Foursquare, the leading location-based social network which, with a game aspect, encourages people to explore their neighborhoods via their smartphones, share their visits with local attractions, events and businesses and gives them rewards or share them on facebook or Twitter when they do so.
Foursquare surpassed 10 million users, and those users are doing check in more than 3 million times a day, it’s why Hotels Managers needs to know the basics behind promoting their hotels on this Social Media.
Further than that, Foursquare is driving new online strategies for Hotels. It offers hotels multiple ways to attract new customers and gain qualitative and quantitative feedback on their establishment.
Foursquare allows a user to view where their friends have been within several hours of a certain update. This could have huge potential your Hotel if you encourage Foursquare users to check in and put brief thoughts about the service in their tip updated.
In order to help I have listed 8 ways tooptimize Foursquare to boost your sales and increase your customers’ loyalty.
1. Are you listed?
The First thing to do is to visit Foursquare website and search for your hotel to see if it is already listed. if your business is already listed on Foursquare — anyone can list a business — make sure the information presented is correct and complete.
To do so You will need to create a personal account in order to correct your Hotel information or add your Hotel business.
If your Hotel isn’t already on Foursquare, you’ll first need an account to list it.
Foursquare services are free and come with more than just a place to list your tips & tricks about a locations. Once you’ve claimed your Hotel or your outlets you can attract new customers and retain your existing loyal customers base with specials.
Foursquare offers statistics that will help you adapt it to Social Media Consumer.
2. Give Great Tips to your Customers!
You can give to your customers great tips in order to enhance their experience within your business.
If you own a restaurant, you can leave tips about the Day Special, the best time to come for a drink, happy hours, if you own an Hotel you can create lists about interests in your neighborhoods, if you need ideas ask to your Concierge Team, they are a Great Source of information.
Foursquare is definitely a fun and a creative way to attract customers!
3. Offer “Specials”!
Once someone has found your hotel in the list of nearby places, he will have to click on the Hotl Name in order to check in. If you’ve got a special set up for your Hotel or in one of your outlets, there will be a large orange “Special Here” button at the top right of the venue page.
The Foursquare member can click the orange button and see the details of your Foursquare Special.
Once you’ve got your specials in place and working on the Foursquare platform, you’re going to get customers unlocking them and wanting to redeem the benefits.
Your unlocked special on your venue page will be grey, and it will have a locked icon at the bottom of the page. If the special has been properly unlocked, the icon will change to appear unlocked and the special page will have a bright offer banner at the top of the page.
Your Property can offer discounts or special offers to reward people who “check-in” in your establishment and develop stronger relationships with your customers.
Your Property can “offer” special promotion for a room upgrade upon check in, for a small amount you can get a Deuxe room or a Suite, it can be a good way to create incremental revenue and it’s upon availability.
There are many ways to treat your customers with Specials: Some of them are the “check-in specials” that help you reward the customers that reach a specific number of visits or the “frequency-based specials”.
4. Reward your Mayors!
The person who “checks_in” the more frequently in your Hotel, Bar or Restaurant in a period of two months, reaches the “Mayor” status.
Offer the Mayor something really special to reward him for his loyalty, like “free drinks” or give him the possibility to upgrade to a Deluxe Room or a Suite.
Special not only will make your Mayor happier, but also you will increase the competition amongst your customers in order to de-throne the current mayor and take his/her place!
If you are an Hotel, most of the time you have outlets, why you shouldn’t list them. It will give you more opportunities to interact with your customers.
5. Interact with your customers
Foursquare gives you the opportunity to get closer than ever with your customers, since, not only you will discover your best customer by checking his Mayor status, but through the game, you will interact with all your customers and acquire a friendly reputation.
Most of all, always keep in mind that Foursquare is a game which gives businesses the chance to be creative and the chance to build relationships with your customers.
When your customers “check-in” in your establishment, they have the possibility to write a tip about you and also to spread their check-in” on Twitter or Facebook.
And at no cost for you.
6. Learn more about your Hotel Customers
FourSquare offers business analytics that makes it possible for hotel owners to see how their customers interact within their Hotels.
Additionally it helps them improve their services, since they can read the reviews about what their customers like, what tips and comments their customers leave, they can increase the understanding of their customers needs.
While claiming your venue opens up many possibilities for giving out customer incentives, it also unlocks free monitoring tools for your business on Foursquare. Venue statistics offer real-time data on:
- Total daily check-ins
- Most recent visitors
- Most frequent visitors….
These venue stats can serve as valuable tools to inform adjustments to your specials.
7. Create Partnership With Non Profit Cause
Hotels, Restaurants, non profits cause and business have been getting along for years. For example, When people check-in to the restaurant let them know that 1 dollar per meal will go to a cause. This is an example but you get the trend.
Set a goal and team up with a non profit Cause to create awareness, increase donations or interact with supporters. This will also provide another opportunity for your Hotel business to say, “Thank you.” .
8. Your Staff
Most of all there is one major point that you musn’t ignore, your staff must be aware about Foursquare, about Special.
The worst think it can happens in a game, it’s not rewarding Winners.
If you start using Foursquare, your staff must be train.
What do you think about this Foursquare Tips? Have you already use Foursquare?
Let me know! Please leave your comments below.
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Posted by Alain Classe
Related Post : Tutorial Foursquare for Hotelier
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