by wilmerco team on 12.23.2011
Dear Colleagues, Clients and Friends,
Holiday Greetings from Wilmer Communications. As we enter into the new year, it is a time of change and new beginnings. Sadly, one such changes is that the economy has taken it’s toll on our business model and as a result, after nearly 20 years of proudly serving the hospitality community, Wilmerco is going out of business, effective the end of this year.
It has been a pleasure to serve you and we wish you continued success and well being in 2012.
Sincerely,
lynn sweeney | president
wilmer communications group, inc.
by Katherine Garsi on 08.10.2011
Can you spot a traveler desperately seeking the authenticity hidden from many tourist attractions? This type of traveler is smart, sophisticated and searching for undiscovered, locals-only experiences. They’ve scoured the web from Lonely Planet to TripAdvisor for months before their trip and could probably name more restaurants and things to do in your own city than you can.
From international brands to independent hotels, more places to stay are catching on to this travel trend and mingling local arts, food and adventures with the overall experience.
What’s different about today’s “package?”
Of course, hotels have always been partnering with local businesses to offer guests a unique package. The difference with today’s version is that you need to include an additional secret behind the usual experience. It’s more than a night stay with dinner at a local restaurant. Dinner now includes meeting the executive chef and learning to cook a signature dish. These experiences are like a backstage pass, on steroids.
Three Fresh Examples of Going Local
Behind the Scene with St. Regis
The St. Regis Aficionado Program is one example of the more localized hotel package by offering guests “private access to the world’s premier collections” that is unique to each destination.
Specifically, when in Rome, shopping, and window-shopping, are always on the agenda. Through The St. Regis Aficionado Program, shopping is done with an Italian twist. With the The Pursuit of Beauty package, a Fendi specialist will become a personal shopping consultant and take guests to the Fendi’s private design studios before hitting the flagship boutique where you can create a custom coat.
This behind-the-scenes-and-then-some experience is a great example of how your hotel can take guests out of their rooms and behind closed doors. While the St. Regis example is also very reflective of that brand’s luxurious image, you don’t need to provide a private tour of haute couture to offer an authentic experience. Other examples could include personalized experiences at a local sports stadium, restaurant, winery, brewery, theatre or museum.
Farms and Foodies from Element
Did you know in 2010, the United States had over 6,000 farmers’ markets? In 1994, there were less than 1,800. Farmers’ markets are steadily increasing in popularity along with foodies – the aficionados of fine food and drink that often shop at farmers’ markets. When your guests want a taste for your destination’s local flavors, they often leave the hotel to explore the city’s local market. One big city hotel got creative with this idea and brought a farm directly to their hotel.
The Element New York Times Square West partnered with an eighth-generation Vermont-based farm and Community Sponsored Agriculture (CSA) Group to bring locally-sourced produce and artisanal farm products (such as my favorite, cheese) to the hotel. Individuals that live in the area can also order their own CSA boxes of fresh fruits and vegetables and pick them up at the hotel every week giving the hotel a neighborhood feel.
Telling guests a unique story about where your food comes from is a quick and easy way to connect your guests with the local food movement.
Art Appreciation by Le Méridien
A trip to the museum is on many travelers list of things to do. Le Méridien’s new Hub concept connects guests to their artistic sensibilities with local influences.
The Hub, a rethinking of the hotel lobby, will be different in every city to reflect the local area. Modeled after coffeehouses, it features local art and a hand-selected library of books about the local culture. The concept also uses collectable room key cards called “Unlock Art” which will give guests access to local museums and galleries.
The multiple connections within the Le Méridien’s Hub concept give each hotel location the creativity to both bring local inspiration into the hotel and to take guests out to artistic centers in the area.
Finding your local connection
Are you feeling inspired to incorporate more local experiences into your overall guest experience, but aren’t sure where to start?
The examples from St. Regis, Element and Le Méridien demonstrate that even the biggest brands start small with one core idea (such as food, activities or art) and tie the idea to their overall brand. These are all new programs and new concepts so it’s ok to experiment! Try a fresh idea to inspire today’s traveler on their search for the next new experience at your hotel. We’d love to hear your ideas.
by Katherine Garsi on 06.29.2011
Can a hotel ever have too many amenities? That long list of features and services can look impressive, but your guests may only want to enjoy a few of them during their stay.
You already know each guest has her own set of motivations for choosing your hotel. And you’re great at creating promotional packages for her because the guest who books with you to relax at the luxurious spa may not be the same guest looking to experience nearby local attractions.
Maintaining that same focus with ads and other marketing materials can be tougher – even though you know targeted communications are more effective. Too many marketing pieces try to attract as many different types of guests as possible by listing every single amenity at a hotel. They go for the “wide net” tactic because they are afraid of missing an opportunity.
How can you stay focused with everything you create
from ads to brochures to websites?
Take it one guest at a time.
Focus your marketing message with these tips, including a few examples from our Featured Client, The Westin Beach Resort & Spa, Fort Lauderdale. Their team does a great job at focusing on specific audiences.
Marketing as a one-on-one conversation
Every marketing activity requires an audience of the people you are targeting with your message. However, try to think of your audience as just one potential guest. Using what you know about your actual guests, pull together as much detail as you can about one individual. Ask yourself where she is from, what brought her to your area, why she might stay at your hotel and what plans she has.
Imagine you are having a face-to-face conversation with this one person. What does she want to know about your hotel that will pique her specific interests? Then create your marketing piece with just this one individual in mind. Consider interviewing actual guests as well.
Tell a guest story
Since you’ve already interviewed a few guests to get to know them better, why not include their story in your marketing? Go beyond a testimonial. Really highlight what emotions motivated them to stay with you and what they did at your hotel and around your city. This type of storytelling will inspire potential guests seeking similar experiences.
Add a relevant and remarkable offer
What can you do to offer an exceptional experience for that specific guest? Draw from those emotions that motivated them to stay with you.
In The Westin Beach Resort & Spa, Fort Lauderdale spa package ad for example, the offer includes a late checkout. It’s a minor detail, but one that plays on the reader’s desire for a truly relaxing stay.
Don’t be afraid to include people in your photos
Continue your guest’s story with imagery that captures their experience. The right photo can grab attention and evoke the same emotions you are conveying with your text.
To promote the specials at their beach restaurant for Mothers’ Day, The Westin Beach Resort & Spa, Fort Lauderdale included a photo of a girl drawing a heart in the sand along the seashore. The image captures a special, heartfelt moment, and those are exactly some of the emotions often associated with Mother’s Day. A plate of food just can’t do that.
Direct to a web experience
Now that you have a great story of a specific guest, send them to a specific page on your site or a custom site all together. For those looking for wedding venues, The Westin Beach Resort & Spa, Fort Lauderdale has a microsite with a design, imagery, text and offers devoted to engage the bride-to-be.
Check-in with your guests often to learn more about their stories. And if you need more guidance to focus your message, we’d love to help.
by wilmerco team on 03.24.2011
Have you visited wilmerco.com lately? We’ve updated our website with a suite of new tools and resources designed to stimulate new ideas and move you toward your marketing goals. The new wilmerco.com is inspired by our desire to develop passionate devotees and attract new ones to your brand with everything we do.
Take a quick tour
- Our home is your home. Did you know you are fascinating? We occasionally get distracted by the beautiful photos and compelling stories of your places to stay, play or live everyday. We’re sharing your stories with a monthly featured client on our homepage along with case studies and the latest marketing tips and industry news.
- Innovate with an integrated strategy. Our services will enhance your core marketing activities into targeted marketing campaigns.
- What do you need to Create? Whether it’s a website, online or print brochure, ad, brand identity, logo design, or social media strategy our team is experienced at delivering your on-brand creative with ease.
- Do It Yourself when you want to execute a print or electronic marketing campaign on-demand. The Digital Drive Thru Fueled by Wilmerco marketing portal gives you as much or as little control as desired. You can create an entire campaign on your own, or call us and we’ll build it for you.
- Let Our Work provide some inspiration for your marketing plan by viewing a portfolio of various websites, ebrochures, online display and print ads, email and more of our recent client projects.
- Get to know Our Story and our Partners for a little bit of background into the people and collaborators at Wilmerco.
- Let’s Connect online (Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin) or in person. We’re located in Downtown Seattle and would love to chat over coffee or Green Tea.
The new wilmerco.com is also built on the same Content Management System we use for building custom websites for our clients. A Content Management System like this one gives you the freedom to have a completely custom website design with behind-the-scenes access to update content, such as text, photos, special offers, menus and more, at any time with just a few clicks.
We hope you enjoy visiting our new site and would love to hear what you think!
by wilmerco team on 03.16.2011
The Hotel Blackhawk has the iconic history that most hotels can only dream of — built just in time to become a hot spot during the roaring 20s and later entertained Hollywood greats such as Cary Grant.
While undergoing a major renovation to bring back that history and add a more modern, hip feel to the hotel, they needed to do the same with their web presence. We created a web solution that built from the hotel’s distinctive style and voice incorporating the requirements of today’s hotel: booking engine, photo galleries, social media, special offers and the power to update it all with just a few clicks.
Update website content anytime
Hotels are constantly evolving and especially during a renovation, like The Hotel Blackhawk, you will want to have your best photos of your new space online as soon as possible. Websites built on Wilmerco’s Content Management System give you the power to change the content – whether it be photos, links, promotions or news – at any time. Fresh content can drive traffic to your site, improve your SEO and keep your hotel interesting to loyal clients and potential visitors.
Need some ideas to refresh your website? Let us know and we’d be happy to help.
Visit: Hotelblackhawk.com
