When Is Paying an Influencer to Promote Your Hotel Worth It?

Plenty of wannabes want a free stay. But a real social media star can help sell plenty more rooms. Influencer marketing can be frustrating but effective. In 2018, The Atlantic reported the headline “Instagram Influencers are Driving Luxury Hotels Crazy.” A marketing and communications manager for a luxury hotel told the magazine, “her hotel receives at least six requests from self-described influencers a day, typically through Instagram direct messages.” Her biggest frustration: Many barely have the following worth any return on investment. So GEM Journal scoured the internet to find advice on how to make hiring a social media influencer a juice that’s worth the squeeze. A generation under the influence A fascinating study called the “Influence Report” proves the value influencer marketing can bring to a business. Pollsters from Morning Consult quizzed more than 2,000 13-38-year-olds on their social media habits and whether they trusted the “influencers” they follow. More than 7 in 10 said they followed some kind of influencers. The most revealing finding: 50 percent of millennials trust them for advice on where they spend their money. Influencers with a large following in a niche that fits your brand can be a successful marketing campaign. It’s a growing industry. Last year, influencer marketing as a whole was valued at $13.8 billion and is predicted to eclipse that number by another $2.6 billion by the end of 2022. Pro tip: Do some homework and investigate the influencer. Many Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok account pad their following with fake accounts called “bots.” You want to reach real people. It’s a nonsensical business move to pay someone when there aren’t real eyeballs on your hotel. Pay attention to the account’s engagement. If you find real people loving and commenting on any social media posts you know it’s a powerful marketing tool. One of the great things about a truly professional influencer is they’re honest and communicate with their followers. There’s a human element that no TV, radio, or other social media ad can provide. No engagement, no stay The number of the following doesn’t truly matter. Whether it’s hundreds or hundreds of thousands, what matters is the engagement. If the influencer’s account fits to your brand and has followers commenting on posts asking questions about the content, it’s a good fit. Influencer marketing may not have set rules, but that’s not necessarily new to any marketing. You want to know you’re working with an influencer who can attract potential customers for your business. There are stories of influencers crashing hotels for free and never posting any content. Nearly as bad are the ones with massive following posting photos to an audience who will likely never stay at your hotel anyway. Do yourself a favor at vet these requests ahead of time. Pro tip: Stay skeptical of the initial pitch. If your inbox is flooded with hundreds of emails with a subject line that reads “let’s collaborate,” take the hint and move on. This is business like any other. If that partner can’t take the time to draft a decent pitch to your hotel, why partner at all? This can be an easy red flag alerting you to what’ll likely happen next. Some content creators in the influencer space pride themselves on professionalism. They’ll draft a one-sheeter and sales pitch like any other business partner you may work with in the future. Many of your potential customers may have ad blockers set on their desktops and just feel fatigued by advertisements. Don’t sleep on the potential to reach a younger crowd with a social media influencer. With that said, don’t fall asleep at the wheel with the potential scam they can pull over on your business.

When Is Paying an Influencer to Promote Your Hotel Worth It?

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