5 Things to do TODAY to Make Sure Your Hotel Website is Working for You
As the owner of a small hotel or inn, you probably know one of the most important pieces of your business is your website. After all, your website is often the first impression potential guests have of your property. That’s why it’s so important to make sure your website is working for you! Here are 5 simple things you can do today to make sure your hotel website is driving business:
1. Get More Direct Bookings
The whole point of having a website is to drive bookings, so make it easy for guests to actually book a room! Include a prominently placed “Check Availability” button on every page of your website, including in your website header, as well as in other areas strategically.
Check every single button to make sure it leads to your online booking engine. We can't tell you how many times we've gone to a property's website only to find they are inadvertently sending potential guests to a third-party site, like an OTA.
Of course, if you don't yet have an online booking engine, we can help! It's a must-have tool for maximizing reservations and revenue.
2. Check for Broken Links
A broken link is a link on your website that doesn't work. When clicked, it brings the user to an error page. Not only are broken links frustrating for potential guests, but they can also hurt your website's search engine ranking.
The easiest way to check for broken links is with a free tool like Broken Link Checker. Just enter your website's URL and let the tool do its job. It will quickly crawl your site and report any broken links it finds.
Set a reminder to run this search a few times a year so you can keep things up-to-date.
3. Let Your Rooms Do the Selling
Your website's room pages are some of the most visited on your site. Potential guests want to know all about the room they'll be staying in if they book.
Start by ensuring each room or room type includes plenty of high-quality images. Guests should be able to get a good sense of what the room is really like just by looking at the photos. And if your rooms have private bathrooms, don't forget to include them.
When it comes to the details, make sure your room descriptions are clear, concise, and persuasive. A bulleted list of amenities is also helpful for easy scanning.
4. Make It Easy to Get in Touch
Check that your contact information is up to date and easy to find. You never know when a potential guest might have a question they can't find an answer to on your site!
Include your phone number, email address, and street address on every page of your website. We suggest putting it right in the footer.
Wherever you put it, make sure it's text, not just an image with your contact info. Google needs to be able to find your contact details on your site in order to verify that you're a real business they can feel comfortable returning in search results!
5. Don't Forget About the Small Print
Verify that your policies are up to date and easily accessible on your site. Use clear, simple language and eliminate anything extraneous. Guests should be able to find this information before they book, so we recommend including links to your terms and conditions in your website footer.
For terms & conditions, include details about things like check-in and check-out times, rules of the property, and applicable deposits.
When it comes to cancellations, guests need to know what you require for advanced notice and if there are any fees associated with needing to cancel.
Stay on Top of Your Website
And there you have it! It's important to make sure your website is driving business and that you're doing everything you can to optimize it for conversions. We recommend keeping a list of things to check regularly on your website and going through it once a quarter so you're never left with outdated information lingering for too long. While there's more to than what we've covered here, these 5 simple tips will help get you started!
Want more tips like this straight to your inbox? Sign up for our email list and get our free Slow Season Checklist today. It includes a detailed list of everything you need to do to get your property ready for your busiest times of year!