Beyond the Brand: Optimizing Your Hotel’s Online Presence (Helpful Hotel SEO Tips Series)

For many hotels under large brand umbrellas, control over the official website is often limited. However, there are numerous ways to strengthen your hotel’s online visibility and attract more guests through effective hotel SEO strategies.

The Challenge: Limited Control Over Brand Websites

Being part of a major brand can come with constraints. Corporate websites typically have standardized templates and restricted areas for customization, which can limit your ability to make SEO enhancements. While this might feel restrictive, it’s important to understand that these limitations are only a small piece of the puzzle. The real opportunity lies beyond the brand.

Hotel SEO Strategies: Going Beyond Brand Limitations

Hotel SEO strategies refer to the techniques and tactics you can implement outside of the main brand website to boost your search engine rankings and capture organic traffic. By leveraging external resources, you can amplify your hotel’s online presence without having to rely solely on corporate-controlled channels.

Here are a few actionable ways to optimize indirectly:

• Local Partnerships and Content Collaboration Collaborate with local businesses, attractions, and influencers to create valuable content. For example, partnering with a nearby restaurant to feature a “Dine and Stay” package not only benefits both parties but also creates shareable content that can boost your hotel’s SEO strategies through backlinks and local keyword relevance.
• High-Quality Visuals A picture is worth a thousand words, and for hotels, high-quality visuals are worth even more. Keep your photo library up to date and continue to expand it each year to showcase more than just rooms. Include images of meeting rooms in multiple setups, as well as all amenities. For example, if your fitness center is a key differentiator, include more than one image to highlight its unique features. If your property uses recognizable brands such as Keurig or Peloton, show those products specifically in use at your property rather than relying on brand stock photos.
  • Do your marketing team a favor and give them a deep pool of images to use for promotions. Too many hotels rely on the same limited set of images—one exterior, one room, and one ballroom—over and over again. Sharing a variety of authentic, property-specific images across your Google Business Profile, social media, and third-party sites can significantly enhance your hotel’s SEO visibility.
  • Don’t forget about captions. Instead of generic captions like “Exterior,” use SEO-friendly captions that describe the photo in a way that aligns with search intent. For example, “Luxury Hotel Exterior in Downtown [City Name]” provides both context and keyword relevance, improving your search rankings.
• Seasonal Content Strategies Create content that resonates with seasonal events and local attractions. For instance, if your hotel is near a ski resort, developing content around “Top Winter Activities Near [Your Hotel Name]” can help you attract travelers during the winter months. Additionally, update images within the hotel to reflect the season. Not all beach destinations are swimsuit-ready year-round. Consider images of guests on the beach in sweaters or enjoying a warm fireplace for a winter nightcap. Align your visuals and content with how your guests will experience the hotel during their travel dates, rather than presenting aspirational imagery that doesn’t match their upcoming trip.
• Building Local Citations and Online Reviews Ensure your hotel is listed on all relevant local directories and encourage guests to leave positive reviews on platforms like Google, TripAdvisor, and Yelp. These citations and reviews not only build credibility but also improve your local SEO. For branded hotels, leverage post-stay emails to encourage reviews. Every review added to your section gives your SEO a modest boost. Similarly, encourage reviews on platforms like Google, TripAdvisor, or Facebook, as review volume is a ranking factor. Increased engagement in reviews can help you get in front of and convert more guests directly, bypassing OTAs.
• Monitoring and Analyzing Results Use tools like Google Analytics and Google Search Console to track your progress. Regularly review which strategies are driving the most traffic and adjust your efforts accordingly. If you are a branded hotel, get familiar with the reports provided by your brand as part of their marketing services. How often do you review your brand’s referring domains report to see if your sponsorships or local partnerships are paying off? Do you know which pages your audience spends the most time on? What percentage of your overall online contribution comes from direct traffic? These insights are often available in brand reports and can guide your strategy.
• Content Optimization Before Paid Marketing Focus on optimizing your organic content before investing in paid campaigns. A strong organic foundation ensures that your paid marketing efforts yield better results, as potential guests will already perceive your property as trustworthy and appealing. Make sure your brand site is fully optimized. Take advantage of every space provided, as brand sites often launch with minimal content updates afterward. Unless you’re paying for elevated services, brands rarely optimize meta descriptions, refresh site content, or go beyond meeting the minimum requirements for image uploads. Once your hotel is live, it’s up to your property to own optimization. Many hotel sites remain under-optimized simply because local management lacks the time or resources to understand where the opportunities lie.

What’s Next?

This is just the beginning of a series of helpful hotel SEO strategies  to help you elevate your online presence. In upcoming blog posts, we’ll dive deeper into the following topics:

• Visual Storytelling: Showcasing Your Destination
• Seasonal Strategies: Adapting to the Changing Landscape
• Building a Strong Online Reputation: Citations and Reviews”
• Content Optimization Before Paid Marketing: A Foundation for Success”
• Tracking Your Progress: Analyzing and Refining Your Strategy
• Leveraging Travel Ads, Yes Travel Ads, to Boost Your Direct Bookings

Stay tuned for actionable insights that will help your hotel thrive in the digital space. Need help implementing these strategies? Contact KeyBuzz Digital for expert assistance with your hotel SEO needs. Let us help you attract more guests and maximize your online potential.