How Hotels Can Stay Top-of-Mind With Industry Decision-Makers
- Florida Custom Merch
- 2 days ago
- 4 min read
In today’s highly competitive hospitality landscape, being recognized by potential clients is no longer just about offering an exceptional guest experience—it’s about consistent visibility, meaningful engagement, and positioning your hotel as a trusted partner. For hotels targeting corporate clients, event planners, and other industry decision-makers, staying top-of-mind requires a strategic approach that combines personalized communication, smart marketing, and relationship-building initiatives.
1. Understand Your Decision-Makers
Before you can stay top-of-mind, it’s essential to understand who your audience is. Industry decision-makers typically include corporate event planners, travel managers, meeting planners, and executives responsible for selecting venues. Each of these roles has unique priorities: some focus on budget and logistical convenience, others on guest experience and amenities, and others on sustainability or branding alignment.
Hotels can leverage data from past events, corporate bookings, and guest feedback to segment decision-makers and understand their preferences. By knowing what matters most to these individuals, hotels can tailor their communication and offerings, increasing the chances that their property will be the first one considered when booking decisions are made.
2. Build a Strong Digital Presence
A robust digital presence ensures your hotel is visible when decision-makers are researching venues. This begins with a polished website optimized for search engines (SEO). Highlight not only the hotel’s accommodations but also meeting spaces, technology capabilities, dining options, and unique selling points like sustainability initiatives or customized experiences. Include virtual tours, high-quality imagery, and detailed floor plans to make event planning easier.
Social media is another powerful tool for staying top-of-mind. Platforms like LinkedIn, Instagram, and even TikTok can showcase your hotel’s expertise, highlight successful events, and engage with industry communities. Sharing behind-the-scenes content, client testimonials, and thought leadership pieces positions your hotel as not just a venue but a partner invested in the success of every event.
3. Utilize Email Marketing Strategically
Email remains one of the most effective tools for nurturing relationships with decision-makers. Rather than generic blasts, hotels should create segmented campaigns tailored to the interests of different professionals. For example, a corporate travel manager may appreciate updates on room upgrades or loyalty programs, while an event planner may be more interested in new meeting packages or seasonal offerings.
Timing and consistency are critical. Regular updates, ideally every 6–8 weeks, can keep your hotel on the radar without overwhelming recipients. Personalization—using the recipient’s name, referencing previous events or stays, and highlighting relevant offerings—enhances engagement and increases the likelihood that your hotel will be remembered when booking decisions arise.
4. Leverage Personalized Outreach and Relationship-Building
While digital channels are crucial, personal relationships still carry immense weight in the hospitality industry. Hotels can maintain top-of-mind awareness through personalized outreach such as handwritten notes, phone calls, or personalized gifts after a meeting or event. Even small touches, like acknowledging a client’s milestone or sending a follow-up with a customized offer, demonstrate attentiveness and foster long-term loyalty.
Hosting familiarization trips or private events for key decision-makers is another effective strategy. By offering an immersive experience of the hotel’s amenities and services, decision-makers are more likely to remember your property and recommend it to colleagues. These experiences should highlight what makes your hotel unique, from locally sourced catering options to flexible event spaces and technology solutions.
5. Utilize Custom Branded Items and Promotional Products
Hotels can also reinforce brand recall through carefully selected custom branded items. High-quality promotional products, such as notebooks, pens, drinkware, or tech accessories, provide a physical reminder of your property. When a decision-maker receives a practical, visually appealing gift that aligns with your hotel’s brand, your property remains top-of-mind in both personal and professional settings.
The key is relevance and quality. Items that can be used in their professional environment—think branded USB chargers, notebooks for meeting notes, or even gourmet snack packs—are more likely to be retained and appreciated. Personalized touches, such as including the decision-maker’s name or referencing a recent event, make the gift even more memorable.
6. Position Your Hotel as a Thought Leader
Another way to stay top-of-mind is by providing value beyond just your facilities. By sharing industry insights, event planning tips, or trends in hospitality and corporate travel, your hotel positions itself as an expert and trusted partner. Blog articles, white papers, webinars, and social media content can help decision-makers associate your brand with expertise and reliability.
Participating in industry conferences, networking events, and professional associations further strengthens visibility. Speaking engagements, sponsorships, or panels offer opportunities to demonstrate your hotel’s knowledge and commitment to the industry while building personal connections with key stakeholders.
7. Track Engagement and Follow Up Strategically
Finally, staying top-of-mind requires tracking engagement and following up thoughtfully. Use CRM tools to monitor interactions, including email opens, clicks, and responses, as well as social media engagement. This data allows hotels to identify which decision-makers are most interested, tailor future communications, and strategically time follow-ups.
For example, if a decision-maker frequently engages with content about meeting space upgrades, a follow-up email or call highlighting new venue options or promotions is timely and relevant. Strategic follow-up ensures your property remains present in the minds of decision-makers without becoming intrusive.
Conclusion
In the fast-paced hospitality industry, staying top-of-mind with decision-makers requires a combination of understanding your audience, strategic communication, personal touches, and consistent brand presence. By integrating digital marketing, personalized outreach, thoughtful promotional items, and thought leadership, hotels can position themselves as the go-to choice for corporate events, meetings, and group bookings.
Ultimately, visibility and relationship-building go hand-in-hand. Hotels that invest in both are more likely to be remembered, recommended, and booked time and again, securing a competitive edge and long-term success in the corporate hospitality market.
With so many options available, choosing the right branded promotional item can be overwhelming. Since 2016, we, at Florida Custom Merch, have helped numerous businesses achieve success through the use of custom branded promotional merchandise. Hiring an expert can help you select the perfect item, save time and money, and, most importantly, maximize your results.
Thank you for reading! We hope you found this article helpful!
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