Every year brings something new in the digital marketing world.

2012 brought a large surge in mobile presence, social media channels, and more options to research and book online travel than ever before.

What will 2013 bring? We’ve compiled a list of some of the top marketing predictions below.

1. A focus on visual content

Videos, images, illustrations, info graphics, etc. will change from “its nice-to-have” to a key strategy in acquiring and increasing customer engagement and influence within target audiences.

Thanks to high-quality displays on computers and iPads, customers expect to see high-quality images and videos. Most people view photos and videos before booking a hotel, so make sure you outdo your competitors in this area.

2. Make sharing your businesses photos easy

Customers love to show their friends pictures of where they are going or where they have been. This is a great opportunity to grow your presence on the web visually. Include share buttons for your web visitors, or even craft an email promo to new guests with great pictures they can share.

3. Businesses will continue to build their presence on social media and blog platforms.

More people are engaging in social media than ever before. These people – trusted sources to friends and family – are sharing their opinions and feedback. This is a key element in advertising, and why social media is an ideal and very important way to reach and engage potential customers.

Social media and blogs are also great ways to make the most of visuals and capture travel opportunities. Engaging the visitor is very important, and travelers love to consume videos and read reviews before booking a reservation. 2012 brought a 15%* growth in referral traffic from YouTube, and 89%** of leisure travelers watch videos online.

4. Mobile marketing strategies will be key

Every Christmas season brings a surge in new tech gadgets. We can expect a significant increase in the number of customers using new smartphones and tablets. And new territory is always a new opportunity. Mobile will continue to be a core customer acquisition channel, especially for small and local businesses.

5. Ensure your content is optimized for a variety of platforms

Depending on the users device (desktop, laptop, tablet, smartphone, etc.), information may be viewed differently. The iPad and iPhone are by far the most used mobile device, but don’t forget about Android users too.

6. A focus on ‘context’ rather than ‘content’

Website visitors are more impatient than ever. It’s important that they are able to find what they are looking for, especially for search traffic. Google will lower the rank of a page when it sees that visitors quickly abandon. Make sure that your search traffic is able to quickly find what they came for.

There are sure to be many more exciting changes in the coming year, but being on top of the competition by enhancing your online initiatives will ensure a successful start to the New Year.

*Think with Google: Travel Video http://www.thinkwithgoogle.com/insights/library/studies/think-travel-video-one-sheet/

**Think with Google: The 2012 Traveler http://www.thinkwithgoogle.com/insights/library/studies/the-2012-traveler/

A new survey from TravelClick has revealed that a third of hoteliers across the UK and Europe would not use “Flash Sale” websites like Groupon, Living Social and JetSetter. A further 27% of hoteliers agreed that they will not be repeating this sales tactic.

Overall, the hotel industry reports dissatisfaction with flash sale websites – of which Groupon is the most used (60%), ahead of Living Social (28%) and JetSetter (15%).

The survey, conducted amongst almost 400 chain and independent properties in mainland Europe and the UK, revealed five main reasons why hotels were unhappy with the group sale experience:

1. Did not make enough revenue per room
2. Gave up too much revenue to the sale site
3. Deal wasn’t as successful as expected
4. Failed to see any repeat business
5. Did not attract the right calibre of customer

But the survey was not all negative. Hoteliers were also asked why they would consider using group discount websites. Key benefits include:

1. Increasing off-season occupancy (70%)
2. Raising the property’s profile (60%)
3. Reaching a new demographic (35%)
4. Keeping up with competition (24%)

“Group discount websites are a real success story and have grown incredibly quickly, but it seems word has spread in the accommodation sector that they don’t always deliver the results that hotels are anticipating,” explained Jan Tissera, President, TravelClick International.

“Anecdotal evidence has indicated that hotels are also concerned that a large percentage of the customers who book had actually stayed with them before and cannot be ‘up-sold’, which discourages incremental business.”

Let’s take a walk together through the land of Pinterest. On our journey together you will notice that most people here are ladies and they love to share their newest crafts, fashion goodies, food and, of course, silly pet pictures.

According to Pinterest, “Our goal is to connect everyone in the world through the ‘things’ they find interesting. We think that a favorite book, toy, or recipe can reveal a common link between two people. With millions of new pins added every week, Pinterest is connecting people all over the world based on shared tastes and interests.” Pinterest offers people the ability to “pin” or share a their photos or a photo they have found somewhere on the internet with people who are following them by putting the “pin” within a “board.” “Boards” are basically groups of pictures that the user has defined and titled, things such as “Foods I love,” “Places I want to go,” etc.

So you may be wondering, is there really a place here for the hospitality industry? I challenge you to think about this for a minute, where else can you find a group of people who are passionately endorsing brands, styles, places, food; basically anything and everything they like in a visual medium. They are women between the ages of 25- 44 with household incomes of $25, 000 – $75,000.* These are influencers who love to play on social media and are embracing the newest kid on the block, Pinterest.

Pinterest gives your guests an opportunity to share what they love most about your hotel through stunning visuals. We all want brand advocates; why not encourage them to share your property with their friends. A quick search for “hotels” reveals boards like “Places!!!! I like these places,” “Hotels I love” and many others.

Also, there aren’t many hospitality folks who have jumped on this bandwagon, so it gives you the opportunity to be a trendsetter. If you search for W Hotels under Pins, you will find lots of people sharing photos; however if you search for W Hotels under people you will find a bare bones beginning of their Pinterest account. This tells me that hotels need to find a way to integrate this into their social media strategies, as these ladies aren’t going anywhere and the Pinterest community is growing.

After sharing why we think the hospitality industry should join Pinterest. Here are our top ways to share your brand on Pinterest:

1. Make it fun – I know this is obvious but if you’re not enjoying your time on Pinterest, no one is going to want to interact with you. You need to make Pinterest interesting and not just about you. Share pins of things that align with your brand, your city, events, menus, etc. Then hopefully, people will see you as an ally, not a brand promoting itself.
2. Create boards that tell your story – Don’t just create boards that spell out specific room types, etc. that’s what your website is for, use this space to tell a story. The Arizona Biltmore has done a fabulous job of creating interesting boards that tell its story.
3. Contests – Develop playful contests to entice your guests to “Upload a Pin” or in other words upload and share their favorite pictures from their stays at your hotel.
   

We have shared with you our ideas on how to utilize Pinterest but here are a few brands that have done exceptional jobs of using Pinterest: Whole Foods, Real Simple and West Elm.

Now get out there and pin until your little heart is content. Share the beauty of your brand with the millions of ladies (and I’m sure some gentleman) on Pinterest. If you have any questions, or need social media guidance, reach out to us at Screen Pilot.

*Statistics are from Tech Crunch – http://techcrunch.com/2012/03/14/this-is-everything-you-need-to-know-about-pinterest-infographic/

Let’s say you own a hotel in Madrid. Brian had a lovely stay at your hotel last summer. When Brian starts researching accommodations for his next trip to Spain, he searches on Google while signed into his Google account, and sees your ad. He clicks the +1 button on the ad to recommend it to his contacts.

When Brian’s friend Ann plans her trip to Spain, she signs in to her Google account, searches, and also sees your ad – plus the personalized annotation that Brian +1’d it. Knowing that Brian recommends your hotel helps Ann decide where to stay during her travels.

In summary:

Think of the +1 button as a way for fans of your business to recommend what you offer, for all their friends and contacts to see. By helping searchers see more personal, relevant ads, Google believes you’ll see more qualified traffic.  We’ll see….

Google Dance… free lessons, coming to a studio near you

Have you ever opened up your homepage (Google, I presume?), typed in your keyword and have your
heart sink to your feet? If not, you’re one of the very few who’s never experienced this hot, new dance
craze called The Google Dance.

When you’re acquiring links from various sources, your rankings will jump around all over the place for
a few days. Depending on the quantity of link building you are doing, your rankings may even fluctuate
for a couple of weeks or even a month. And this, my fellow #1 SERP-seekers, is what we affectionately
call The Google Dance.

(What, did you really think those crazy teens created a dance to pay homage to the King Of The
Internet? )

Although the length of time varies for the dance, there is one thing that’s just about guaranteed: if
you’re doing any kind of link building, the Google Dance is inevitable. And, here’s why- when your site
has an influx of links coming in with your anchor word hyperlinked, Google has to figure out how to
rank you in your rightful place. I mean, after all, if 1,000 people (read: websites), say that your site is
the bomb for “green widgets”, obviously Google’s algorithm is going to be tripped to say, “hey wait a
minute. 1,000 people have said http://www.yoursite.com/ is great for ‘green widgets’. Let’s take a look
and see where we’ll put them in the SERP’s for ‘green widgets’ “. And then begins the dancing.

We’ve had clients email or call in a state of near-panic wondering why their site dropped off the face of the
earth. I always tell them, “it’s because of our recent link building. Be patient. I promise your rankings
will come back up and, better than before.” Initially, this may not set their mind at ease, however, when
what I’ve said bears out to be true, they’re most satisfied with the results of their patience.

So, the moral of the story is this: when it comes to Google and link building, the two of you will tango.
There’s no way to predict how long your dance will last. Just ride it out and you’ll be glad your dance
card was filled by the King of the Prom, The Google Algorithm.