Set For The Social Currency Windfall?

The increasing chatter in cyberspace and emergence of new technologies in social media means that hospitality brands have plan their digital strategies well in advance

- Bindu Gopal Rao

Here’s a quick test for you. Take a look around your hotel. Chances are that at least 50 percent of your guests are using either the property’s WiFi connection or their own. But the fact is that they are constantly glued to their smartphones. And in all probability they are checking out some social media network, especially if we are talking about millennial guests.

Hospitality brands of every hue are leveraging it as they face stiff competition and the need to create better recall value amongst their customers. Moreover, the chatter in cyberspace and the emergence of new technologies in social networking means that they have plan their digital strategies well in advance, even if they entered the fray well in advance.

Take the case of Staywell Hospitality Group, which started its social media strategy in 2012 and has an agency that manages its networks like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn. It reviews its social media strategy every six months and tries to improvise on it. “Consumers are the ones that make the decisions and dictate the reputation of an establishment. With the advent of smart phones and mobile devices, consumers have all the tools to criticise a hotel immediately and reach millions of people in seconds,” explained Rohit Vig, MD, StayWell Hospitality Group.