If you've spent time on Instagram and Snapchat over the past year, you've likely noticed the competing platforms tend to “borrow” popular features from each other pretty liberally. Earlier this month it was Instagram emulating Snapchat with the roll out of Instagram Stories.While the traditional Instagram platform has proven popular with hotels as an engaging way to showcase visual content, Snapchat has yet to be fully embraced by the hospitality industry, even as the platform continues to sneak market share. (Snapchat grew from two billion to 10 billion daily video views between May 2015 and May 2016.)Despite Snapchat being the relative new kid on the block, typically adopted by a younger demographic, some hotel brands have decided to jump on the bandwagon. Marriott Hotels essentially set the bar for this back in 2014 when they used Snapchat for their creative content studio. The hotel chain managed to hone in on the young traveler and offer them info strung together with a narrative.Now Instagram has appropriated Snapchat’s “stories” concept, adding its own associated marketing mechanisms.But with the clock ticking on every post, does Instagram Stories offer genuine opportunity, or is the platform simply the social tool du jour?
Instagram Stories: The Basics
Like Snapchat before it, Instagram Stories embraces the concept of expiring content. A blend of photos and videos, Instagram Stories disappear 24 hours after posting, affording hotels a place to share content they deliberately design with a shelf life.Filters are available for branding content, and measuring a post’s performance is fairly simple, allowing hotel teams to monitor campaigns almost in real time.Fans of the platform say Instagram Stories offers dynamic opportunities over static images, and a big bonus, stories can be repurposed as a post on other social channels, an advantage for lean marketing teams strapped to create fresh content.
Content is Still King
If indeed people remember 80% of what they see over 20% what they read, when the visuals are ephemeral, it’s all the more imperative to make an impact.Content is still king. It’s critical that the storytelling be authentic and appropriate for a fleeting format. Narratives from special events, daily specials, limited-time discounts and giveaways are all prime for posting via Instagram Stories. The potential boon for hotels is in sharing stories of value for the audience, insight that the guests (and potential guests) won’t find via Google or flipping through the in-room compendium.Should your hotel’s Instagram Stories strategy really gain steam, there may soon be additional opportunities for reaching new audiences.
Up Next: Advertising for Instagram Stories
It’s generally believed that Instagram will ultimately roll out advertising opportunities on the stories platform. Once this happens, hotels that have become practiced in their storytelling will potentially have access to a massive global audience, as Instagram boasts 500 million monthly active users.In the meantime, using Instagram Stories to showcase unique aspects to a hotel offers an authenticity and immediacy that was challenging for marketing teams to achieve just a few years ago.
3 CONSIDERATIONS FOR HOTELS PONDERING INSTAGRAM STORIES
Instagram Stories won't be a productive marketing tool for every hotel property, but for those who are considering the platform, here are three considerations.It’s HumanNot overly produced, or forcefully branded, Instagram Stories present an opportunity to pull the curtain back and relate the human side of a hotel.For some properties, that might include a behind-the-scenes look at various departments, or the hotel team doing service work in the community. Maybe even the GM offering a firsthand tour of the pool’s new waterslide.It’s NowIronically, a hotel never sleeps. Instagram Stories offer an opportunity to showcase those in-the-moment shots that might otherwise not be captured.Think of a post sharing the pastry chef crafting a morning masterpiece, or capturing an exceptionally beautiful sunset as seen from the property.It’s EngagingIf you have an existing following on Instagram, Instagram Stories allows your followers to see more of your property, and from a different perspective, which inevitably further fosters conversation and interaction.Including relevant hashtags and geotags makes your content even easier to discover and, in turn, increase the visibility and value of each post.
If you've spent time on Instagram and Snapchat over the past year, you've likely noticed the competing platforms tend to “borrow” popular features from each other pretty liberally. Earlier this month it was Instagram emulating Snapchat with the roll out of Instagram Stories.While the traditional Instagram platform has proven popular with hotels as an engaging way to showcase visual content, Snapchat has yet to be fully embraced by the hospitality industry, even as the platform continues to sneak market share. (Snapchat grew from two billion to 10 billion daily video views between May 2015 and May 2016.)Despite Snapchat being the relative new kid on the block, typically adopted by a younger demographic, some hotel brands have decided to jump on the bandwagon. Marriott Hotels essentially set the bar for this back in 2014 when they used Snapchat for their creative content studio. The hotel chain managed to hone in on the young traveler and offer them info strung together with a narrative.Now Instagram has appropriated Snapchat’s “stories” concept, adding its own associated marketing mechanisms.But with the clock ticking on every post, does Instagram Stories offer genuine opportunity, or is the platform simply the social tool du jour?
Instagram Stories: The Basics
Like Snapchat before it, Instagram Stories embraces the concept of expiring content. A blend of photos and videos, Instagram Stories disappear 24 hours after posting, affording hotels a place to share content they deliberately design with a shelf life.Filters are available for branding content, and measuring a post’s performance is fairly simple, allowing hotel teams to monitor campaigns almost in real time.Fans of the platform say Instagram Stories offers dynamic opportunities over static images, and a big bonus, stories can be repurposed as a post on other social channels, an advantage for lean marketing teams strapped to create fresh content.
Content is Still King
If indeed people remember 80% of what they see over 20% what they read, when the visuals are ephemeral, it’s all the more imperative to make an impact.Content is still king. It’s critical that the storytelling be authentic and appropriate for a fleeting format. Narratives from special events, daily specials, limited-time discounts and giveaways are all prime for posting via Instagram Stories. The potential boon for hotels is in sharing stories of value for the audience, insight that the guests (and potential guests) won’t find via Google or flipping through the in-room compendium.Should your hotel’s Instagram Stories strategy really gain steam, there may soon be additional opportunities for reaching new audiences.
Up Next: Advertising for Instagram Stories
It’s generally believed that Instagram will ultimately roll out advertising opportunities on the stories platform. Once this happens, hotels that have become practiced in their storytelling will potentially have access to a massive global audience, as Instagram boasts 500 million monthly active users.In the meantime, using Instagram Stories to showcase unique aspects to a hotel offers an authenticity and immediacy that was challenging for marketing teams to achieve just a few years ago.
3 CONSIDERATIONS FOR HOTELS PONDERING INSTAGRAM STORIES
Instagram Stories won't be a productive marketing tool for every hotel property, but for those who are considering the platform, here are three considerations.It’s HumanNot overly produced, or forcefully branded, Instagram Stories present an opportunity to pull the curtain back and relate the human side of a hotel.For some properties, that might include a behind-the-scenes look at various departments, or the hotel team doing service work in the community. Maybe even the GM offering a firsthand tour of the pool’s new waterslide.It’s NowIronically, a hotel never sleeps. Instagram Stories offer an opportunity to showcase those in-the-moment shots that might otherwise not be captured.Think of a post sharing the pastry chef crafting a morning masterpiece, or capturing an exceptionally beautiful sunset as seen from the property.It’s EngagingIf you have an existing following on Instagram, Instagram Stories allows your followers to see more of your property, and from a different perspective, which inevitably further fosters conversation and interaction.Including relevant hashtags and geotags makes your content even easier to discover and, in turn, increase the visibility and value of each post.
