Good writing is a powerful force when you're advertising a meeting venue or working to increase hotel group business. Compelling hotel copywriting attracts attention, keeps a meeting planner or hotel guest interested, and ultimately can lead them to book your property. Almost 90 percent of website visitors read headlines and CTA copy. Many of them don’t read anything else.
So, without crafty and smart copywriting in your ads, sales proposals, or emails, you’ll end up hurting your lead conversions and sales. When marketing hotels and meeting venues online, use these six calls-to-action tips to create strong copywriting that gets people clicking.
Discover the best calls-to-action tips for hotel marketing content:
1. Tell leads exactly what to do.
Don’t beat around the bush. Travelers and meeting planners shouldn’t have to think about what to do next, so be clear with directives. These include, “Buy your escape now,” “book now,” “make your reservation now,” “submit your RFP here,” or “schedule a site tour today.”
Create calls-to-action as planners source venue space
2. Include urgency in your hotel calls-to-action.
Include words such as “now,” “today,” or “immediately.” Conveying urgency in your call-to-action will let your hotel website’s visitors know that they are missing an opportunity if they don't do what you’re asking of them. For example, for meeting incentive emails or ads, make it clear that this deal is only going for a short while. So, if that meeting planner doesn’t convert now, they’ll end up with a higher price tag later on.
3. Start calls-to-action with a verb.
The steadfast rule in writing intriguing copy is to start a sentence with either a verb or a subject. This allows the reader to grasp the sentence in a matter of seconds. And, with the fickle attention spans of today’s digital audience, you have to be smart about the words you use and when you use them. Notice this ad for the Visa Card of the Ritz Carlton Collection. Verbs lead in each sentence: ENJOY a complimentary stay, EXPLORE a world of benefits, LEARN more.
4. Keep it simple.
The more complicated you make it for someone to buy, the more prepared you need to be to lose potential buyers. Let them know upfront that purchasing or booking a group with your hotel will not be timely or costly for them. For example, if asking them to enter in their RFP, make it clear that it won’t take long to do so: “Fill out this form and tell us about your meeting in less than 60 seconds.”
5. Have one call-to-action.
A mistake I see often when hotel salespeople are trying to increase group business, is they give too many directives or make too many requests for connection. This will dilute what you really want them to do and they won’t be as compelled. For example: “Call me at 674-512-5879 if you have any questions!” vs. “Call me at my office 555-5555 or email me at sales@amazinghotel.com. You can also reach me on my cell phone at 888-8888. I’m here to answer any of your questions and am available to chat Tues/Thurs afternoons.”
6. Evoke emotion…any emotion.
Your call-to-action is doomed if you can’t at least pique attention. Evoke some sort of emotion, whether it is desire, humor, jealousy, or necessity, and your visitors will more likely become leads. When people feel an emotional tug, they are more likely to take action.
Make the most effective hotel calls-to-action with these tips:
Grab attention. Push towards action. Make a sale. To increase your conversion rate—and ultimately increase hotel group bookings— invest a little time and energy into crafting your calls-to-action. Up next, learn how to create amazing print ads for hotels.
Better hotel marketing starts here
Written by Junvi Ola.
