6 Great Hotel Marketing Reads: Hospitality Marketing Link Digest

I know it’s a little late, but there’s no way I was letting the weekend go by without another Hospitality Marketing Link Digest for you.
‘Cause, you know, I’m good like that. Without further mucking about, then, let’s take a look at these 6 great hotel marketing reads for this week:

1. Hotel News Now explains why record occupancy should push pricing power. I heard someone recently (I looked, but I can’t find the reference), suggest that hotel revenue managers have underpriced their properties relative to market demand. Looks like a good time to catch up, no?
2. Hotel Marketing looks at how social media feedback helps to redefine hotel branding. Given how important reputation management is to your hotel marketing, you know I recommend you read this.
3. Tnooz suggests you get your heads around marketing and ecommerce trends (as uncovered in search volumes). Makes sense.
4. Great stuff from Skift that ponders if Expedia was too powerful for hotels, consider Booking.com’s plans. Very, very true, and a nice follow-up read to my look at Booking.com and Marriott’s recent partnership.
5. Here’s one last reminder of my upcoming webinar with HSMAI focused on How to Allocate for Hotel Digital Marketing in 2015. Well worth your time.
6. And, finally, Evercore offers some equity research [PDF link], on Google, Expedia, Priceline, and TripAdvisor that delves into Google’s travel plans in detail, and the others’ in lesser detail. It’s really an interesting counterpoint to my look at how intermediaries drive up your costs (and 5 ways to protect yourself). The TL;DR version of the Evercore report: Google’s going to drive increased “efficiency” in travel distribution for hotels, mainly by pressuring OTA’s ability to gain reach. However, that’s an overly simplistic summary; the whole report is well worth the read.

Like this? Then check out last week’s list of 8 awesome hotel marketing posts and register to receive a special report I’ve produced in conjunction with hotel marketing firm Vizergy, “Digital Hotel Marketing in a Multiscreen World.” Developed specifically for hotel and resort marketers, the lessons can help your business adapt to the changing guest environment. You can get your free copy of the report here.

You may also want to review the tips in my recent presentation Digital Marketing Directions: Three Trends Shaping 2014 Hospitality Internet Marketing. I’ve presented this talk to a number of hospitality and travel-related organizations and you might find it valuable for your business, too:

Finally, you might also enjoy some of our past coverage of the social, local, mobile web and what it means for your business, including:

• Holy Crap! Mobile’s Even Bigger Than You Thought
• How to Use Emotion and Storytelling in Digital Marketing
• 4 Lessons You Need to Know from Google’s Affluent Traveler Report
• What’s the State of Hotel Reputation Management?
• 10 Essential Lessons Learned From HSMAI’s Digital Marketing Strategy Conference
• What in the World are Priceline and TripAdvisor Up To?
• It’s Time You Take Mobile Seriously. Here’s Why
• What Expedia’s Leaders Can Teach You About Digital Strategy
• The 4 Rules of Social Marketing for Hotel Marketers