HOW A POORLY DESIGNED WEBSITE CAN COST YOUR HOTEL A FORTUNE
Think about the times when hotel advertising relied mostly on brochures.
Brochures served as a window to your amenities, rooms, and services offered and was an essential sales tool in getting guests to book in your establishment. But when brochures were too text heavy, had outdated photos and were poorly printed, the brochure went from a sales tool to sales repellent.
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A website is the modern-day equivalent of that brochure. A website which has interesting text, good visuals, and simple navigation allows potential guests to find what they need and book right away. In the digital age, when almost every business advertises, finds potential customers, and gets reviewed online, hotels must recognize the importance of web design in order to succeed in making sales through the internet.
First impressions are important
With the world now being as fast-paced as it is, a study on Human-Computer Interaction by the Nielsen Norman Group shows that the average internet user often leaves a webpage within 10-20 seconds. In those 10 seconds, most users have evaluated your hotel and decided whether they’ll stay on your website or bounce away. If your homepage is ineffective, it doesn’t matter how great the rest of your site or your hotel is because there won’t be any users reading it.
Have a Mobile Friendly Website
As internet access becomes more ingrained in our lives, people expect better and more consistent services from your website. A guest's initial impression of your hotel from your website also reflects on your hotel's professionalism and customer service. Most establishments with an online presence also have mobile internet advertising. People are always on the go and most guests who need a vacation are the ones who don’t have time to sit down in front of their desks and peruse websites for hours. The use of mobile has skyrocketed in the past few years, so much that mobile users have surpassed desktop users for the first time in history. So keeping that in mind, if your website doesn’t cater to mobile users, you might be ignoring more than 50% of your website traffic.
Your Website is Your Storefront
If built right, a website can be one of your hotel’s greatest assets. It can function as a salesperson, marketing department, and booking tool all at the same time. Just remember to optimize all the content and elements of your website for your target market and keep your audience’s readability in mind. Try to give as much breathing space to the content on your website as possible so it may serve its purpose easily, your website visitors don't lose interest, and you don't lose any potential bookings.
Booking Success can help you optimize your website to increase direct bookings and increase your occupancy year-round.
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