The last blog gave a clear example of the importance of user generated content and how it influences the travelers’ decisions. Today we will talk about ways on how promote, increase and improve the user generated content for your property.

During this economic crisis it is important for hoteliers to encourage guests to share their experiences in the property. This will help them to expand their web presence and improve online reputation.

What you can do?

• During check-out ask your guests to review your property and advertise your presence in social networking sites. (TripAdvisor, Igougo, WikiTravel, Holiday WatchDog, Expedia, Global Hotel Review, TravelPost, TravBuddy etc.)
• Send your guests a “Thank you for your stay” email with links to your social network pages so they can directly review your hotel
• Make it easy for your guests to find your social network pages. Place the links of your social networking in your website.
• Show your guests that you care: Monitor your reviews and answer them.
• Make sure you use social networks like Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, YouTube and Flickr to promote your property and to communicate your special offers. And invite your guests to join your networks.

How to profit from the reviews?

• Post your reviews on your website! Let everyone know what your guests are saying about your property.
• Use customer reviews as quotes in different pages of your website.
• Search on your guest review for keywords to add to your website content in order to improve your SEO
• Improve brand loyalty; keep a close relationship with your guests particularly those that write positive reviews about your hotel. They are your best reference.

There are a variety of online providers for independent hotels but only GuestCentric Systems offers an integrated platform that provides tools that simplify the management of the property. The interactive dashboard allows you to easily monitor your property’s reputation by automatically gathering what is said about your property in the internet. And GuestCentric’s InstatntHotel Technology integrates TripAdvisor reviews directly on your website so your visitors don’t miss the comments!

“Guests who read reviews prior to booking are happier with their stay, more likely to recommend the hotel after their stay and are more likely to return in the future.”

(http://www.marketmetrix.com/en/default.aspx?s=research&p=Writingonlinereviews)

Hi, I would like to share with you my latest experience with User Generated Content.

For the memorial day long weekend I decided to visit Vilnius in Lithuania, I had heard wonders about the city. I asked my friends from Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn for some advice of where to stay; unfortunately no one had been there. So I thought I was going to struggle to find a place to stay. Then I did what 60% of the online travelers do; I visited some social networking websites (TripAdvisor, Igougo, WikiTravel, Holiday WatchDog, Expedia, Global Hotel Review, TravelPost, TravBuddy among other) and read the reviews posted by guests about the hotels.  Based on the reviews I came up with a list of 7 hotels that interested me because of their location, the descriptions or the enthusiasm of the review.  I then visited each one of the hotels’ websites to learn more about the hotel, find rates, see pictures and of course to check for online bookings. I must confess I had to leave behind a couple of hotels because of the look of their website and lack of online booking.

The reviews pointed me to a hotel that fitted perfectly to my needs; it was all I expected it to be. Of course afterward I shared my experience online, because let us be honest who are people going to believe: the marketing department of a hotel that only writes positive things or a person that has stayed at the hotel and is not afraid to speak his or her mind about it?

Did you know that in the US more than 82 million people created content online during 2008 (http://mashable.com/2009/02/19/user-generated-content-growth/) So let me ask you, what are you doing to encourage guests to write reviews about your hotel? How do you monitor your reviews? and How do you react to them?

**Next week I will tell you about techniques that could help you increase your hotel reviews and benefit. from them