wazua Thu, Mar 26, 2026
Welcome Guest Search | Active Topics | Log In

2 Pages12>
Marketing a Hotel online
Options
Previous Topic · Next Topic
leona
#1 Posted : Wednesday, June 23, 2010 5:28:36 PM
Rank: Elder

Joined: 8/1/2008
Posts: 1,432
Location: Marsabit
Hi Wazuarians,

Am looking for ideas on how best to market a hotel and a bush-camp online. Has any Wazuarian done it before? What methods work best?

The hotel is a few Kms from a fast growing town and targets locals(Kenyans),mainly for puposes of seminars,conferences,garden weddings..etc

The bush-camp targets foreigners and domestic tourists and as the name suggests,it's a luxury camp in the wilderness.

Any workable leads?

Thanks in advance!
Nevermind what haters say, ignore them til they fade away - Just live your life
Back to top
  | | Edit by user: Wednesday, June 23, 2010 5:33 PM | Reason: Not specified
redondo
#2 Posted : Wednesday, June 23, 2010 6:53:25 PM
Rank: Member

Joined: 12/2/2009
Posts: 161
Location: nairobi
What you need is someone to help you with web strategy. The truth is, that at phase value it looks so easy i.e just place ads on facebook and other relevant or high traffic website but the reality on the ground is usually quite different.
However if you use the right strategy, you will be surprised by the positive outcome
Back to top
  |
leona
#3 Posted : Wednesday, June 23, 2010 7:03:47 PM
Rank: Elder

Joined: 8/1/2008
Posts: 1,432
Location: Marsabit
@Redondo
Thanks, Totally agree with your sentiments. We've advertised on FB and other sites but it still isnt enough..

So,on that note..if there's anybody on Wazua who believs he/she can asist with web strategy and offer professional advice on online marketing,kindly email me on reggyzoe(at)yahoo(dot)com
Nevermind what haters say, ignore them til they fade away - Just live your life
Back to top
  |
Djinn
#4 Posted : Thursday, June 24, 2010 9:29:44 AM
Rank: Elder

Joined: 11/13/2008
Posts: 1,565
@leona - if I may chip in, when you do get the site up and running, you need to think about Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) - essentially the site should contain certain key words such that when someone is googling/yahooing/hotbotting/altavistaing, the words they search for will resonate with key words on your site.

Imagine you are a tourist from Iceland and want to visit kenya for a safari and need to know about attractions, what would you type (btw go ahead and do it and see which are the first 5 results - I am certain www.magicalkenya.com will be among then and then perhaps some leading tour operators).

So if you are looking at a particular niche market - business tourism, weddings, etc - think of what words someone would use to search for that and make sure those words/phrases are in your keywords. I gather google ads are also driven the same way.

Finally, having fiddled with some design (and webdesign) - your content must be dynamic and informative. have some RSS feed on tourism issues, weather, etc etc...
Back to top
  |
rasilio
#5 Posted : Thursday, June 24, 2010 10:04:09 AM
Rank: Member

Joined: 6/23/2010
Posts: 153
Location: FU
those are great tips Djinn...my problem was always implementing them that is why nili have kutafuta watu wanajua hii mambo.

leona, you want people to tell you that they are good. Why not let their work tell you.
when i need anything, i just google. hiyo ni msema kweli. najua majama wa internet have a lot of storos.

do what i did for my work...google: kenya seo, kenya internet marketing, kenya web marketing. get a list of 10 companies and you have the best company for you. avoid those who don't show up there.

if a company that sells seo cannot rank for seo, what are they pretending to provide.

in the uk because of competition we go further. you type in kenya seo then add the following kenya seo : products, services, company, blog, scams, ideas, tricks etc eg "kenya seo company", kenya seo products etc

a good company will probably show up in all these searches....you will have reduced your search to 5....now call them. I doubt if you will find a good seo company on wazua....lakini sijui.

since you will need social media..also look for kenya social media, kenya facebook, kenya twitter etc.

Tip: a web design company is not a seo company. they may actually suck vibaya in seo work. i had my business site redone by my seo company from scratch..so be careful with your choice.
Back to top
  |
tony stark
#6 Posted : Thursday, June 24, 2010 10:12:22 AM
Rank: Veteran

Joined: 7/8/2008
Posts: 947
@ Leona,
The best place to get your information out to is Lonely planets and bradts guides for Kenya. I would write to the editor or the guides and possibly invite ( I would imagine this would be free to them) to visit your hotel. Once your hotel gets into one of these guide books it will channel so much more traffic to your website and inquires.
I for one have used the guides for East Africa it gave me better advice on where to stay and things to do than I ever thought were possible. These guides are great resources even for a kalocal tourist like me.
My other advice is be a regular visitor, and contributors to travel blogs. The same lonely planets, trip advisors etc! That might provide useful leads and also lets you see what visitors might be looking for.
When your building your site please put up the costs and prices on the website. Don't place contact us for prices i hate those kinds of sites and never bother to contact them for prices. I would rather know from the get go how much it cost if it is in my price range or not.
My 2 tanzania cents.
Back to top
  |
poundfoolish
#7 Posted : Thursday, June 24, 2010 2:12:30 PM
Rank: Elder

Joined: 12/2/2009
Posts: 2,458
Location: Nairobi
Is it just one hotel?
do you have a website already? Any interactive maps on it..?
SEO done?


I do have the answers
Back to top
  |
Sasha
#8 Posted : Thursday, June 24, 2010 3:05:28 PM
Rank: Veteran

Joined: 9/5/2007
Posts: 627
Hi gal

You can also include a line about the hotel as a footnote of you emails. Ask your friends to do the same on their emails also. I've realised people have a propensity to click on a link in an email more often than thought! I do that nearly 90% of the time! Of course your line has to capture the attention of the ready and make them want to find out more!
Back to top
  |
leona
#9 Posted : Friday, July 02, 2010 12:43:13 AM
Rank: Elder

Joined: 8/1/2008
Posts: 1,432
Location: Marsabit
@All
Thanks soooo much! These are great tips indeed.I truly appreciate your input!

@Sasha
Thanks dear, the only challenge with putting a link/links is that as of now,the two have different websites,so wanted to come up with one website that links them all plus their other sister properties in the same industry to make marketing easier.. But thanks for the suggestion anyways,appreciated!
Nevermind what haters say, ignore them til they fade away - Just live your life
Back to top
  |
story teller
#10 Posted : Friday, July 02, 2010 6:50:24 AM
Rank: Member

Joined: 6/25/2010
Posts: 415
@leona,

I would recommend you check out the following to assist you with linking your different sites and SEO (marketing online).

They seem to know what they are doing...www.webduka.com. Wish you the best.

I just came across their site while doing my own research.
It's not hard to make decisions when you know what your values are.
Back to top
  | | Edit by user: Friday, July 02, 2010 6:52 AM | Reason: Not specified
2 Pages12>
Forum Jump  
You cannot post new topics in this forum.
You cannot reply to topics in this forum.
You cannot delete your posts in this forum.
You cannot edit your posts in this forum.
You cannot create polls in this forum.
You cannot vote in polls in this forum.

Wazua Market Theme
Powered by YAF | YAF © 2003-2009, Yet Another Forum.NET
Copyright © 2026 Wazua.co.ke. All Rights Reserved.