How to Start a Local SEO Campaign for Your Hotel

If you’re in the hotel business, you’d probably like to reach out to more consumers in the local area to get more business coming through the door. After all, when it comes to booking a conference or a wedding, people are usually looking for something near a specific location. They will most likely use apps like Google Maps and other local business directories to find hotels like yours. When people look for nearby places to host an event, they will search for local businesses and check out their online profiles to determine the best option. 

A local SEO campaign is a great way to bring in more reservations for your hotel, event venue, or conference centre. 72% of consumers who did a local search visited a store within five miles. But, to be one of the top-ranking hotels in your area, you’ll need to set up a local SEO campaign that optimises your website and business for online search platforms like Google. SEO involves using a range of online marketing tactics to make sure Google associates your business with a particular product or service. If you want to bring in more local business, take a look at how to start a local SEO campaign for a hotel.

Use Geo-Targeted Keywords

Google’s algorithm ranks different businesses, whether they’re in one specific neighbourhood or from all over the world, using a range of different factors, but one of the most important is recognising particular keywords in the company’s website. When consumers search for businesses online, they will use specific keywords that identify what products or services they’re looking for. You should use these keywords in the content on your hotel’s website or business listings to help Google recognise your business as a hotel.

To find suitable keywords for your business, you can head over to Google AdWords. Just set up an account and you can browse hundreds of different keywords within the hotel and hospitality industry. You can search keywords based on their popularity and within a certain geographic location. Since you’re focused on local consumers, it helps to use long-tail keywords that incorporate terms from your local area. Here are some examples:

• Hotels in “name of your city”
• Hotels near “name of famous attraction”
• Event venues near “name of city”
• Cheap hotels in “name of city”
• Luxury hotels in “name of city”

If your hotel is near a major attraction like a sports stadium or a live music venue, you can incorporate some of those terms in your local SEO campaign. 

Once you have your mind set on a few keywords, you need to feature them on your website using the following on-page SEO techniques:

• Writing original descriptions or text on your website using these keywords
• Using these keywords when listing your hotel on local business directories
• Writing social media copy with these keywords
• Using these keywords when creating the titles and sub-titles of individual website pages

Be Consistent with Business Information

The internet is full of business directories and listings. From Google Maps to your city’s official business directory, you need to list your hotel in as many places as possible. This may include:

• Tourist and travel directories like TripAdvisor
• Google+
• Yellow Pages
• Business review websites like Walif

Make sure that all your hotel’s information is correct and consistent across all these platforms, otherwise, Google may penalise your business by putting it further down in the search rankings. Google doesn’t want to direct its users to companies with missing or inconsistent contact information. Do a triple check of all the places where your hotel is listed and keep your eye on the following information:

• Address
• Phone number
• Name or title of business
• Hours of operation
• Check-in and check-out times
• List of hotel policies and amenities

Go Mobile

An ever-increasing number of consumers are choosing mobile searches when it comes to finding local businesses. The person might not have time to sit down and open their laptop or have access to their desktop computer at home. They’re going to use their mobile device to find a hotel or event venue that’s close to their current location. In fact, 30% of mobile searches are related to a location. 

This means you need to have a mobile-friendly website to make the right impression on new consumers that might be looking for a place to stay. Open your hotel’s website on your mobile device to see how the layout compares to your regular homepage. A successful mobile-friendly website means:

• The viewer should not have to scroll to the left or right to see all the content on your website
• The content should automatically fit the size of the screen of the person’s mobile device
• All photos, text and other media shouldn’t be cropped or cut off from the viewer’s perspective

If you want to convert the people that are landing on your mobile website into paying customers, you need to make sure you include valuable and relevant information on your site. Of course, mobile users don’t have as much time to sift through paragraphs of copy, so you should keep it simple and concise. Make sure your mobile website has the following:

A clear CTA or call-to-action

This means adding a button and a piece of copy that asks the viewer to complete a certain task. For your hotel, you’ll want to choose something along the lines of, “Book your reservation now” or, “See our current listings”. There should also be a button or link to your hotel’s online reservation booking platform, and ideally, the CTA should be omnipresent.

Content describing the look and feel of your hotel including relevant keywords 

People will want to know how it feels to stay at your hotel. This may include terms like “luxury” and “indulgent” if you have a high-end hotel that will appeal to wealthy consumers, or “economy” or “affordable” if you’re trying to appeal to tourists and travellers on a budget. 

Scalable high-resolution photos of the rooms and amenities at your hotel

People will need to see photos of your hotel before they book their stay. Make sure your users have quick access to a surplus of pictures of your hotel and the features that are included in the person’s stay. To go that extra mile, use videos or 360-degree virtual tours to give the user an immersive and interactive experience.

A list of things to do or nearby attractions

Adding a list of nearby attractions or fun things to do will make your hotel more appealing to travellers. People like knowing that they’re staying in a good area with lots of fun things to do. Even if they can see your hotel on the map and its proximity to local points of interest, it helps to repeat this message on your website. 

Contact information

If someone has a question about your hotel or wants to book their event over the phone, you should have a phone number listed on the site or a live chat functionality. You should also include the official name of your hotel, address, and directions from the highway, airport, or other points of interest. 

Creating a local SEO campaign for your hotel can be a significant challenge. You’ll need to list valuable information on your website and dozens of other local directories and travel guides. Your site also needs to be mobile-friendly if you want to attract tourists on the go. If you need help setting up your local SEO campaign, get in touch with Blue Beetle, we'd be delighted to help.