WhatsApp in hospitality can be a game-changer for hotels that know how to communicate with travelers and guests. Besides being available around the clock with the right tech tools, you create a direct line of communication, increasing the odds of direct bookings.
In today’s hyper-connected world, communication is at the heart of every successful business. WhatsApp, with over 2.9 billion users globally, has become an indispensable tool for personal and professional communication. Making strategic use of hotel WhatsApp marketing initiatives can set your business apart from competitors.
Why? Because travelers and guests increasingly prefer instant, personalized interactions over impersonal email threads or lengthy phone calls. The hospitality industry thrives on relationships, and WhatsApp provides the perfect medium for delivering quick responses, tailored offers, and meaningful engagement in an easy way that’s already incorporated into everyone’s daily routine.
Using WhatsApp as your hotel’s marketing strategy isn’t just about keeping up with trends; it’s about addressing the evolving expectations of today’s traveler. By adopting this tool, hotels can deliver value at every stage of the guest journey—before, during, and after the stay.
Let’s take a deeper look at how to deploy the best practices when it comes to WhatsApp in hospitality!
How to Use WhatsApp Business in Hotels
Implementing WhatsApp API is more than setting up a profile—it requires a solid plan, thoughtful integration, and a focus on customer-centric experiences. Here’s a step-by-step breakdown:
1. Analyze the revenue streams WhatsApp can unveil
To harness the full potential of hotel WhatsApp marketing, employing the WhatsApp Business API is essential. Unlike the basic WhatsApp Business app, the API is designed for larger operations, offering features that cater specifically to the hospitality industry:
- Automated Responses: Quickly address common guest inquiries, such as check-in times, cancellation policies, or directions to the property.
- Broadcast Messaging: Share special offers, updates, or important information with multiple guests without creating a group chat.
- Scalable Solutions: Allow multiple team members to manage guest communications through a single platform.
Did you know? Asksuite provides the official WhatsApp API to empower your hotel’s communication throughout the entire guest journey, from pre-stay to post-stay.
2. Partner with omnichannel providers
For seamless communication, integrating WhatsApp with an omnichannel communication platform is fundamental. These platforms consolidate all travelers’ interactions—via social media, email, chat, and WhatsApp—into one interface. This allows staff to:
- Respond to messages faster, reducing wait times.
- Track travelers preferences and history across channels.
- Maintain consistent branding and tone of voice.
- Facilitate uninterrupted communication with agents’ access to interaction history.
Pro Tip: Establishing SLA to respond to travelers and guests is crucial to an intelligent hotel operation— in WhatsApp or any other means of communication. Did you know that 60% of EMEA hotel chains don’t reply to price-quote emails?
Asksuite developed an in-depth, mystery-shopper research and now this benchmark is available for you! To access unpublished data on the reservation response performance, guarantee your free copy.
3. Prioritize security and privacy
Customers trust hotels with sensitive information, and WhatsApp ensures secure communication via end-to-end encryption. However, hotels must adhere to GDPR or other regional data protection laws by informing guests how their data will be used.
5 Effective Ways of Using WhatsApp in Hotels’ Marketing Strategy
After implementing WhatsApp, hotel managers must analyze where the opportunities in communication with travelers and guests lie. To help you with that, check out the 5 practical and successful approaches to use throughout their entire journey.
1. Pre-arrival engagement with personalized touchpoints
Create a memorable first impression by using WhatsApp to:
- Recover abandoned carts and reengage travelers likely to finalize their bookings.
- Share booking confirmations with essential details like check-in times and directions.
- Send welcome messages tailored to the guest’s profile, such as highlighting spa services for relaxation seekers or adventure tours for explorers.
- Offer add-ons, such as room upgrades, early check-in, or transportation services.
For instance, a luxury resort could message guests with curated dining recommendations based on dietary preferences shared during booking.
2. Real-time support during the stay
During their stay, guests often have questions or requests. WhatsApp’s instant messaging capabilities make it an ideal tool for:
- Handling room service orders with pre-set templates for quicker processing.
- Addressing maintenance issues without guests needing to visit the front desk.
- Offering concierge services, such as booking local tours, arranging transportation, or recommending activities.
Hotels that already interact with guests during their stay are mastering this, ensuring customers feel cared for at every step by responding promptly to messages.
Pro Tip: Asksuite & Oracle Hospitality developed The Premiere Guide to 1:1 Automated Guest Communication. In this practical material, you’ll find 3 workflows to easily implement in your hotel. Download now!
3. Post-stay engagement
The relationship doesn’t end when the guest leaves. Using WhatsApp, hotels can:
- Request feedback and reviews immediately after check-out. A friendly message like, “We hope you enjoyed your stay! Please share your thoughts,” can encourage higher response rates.
- Promote loyalty programs by offering exclusive perks for returning guests.
- Notify guests about future promotions, such as seasonal discounts or early-bird offers for the next holiday season.
For example, a boutique hotel might send personalized birthday greetings along with a special discount, nurturing long-term loyalty.
4. Driving revenue through promotional campaigns
With WhatsApp’s high open rates—as much as 98%—hotels can run effective promotional campaigns to:
- Advertise last-minute deals, especially during low occupancy periods.
- Promote exclusive packages, such as honeymoon specials or family bundles.
- Highlight additional services like spa treatments or dining experiences.
Adding direct call-to-action buttons like “Book Now” or “Learn More” can streamline the booking process for guests.
5. Enhancing group booking and event coordination
Events and group booking are more profitable to hotels as the number of guests tend to be higher. If this is a strategy for your hotel, WhatsApp can support your reservation team when it comes to:
- Sharing event schedules, room block details, and special packages for attendees.
- Communicating with group organizers in real time, making coordination seamless.
- Offering updates on meeting room availability or last-minute changes.
For example, a conference center hotel could provide live updates about room assignments or meal times via WhatsApp, ensuring smooth operations.
How Does WhatsApp Support Hotels in Generating Direct Bookings?
One of the most significant benefits of WhatsApp is its ability to drive direct communication with travelers, which increases the chances of direct bookings. To do so and reduce dependency on third-party platforms like OTAs, leveraging communication strategies is a must in order to lead sales.
Take a look at 3 simple, effective tips to keep a close eye on!
1. Faster inquiry handling
When potential guests reach out via WhatsApp, hotels must:
- Provide instant answers to questions about pricing, availability, and policies. You can rely on an AI Reservation Agent to deliver 24/7 responses to interested travelers.
- Send links to secure booking pages, making it easier for guests to complete transactions. Connecting the omnichannel platform with the booking engine, both the AI Reservation Agent and your staff are able to quickly send quotes to engaged travelers.
Did you know? Asksuite is connected to more than 200 booking engines, which allow our AI Reservation to instantly quote rooms based on real-time availability. Human agents can also use the smart proposal feature to send quotes within seconds. It’s also possible to compose comprehensive proposals with room descriptions, photos, and rates without leaving the inbox.
2. Personalized offers
By analyzing guest preferences and past interactions, hotels can craft tailored packages. For instance:
- A couple celebrating an anniversary might receive a discounted suite rate with complimentary champagne.
- Families booking a week-long vacation could be offered free kids’ meals or additional perks.
3. Building trust through transparency
Guests value clear communication, and WhatsApp facilitates this by allowing hotels to:
- Share real-time updates, such as confirming special requests or informing guests about check-in readiness.
- Send booking receipts and itineraries in one convenient place.
All of the 1:1 interactions can be smartly automated by AskFlow, which is Asksuite’s solution to support your hotel in sending the right message, at the right time, to the right guest. With AskFlow, you automate proactive, personalized communication throughout the guest’s entire journey via WhatsApp.
Want to incorporate this versatile tool into your hotel’s strategy? Talk to an Asksuite specialist!
