Hotel Marketing Strategies Blog

Many hotel owners and marketing directors realize the benefits of pay per click advertising, and want to select an agency that can help them build and manage an effective campaign.  Yet with so many self-appointed PPC gurus out there, it can be hard to make a choice.

I’d like to provide you with some inside information that will help separate the pros from the amateurs.

Here are a compilation of questions I’m frequently asked, along with ones I think should be frequently asked. I hope they will help you in comparing agencies, and selecting a firm that will give the very best performance possible.

Part 1: Questions about the process

What is your workflow process?
What to look for: A clear path to project completion
Why it’s important: To understand the process they will use

What am I getting for my setup fee?
What to look for: Clear, specific deliverables
Why it’s important: Transparency is important when you’re comparing companies

Describe your keyword research process
What to look for: Careful selection of at least 100-500 highly-targeted phrases
Why it’s important: Keywords are the foundation of successful PPC campaigns

What keyword match types will you use?
What to look for: Appropriate use of broad, phrase, and exact matching
Why it’s important: Keyword match types can improve accuracy

Explain your approach to ad copy writing
What to look for: A proven formula for winning ads
Why it’s important: Your ad copy has a direct impact on your campaign success

How do you track sales conversions?
What to look for: Ad network tracking code, with cross-platform tracking software available
Why it’s important: Linking ad spend to new sales is essential for measuring ROI

How will you increase my sales conversions?
What to look for: Time-tested techniques for improving conversions in your industry
Why it’s important: Cost per sale is really the only relevant metric

What are your top five metrics for measuring success?
What to look for: Benchmarks with real impact on your sales numbers and return on investment
Why it’s important: If they don’t know what success looks like, they probably won’t reach it

Part 2: Questions about the partnership

How will I be involved?
What to look for: A consultancy that provides the level of involvement you want
Why it’s important: That’s your right as a client

Who will be doing the actual work?
What to look for: In-house specialists working on your account
Why it’s important: Agencies that outsource your account have less control over the results

Who owns the campaign?
What to look for: Full ownership by you of all keywords, ad copy, and campaign setup
Why it’s important: If things don’t work out, you should be able to move freely to another agency

How do you price your monthly management service?
What to look for: A fair pricing format that provides incentive for the agency to perform
Why it’s important: Many pricing models are based on the wrong criteria

What is the duration of your contract?
What to look for: Options, with flexibility for you to exit
Why it’s important: If a company isn’t providing satisfactory results, you need to fire them

Part 3: Questions about the agency

How much experience does your firm have?
What to look for: A history of proven results
Why it’s important: You can’t put your company’s success in the hands of amateurs

Are the people managing the campaign Google certified?
What to look for: Google certified specialists
Why it’s important: Google certification requires knowledge and experience minimums

What differentiates your company from the rest of the industry?
What to look for: Unique, significant differences
Why it’s important: You want to hire the best

Part 4: Advanced (bonus) questions

How specifically will you help me beat the industry competition?
What to look for: Guerrilla marketing tactics
Why it’s important: You’re playing to win

How do you plan to reduce excess ad spend?
What to look for: Ways to cut the “fat” from your campaign
Why it’s important: Extra spending in PPC doesn’t always mean more sales

What percentage of keywords and spend will be based on our brand?
What to look for: A small percentage of overall keywords and ad spend
Why it’s important: Your campaign should include, but not depend, on your brand

How do you use negative keywords?
What to look for: Smart use of negative keyword matching to eliminate unlikely buyers
Why it’s important: Negative keywords increase your campaign’s return on investment

What is your process for improving ad quality score?
What to look for: A proven process (with examples) of improving quality score
Why it’s important: Poor quality score artificially inflates your ad spend and reduces performance

What is your opinion on ad distribution on the content network?
What to look for: Industry-specific advice
Why it’s important: Content network distribution has the potential to make or break your budget

Describe your approach for international campaigns
What to look for: Experience building localized campaigns
Why it’s important: The best international campaigns are customized for each country

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Let me ask YOU this: What questions do you use to find the best pay-per-click advertising agencies?

As part of our search marketing work with Gradigio clients, we build a large list of keywords. Typically, these will fall into 1 of 3 categories:

• Broad, obvious ones (”San Francisco hotel”)
• Longer, more targeted phrases (”Best San Francisco boutique hotel”)
• Other, less related keywords (such as names of competing hotels or other travel-related terms)

Occasionally, a client will wonder why we’re targeting related terms.

“We don’t want to advertise for that term! That’s not how we would describe ourselves!”

So why do we do this?  There are two reasons for using a broader phrase such as “San Francisco trip ideas” or the name of a competitor:

1. If that’s what potential guests use to find hotels, then that’s the keyword you need to target.  (This highlights the importance of using the right research and analysis tools.)
2. Related terms will often be less competitive, driving more traffic to you for less resources

Remember who owns the search page. Focus your search marketing efforts on what trip planners already search for - not what you want them to search for.

Geo-targeting is basically a form of local search optimization.

If you are using website analytics software, you can probably determine where your visitors are coming from.  If you notice that most of your revenues come from visitors from a certain geographic area, then it makes sense to build an advertising campaign targeting that region.

How is this done in pay-per-click advertising?

Google AdWords makes it easy.  In your control panel, click Campaign Settings, then Locations.  Use the map tool to select which areas to show your ads in.  You can target everything from countries all the way down to individual towns (or even custom areas you draw yourself).

Here’s the key: ask yourself these three questions when building a geo-targeted campaign:

1. Which regions should I target?
2. Why should I target them?
3. How will my advertising message change for each targeted area?

Tip: It’s smart to make at least some adjustments for each region you target.  Take advantage of this technique by delivering localized ad copy.

Feel free to download this chart to help you with your hotel PPC campaign.

Image via Wikipedia

50 years ago, it would have been impossible to launch a nation-wide advertising campaign with just $50. Now, you can not only do that, but also rigorously test your message for effectiveness - and only show ads to people actively looking for a hotel like yours.

The technology making this possible is pay-per-click (PPC) marketing.  The concept was pioneered by Jeffrey Brewer and Bill Gross of Goto.com in 1998, but only started gaining popularity in 2002, allowing advertisers to show ads inside search engine results pages.  The premise is powerful: people that view your ad are already searching for what you offer.

Because of this, pay-for-performance advertising brings several very strong advantages to your promotional toolkit:

1) You only pay for results. Your investment is directly tied to the number of visitors to your website. This greatly reduces the risk of running an expensive campaign and getting no results.

2) Your campaign goes live quickly (often with 15 minutes). You can open an AdWords account to quickly test an idea or concept in the market. By bypassing the traditional ad campaign development cycle, you can enjoy first-mover advantage.

3) It’s easy to test for results. Pay-per-click marketing is very analytical.  You can track and test a number of important benchmarks and see which message performs best.

4) You can start on a small scale. With $50 (or less), you can launch a pilot campaign to determine if the format works for you.

5) You can target specific demographics or regions.  AdWords and other PPC platforms make it easy to only show ads to a highly targeted group of people or places. This accuracy helps you deliver your message to the right people.

Pay-per-click marketing should be part of a two-part search marketing strategy that includes organic optimization.  For more information, take a moment to read the differences between the two tactics.