8 Proven Hotel Guest Retention Strategies

Build up the relationship and trust by getting their information so you can follow up with a friendly message, check-in offer, or gift card incentive. 

Hosts should keep track of their reservation history so they know who their repeat guest are. Send them a quick message during off-seasons, in between visits, or offer incentives such as three times consecutively and get 50% off. Then, give them updates on your offerings via newsletter/ social media feeds or holiday cards.

Besides, you can build trust by providing what you promise during the booking. If you succeed in doing the same, you will see that your guests are becoming more loyal. 

2. Get Feedback from Guests

One great way of improving guest satisfaction and boosting guest retention is through guest feedback software. Feedback programs should be an ongoing process, where guests can provide feedback on their stay as well as review your facilities, staff, and services. 

Inform your guest and make sure they understand why they need to give you feedback. The more honest the feedback, the better. Make sure to explain the benefits of giving good feedback in relation to both you and your guests. 

3. Turn Negative Feedback into Positive

Feedback is a good thing as it allows you to recognize what you’re doing well and where you need to improve. 

However, not all feedback is positive. You want your guests to feel welcomed and appreciated but sometimes they can’t say those things in the way they want or at the time they want. Luckily, even with negative feedback, there are ways you can turn these complaints into opportunities for improvement. 

• First of all, always respond politely to every guest’s complaint. 
• Secondly, find out why they felt this way and offer them solutions if possible. 
• Thirdly, document their complaints so you can share them with other employees who may be able to rectify the situation next time. 
• Lastly, tell them how much you appreciate their business. 

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4. Use Guest Retention Programs

One of the best ways to ensure that your guests are coming back is by keeping in touch with them. After the guest has left, send them a survey asking about their stay and why they booked at your establishment in the first place. Use this information as a guide when preparing the subsequent follow-up communication. 

Continuously send out newsletters, updates on promotions and contests, or coupons that your guest may find useful or entertaining. 

Give them a reason to come back! Offer discounts on specific days. 

Provide VIP guest service. These little extras will make people feel valued which will result in repeat business. 

5. Create Loyalty Rewards

According to a survey by Deloitte Retail (global consulting company), brands running loyalty programs are 88% more profitable than other brands. This tells us the importance of using loyalty rewards mechanism to increase guest retention for hotels. 

Loyalty programs can be rewarding and also help build guest relationships. One way that hotels can offer loyalty rewards is through exclusive benefits like early check-in, late check out or special amenities. 

These rewards will be provided on the reward points basis which are credited in guests’ account when they book with you, purchases anything by you etc. Guests can then redeem these points for the benefits that are mentioned above.

6. Use Automation

Automation not only helps you ease the hotel operations but also improves the customer touchpoints which leads to repeat guests. 

Hotel Chatbot is an essential part of hospitality automation. It improves guest satisfaction by engaging with guests. NLP chatbots are helping hotels to reduce the burden from the support staff. 

Using CRM will allow you to create automated interactions based on triggers. For example, hotels may use a trigger that occurs when the guest has not checked in by the provided time. 

They can then have the system send a message asking them if they need anything before their arrival. With this type of tactic, the hotel is able to keep the guest updated with current information and offer them new services or deals that they otherwise would not know about. 

Such automated technologies allow businesses to cut down on costs while at the same time engaging with their guests. 

7. Provide a Memorable Experience

Creating a memorable experience for your guests can be as simple as a personalized card welcoming them back or making their favorite coffee drink just the way they like it. 

Hosting your guests with open arms, providing an intimate and personalized experience is an easy way to keep them coming back. After all, every guests wants something special when they walk through your doors. 

Who says you can’t give them that feeling on every visit? Invest in small gestures that make people feel appreciated, welcome and valued. Maybe it’s sending out monthly newsletters, having complimentary snacks available 24/7, or remembering their preferences at check-in. 

The more you focus on these things, the more loyal guests will feel towards your hotel. And after all, who doesn’t want to come back to somewhere they’re treated like family? 

8. Use Referral Programs

Offering referral programs is a great way to incentivize guest loyalty and get more retention in your business. It’s a kind of low-budget, highly-effective marketing because it leverages word-of-mouth advertising. 

To increase your hotel guest retention rate, you can offer referral rewards that can be collected at check-in, or send them as a thank you gift after they book their stay with you. 

You could also give them some points they can redeem on future stays, or even extend their stay by one night if they refer someone else. 

By using this strategy, you’re getting new guests and retaining the existing ones as well. Thus, it’s a great strategy to work on!

Conclusion

Guest retention is one of the most important parts of your marketing strategy. Take these hotel guest retention strategies into consideration, and put them into action right away. If you want to improve guest satisfaction ratings, these strategies are a great place to start!

Furthermore, adopting cutting-edge hotel management software can improve overall guest satisfaction, offer analytical data, and expedite processes. Remaining proactive and adaptive in the face of industry changes can guarantee that your hotel not only keeps its visitors, but also converts them into passionate brand advocates. Recall that the objective is to turn one-time guests into devoted supporters who contribute to your hotel's ongoing success by making every guest feel appreciated and eager to return.