Advocacy Archives - Page 6 of 6

Stories that inspire: our favorite guest moments from October

Every guest story is an opportunity for a hotel to unveil something new. Stories reach & inspire—they’re truly memorable, sometimes magical, and a lot of times, a bit of fun.

In a way, we’ve fallen in love with guest stories, and every day see firsthand the impact they’re making for hotels. That’s why we’re sharing them with you! Check out a handful of our recent favorites below:

The Stanley Hotel — Estes Park, Colorado

“That your beautiful hotel is literally minutes from one of the best National Parks in this country!” – Irene G.

Enjoy the view

After the perfect fall retreat at The Stanley Hotel, Irene drove over 238 of her friends and relatives to their site, capturing 42 warm leads from a single advocate!

Pacific Terrace Hotel — San Diego, California

“Mother/Daughter Surfing Lesson on PB.” – Karen H.

Show some love

While a lot of travelers are making their way to cooler weather, Karen hit the beach for a mother and daughter surf lesson at Pacific Terrace Hotel. When Karen shared this special moment with an audience of 233, she captured the hearts of 27 warm leads.

The Lodge at Woodloch — The Poconos, Hawley, Pennsylvania

“This chipmunk kept running back and forth by the fire pit, so I decided to hide on the other side of the landscaped hill where he was running to. Boy was he surprised to see me!” – Denise R.

Explore The Poconos

A little bit of patience and perfect timing was all that was needed to capture this amazing shot by Denise, a recent guest of The Lodge at Woodloch. Her and fellow guests have already reached 30,000 friends and family and 696 warm leads in 2 months!

Orchard Hotel — San Francisco, California

“Mountain biking Mt. Tam – a great look at the natural beauty of the SF area…” – Dick H.

Enjoy more

Dick’s story from a recent trip to Orchard Hotel gives close friends and family a taste of the fun to be had in the San Francisco area.

Adrift Hotel & Spa — Long Beach, Washington

“Loved that we could walk down the hall for an amazing breakfast and dinner! Also loved riding our bikes from the parking lot for miles in the sunset!” – Shawna S.

Relax a bit

Shawna currently sits at fourth place in Adrift Hotel’s current contest. She shared to 418 friends and relatives so far, with 4 of her friends sharing on as well. This has driven 144 unique site visitors and 36 warm leads (and the contest is only half-way through!)

Crystal Lodge — Whistler, British Columbia, Canada

“Great location in a town with a great atmosphere.” – Jonathan S.

Admire more

This breathtaking view of Whistler is just 1 of the 133 guest stories in Crystal Lodge’s ever-growing library of curated content.

Alyeska Resort — Girdwood, Alaska

“Beautiful resort, impeccable customer service, and just a first-class act all around. The spectacular weather didn’t hurt either! Views from the mountain were fantastic!” – Pam R.

Ride along

Pam just snagged first place in Alyeska Resort’s first photo contest! Her and the other 25 finalists reached 47,848 future travelers, telling a richer story for the resort along the way.

Worldhotels — Hotels in 250+ destinations worldwide

“Constance Moofushi is a paradise on earth…!!!” – Marios A.

Discover Worldhotels

Marios’s unforgettable stay in paradise was shared with 375 friends and relatives, bringing 1,711 to their site and leading to 106 warm leads (and voting doesn’t end for another month)!

Check back next month for even more. See any stories that stand out? Let us know!

Adventure back to September’s stories

Stories that inspire: our favorite guest moments from September

Every guest story is an opportunity for a hotel to unveil something new. Stories reach & inspire—they’re truly memorable, sometimes magical, and a lot of times, a bit of fun.

Royal Park Hotel – Rochester, Michigan

“Hospitality, cleanliness, friendly staff, smooth, easy, relaxing wedding weekend.” – Danielle K.

Admire more moments

Danielle, a recent guest of Royal Park Hotel, shared a moment that captured the beginning of a lifetime of memories. She and fellow guests have reached over 14,000 friends and relatives in 3 months with authentic guest stories.

South Coast Winery Resort & Spa – Temecula, California

“Fabulous facility, great spa and pool and excellent restaurant” – Barbara V.

Enjoy the view

After the perfect getaway at South Coast Winery Resort & Spa, Barbara and fellow guests have introduced the hotel to over 21,000 friends and relatives, capturing 442 leads for potential guests of South Coast Winery in just a month!

Aava Whistler Hotel – Whistler, British Columbia

“Friendly staff!! Great location!!” – Kristie M.

Experience Whistler

Kristie put Aava Whistler Hotel at the center of this fun moment that was shared with 359 friends & family around the globe. There’s truly no better introduction to the lakeside fun at Whistler.

Mary’s Lake Lodge – Estes Park, Colorado

“We only stayed the 1 night but just the overall feeling of Home when we opened the door was more than we expected.” – Jennifer J.

Show some love

In two weeks Jennifer has shared this special moment with 385 friends and family, driving 122 visitors back to the lodge’s website and generating 10 warm leads (and that’s just one advocate!)

Garden of the Gods Club – Colorado Springs, Colorado

“We loved the beautiful view, the relaxing atmosphere, the excellent food, and the superb service from the staff!” – Cora H.

Relax a bit

Cora captured this gorgeous poolside landscape during a visit to Garden of the Gods Club, captivating friends, relatives and future guests alike. Combined, guests have already reached over 45,000 friends and relatives in 5 months.

The Orchard Garden Hotel – San Francisco, California

Explore the bay

Orchard Garden Hotel launched less than 2 months ago and their guests have already inspired more direct business by being personally introducing over 2,000 friends and family to the Bay Area property.

The Crane Resort – St. Philip, Barbados

“The Crane is so welcoming from start to finish. The staff make our whole vacation experience relaxing and enjoyable each year.” – Kyriacos M.

Laugh a little

The exceptional hospitality Kyriacos and his family experienced during their stay at The Crane Resort made an impression. 28 guests have already reached over 76,000 friends and family leading to 577 warm leads in 2 months.

Hotel Andaluz – Albuquerque, New Mexico

“Rooms were clean and nice. Hotel was beautiful. Food service was very good.” – Thomas K.

Enjoy Albuquerque

This peaceful moment shared by Thomas to his 498 friends and relatives is truly awe-inspiring—it’s one he’ll never forget. 6 of those reached shared his story to their own connections, reaching even more future travelers.

Check back next month for even more. See any stories that stand out? Let us know!

Adventure back to August’s stories

Stories that inspire: our favorite guest moments from August

Every guest story is an opportunity for a hotel to unveil something new. Stories reach & inspire—they’re truly memorable, sometimes magical, and a lot of times, a bit of fun.

The Stanley Hotel — Estes Park, Colorado

“Fly fishing the way my father taught me.” – Matthew G.

Explore the Rockies

Some things always stay with us. For Matthew, a recent guest of The Stanley Hotel, it was how his father taught him to fly fish. He joined his fellow guests to help this historic Rocky Mountain hotel reach an audience of 135,000 in 2 months.

Barefoot Cay Resort — Roatan, Bay Islands, Honduras

“Terrific Dive team led by Christian. My BC failed on day one, and they had excellent gear as backup. By the next morning, my BC was fixed and ready to roll. Soguey Ariza was one of the best Dive Masters we’ve ever experienced in 30 years of diving.” – Dana V.

Dive in

After an unforgettable stay at Barefoot Cay, Dana shared this special moment to 270 friends & family, leading to 46 warm leads from a single advocate alone.

Lake Tahoe Resort Hotel — South Lake Tahoe, California

“At the resorts complimentary beach! Great family fun.” – Leo J.

Take a beach trip

Leo’s story paints a rich picture of the family fun at Lake Tahoe Resort Hotel, and he shared to his 609 friends and relatives. 6 of those shared on to their own network, reaching an even larger audience of future travelers for Lake Tahoe Resort.

Crystal Lodge — Whistler, British Columbia, Canada

“Great customer service at the Crystal Lodge at check-in and check-out. The staff was friendly and the location was perfect!” – Alison P.

Take the leap

The exceptional hospitality Alison experienced during her stay at Crystal Lodge made an impression. She and fellow guests helped this mountain lodge reach an audience of 50,000 in the last two months.

Row NYC Hotel — New York, New York

“Amazing view of 8th Ave. from our room at RowNYC” – Dimitri F.

Enjoy the view

This breathtaking view of The City That Never Sleeps inspired over 552 of Dimitri’s friends and relatives to visit Row NYC Hotel’s website, leading to 76 warm leads in less than a month.

The Shawnee Inn and Golf Resort, Shawnee on Delaware, Pennsylvania

“The best part of our experience at Shawnee is being able to connect as a family! We enjoy all of the outdoor activities and making memories year after year!!!” – Lyndsey M.

Make memories

The Shawnee Inn is at the heart of many memories for Lyndsey and her family. She captured this one during a beautiful summer day on the lake, giving future travelers a taste of all the fun to have at this Pocono Mountains getaway.

La Casa del Zorro Resort & Spa — Borrego Springs, California

“‘I’m just going to look up at the stars the whole time,’ our six year old told us on the way back to the room after dinner. This moment seemed too perfect not to capture.” – Samantha S.

Gaze at more

A starry night becomes a cherished moment for Samantha and her son. In just two weeks, her story has captured the hearts and minds of 324 friends and relatives worldwide.

Mirror Lake Inn — Lake Placid, New York

“The best part of our experience was in the beautiful way the grounds are maintained. The service and dining experience was absolutely first class. Highly recommend Mirror Lake Inn.” – Richard D.

Experience Mirror Lake Inn

Beautiful views and unforgettable service from an exceptional staff. All part of this timeless story shared by Richard to friends and relatives about Mirror Lake Inn.

Check back next month for even more. See any stories that stand out? Let us know!

Adventure back to July’s stories

Hotels vs. OTAs: the issue isn’t what you think it is

At Flip.to, we’re constantly working with people in the industry that inspire us. Here’s a special post from our own team member, originally featured on LinkedIn Pulse. Looking to collaborate? Get in touch and let’s do something amazing together.

It’s virtually impossible to read hospitality headlines nowadays without seeing at least one piece on how hotels can “take back control” from OTAs. A noble pursuit indeed but do hotels know what sort of “control” it is they’re trying to take back? I would argue the answer to that is no in most cases.

Let’s look quickly at what OTAs are designed to do and why they’re good at it. OTAs are conversion machines. They bring in massive amounts of traffic and then excel at converting that traffic into room nights, car rentals, airline tickets, etc.

They’re able to do this because they’re better at getting consumer attention than hotels are and their websites are better at selling than hotel websites are.

Expedia spent, collectively across all of its brands, nearly $3 billion on marketing in 2014. If they’re willing to put that kind of money into the marketing aethers then it’s a sure bet they’re serious about converting that traffic when it lands on their sites.

Beyond that they’ve also invested heavily in keeping those customers coming back. They’ve accomplished this through a loyalty program, long-term nurturing, and a purchasing/discovery experience that favors the user. Not one of these three things is beyond the ability of any hotel reading this.

In most cases when I read these articles about wresting control from the OTAs the focus is on share of revenue and room nights. How can hotels shift more of that into their ecosystem? The issue with this “control” narrative is that it’s focused on symptoms and not the causal factors mentioned above.

Share of attention

As a hotel, it can be overwhelming trying to compete for the fleeting attention of travelers. Never before in human history have so many sources been competing for a person’s attention. OTAs are good at this because they have scale and budget. They can be in most places the consumer cares about, but not everywhere.

For hotels this means competing in spaces where OTAs are not yet part of the equation, and via means unavailable to them. To achieve this the hotel needs to be in front of the guest before that person is even in the travel-planning mindset. It’s better to stand out early than to be part of an arbitrary sorting algorithm on a third-party website.

On top of this, social media is so underutilized by hotels it’s hard to believe it’s actually 2016. This is a low-cost platform that can drive massive value for the guest both pre- and post-stay and yet more often than not I see hotels sending people there versus collecting traffic from those sites.

Experiences designed to sell

OTAs are good at selling. They’re really, really good. That’s because they don’t really care that much about which product someone buys, just that they buy any product while they’re on their site. That’s their advantage, money notwithstanding.

Conversely, for the average independent hotel, they have a single product to offer. Sure there are different rate plans, add-ons, packages, etc. In the end though the guest can only buy that single experience. That being the case, why is it that most hotel websites feel and function like digital billboards? It’s like, “hey, you’re in my shop but here’s an ad for my shop anyway.”

Bulleted amenity lists, professional photos of rooms, and canned descriptions of the product abound. It’s incumbent upon the hotel to nurture that visitor down the path to becoming a guest. Hotels can provide insight into the experience the guest can expect unlike any OTA possibly can.

Remember, the OTA is putting piles of hotels in front of the consumer. That person is there for options.

When a potential guest lands on a hotel’s website something has already grabbed her attention and she’s interested. Give her something worth her time, not a product spec sheet.

And on the subject of time, the importance of design cannot be overstated. Imagine if, instead of feeling like work, learning about a hotel was an experience in and of itself. An experience that’s just a taste of what the guest can expect during a stay.

That’s the sort of “control” that wins the day. Winning more share of attention and designing experiences that convert will ensure more business comes direct. But it has to be earned, not taken back.

Unlock our new e-course: Reignite your loyal base

Together, loyalty and advocacy spark huge return for repeat business. Enroll in our e-course to learn how to harness recognition and extend personal interactions with your guests.

With a new lesson sent to your inbox each week for 5 weeks, we’ll cover the industry shift towards aspirational marketing and what it means for hoteliers, plus how to attract, inspire and keep loyal guests.

As you’ll soon see, loyalty done right fosters advocacy, and the two are a more powerful than the sum of their parts. Each read takes only 5–8 minutes, so, you’ll be able to apply these lessons and lift your loyalty program to new heights in no time.

Join us as we explore more in-depth lessons with every installment.

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Meet the instructor

Richard Dunbar

Director of Partnerships

Hi there—Richard here at Flip.to. I’ve been in the hospitality space for over 15 years, including several at one of the largest providers of independent loyalty reward programs worldwide. After picking up my fair share on loyalty, I’ve been able to put it all together with revenue management, e-commerce, and now advocacy. I’m happy to share what I’ve learned with you as you come aboard.

Advocacy is knocking: 50 booking partners open new doors

Reaching 50 booking engine partners is a huge milestone for our team, but an even bigger deal for hotels.

Why’s it such a big deal? It’s because we’ve built deep relationships with our partners so we can ensure quick and simple onboarding for our customers.

Getting started with Flip.to is as easy as a copy and paste into your booking engine and website–similar to how you’d set up a Google Analytics tracking code. That’s it. Once you’re set up, the whole platform is out-of-the-box and ready for your hotel to start letting your guests introduce your hotel to their friends and family across the globe.

Check out the full-list on our Partners page. If you don’t see your provider, just let us know! Thanks to our strong industry relationships, there’s a good chance we know your provider, and can get you up and running in no time.