Hotel guests are posting reviews and ratings online about every aspect of their stay, including the breakfast, the rooms, and the staff. Before check- outs stage, they even go so far as to upload videos and pictures about their experience at the hotel. This affects other travelers’ decisions when it comes to making hotel reservations.
When hoteliers understand why travelers depend on reviews, the significance of reputation management, and the effect that reviews have on click-through rates (CTR) over OTA channels, they will have a clearer understanding of how their reputation affects their revenue.
Firstly, Think like a Tourist!
In addition to searching online for the best hotel deals, travelers may check reviews left by prior visitors for a particular hotel.
In fact, according to 90% of those questioned in a recent survey, review site ratings were very important in helping them make their booking.
This demonstrates the need for hotels to request reviews from guests across several websites.
When a hotel has conflicting feedback,Travelers will check different websites online to verify if the reviews are consistent with those of past visitors. If there are no further reviews, they will search for a hotel that has reviews on numerous websites.
Why do they act this way? It helps them learn more about the place and offers them confidence that their expectations will be fulfilled once they make a hotel reservation.
Experience Better Results With Reputation Management
In addition to a hotel’s general reputation, travelers often consider the reviews left by previous guests on specific features of the property, such as its comfort, services, and cleanliness.
In an IPSOS study, 45% of those polled claimed that user-generated information, such as reviews—both positive and negative—plays a substantial influence in their decision over which hotel to stay at. Furthermore, 68% of respondents believed peer reviews to be trustworthy.
So, how should negative reviews be handled?
Reputation management can help with this.
The best way is to fix issues that require care and positively respond to negative reviews.
By doing this, the hotel not only shows guests that it values their business and cares about their needs, but it also gives them the impression that they are being heard.
Reputation management also pays off.
According to research from Cornell University’s School of Hotel Administration, if a hotel’s reviews improve by one point on a scale of five, it may increase room rates by slightly over 11% and still have the same occupancy or market share.
In a recent survey, 76% of guests said they would be willing to pay more for a hotel with better reviews.
Boost Online Productivity and Income
In a study, it was discovered that a hotel’s click-through rate increased with its online rating (CTR).
For instance, when a hotel raises its online rating from “mediocre” to “okay,” it may have a 4% rise in CTR, which may have a long-term impact on income.
According to Cornell University’s Hospitality Report, a mid-scale hotel owner can experience a revenue available per room (RevPAR) increase of up to 1.42% for every percentage point improvement in online reputation.
Additionally, our research demonstrates that a hotel’s CTR can increase by up to 3% when the number of reviews is increased from 20 to 30%. The number of reviews and apparent popularity of a hotel both increase how reliable a rating is.
Even if there are a few negative reviews, they will be insignificant in comparison to the positive ones.
The following tips will assist hoteliers to increase their CTRs:
- Sending a thank-you note to recent guests and informing them that their recommendations are valued will increase the quantity of online reviews.
- Have a touchscreen monitor at the front desk so that visitors may more easily leave reviews during their stay or when checking out from the hotel.
- Add links on the hotel’s social media pages to make it simple for visitors to leave reviews.
The platforms where travelers can submit and read reviews are countless. Even though the Internet makes it possible for hotels to connect with potential customers, many hoteliers prefer to have single interface to increase engagement. Repup helps hoteliers to understand this sentiment and take probable actions to fill in the gap.
The Rating Index score as well as a breakdown of guest reviews on various facets of the property are all displayed in the Repup’s centralized dashboard, along with the total ratings from all of the booking sites they partner with. In this manner, hoteliers may maintain a thorough picture of their online reputation.