Loyalty Actions for Hotels: Retain Your Customer in Summer

Summer is the ideal season for hotels to strengthen their relationship with customers and develop effective loyalty strategies.

A well-structured Loyalty program not only attracts new guests but also keeps recurring customers happy, turning them into brand ambassadors.

In this article, we will explore how hotels can leverage summer to build customer loyalty and ensure their return.

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Importance of Developing a Loyalty Program

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Developing a solid Loyalty program is crucial for maintaining an ongoing relationship with customers. These types of programs not only reward guests for their loyalty but also create an emotional connection with the brand. A well-designed loyalty program should offer tangible benefits that customers can appreciate and enjoy, incentivizing them to return to the hotel in the future.

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Real Benefits for the Customer.

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One of the most important factors for the success of a Loyalty program is that the benefits are perceived as real and valuable by customers. This is achieved by transferring the advantages of the program to the hotel's operational teams, ensuring that each interaction with the customer reinforces their positive perception.  

This is the case, for example, of offering an upgrade in the room or amenities, a welcome pack only for members of your loyalty program or only for those who are members of a certain level, exclusive discounts, access to special events and additional services such as free breakfasts or access to the spa are benefits that customers value and remember fondly.

Beyond the most common benefits such as a Welcome drink or Priority check-in and check-out, if you want to innovate you can offer other services such as Priority access to the Spa or Memorable Experiences, where at an operational level you can also make a difference with just small actions. Organize exclusive program events such as wine tastings, cooking classes, or movie nights under the stars.  

And, last but not least, take the opportunity to offer Free Wi-Fi by linking it to a captive portal that helps you increase your database by registering customers who want to access the network in the program. This will be the gateway to feed your customer database to which you can send the communications you want (even during the stay) to grow the relationship and build loyalty.

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Direct Sales Campaign Strategy

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To protect the brand and build customer loyalty, it is essential to have a direct sales campaign plan throughout the year. This helps generate demand based on the specific needs of the hotel, eliminating dependence on other channels and possible price disparities. Direct sales campaigns allow hotels to communicate exclusive offers directly to their customers, highlighting the benefits of belonging to the Loyalty program.

Campaigns with a discount for members of your program Loyalty or even an exclusive rate for members, only visible to those who register in the program, are levers that you must activate to ensure you have the most attractive prices for your customer. Other options such as leaving some types of rooms, some types of regimes...etc. open only in the direct channel are also ways to offer an additional advantage and reward the user who bets on your website to book their stay.

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Demand Generation and Adapted Marketing: Fulfilling the promise.

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Demand generation should adapt to the hotel's marketing efforts, combining investment in a plan with Google Ads and Metasearch engines with effective communication to loyal customers.

Ads on platforms like Google and metasearch engines attract new customers, while direct communications with Loyalty program members highlight the advantages of remaining loyal to the brand. This not only increases direct bookings but also reinforces the relationship with existing customers.

Therefore, it is very important to adapt the message for each type of customer. Just as at the reception they do not treat a guest who arrives for the first time in the same way as a regular customer, your campaigns must adapt to the public that receives them and their expectations.  

Obviously, regardless of the message, the most important thing is that the user who lands on your website, whether new traffic or a customer, is sure that you have the best price for their stay. Otherwise, all the acquisition efforts will be ruined and you will not be able to reduce your acquisition costs and therefore obtain greater profitability in your direct channel.

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Metrics, better than words.

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Defining a Loyalty strategy and reinforcing it in moments like this makes the numbers reward the effort. An example of growth in sales thanks to its loyalty strategy is Reverence Hotels which obtained:  

+103% growth in bookings compared to the previous year, 80% of them Loyalty bookings.

+118% of Revenue versus the previous year, 81% of this coming from Loyalty bookings.

+45% of Average Loyalty Price versus Non-Loyalty.

Reverence is a success story of hotel loyalty strategies, with an increase of +45% in Average Price and +35% in Average Stay thanks to its Loyalty programs.

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Conclusion

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Summer is a unique opportunity for hotels to strengthen their loyalty and membership acquisition strategy.  

By developing an effective Loyalty program and ensuring that the benefits feel real, hotels can keep their customers satisfied and foster their long-term loyalty.

In addition, by implementing a direct sales campaign plan, hotels can efficiently generate demand tailored to their needs, protecting their brand and maximizing profitability.

If you need help creating or improving your Loyalty program, do not hesitate to contact us. We will be happy to help you build customer loyalty this summer and beyond.

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