The best hotel websites engage visitors, and there’s no better way to do that than by actually talking with them.  Meebo is a cool little widget that enables live chat direct from your website. No one needs to download software, and it’s completely free.

You can see an example of how this works in the sidebar of this blog:

Try it out! Say “hi” if you see me online.

You’ve already created guest personas.  You know your marketing is less effective without them, so you’ve adjusted your website to create tailored messages for each group.

Great.

How does this work in social media?

It begins with understanding which social networks are most popular with each demographic. I’ve written before on 6 types of social media and the 5 groups to target, so now I’d like to get real practical and share a tool that will help you select social networks that reach your target audience.

Quantcast provides detailed demographics information on each major website. For example, when you type in “tripadvisor.com” you’ll see that visitors to that website are primarily:

1. Female (54%)
2. Older (66% above 35)
3. Caucasian (85%)
4. Have no kids in household (73%)
5. More affluent (65% above $60k household income)

For social media marketing, this information is gold.  Be sure to use tools like this as you choose your media mix to ensure you reach the right people.

GetListed.org is a cool little tool that allows you to check your local search visibility on Google, Yahoo, and MSN. Appearing in these local results is a very important part of any hotel search marketing campaign.

If you’re not in yet, read how to get your hotel listed in Google Maps.

As finances are stretched tighter and the market becomes increasingly competitive, hoteliers are challenged to stay on top of the hottest trends in order to bring something fresh to their guests and remain competitive.  A great way to stay current with the latest styles in fashion, travel, design, amenities, music and boutique brands from around the globe is to browse some of the fascinating trend watching websites that are filled with inspirational ideas a creative hotelier can adopt.

The Cool Hunter is one of the most recognized sites to track trends – and its founder Bill Tikos has also recently published “The World’s Coolest Hotel Rooms“, a fascinating peek into some of the most fantastic and creative spaces in hospitality.

Another on-the-money site is Trendwatching.com, which not only reports on the latest and greatest ideas but categorizes them into identifiable customer clusters and behavior patterns.  You’ll undoubtedly recognize some of your guests in these trends – and also gather ideas of how you can meet their needs.  In addition to free monthly emails, they publish an annual report of trends likely to develop in the next year. The InterContinental Hotel Group is one of many high-profile subscribers. Well if it’s good enough for them, it’s probably good enough for you too!

(Bonus site from Josiah: “I also like to watch Springwise, which delivers new business innovations from around the world.  You may be especially interested in their Tourism & Travel channel.”)

I Feel London (also Toronto, NYC) is a mood-based travel guide. Visitors can find local attractions that fit their mood using Google Maps.

The site is currently invite-only and in rough beta, but it could be an interesting thing to share with your guests if you’re in these cities.