There’s no question in my mind that all hotels should have a blog. It’s a place to broadcast your news and demonstrate your personality, and it’s also your ticket to Google’s search results. If you can keep up a regular calendar of useful, interesting content, then travelers will start to depend on you for information.
But I know from personal experience – posting a lot is hard. You have to keep racking your brain for new things to write about. I have a Word doc full of ideas on my computer just so I have somewhere to turn when I’m feeling time poor or uninspired.
If that’s a struggle you face as well, then I want you to bookmark this list of article topics. Come back to it every time you need to write something new, and it should keep you blogging for a while.
1. A round up of local events
You'll always get shares on social media with a good old-fashioned shout out. So I suggest doing this as a regular feature. Each month, put together a list of interesting upcoming events, like concerts, markets, sports games and festivals. Tag the organizations when you share the article on Facebook and Twitter, and they will be very likely to share it with their own followers.
This is a great post to do because it doesn’t involve a lot of imagination on your part. Just keep an annual calendar of events on hand so you don’t have to spend time researching every month.
2. A Facebook Live video tour
Have you experimented with Facebook Live yet? It’s a great way to give your guests a spontaneous tour of your hotel. Take a look at this tour of the MET as an example – it got 27,000 views and 3,300 likes.
After the recording is over, the video sits permanently on your Facebook timeline, so you can embed it on your blog and include it in an article.
3. News from your hotel
Has something buzz-worthy happened at your hotel lately? Did you win a TripAdvisor award? Did your staff do something cool for charity? Share it with your audience! They will want to congratulate you for your success. It’s also another opportunity to show them what your business values and why they should choose you.
4. An Instagram guide to the area
Just to give you an idea, #travel had 101,842,510 posts when I last checked on Instagram. People love showing off when they go somewhere new. So put together an Instagram itinerary. Tell them which cafes, bars, parks, lakes and other attractions they should visit to take the most stunning photos. They might even tag you to say thanks.
5. An interview with a local business
Interview a local business owner, like a café owner or a tour operator. Let them tell your guests what makes their establishments so special, which makes your location look more appealing as a result. Then they can share your post with their social networks and give your hotel a boost of recognition.
6. A culinary bucket list
When you think about it, there are so many roads to go down when you tackle food. You could write up a list of ‘best places to eat out if you’re a vegetarian’, ‘best places to eat out if you’re a vegan’, ‘best bakeries in town’, ‘best coffee shops in town’... the list goes on and on.
7. A day in the life of a staff member
Spotlight your team! Take guests behind the scenes with someone they interact with on a regular basis, like your concierge, so they understand what a typical day looks like. It will help them feel like they know your brand on a more personal level.
8. The best bars in town
Again, you can break this idea down. Write about ‘the best places to go for craft beer’, or ‘the best places to go for cocktails.’
9. How to save money while traveling
Put together some advice for your budget-conscious guests. Share your super secret tips for exploring your town on a shoestring. Tell them where they can find free Wi-Fi or which tourist attractions don’t cost a cent. This is an especially great one to write if you cater to young backpackers.
10. Essential travel items
I don’t know about you, but I need a bit of help when it comes to packing for a holiday. Give your followers a hand by putting together a list of the essentials. You can use this as an opportunity to tell them what they won’t need if they stay with you, because it will already be in their room. Here’s an incredibly handy list to inspire you on Eagle Creek.
11. Cool facts about the area
As a local, I’m sure you know plenty of funny, unusual facts about your town. Are you home to the world domino champion? Was your town named after someone’s favorite food (I’m looking at you, Bacon and Eggs Bay)? Put together a list of the best ones.
12. The most unusual attractions in town
This is another chance for you to get a bit quirky. Point guests off the beaten track with some of your town’s more unusual destinations.
13. The best bookshops in town
As a book lover myself, I always like to visit a bookstore or two when I travel to a new place. Save your guests the research and review your local bookstores so they know what to expect from each.
14. How to spend 48 hours in town
Your weekend visitors have a lot to do in a very limited amount of time, and I’m sure they would appreciate some recommendations. Help them out – write a guide featuring your suggestions for a whirlwind trip to your location. Break it down into a schedule for them. Here’s a great example on The Urban List for spending 48 epic hours in Melbourne.
15. How to spend a girls’ weekend in town
You can break this one down into so many topics, depending on the types of travelers you attract. I’ve come up with a few below.
16. How to spend a boys’ weekend in town
17. How to spend a family weekend in town
18. How to spend a couple’s weekend in town
19. The best summer activities
How should travelers spend summer in your town? Share the best swimming holes, the best gelato stores, and the best places to wind down in air-conditioned comfort.
20. The best winter activities
Likewise, what do people do for fun when the temperature drops? Is there skiing, ice-skating or snowboarding? Does your town hold a winter festival? Where can you go to find the best mulled wine?
21. Where to find adventure sports
Everyone likes to go home with a good story, which is why we like to let loose and do things we wouldn't normally do when we travel. Tell your audience what they can do to feed their hunger for adrenaline, like sky diving or bungee jumping.
22. How to take a self-guided ghost tour
History and horror movie buffs will love this one. Share a few interesting local ghost stories, so guests can take themselves on a ghost tour one dark and foggy night. Publish this one around Halloween to give it an extra boost.
23. A list of handy travel apps
There are some really great travel apps out there that help make traveling a stress-free experience. For example Tripit stores all of your travel bookings in an online itinerary, and XE has a very handy currency converter. Word Lens translates printed words in real time when you hold your phone camera up to a foreign sign. Just do a Google search, download a few to try them out, and compile a list of your top 5.
So you've published a brilliant blog post - but now what? Writing the article is only half the battle. Don't let your awesome content get swallowed up in the black hole of the internet. Make sure you take steps to get your article exposure, and put some SEO strategies in place.