Guide to Facebook

7/26/2019 Guide to Facebook

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A Hotel!s Guide to Facebook, March 2011

A Hotel!s Guide toFacebook

March 2011


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Just a few years ago, Facebook used tobe a closed network for college kids. Itsvalue for business was unclear. But a lothas changed since then, as the networkopened up to become what is now

arguably the most important socialnetworking service on the planet foraudiences of all ages, and a goodcommunications opportunity for brands.

In this guide, we will look at how yourhotel can benefit from Facebook as a wayto create community, cultivate loyalty, andultimately, increase revenue.

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A Hotels Guide to Facebook


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Facebook today

What does (and doesn't) work on Facebook

Five different approaches to Facebook

New developments

Designing an engaging brand page

Moving beyond setup: integrating Facebook with your website

Promotions on Facebook

Case studies outside the hotel industry

Action steps: Planning your Facebook strategy

Bonus: Reputation and Facebook

What's next?

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Table of contents


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As I write this, in March 2011, Facebookhas exploded in popularity past 600million active users, and shows no signsof slowing down.

Every 20 minutes:

$More than 1 million links are shared

$More than 1.8 million status updates are

made

$More than 2.7 million photos areuploaded

$More than 10 million comments are

posted

The Facebook press pageshares morestatistics as of March 2011:

$50% of active users log on to Facebook

$ in any given day

$The Average user has 130 friends

$Average user is connected to 80

community pages, groups and events

$Average user creates 90 pieces of

content each month

$ More than 30 billion pieces of content(web links, news stories, blog posts,notes, photo albums, etc.) are sharedeach month

$ More than 70 translations are availableon the site

$ About 70% of Facebook users areoutside the United States

$ There are more than 200 million active

users currently accessing Facebookthrough their mobile devices

$ People that use Facebook on theirmobile devices are twice as active on

Facebook than non-mobile users

But perhaps more important than theseimpressive numbers is the fact thatFacebook is becoming more than just asocial network: it is becoming a platformfor social communication (something wewill discuss in more detail later).

From a marketing standpoint, the fact thatpeople share more personal details abouttheir identity on Facebook than anywhere

else offers unique advantages. As brands,we have access to a depth ofdemographic information, providingopportunities such as ad campaignstargeted to employees at selected

companies, or specific universitygraduating classes.

When it comes to return on investment,

we have evidence - both anecdotally andthrough research - that Facebook can bemore powerful than Twitter and othersocial networks for generating sales.

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Facebook today


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Dan Sherman of Ski.com attributes a$70,000 sale to Facebook but it was notfrom a special offer. It was simply a photoof a beautiful fresh snowfall.

In my opinion, Facebook is all aboutengagement - allowing you have more ofa dialog with more people in one place. IfI post a sales message, I don!t get a lot of

action. But if it!s just relevant information

for our business, like a photo of a freshsnowfall, people like to engage with that.

The great thing is that when peoplecomment on anything on Facebook, alltheir friends see it. Because of this, wereceived a $70,000 booking fromsomeone who had never heard of us

before.

A number of studies have been done toquantify the value of Facebook activity.Recently, ChompOn tried to determine thevalue of a tweet compared to a piece ofcontent shared on Facebook. According

to them, a tweet was worth $5 in sales,while Facebook shared content was worth$14. Clearly, the value of a referral willdepend on what you are selling, butresearch like this suggests Facebookdrives more transactions.

The caveat? Selling directly to yourFacebook fans rarely works. Facebook is

all about reaching people through people.Reaching your fans!friends. This conceptis called Transitive Trust. Your job is tocreate material fans will pass along,introducing that brand to their network.

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Facebook today (continued)

Facebook is allabout reachingpeople through

people.Reaching your

fans!friends.


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"I think people are just on Facebook torelax, have fun, and chat with theirfriends.

Some variation of that sentiment hasbeen shared with me over and over againfrom hotel executives. As someone whouses Facebook extensively for bothbusiness and personal reasons, it seems

to be a fair assessment. Successfulbusinesses on Facebook understand andrespect this reality, creatingcommunication that fits the mindset ofpeople using it.

Why do people become a fan ofcompanies on Facebook? A recent reportreleased by ExactTarget and CoTweet

found the two primary reasons whyconsumers %like!brands on Facebook: for

discounts and as a %social badge.!Nearly40% of Facebook users become fans toreceive special discounts and promotions.

39% do so to show their friends theysupport a brand - it is an identitystatement for them.

Seventh Art Media conducted some moreinteresting research into what works beston Facebook. They found that it is contentwhich conveys a unique sense of brandand place and makes a personal

connection with followers. Photos are theclear winner. Facebook users like thequick-hit satisfaction of a witty post or abeautiful or clever picture. Some of thehighest performing photo content was notnecessarily professional level quality but

connected on a personal level. A quicksnapshot of the first snow of the seasonand a giant pumpkin are examples ofconnective content that required littleeffort.

All of this comes back to adding value.How can you use Facebook to make your

fans happier, better informed, and

rewarded financially?

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What does (and doesn't) work on Facebook

How can youuse Facebookto make your

fans happier,better informed,

and rewardedfinancially?


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Hotel Seven in Paris uses Facebook asthe exclusive source of both hotel newsand the lowest available room rate. By

focusing attention here, they haveattracted an audience of over 12,000fans: significant for a single property of

their size. This is undoubtedly an extremeapproach, but the results are hard to

argue with.

If you want to make building your followernumbers on Facebook a priority, think

about what exclusive content you candeliver through this site.

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Five different approaches to Facebook

Approach 1: Facebook as an exclusive source


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Poet!s Cove Resort & Spa usesFacebook not only to connect with guests,but also to engage with the local residents

of Pender Island, British Columbia. &&

While local residents may not be

interested in staying at your hotel, theycould be a valuable source of revenue for

your restaurant or spa. Positioning yourproperty as a local hotspot can be aneffective strategy for your Facebook page.

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Five different approaches to Facebook (continued)

Approach 2: Facebook as a local community hub


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Distrikt Hotel in New York City usesFacebook to update their community onwhat is happening in the city.

This is helpful because by becoming aresource for visitors to the city, DistriktHotel increases the likelihood of peoplepassing the page along to others.

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Approach 3: Facebook as a local guide


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The Beacon in South Beach focuses onmaking sales by creating and promoting aspecial offer on their welcome tab: 2 free

mojitos and a 15% off discount.

As you saw from Hotel Seven, deliveringan exclusive offer is a powerful way tofocus attention. This does not have to bejust discounts or coupons. Put together avalue-added Facebook package that iscompelling and only available throughFacebook. Not only does this draw traffic

to the page, but it gives you another wayto measure results.

Ecommerce is likely to become an

increasingly important part of Facebookactivity, with powerful integrated bookingengines now available. We will look at thistopic in more detail later in the guide.

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Approach 4: Facebook as a sales tool


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One & Only Palmilla uses advanceddesign to create an experience likebrowsing their website. (This will become

easier in the future because of some newchanges to the page structure, which wewill discuss later.)

Experiment with some of the newFacebook functionality to show beautifulphotography and video to your visitorsthat attracts them emotionally.

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Approach 5: Facebook as a website


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Facebook has quickly evolved,rendering many prior marketing tacticsobsolete or ineffective. Here are threeof the most important updates I see forbusinesses.

#1 - New Page Layout

On February 20th, 2011, Facebookreleased a complete overhaul of the

pages system. There were manyupdates you canread the official announcement herebut the basic concept was to makebusiness pages look more like personal

profiles. Among other things, you nowhave the ability to receive moreadvanced reporting on yourcommunity!s activity, and can easilyembed pages from your website into

your Facebook page:

Read more:http://sixrevisions.com/web-

applications/new-facebook-page/

#2 - Separate Business Profiles

This was included in the February 2011update, but it is so significant that we

need to consider it separately.

Previously, personal accounts andbusiness profiles were linked, which

made engaging in conversation an

awkward mess.

With the new format, you can switchbetween personal and business profilesas you surf Facebook and interact withcommunities. This gives you the optionto post in your own voice or that of your

brand.

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New developments


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#3 - Sponsored Stories

Sponsored stories is a new ad format thattakes your friends!actions - like checking

in to a place - and turns them into anadvertisement. The story first posted toMashable provides a good example:

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New developments (continued)

Read more: http://mashable.com/2011/01/25/facebook-sponsored-stories/


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#4 Booking Engine Integration

Recent changes to the Facebook pagestructure are likely to make ecommerce

integration with embedded bookingengines increasingly common.

From the time they began working onFacebook, Starwood Hotels and

Resorts has provided bookingfunctionality for all of its brands.

In a recent article article published byHotel News Now, David Godsman, VPof global Web for Starwood, said,

Conversion on Facebook is smaller butclose to conversion on our brandwebsites. (Starwood!s Facebook fans)

start to see other people!s experiencesat the properties....What we are seeingnow is an emergence of technology thatthat we didn!t see six months ago.There is an opportunity for ourselves

and other hotel brands to enable thesetype of transactions within Facebook.

Starwood sees opportunity to driverevenue through the site, and hasintroduced a Shop tab on the pagesfor all properties of their Westin brand.On this tab, visitors can book a room

directly without leaving to the Westinwebsite.

You can expect to see Facebook play

an increasingly important role in howhotels generate room revenue as thistrend continues.

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New developments (continued)


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Setting up a page is fairly straightforward.

You start hereand just follow thedirections. Since most of you alreadyhave pages set up, rather than repeatingthe entire process here, I recommend thefollowing tutorials if you are still in theprocess of setting things up:

$ Wildfire

$ AllFacebook

$ SixRevisions

What are the elements of an engaging

Facebook brand page?

Whether you are setting up a page for thefirst time, or looking to optimize an

existing page, there are a few items ofspecial importance to consider.

An inviting welcome tab

A custom welcome tab can serve severalpurposes:

$Welcome people to the page

$Explain your purpose for the page

$Describe the benefits of your hotel

$Invite visitors to Like the page

Your welcome tab is basically a landingpage. Use the same best practices you

would use for a landing page on yourwebsite: images that draw people intobenefits-oriented copy, with a strong callto action.

Example: The Westin

The Westin Dragonara Resort in Maltauses an attractive welcome tab thatengages their community throughfeedback and competitions.

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Designing an engaging brand page


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Exclusive content

Why should someone join your page?

Smart marketers know the best way todrive action is to make perceived valueexceed perceived risk. That is why emailsubscription rates increase when an

incentive like a free guide is given away in

exchange for a person!s email address and permission to send the content theyrequested.

The same principle works on Facebook.

Facebook allows you to create hiddencontent that is only visible when someonebecomes a fan of your page.

What incentives could you offer toencourage people to become a fan ofyour hotel!s Facebook fan page?

$ City guides?

$ Insider access?

$ A discount coupon?

$ A value-added incentive that does notcut profit margins?

A focus on photos and video

$

Referring back to the Seventh Artresearch study mentioned earlier, photosand video generate the most engagementfrom Facebook fans. Facebook is aplatform that favors rich media, so make

posting this type of content a priority.

The feeling of being an insider

If someone is engaged with your hotel orbrand enough to become a fan on

Facebook, then provide them with a littlemore insider access. Share upcomingnews and announcements with yourFacebook community first. Share theprocess you go through to create your

experience. Share video interviews withkey personnel at your property.

For marketing research and developingnew ideas, Facebook can be used tosource new concepts and refine existingones. This form of crowdsourcing alsogives your fans the feeling of being aninsider.

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Designing an engaging brand page (continued)


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A Hotel!s Guide to Facebook, March 2011 16

Designing an engaging brand page (continued)

Example:

Marriott Napa Valley Hotel &Spa is a good example of anengaging brand page.


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What should you do once you have yourFacebook page set up? Integrate it withyour website. This is where we see someof the most creative innovation andremarkable results from companies usingFacebook.

Like Buttons

Perhaps one of the simplest integrations,placing a Facebook Like Button on yourwebsite allows people to share that withtheir friends. It is recommended you addthis to your homepage and select pages

on your website that contain the bestcontent. (But check privacy laws to makesure the button is in compliance in yourcountry.)

Details:http://developers.facebook.com/docs/reference/plugins/like/

Like Box

The Facebook Like Box can beplaced on any webpage, allowing

your visitors to become fans of yourFacebook page without leaving thewebsite. This approach has workedvery well for some hotels, likeMosaic House in Prague.

Details:http://developers.facebook.com/docs/reference/plugins/like-box

Social Plugins

It is powerful because you can takeadvantage of the huge social networkthat exists on Facebook, and use it toenhance the web experience youprovide. Sites such as TripAdvisor are

using this to personalize the websitewith tailor made content.

Details:http://developers.facebook.com/docs/plugins/

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Integrating Facebook with your website


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There are three primary categories ofpromotions that can be conducted onFacebook: contests, advertisements, anddeals.

Contests

Contests can be run through your pagewith no charge from Facebook. Tools like

the ones from Involver and Wildfire makethe process easy, and help you navigateFacebook!s tight policy on contests.

When planning a contest, configure it in away that attracts the right type of fan foryour page people who will stay engaged

long after the contest is over. If the wrongincentives are used, you will end up withpeople who enter just for the chance towin, and then leave the page after the

contest is done.

Advertisements

The power of Facebook advertising is theability to reach highly targeted segments

of people based on demographic criteria.You can filter the distribution by age,location, gender, hobbies and interests,employer, and many other criteria. If pay-per-click advertising in search engines is

for what, on Facebook you areadvertising for who.

The downside is that many people onFacebook ignore advertisements, so theclickthrough rate can be low. Additionally,it is debated whether people are lookingto make hotel reservations while browsingFacebook. This is something you need to

test and see if it works for you. It could bethat the call to action on the

advertisement should be simply to attractpeople to Like your page.

Deals

$

Facebook is creating pages for eachbusiness address in order to give the

business an opportunity to offer deals.When a customer checks into a place onFacebook Places via their mobile phone,businesses will have the opportunity tooffer coupons or discounts to them. While

it is unclear how Facebook Places willfare among their geolocation competitors,this remains an area to watch andexperiment with.

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Promotions on Facebook


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We have looked at a number of casestudies of hotels using Facebookcreatively. To broaden your perspective, Iwanted to share a few examples ofcompanies outside the hospitality industry

that are doing interesting things onFacebook.

Volkswagen

Volkswagen created individual pages foreach of their vehicles, and then wrappedthese up into one corporate page. One

particularly innovative feature they offeredwas an application that analyzed yourprofile, taking all the demographicinformation you posted, and then usedthat to recommend a vehicle it believed

was best suited to you. What if youcreated a similar Hotel Selector tool?

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Case studies: Outside the hotel industry


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The Travel Channel

A while back The Travel Channel didsomething that could work well for hotels:

they encouraged fans to share stories ofthe role Facebook plays in their travelexperiences. Inviting discussion aroundtopics like this is a good way to engagepeople with similar interests.

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Case studies: Outside the hotel industry (continued)


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Coca-Cola

Coca-Cola has developed a reputation forrunning creative photo contests. This

works well, since photos are viewed moreoften than anything else on Facebook. Byencouraging fans to upload photos ofthemselves with Coca-Cola cans,hundreds of thousands of potential new

fans will be exposed to the brand as theuploads appear in the news feeds.

What photo contests could you run?Running a contest like this for your hotelcan be a powerful way to make thecampaign viral.

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Red Bull

Red Bull has a solid understanding oftheir audience, and does a great job of

delivering rich media content that attractsnew fans. Look at their creative use ofdesign on the welcome page.

As a hotel, make sure you understand

what your audience expects (and wants)you to provide. Use videos to shareinteresting content that people will passalong and introduce your brand to others.

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Harley-Davidson

Harley-Davidson uses an interactivewelcome page that provides a rich,

immersive experience for their fans.

Make use of the new changes toFacebook pages described earlier in the

guide to deliver more information to your

visitors in a compelling way. YourFacebook page does not have to becomea duplicate of your main website, but canbe a good opportunity to share stories

and other engaging content.

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As we close this guide, what are theaction steps to take?

1. Decide on your purpose for Facebook:

$ Is it website traffic, communityengagement, brand building, orsomething else?

$What will success look like for you?Will you know once you havereached it? To recognize success,you must have metrics established

from the beginning.

$ What key performance indicators(KPIs) will you be tracking? Numberof fans is a starting point, but alsomonitor how many people engagewith the content you post clickingthe Like button or leaving a

comment. Additionally, somemeasure that leads back to sales,such as Facebook website referrals,is helpful.

2. Setup your page

$ Register an account, then fill outyour business profile.

$ Customize your welcome tab with agraphic that encourages people to

interact with the rest of your page.

$ Decide on some exclusive contentsuch as news, inside information,

and special offers that will driveattention to the page.

3. Establish a community

management system

$ Who will be involved in managingthe page? Make sure this person is

someone who understands thebrand you are trying to build, and

can be trusted with posting contentand interacting with your fans andcustomers.

$ What will be posted? Put togetheran editorial calendar for the typesof content you want to share through

Facebook: news, videos, photos,offers, and contests.

$ How often will you post? How oftenwill you check for comments? It isimportant to publish consistently, butnot too frequently. Once or twice aweek is often a good starting point.

$ What alerts system will you have inplace? Be sure to have a listening

tool setup to be aware of whatpeople are saying about your hotelson Facebook.

4. Integrate with your web presence

elsewhere

$ Use some form of Facebook websiteintegration as described earlier to

expand the awareness andhelpfulness of your Facebookcommunity.

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Action steps: Planning your Facebook strategy


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Since we spend the majority of our time atReviewPro helping hotels establishpowerful online reputations, it would be amistake to underestimate the importanceof reputation management on Facebook.

This primarily affects two areas:

At the beginning:$Duplicate (or unauthorized) contentToo many hotels and brands I see havethree, five, or more different pages for the

same property. This often happens whendifferent interns, seasonal workers, oragencies are tasked with doingFacebook. It can also happen when fanscreate new pages for your brand. Make

sure to monitor official and unofficialpages that have been created.

As your presence matures:$Page moderation&

Start by deciding on your Facebook policyand management routine. How often willyou be engaging with the page? What

types of content would you like fans to besharing with you and others in thecommunity?

Set your page permissions at a level thatreflects how actively you will manage it.

Unless you will be continually managingthe page, you may want to prevent fansfrom posting content. Several brandshave set up insufficient page permissions,and their set it and forget it approach

resulted in the page being hijacked byspammers and their brand damaged withinappropriate content. Make sure thisdoes not happen to you.

Community management is an ongoingprocess. To encourage maximumengagement, make sure to frequentlypost interesting content. Ask questions to

your audience. Encourage them to submitphotos and videos of their travels. Just besure to check in often to ensure nodamaging material is posted.

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Bonus: Reputation and Facebook


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Keep learning! ReviewPro monitors whatis changing in the world of onlinereputation management and passesalong practical ways to use that inhospitality.

Read the blog for more articles andreports like this: &http://reviewpro.com/blog

Follow us on Twitter for daily ideas andtips:

http://twitter.com/ReviewPro

$

$

About ReviewPro

$

ReviewPro enables hoteliers to efficientlyaggregate, organize and manage their

online reputation and presence in leadingsocial media sites. ReviewPro providesthe analysis, customer intelligence,competitive benchmarking and reportingneeded to help hotel professionals more

effectively manage their organization.

About The Author

Josiah Mackenzie is the publisher ofHotelMarketingStrategies.com aresource of guides and stories showing

how to use technology to serve yourguests and make more sales.

Email Josiah:[email protected]

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Guide to Facebook