The State of Online Marketing & How to Dominate the Universe
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The online customer journey for lodging reservations has grown more complex over the years. Many visitors prefer to read reviews on TripAdvisor or visit your property website more than once before they commit to reserving a room. It’s important to understand how various online channels such as organic, social, paid and other traffic drivers can influence the customer’s purchase decision and assist in generating online revenue. Join Liz Day, Digital Marketing Account Manager from RezStream, as she breaks down how these online channels can help your property attract, acquire and retain guests.
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The State of Online Marketing & How to Dominate the Universe
- 1. The State of Online Marketing & How to Dominate the Universe Liz Day
- 2. Overview • About Me • The State of Online Marketing • Online Channels & Roles – Direct – Organic – Paid – Referral – Social Media – Email Marketing • Final Thoughts
- 3. About Me • Liz Day • Digital Marketing Account Manager at RezStream • California Born, Illinois Raised and Colorado Transplant • Dog Enthusiast, Not Yet Owner
- 4. About Me • • • • RezStream has been providing solutions to the B&B market since the company was founded in 2005. Majority of our clients are independently owned properties with 50 rooms or less. We have been supporters of PAII since 2005! RezStream’s hospitality solutions include: • Reservation Software • Online Booking Engine • Website Design Services • Digital Marketing Services • Other Services Include GDS, Photography & Videography
- 5. The State of Online Marketing • • The online customer journey has become more complex over the years. Customers may interact with your brand multiple times utilizing various online channels before reaching their purchasing decision.
- 6. The State of Online Marketing • Understanding your online channels and roles will allow you to measure the performance which will empower you to work smarter.
- 7. The State of Online Marketing • When it comes to website tracking, an online reservation is credited to the last channel that referred the visitor when he/she converted. • The problem with this is that it does not paint an accurate picture of what’s effective if visitors are utilizing more than one source to reach that “buying decision.”
- 8. The State of Online Marketing • Google Analytics offers Multi-Channel Funnels reporting to show you how your marketing channels (including sources) that work to generate online reservations. • Multi-Channel Funnels reports include assisted conversions, associated to channels/sources, top conversion paths, time lag and path length of customers journeys.
- 9. The State of Online Marketing • Do you know if majority of your online reservations come from customers making a booking with only one brand interaction or multiple?
- 10. Online Channels & Roles • Online marketing channels influence the customer at different points in the path to purchase. • • • • • • Direct Organic Paid Referral Social Media Email Marketing
- 11. Direct • Direct traffic includes visitors who are accessing your website directly. This can be done by either bookmarking or typing your property’s URL into their browser. • The Direct channel is used 62% of time as the last interaction in the buyer’s customer journey. • Nurture returning guests by engaging with them on other marketing channels, i.e. Social Media, Email Marketing.
- 12. Organic • Organic traffic is referrals from search engines such as Google, Bing and Yahoo! These listings are referred to as “natural.” • The Organic channel is used 59% of time as an “assist” interaction in the buyer’s customer journey. • A significant percentage of converting branded phrases that show up in your analytics may in fact be downstream from the online research phase. • Industry research shows that 86% of buyers begin their buyer experience cycle process with a non-branded search.
- 13. Organic Organic Non-Branded Conversions Breakdown Last Interaction Conversions 11% Assist Interaction Conversions 89%
- 14. Organic • In addition to executing Search Engine Optimization to attract last interaction conversions, engage the buyer early in the buying cycle, i.e. Awareness Consideration Intent • Create content that will help educate and inform the buyer so he/she can feel confident in making a purchasing decision.
- 15. Paid Search • Paid Search or Pay-Per-Click (PPC) allows a property to receive immediate exposure in the search results for specific keyword phrases. The advertiser only pays when someone clicks on an ad. • The Paid Search channel is used 61% of time as an “assist” interaction in the buyer’s customer journey.
- 16. Paid Search • Paid Search Referred 53 “Direct” Online Bookings • Paid Search “Assisted” in 60 Online Bookings • Combining “Direct” and “Assisted”, Paid Search’s Online Bookings Totaled to 113.
- 17. Paid Search
- 18. Referral • Referral traffic includes any visitors landing on your website from other websites. *This excludes Search Engine referrals. • The Referral channel is used 50% of time as an “assist” interaction in the buyer’s customer journey. • A healthy Referral channel should comprise of both Paid and Non-Paid sources. Last Interaction Conversion Assist Interaction Conversion
- 19. Referral
- 20. Referral
- 21. Social Media • Social traffic includes any referral from a Social Media Network. • The Social channel is used 84% of time as an “assist” interaction in the buyer’s customer journey. • Social Media is the hybrid of customer service and marketing! • Social Media can target new audiences, stimulate website visitors, interactions and bookings. In addition, it serves as a hub to resolve customer service issues. “93% of Marketers Utilize Social Media in Overall Marketing Strategy!” “Facebook Has More Than Over 725 Million Active Daily Users!”
- 22. Social Media • More and more, Social and Search are continuing to converge! • Businesses leveraging Social Media are being rewarded by receiving exposure!
- 23. Email Marketing • Email Marketing traffic includes any referral from an Email Marketing campaign. • The Email Marketing channel is used 78% of time as an “assist” interaction in the buyer’s customer journey. • Developing a robust and effective Email Marketing strategy can assist in the following: • Recruiting & Retaining Customers • Selling Directly to Customer Base • Receiving Further Data about Customer Base
- 24. Final Thoughts
- 25. Final Thoughts • Invest in Multiple Marketing Channels to Dominate • Utilize Google Analytics to Track Channel Success, i.e. MultiChannel Funnel Reports • Review Assist Interaction and Last Interaction Conversions • Invest in Both “Assist” and “Last Interaction” Marketing Channels • Nurture Direct Traffic Utilizing Other Marketing Channels • Invest in Branded and Non-Branded Term Exposure via Paid Search and Organic to Acquire New Customers & Retain Returning • Utilize Both Email Marketing and Social Media to Nurture Existing Customer Relationships & Potential Customers
- 26. Connect FREE ONLINE PROGRAM ANALYSIS! • Website: www.RezStream.com • Email: Sales@RezStream.com • Toll Free: 866.360.8210 ext. 1 • Social Media: • www.Facebook.com/RezStream • www.Twitter.com/RezStream • www.Plus.Google.com/+Rezstream • www.RezStream.com/Blog
Editor's Notes
- The top channels that you need to be using.
- RezStream: Explain the Why & Provide Products Overview
- Problem:The online customer journey has become more complex. Customers may interact with your brand multiple times before reaching their purchasing decision. Properties who only rely on only one channel are losing out on these innovations.Multi-channel marketing is a must.
- Why Important? Understanding how the various channels impact your property’s customer path will allow you to better understand the channel’s performance and how they each impact your business. This will help you determine which ones you want to pursue and manage. Who here has Google Analytics?
- How many people look at Google Analytics once a month? More than once a month? How many people here use Google Analytics when it comes to making marketing decisions? The chart below is most likely what you review when it comes to evaluating what’s referring visitors, online reservations and online revenue. Although this report is helpful, it does not paint a clear picture if visitors are interacting with your brand more than once. If customers are interacting with your brand more than once before purchasing, you need to know what those channels/sources are so you can accurately measure the effectiveness of those drivers.
- Due to the complexity of today’s customer path, you need to be able to report on how the different channels are assisting your guests. Luckily, Google Analytics offers Multi-Channel Funnel analytics that reports on the various channels visitors interact with your brand on the customer path and the most popular customer paths leading to online conversions. How many people here are using several reports in Google Analytics to make adjustments to your marketing strategy? It’s important to know how to analyze these reports when it comes to evaluating your current online marketing program.
- Do you know if majority of your online reservations come from customers booking after interacting with your brand once or multiple times? Typically, the higher value/more costly purchases lead to longer paths. For example, we have a client whose considered to be a “high value” purchase. Only 32% of the property’s total online reservations generated from visitors landing on their website for the first time and booking. 68% of their total online revenue is contributed to visitors interacting with their brand 2 or more times before booking! This indicates how important it is to analyze the entire process, not just the last channel the customer interacted with because it could lead to eliminating effectively marketing channels impacting their bottom line.
- Online marketing channels influence customersat different points in the path to purchase.Sometimes, certain marketing channels serve more as an “assist” or “last interaction” channel.
- Majority of the time, Direct visitors are returning visitors to your website and/or guests of yours.The Direct channel is used 62% of time as the last interaction in the buyer’s customer journey. This means that majority of the time, visitors utilize the Direct channel when they are ready to make an online reservation. Funnel Example, i.e. Visitor Locates Your Property via Google Talks to Spouse Comes Back as Direct Visitor to Book! Since we know this is heavily used as a last interaction channel, it’s important to review what online channels assisted those visitors to reach their buying decision.It’s important to nurture these returning guests through other online marketing channels, i.e. Email Marketing, Social Media, developing and promoting engaging content via the Organic and Paid channel.
- Organic traffic is referrals from search engines such as Google, Bing and Yahoo! These listings are referred to as “natural.”The Organic channel is used 59% of time as an “assist” interaction in the buyer’s customer journey. 86% of buyers begin their buyer experience cycle process with a non-branded search. Breakdown example of Brand vs. Non-Branded and Provide Example , i.e. Name Property vs. Denver Bed and Breakfast
- This is an example of a client’s organic non-branded terms performance. Again, every property is unique. However, this data further confirms that the Organic channel for this account is extremely important as an assist interaction conversion vs. last interaction conversion when it comes to non-branded term performance.
- In addition to conducting SEO to attract last interaction conversions, creating new educational/information content will appeal to customers early in the buying cycle, i.e. Awareness Consideration Intent Therefore, we recommend creating content that will help educate and inform the buyer. The benefits of this approach is that you are courting your customers rather than potentially alienating them with a push to purchase. More importantly, youare connecting with the buyer early in the buying cycle, forming a longer-term relationship, i.e. establishing brand vs. basic product/service.
- How many of you use Pay-Per-Click? Who here has made a nice return from PPC? Paid Search or Pay-Per-Click (PPC) allows a property to receive immediate exposure in the search results for specific keyword phrases. The advertiser only pays when someone clicks on an ad. The Paid Search channel is used 61% of time as an “assist” interaction in the buyer’s customer journey. In addition to Paid Search offering a second placement in the search results, we’ve also seen positive results take place with both Paid and Organic being employed, i.e. traffic, conversions and new visitors. Both Organic and Paid Search work well together in the sense that if something is effective in a Paid Search strategy, it will work in the Organic strategy (vice versa), i.e. keyword phrases.
- Although Paid Search serves majority of the time as an “assist interaction” channel, it can also be utilized as a “last interaction” channel. Therefore, it’s recommended to target both “Brand” and “Non-Branded” terms to maximize conversions. Who would want to cut this out of their program? It’s working beautifully for them!Also, we’ve seen accounts shut off negatively impact Organic performance.
- In addition, to driving online conversions, Paid Search can generates phone conversions through click to call ad extensions. If you have these features enabled, you’ll want to review the Paid Account’s reports to receive more insights regarding the ad extension’s performance. By utilizing a variety of reports, it will provide a clear picture on the channel’s performance and allow you to justify the cost and assist with efficient budgeting.
- Referral traffic includes any visitors landing on your website from other websites. *This excludes Search Engine referrals. The Referral channel is used 50% of time as an “assist” interaction in the buyer’s customer journey. Because the Referral channel is a 50/50 split, utilize this for both last interaction conversions and assist interaction conversions. Invest in both Paid and Non-Paid sources, i.e. Paid = TripAdvisor Business Listing; Non-Paid = Google Places/Google+ Local Listing
- To optimize for conversions, create robust listings with consistent messaging.TripConnect Program For Paid: Make Sure to Negotiate, If Possible: Price Listing Placement Listing Features Paid Model? Cost Per Click vs. Cost Per Impression
- To optimize for conversions, create robust listings with consistent messaging.For all listings, especially local listings, make sure your Property Name, Address and Phone Number are consistent. It helps the search engines & delivers a consistent message.
- Social traffic includes any referral from a Social Media Network. The Social channel is used 84% of time as an “assist” interaction in the buyer’s customer journeySocial Media acts as a Front Desk staff member in the sense people can ask about rates, promotions, specific area attractions and more! For independent properties, you can leverage these various platforms for free to showcase your unique selling propositions, i.e. THE EXPERIENCE! We had a client whose Social Media channel assisted $120,384.64 in online reservations for 2013. Although it was not the top “assisted” channel, it definitely played in a role in their customers paths.
- In addition to the benefits a comprehensive Social Media program can offer for customer service purposes, business’ are being rewarded in the search engine results! Google is making a push by rewarding new, valuable content being promoted on Google+ by displaying in the search results!
- Email Marketing traffic includes any referral from an Email Marketing campaign. The Email Marketing channel is used 78% of time as an “assist” interaction in the buyer’s customer journey. Customer Path for Email Marketing Example Shorter “Assist” Path, i.e. Email Blast Template Website URL Could refer to as a “Direct Assist” Typically, the cost to promote via Email Marketing is low cost. Good Vehicle to Test Various Messages, Promotions, Imagery, Etc. Lots of data received very quickly.
- By leveraging these various online marketing channels, you can dominate!
- Invest in Multiple Marketing Channels to Dominate Utilize Google Analytics to Track Channel Success, i.e. Multi-Channel Funnel Reports Review Assist Interaction and Last Interaction ConversionsInvest in Both “Assist” and “Last Interaction” Marketing Channels Nurture Direct Traffic Utilizing Other Marketing Channels Invest in Branded and Non-Branded Term Exposure via Paid Search and Organic to Acquire New Customers & Retain ReturningUtilize Both Email Marketing and Social Media to Nurture Existing Customer Relationships & Potential Customers
- We understand being a small property, you have to wear many different hats. Do you have the time to do all of this? If not, companies like RezStream are here to help you. Give us a call so we can assist you to make sure your marketing dollars are being put to good use!