Hotels live and die by two things: occupancy rates and reviews. Before the Internet, someone would have to buy a large travel guide on the area they wanted to see to get ratings on a hotel. Unfortunately for them, and the hotel, those ratings were out of date by the time the book was published.

Now, access to reviews is easy to find. A quick search on Google for Top Hotels in (Insert area) will return thousands of results. People regularly consult TripAdvisor for ratings on area hotels, or they look at reviews on OTAs like Expedia and Kayak. More people are looking at reviews than ever before.

You might worry about what people are saying about your hotel online, but you shouldn’t. The more reviews your property has, even if they’re not great, the more likely a guest is to take a second look at your property.

Something must have motivated your guests to leave a review. So, people give your accommodation a second look. Even if you get a poor review, the quickly changing nature of the Internet means you can change that fast. But first, you need to get someone to leave a review. How do you do this?

The Magic Question for a Detailed Hotel Review

Reviews are submitted on a voluntary basis. If people enjoyed their experience with you, but nothing memorable happened, they may not have the time or energy to leave a review after they stay. On the other hand, if they didn’t enjoy their stay with you, they’re more likely to take to the Internet and leave a bad review. How can you encourage happy guests to leave a review?

You ask them.

Most hotels advertise in their lobby that they can be found on TripAdvisor. But, that doesn’t motivate people to leave a review.

If you ask a guest to leave a review at check-out, they’re a little more likely to do so. However, by the time they get home and unpack, they might have forgotten all about it. That’s why you want to contact them after they stay with you.

Do this in a simple and helpful way. Don’t fill their inbox with ten requests to leave a review. Instead, craft a short autoresponder sequence that benefits them.

Here’s a quick outline of how that could look:

The Thank You Email

If someone has just stayed at your property, they might be intrigued to see an email from you in their inbox. This should be more than a simple message that sounds overly generic. Don’t send an email saying

Thanks for staying with us. Hey, we’re on TripAdvisor, leave us a review!

Instead, thank them for their stay and ask them questions.

What did they like about the hotel?

Is there anything they wanted to improve?

Who did they interact with during their stay?

Did anyone go out of their way to help them?

These questions show a few things.

• You’re interested in why they stayed.
• You’re open to hearing criticism.
• You care about your employees and want to reward them when they do a great job.

These questions serve another purpose. You’re preparing them to write a detailed hotel review.

If you look at reviews on websites, they’re often generic. “Great place, I’d stay again!” While these are helpful, they aren’t the review a potential guest uses when deciding on a place to stay. A detailed hotel review is more likely to be helpful. By asking these questions in the email, and then informing your reader of a chance to leave a review, you’re training their brain to write a detailed entry. This helps you and future guests make the right decision.

The Ask for Improvements Email

A week or two after someone stayed with you, if they haven’t left a review yet, you can send them another email. This time, you’ll be asking specifically for suggestions on how you can improve a stay in the future.

Again, you’ll use detailed questions to promote a detailed response. Also, tell them why you’re asking for a review. Show them how it can benefit them. Then, ask them to follow the link in the email to leave a detailed hotel review.

The Upcoming Sale Email

The last time you ask for a review, give them an extra incentive. Let them know about an upcoming sale at your property. If you have multiple locations, let them know about the chance to stay with you at another destination. Most people only travel a few times a year. They aren’t likely to return to a destination again a few weeks later. But, they might consider another destination.

Reviews are a great resource for any hotel. But, not everyone wants to post publicly about a trip they took. They may not want to set up an account to leave the review. The next post covers how to get informal review from your guests.

Are you ready to craft an email follow-up sequence to receive more detailed hotel reviews? Contact me to discuss your email follow-up needs. Or visit my services page for information on other projects.