition & Conference (HITEC). We met lots of neat hoteliers and showed off our mobile app, booking engine, eCRM platform and analytics dashboard. We also met lots of cool new vendors and are going to cover a few of them in this episode. SHOW NOTES: In The News: Google looks to ease tensions within travel sector https://www.tnooz.com/article/google-convenes-meeting-of-travel-brands-to-build-bridges/ Google Releases new feature in Search Console to view stats on rich snippets and AMP http://searchengineland.com/google-brings-rich-results-filter-search-analytics-report-within-search-console-252372 OpenTable Lets Customers Put the Bill On their Tab: http://hotelmarketing.com/index.php/content/article/opentable_now_lets_la_diners_put_it_on_their_tab Ads coming to local search pack, nothing is sacred: http://searchengineland.com/google-confirms-ads-coming-local-pack-252407 What i

In this episode of the Fuel Hotel Marketing Podcast, we discuss whether or not a hotel needs a blog. You’re already super-busy, should you spend some of your precious time creating and maintaining a blog? Should the blog be a part of your site or separate? What topics should you write about? Come find out with your Fueligan friends. SHOW NOTES: In The News: 1. Majority of Travelers Prefer to Book on a Mobile Device according to operamediaworks.com. Cool infographic included https://www.tnooz.com/article/majority-of-travellers-claim-they-prefer-booking-on-a-mobile-device/ 2. 8 BILLION video views per day on Facebook. BUT 85% are watched without sound. - everywhere reported on this. 3. Ad Blocking Stats http://digiday.com/publishers/global-state-of-ad-blocking/ Describe types of content: channels, pages, news, events, blog Benefits of blogging: Gets more search engine traffic Helps customers make a decision Provides useful information Positions your hotel as an expert Affiliates you with events, attractio

We get testy with each other this week, as we talk about how to effectively run tests on your website in order to increase conversion and revenue. The episode also features a super-secret special guest from a galaxy far, far away. Download the FREE guide to The A/B/Cs of Testing: How Smart Hotels Test and Grow at www.fueltravel.com/abc Please leave a review if you're enjoying our podcast! Show Notes: In the news: New Trump hotel not to carry the Trump name - https://skift.com/2016/06/07/trump-hotels-will-avoid-the-trump-name-with-new-lifestyle-brand/ Arizona Legalizes AirBNB Investment Properties - http://www.hotel-online.com/press_releases/release/arizona-legalizes-airbnb-investment-properties AirBNB Local Guide Program - http://techcrunch.com/2016/06/03/airbnb-begins-testing-city-hosts-program-to-give-guests-guided-one-of-a-kind-experiences/ Popular Testing Ideas: Offer Layout Navigation Urgency Email Capture Fundamentals: Yoda - You must unlearn what you have learned Check out http

We get a little bit sneaky in this episode because we're discussing ways to take market share away from your competition with some very aggressive tactics. If your hotel is looking to experiment with something new, this episode is for you In this episode: News: Google is beta testing their new killer app, Google Trips. Does this spell doom for the OTAs? http://www.cnet.com/news/google-beta-testing-trips-traveling-app/ Hotels eliminating guest room desks. Perhaps they could have said that a little better...http://hotelmarketing.com/index.php/content/article/hotels_eliminate_guestroom_desks Google is going to start looking at mobile page speed as a ranking factor f=mobile results. 5 Brilliant Competitive Advertising Strategies to Outsmart Your Competition 1. Facebook users who like competitor's pages 2. Show ads before competitor's YouTube videos 3. Email targeting in gmail and yahoo for people who get emails from your competitors 4. Targeting people who visit your competitor's site via

Are you ready to drink from a fire hose? This is a fast-paced episode focusing on ways to influence your potential guest's decision making and increase your online bookings We cover a bunch of tactics that have a proven track record of getting people through the conversion funnel.

There's no denying the power and influence that TripAdvisor has on the travel industry. Yet, some hoteliers are still ignoring or refusing to accept the fact that TripAdvisor can help increase bookings and RevPar. In this episode, we discuss the good, the bad, and the ugly of TripAdvisor and give hotels some advice on how to maximize their exposure on the platform.

Everything you need to know about content, links and Google's RankBrain for your hotel SEO in one super episode of the Fuel Hotel Marketing Podcast. What are the top 3 SEO ranking factors? What keywords should my hotel target? How can I make my hotel rank on search engines? Should I target Google or Bing with my Search strategy? Which hotel marketing agency is the best SEO firm in all the land? These questions and hotel SEO tips are tackled in this episode of the Fuel Hotel Marketing Podcast.

Should my hotel spend its advertising budget on Google adwords? Should my hotel bid on brand keywords? Is Facebook advertising right for my hotel? What is Google HPA? These questions and more are tackled in this episode of the fuel hotel marketing podcast.

Should your hotel have a mobile app? What are the benefits to your property from an operational standpoint? How can a mobile app make your hotel more money? What features should your hotel mobile app have? How do you get guests to download your mobile app? All these questions and more are covered in this episode of the Fuel Hotel Marketing Podcast. If your hotel is interested in a mobile app, check out http://www.fueltravel.com/guestexpress-mobile-app/

In this episode, the Fueligans dig into the subject of email marketing. Even some of the big hotels sometimes make mistakes. Be sure that your property isn't doing the same thing.

In the first episode of the Fuel Hotel Marketing podcast, the Fueligans discuss how Hilton and Marriott are offering incentives for guests to book direct in order to avoid paying the hefty commissions to the OTAs. The episode also offers some handy advice for independent hotels. Submit your questions on Twitter to @fueltravel. Download our leisure travel study at www.fueltravel.com/study/.