Raise your hand if you look at the last few reviews of a hotel before you book a stay.

A typical hotel search includes perusing photos, reviews, and map locations. Google shared in 2023 that it takes an average of 45 digital touch points for a new hotel guest to book—visiting websites, OTAs, social media, reading reviews, and more.

No wonder hotels have outsourced to companies to get great reviews under their online profiles. It’s a competitive world out there, with thousands of hotel rooms found on hundreds of sources.

How does the little guy, a small independent hotel, stand out in this world where everything can be purchased to get exposure? It would be easy to say jump on the bandwagon and buy exposure. The problem? Cost, Cash Flow, and Consciousness.

While a Travel and Leisure article may give you a notch in the bedpost, it does not nurture your current clientele and their word of mouth. What does that mean? It’s a notch. A checkmark, a logo on your website, and people are getting smarter than that, and Google is also about to.

AI and immersive maps will change many things in the near future.

  • SEO is already changing.
  • Video marketing is more important than ever.
  • Bloggers, Journalists, and Influencer Strategies will be necessary- but it does not mean giving away the kitchen sink, because the guests walking through your door are your greatest asset.

Paying Influencers.

I received an inquiry from an influencer about visiting a client's property. It would cost $5000 for ONE Instagram Reel, plus three nights of accommodations. This quote was being asked of from a less than 30-key boutique property.

If you are a small, under-50-key independent boutique hotel, you know how cash flow and budgets work. This one-time ask is a major commitment and a blow to what seems to be a non-existent marketing budget. It is not the key to driving business to your property.

An influencer video for followers does not equal revenue. That is not to say there is no place for influencers; there is. However, your best influencer is the guest who repeatedly returns and tells their friends about you because they love your place, the stay, and the hospitality you provide consistently.

In our instant gratification bubble, we forget that building relationships is the key to success.

So paying to play can earn you street cred, but if you don’t deliver on the experience touted, you have lost the people that matter most- those at your hotel spreading the word.

Remember the saying, sticks and stones may break some bones, but words will always hurt.

In a pay-to-play model, it can go one of two ways—good and bad. The old adage says that press is always good, no matter if it’s good or bad. Sure, if a hotel pays for an article or influencer, it can look great in the public eye. It goes bad when what is written or produced is not delivered to a property's guests.

Words can hurt. Your property’s image is not more important than how you treat and deliver an experience for your guests. Deliver on hospitality. People will forget what you said, but they will always remember how you make them feel. Most of the public does not realize that most major magazine articles are now paid for in some way.

But it shows when it all goes wrong, and guests start feeling duped.

I’ll give you an example. In 2023, I visited a brand-new hotel in New York City. An article in AFAR sold me on this hotel. I called the hotel, and they promised they were open and that it would be a great experience.

Well, it was not. Navigating through construction hard hats, a non-accessible front door of the hotel, the gym and restaurant were not open… and more. When I travel for work, a gym and access to room service are key to maximizing and balancing the time away from my office and keeping up with meetings. What you say matters, but how I felt misled will never be remedied.

The punchline.

What you say matters, but the most important thing is the delivery. Your delivery is the punchline.

So, in the pay-to-play model, the big question is- what feeling are you leaving with your guests?

Reputation management, including reviews, press, social reach, and community involvement, is key to all hotel business.

Let’s talk about feelings.

I’m a sucker for a boutique hotel and an avid Fly Delta Jets passenger. I expect cleanliness and respect wherever I travel and indulge in unique experiences. Regardless of your airline choice, you are much the same if you are an independent boutique hotel aficionado. It is the experience. You are visiting for a reason- whatever your reason is- and your choices make you feel something for you to be there. Delta provides comfort.

The question has been raised in the bed and breakfast and small inn space: Is TripAdvisor still relevant? Many paid for a promoted listing without seeing a return on their investment. And with a growing trend in luxury boutiques, we know the winner is experience.

And as TripAdvisor has disappeared into the background, Google has taken the travel world by storm beyond Google Hotels.

Google Maps is coming on strong- a larger part of how we search. Apple Maps even refers more hotel business than ever before.

SEO is going from keyword stuffing to real experiences.

Hotel interaction and communication with guests is in an up-level moment.

Finding a new way to stand out or be relevant, as emails with book now buttons are not going to cut it. Tell me I’m wrong. The amount of emails we all receive is absolutely crazy. Whenever we have a private conversation at home with friends or a loved one, Instagram displays a shiny object in front of us. We all go down the damn Alice n Wonderland rabbit hole and forget what we were actually doing- wasting hours of time.

Being real is what everyone is craving.

Transparency.

If your pool is not the best but you have great rooms, tout the amazing vanity, beauty mirror, dry bar hairdryers, view, and location, and be honest about your less-than-average pool experience.

Be honest.

An 11-key boutique hotel, The Oakwood Inn, in Iowa, decided to ask guests to provide reviews. They pride themselves on serving a three-course gourmet breakfast and having two acres of immaculate gardens and outdoor space. It’s Iowa - a flyover state. Winter does not allow listening to the frogs croak at the pond, but guests visit year-round for the experience. TripAdvisor sent review cards for the Inn to hand out to help get reviews, and they did. The owners responded with empathy, understanding, and thankfulness for any negative review. Because guess what? A true review is worth its weight in gold. Sometimes, we don’t want to hear the negative, but it improves us.

Pigs don’t know pigs stink. What does this mean? When you are in your business- at your property daily- you overlook things guests may see. A review (good or bad) is a compliment. Someone took the time to provide information that can help your business.

Paying for reviews can show discrepancies. Is it real to have a few 1-star and 5-star reviews within the same week or two?

And let’s flip the coin. Magazines need hotels and tourism agencies to “pay to play.” It’s a new revenue model that has surfaced to keep keeping on in the industry. So it’s not just a hotel issue. It’s a systemic problem. But small guys can’t play and get overlooked. Is it fair? No, but you must determine how to play within your budget, wants, and desires.

There is space for every hotel and story.

Asheville CVB paid over $1 million to advertise at Wimbledon in 2023. They received so much backlash from residents. I had a condo in the city, and we left AVL because the city was dirty and unsafe, and the reality of what was happening downtown was never disclosed. The city is great, but I still would not walk downtown alone as a woman in the dark. The city is working on making it better, and I love this town, but I no longer love visiting. The CVB is required to spend tourism dollars annually on marketing, and they have a lot to spend. So they spend it and drive a lot of visitors to the area, and boutique hotels are a big asset to the city. Lark, Indigo Road, and The Restoration have a strong presence there, and the tourism dollars spent help them.

So, while Asheville and other top cities keep making top lists, how can editors and publishers work on telling other stories that can bring a well-rounded vibe to travel? It can be easy to tell a half-truth without knowing when it is all about the dollar.

Back to my NYC stay: They could have told me the gym would not be open before my cancellation period or offered something to make it right. But even the email communication was off-beat. When you sweep the bad under the rug and only show the shiny object or yummy treat on the other side, it can become a total letdown.

When guests don’t get what they were promised, they feel disappointed and will stop trusting you—because you promised chocolate cake and delivered green beans!

Under promise, over deliver.

Transparency.

It is not just publications; this exists in conferences we attend in the industry. Speaking for 18 minutes can cost someone a sponsorship investment upwards of $30k.

Have we failed our industry with pay-to-play? Or will more shifts arise with AI leveling the playing field?

The ultimate way to win?

  • Deliver on your product.
  • Say what you mean; mean what you say.
  • Leave a guest feeling better than before they arrived.
  • Focus on the guest choosing your hotel. Make it special, and they will return time and time again with new friends, who will then tell their friends.
  • Commit to the story and delivery.

Mandy Murry
Chief Experience Officer
406-203-8904
Hospitality Concierge