Email Marketing for Hotels. 6 Tips to Dominate the Industry

Email marketing is as versatile as a pocket knife — it is an effective tool for reaching out to new audiences, building strong relationships with customers, and selling any type of products or offering any type of service. The hotel industry is no exception.

In this post, we’ll share six tips about how to organize email marketing for hotels, drawing your attention to the types of emails to send.
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Start your hotel email marketing with a high-profile mailing list

Hotels have a privilege when it comes to reaching out to customers — you can easily get the email addresses of new vacationers both offline or online.

Offline, you can simply ask for email addresses at the check-in or check-out right at the hotel and offer a short form that people can fill in.

Online, you can place a subscription form on your website. To make it more appealing, offer a discount or a gift. Place lead magnets on relevant pages of your website to bring something valuable in exchange for an email address.

Here’s an example of an embedded subscription form on the Hotel Wailea website:

The form offers people an opprotunity to join what’s called not just a mailing list but a “VIP list” and promises insider news and special offers. By promoting exclusivity, the company makes prospects feel special and wins their trust.

After signing up, hotel prospects receive a confirmation email with clear and short instructions:

A double opt-in subscription (subscription form on the website + confirmation email) is a simple yet effective way to protect your mailing list from invalid emails. Moreover, this method makes your email communication with customers and prospects legal as you contact only those who gave you their permission via confirmation email.

Segment your customers for better targeting

No matter whom you address, your frequent guests or your prospects, you should let them see you understand their needs. So, your email content should fit the expectations of all visitors, which is impossible without segmentation.

Fortunately, hotels are sitting on a goldmine when it comes to collecting information about customers. Consider leveraging it to divide your mailing list into segments for better targeting.

Statistics show that segmented campaigns are more effective compared to non-segmented ones:

• 14.31% higher opens;
• 0.64% higher unique opens;
• 100.95% higher clicks;
• 4.65% lower bounces;
• 9.37% lower unsubscribes.

To collect data about your guests and prospects, ask them to fill out profiles on your website or use check-in and check-out time to communicate with customers face-to-face asking them about their preferences. Send out surveys, request feedback from those who have stayed at your hotel recently, and use data from your CRM system.

Here are possible options to segment your hotel guests:

• local, national and international travelers;
• autumn, winter, spring and summer birthdays;
• couples, families with children, business travelers;
• room type;
• frequency and duration of visits.

After that, you can tailor your offers to different segments. For example, if a customer travels for business, you can point out the quality of your room service, the WiFi speed, business spaces and conference rooms, leaving SPA-related and entertainment offers to other visitors.

Give your hotel subscribers a warm welcome

A welcome email not only serves as the beginning of your relationship with a customer; it is a powerful jumping off point for the success of your marketing campaign as, according to statistics, using welcome emails leads to

• 320% higher revenue compared to promotional emails;
• 61.9% higher opens compared to the average rate.

Greet newcomers with a warm welcome, explain who you are, share your values, and talk about your best or most popular products and services.

While looking for new ideas for your own welcome email, make a list of the most frequently asked questions by hotel visitors and choose some that you can answer in your very first email.

The Hoxton hotel gives their potential guests a perfect welcome with their well-thought email. With high-quality emotional photographs and logically-structured friendly copy, the email provides information about everything a new subscriber might need to know including the hotel deals and events.

Sell with your hotel email by bringing value

55% of hotel guests are willing to receive personalized offers or promotions in exchange for personal details. As you can see, users don’t just want to receive a bunch of promotions; they are looking forward to getting personalized and relevant offers.

Your main goal is to remove all possible doubts by explaining why your hotel is worth customers attention and providing value to people.

For instance, Click&Go decided to stimulate some interest for their cruises with a “myth busting” email. By arousing curiosity and sharing interesting facts, they give out a lot of information and address the potential “pain points” of their audience.

When it comes to bringing value, here’s a vivid example from Jay Peak. It’s a weather report presented in a bit unusual way: the copy sounds as if it’s a friend talking to you, not a hotelier. The overall idea is to show the hotel takes care of their guests making them feel appreciated.

Celebrate together with your subscribers

73% of hotel guests appreciate loyalty programs with frequent rewards that are not dependent on earning points. Apart from Christmas, New Year and birthdays, each day could become a special occasion to reward your subscribers with something special.

Celtic Manor celebrated Father’s Day with a series of vouchers with for 25% off. They fully explored and used up all the opportunities this holiday has to offer by making up “Luxury dads,” “Foodie dads” and other unusual ways to celebrate it.

Communicate with your hotel guests before and after their stay

The experience of your guests extends far beyond the hotel property itself. Your email marketing should target the vacationers at the specific stages of their guest journey, including the time before and after their stay.

Here is are some basic hotel emails you should be sending to your guests:

1. “Thank You for Booking”

Send a confirmation email immediately after a guest has made their booking.

Express gratitude to customers for choosing your hotel. Provide booking confirmation and notifying them about the possibility to modify the booking details. Include check-in and check-out date and time. Introduce additional services available at your hotel.

2. “Your Upcoming Stay”

Send it two-three days before the check-in date.

Send out information that might be useful for your guests. Make a checklist of items allowed for the carry-on, provide a brief weather forecast with recommendations of what clothes to pack. You can also provide a link to view the map of the property and closest tourist attractions as well as information about the transport.

3. “Thank You for Staying”

Send it a day after the check-out date.

Thank your customers once more and say that you would be happy to see them again. Add a personal touch to your email and ask your guests to leave their feedback. A good solution is to send them a survey to fill out in exchange for a reward.

Let’s wrap it up

There is an infinite number of ways for your hotel email marketing. Just remember, these top three things:

1. Choose quality over quantity when it comes to the number of subscribers and frequency of your emails.
2. Use all the personal data you have at hand to segment your mailing list and send email content that will fit the expectations of each of your guests.
3. Communicate with your subscribers during their guest journey and send not only promotional but also useful information.

Finally, do not hesitate to use SendPulse to reinforce your hotel email marketing strategy!Email marketing is as versatile as a pocket knife — it is an effective tool for reaching out to new audiences, building strong relationships with customers, and selling any type of products or offering any type of service. The hotel industry is no exception.

In this post, we’ll share six tips about how to organize email marketing for hotels, drawing your attention to the types of emails to send.

Start your hotel email marketing with a high-profile mailing list

Hotels have a privilege when it comes to reaching out to customers — you can easily get the email addresses of new vacationers both offline or online.

Offline, you can simply ask for email addresses at the check-in or check-out right at the hotel and offer a short form that people can fill in.

Online, you can place a subscription form on your website. To make it more appealing, offer a discount or a gift. Place lead magnets on relevant pages of your website to bring something valuable in exchange for an email address.

Here’s an example of an embedded subscription form on the Hotel Wailea website:

The form offers people an opprotunity to join what’s called not just a mailing list but a “VIP list” and promises insider news and special offers. By promoting exclusivity, the company makes prospects feel special and wins their trust.

After signing up, hotel prospects receive a confirmation email with clear and short instructions:

A double opt-in subscription (subscription form on the website + confirmation email) is a simple yet effective way to protect your mailing list from invalid emails. Moreover, this method makes your email communication with customers and prospects legal as you contact only those who gave you their permission via confirmation email.

Segment your customers for better targeting

No matter whom you address, your frequent guests or your prospects, you should let them see you understand their needs. So, your email content should fit the expectations of all visitors, which is impossible without segmentation.

Fortunately, hotels are sitting on a goldmine when it comes to collecting information about customers. Consider leveraging it to divide your mailing list into segments for better targeting.

Statistics show that segmented campaigns are more effective compared to non-segmented ones:

• 14.31% higher opens;
• 0.64% higher unique opens;
• 100.95% higher clicks;
• 4.65% lower bounces;
• 9.37% lower unsubscribes.

To collect data about your guests and prospects, ask them to fill out profiles on your website or use check-in and check-out time to communicate with customers face-to-face asking them about their preferences. Send out surveys, request feedback from those who have stayed at your hotel recently, and use data from your CRM system.

Here are possible options to segment your hotel guests:

• local, national and international travelers;
• autumn, winter, spring and summer birthdays;
• couples, families with children, business travelers;
• room type;
• frequency and duration of visits.

After that, you can tailor your offers to different segments. For example, if a customer travels for business, you can point out the quality of your room service, the WiFi speed, business spaces and conference rooms, leaving SPA-related and entertainment offers to other visitors.

Give your hotel subscribers a warm welcome

A welcome email not only serves as the beginning of your relationship with a customer; it is a powerful jumping off point for the success of your marketing campaign as, according to statistics, using welcome emails leads to

• 320% higher revenue compared to promotional emails;
• 61.9% higher opens compared to the average rate.

Greet newcomers with a warm welcome, explain who you are, share your values, and talk about your best or most popular products and services.

While looking for new ideas for your own welcome email, make a list of the most frequently asked questions by hotel visitors and choose some that you can answer in your very first email.

The Hoxton hotel gives their potential guests a perfect welcome with their well-thought email. With high-quality emotional photographs and logically-structured friendly copy, the email provides information about everything a new subscriber might need to know including the hotel deals and events.

Sell with your hotel email by bringing value

55% of hotel guests are willing to receive personalized offers or promotions in exchange for personal details. As you can see, users don’t just want to receive a bunch of promotions; they are looking forward to getting personalized and relevant offers.

Your main goal is to remove all possible doubts by explaining why your hotel is worth customers attention and providing value to people.

For instance, Click&Go decided to stimulate some interest for their cruises with a “myth busting” email. By arousing curiosity and sharing interesting facts, they give out a lot of information and address the potential “pain points” of their audience.

When it comes to bringing value, here’s a vivid example from Jay Peak. It’s a weather report presented in a bit unusual way: the copy sounds as if it’s a friend talking to you, not a hotelier. The overall idea is to show the hotel takes care of their guests making them feel appreciated.

Celebrate together with your subscribers

73% of hotel guests appreciate loyalty programs with frequent rewards that are not dependent on earning points. Apart from Christmas, New Year and birthdays, each day could become a special occasion to reward your subscribers with something special.

Celtic Manor celebrated Father’s Day with a series of vouchers with for 25% off. They fully explored and used up all the opportunities this holiday has to offer by making up “Luxury dads,” “Foodie dads” and other unusual ways to celebrate it.

Communicate with your hotel guests before and after their stay

The experience of your guests extends far beyond the hotel property itself. Your email marketing should target the vacationers at the specific stages of their guest journey, including the time before and after their stay.

Here is are some basic hotel emails you should be sending to your guests:

1. “Thank You for Booking”

Send a confirmation email immediately after a guest has made their booking.

Express gratitude to customers for choosing your hotel. Provide booking confirmation and notifying them about the possibility to modify the booking details. Include check-in and check-out date and time. Introduce additional services available at your hotel.

2. “Your Upcoming Stay”

Send it two-three days before the check-in date.

Send out information that might be useful for your guests. Make a checklist of items allowed for the carry-on, provide a brief weather forecast with recommendations of what clothes to pack. You can also provide a link to view the map of the property and closest tourist attractions as well as information about the transport.

3. “Thank You for Staying”

Send it a day after the check-out date.

Thank your customers once more and say that you would be happy to see them again. Add a personal touch to your email and ask your guests to leave their feedback. A good solution is to send them a survey to fill out in exchange for a reward.

Let’s wrap it up

There is an infinite number of ways for your hotel email marketing. Just remember, these top three things:

1. Choose quality over quantity when it comes to the number of subscribers and frequency of your emails.
2. Use all the personal data you have at hand to segment your mailing list and send email content that will fit the expectations of each of your guests.
3. Communicate with your subscribers during their guest journey and send not only promotional but also useful information.

Finally, do not hesitate to use SendPulse to reinforce your hotel email marketing strategy!