Hoteliers always have to look for the next big way to make their property more appealing to clients. Returning guests make up some of a hotel’s profits, but it’s most important to draw in first-timers with updates and offers they can’t find anywhere else. If you feel like your property needs something new, it may be time to jump into the wedding industry.
Weddings drive an incredible amount of profits each year, given that the average ceremony and reception cost thousands of dollars. Amid all the planning, brides also need to find a place for guests to stay. Hotels can meet all their needs and more, but only if you establish a reputation as the best bridal venue in town.
Here are five ways to make your hotel wedding-friendly and boost profits. You don’t need to pay for expensive renovations or upend your current marketing strategy to become everything brides need. Try these tips to watch your profits boom and your calendar fill up months ahead of time.
1. Post Quality Photos
It’s rare to find a bride who plans her wedding without basing her decisions and purchases on pictures she sees online. If she happened to explore your hotel’s website, would she find encouraging photos of past weddings?
If not, that’s a huge missed opportunity. Contact photographers from previous weddings on your property to post their images on your website. Managers can also encourage brides to imagine their ceremony and reception on your property if you stage a professional photoshoot and create a portion of your site dedicated to weddings.
2. Advertise Room Block Opportunities
No wedding would be complete without friends and family to cheer the newly married couple as they walk down the aisle together. Staying together in one hotel prevents travel confusion, so advertise room block opportunities on your website and welcome bridal inquiries. Mention how you offer special discounts so you book more rooms for larger weddings.
3. List Customizable Package Options
Even the rare brides who don’t have to worry about a budget want to find great deals to make their big day more manageable. Advertise what your property offers and list a few customizable options. Brides may wish to get a photography-only package or a room block that includes a post-wedding brunch. The more freedom they have when choosing what they pay for, the more inclined they’ll be to choose your hotel over other venues with rigid offers.
4. Make Amenities Clear
Along with how they’ll use the venue space, brides want to know what amenities you provide. Make it clear that when they book rooms at your hotel, they also get to use things like chairs, tables, and linens already on-site. They might enjoy hotel staff waiting on guests during the reception or an outdoor garden area for their cocktail hour. Every amenity makes it more likely that brides will book your hotel, increase your quarterly profits and bolster your reputation in the wedding industry.
5. Hire a Wedding Planner
There are many ways to DIY a wedding, but brides often feel overwhelmed as they realize how much planning goes into a successful ceremony. When they reach out to your property and discover that you offer an on-site wedding planner, they’ll be much more likely to book your all-inclusive services. This is an especially significant appeal to brides who may not have stayed at your hotel or even toured the property since they’ll get everything they need in a combined package.
Get Bridal Feedback
Consider these tips to make your hotel wedding-friendly and boost profits. Along with things like listing your amenities and offering customizable packages, you can get feedback from previous brides by sending out email surveys. See what they liked and disliked, then tailor your bridal experience for future weddings and watch your profits soar.
Related article: Wedding Venue Marketing Plan for Hoteliers
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Credit
Kacey Bradley is the blogger behind The Drifter Collective, an eclectic lifestyle blog that expresses various forms of style through the influence of culture and the world around us. Along with writing for her blog, she has written for sites like U.S. News, SUCCESS, Guides for Brides, Hotel Online, and more!
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About Are Morch
Hi, I am Are Morch. Your Hotel Marketing Coach and Customer Experience Expert specializes in creating effective digital customer experience offer for hotels while growing and scale customer acquisition and revenue.
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