Hotels using influencer marketing as part of their digital marketing strategy is the latest trend for top brands. The hotels have taken advantage of the social, tech-savvy and somewhat star-struck generation of travelers to come up with truly effective influencer marketing campaigns. Below you will find the top 3 hotel brands using influencer marketing to effectively leverage their brands.

 

Marriott

Marriott is one of the top hotel brands in the world to leverage the power of Snapchat influencers to market its brand. Marriot recently created a campaign around its Moxy brand, working with Taryn Southern to develop a series of videos that made rounds on social media and help put Moxy on the map with their followers on Snapchat.

Marriott also implemented Snapchat takeovers where it relinquished control to 4 influencers namely: Diipa Khosla, Tom Jauncey, Sara Hopkins, and Jen Levinson. The 4 created a weeklong journal each of trips to New York, Dubai, Seoul, and Berlin. The brand encouraged the influencers to share their stories via Marriott Snapchat along with their personal accounts to promote the rewards program offered by Marriott.

 

Starwood Resorts

Starwood Resorts has really taken on Instagram as a promotional and marketing tool, especially on a global level. The brand’s latest marketing campaign involved 5 Instagram influencers who promoted two new properties in Paris i.e. Le Dokhan and Le Metropolitan.

Each of the 5 influencers posted content and photos about their experiences at the hotels along with a link to help increase bookings. If a user ‘liked’ a post, he/she would receive an email with booking information or the user could book via the post directly.

The brand has a lot to be happy about with regards to this campaign. It currently has over half a million followers and earned thousands more courtesy of the influencer marketing campaign.

 

The Ritz Carlton

The Ritz Carlton has taken on the initiative of giving select social media users the opportunity of a lifetime. The brand looked at social feeds of several users, gave them an invite to visit one of its properties for free, and all they were required to do was post a few photos per day during their visit to promote the brand to their followers.

The Ritz Carlton’s marketing team looks for social influencers with thousands of followers and active engagement as opposed to using stock photos. For instance, the brand recently used Jack Morris, a world-traveler and Chris Aznar, a micro-influencer to promote its various destinations.

Influencer Marketing Should Be an Extension of the Overall Marketing Strategy

Influencer marketing is an effective promotional tool increasingly used by hotel brands. It is, however, not a surprising fact since being active on social media is critical to the success of any brand. Driving engagement and increasing brand loyalty using influencer marketing is critical with today’s generation of travelers.

Brands should be particularly cautious with regards to how their influencer marketing is handled. For instance, the campaign run by Marriott where control of the official social media account was handed over to influencers had the potential to be a disaster. It is always advisable for brands to vet influencers to know their style better and be sure that no controversial content will be posted.

Final Thoughts

The hospitality industry would just not be the same without social media influencers. Hotels enjoy a lot of benefits from influencer marketing. However, this depends on whether they have actually done their due diligence to ensure that they are compatible with influencers. To achieve optimal campaign success, brands should implement thorough application and vetting processes to ensure that they only work with the right influencers.