In today’s hospitality industry, the biggest challenge for hoteliers is to stand out from the competition and get prospective customer’s attention. That is if you’re not necessarily ready to participate in the ‘beat the price’ game. Winning customers using the hotel’s personality is not an easy feat considering booking sites reduce hotels accommodation offer to mere price comparison. Otherwise, where the price is not crucial – emotions and impressions are winning the game. However 2D photos might not be enough to topple Airbnb.
360° property tours technology might give hotels a helpful hand. It’s no longer only about a well-presented appearance of the hotel, but it’s also about being innovative and unique in the way hotels deliver their offer.
The best presentation you can make
A hotel is not a single bedroom. Yes, once you realize the bedroom is of sufficient quality, you start to look at nooks and crannies. It’s all of a sudden about the facilities, the service, and the style too. For a hotel full of interesting details, distinctive features, and exceptional amenities, 360° imagery is the real opportunity to deliver the hotel’s character precisely as it is. This confidence to throw open their doors to online explorers can win the trust of the internet-savvy traveler and convert to bookings.
360 degrees is not only ‘for the show”
During the last research, 92% of people browsing online refer that spherical or panoramic photos are essential features today. And this also finds proof in typical marketing metrics – 360° media increases page views by 40% and keeps visitors on-site for three times longer. Although not apparent, the 360° technology can have a direct impact on your web ranking in search results.
People want to know what to expect
And then there is also the importance of being mobile-ready. With mobile 360° technology, prospective customers can experience the quality of the place even from the other end of the world, getting a whole new prior perspective of what awaits when they arrive. This without them requiring to change the existing booking habits. Booking.com noticed more of its customers booking hotels on smartphones when they were already traveling, with three-quarters of same-day bookings already happening on a mobile device. This is why you need to choose a 360° media that can smoothly run on mobile browsers without the need for third-party applications.
So the impact of is more significant than one might think. Not only 360° imagery experience provides a level of immersion that is unattainable by using regular pictures. But the new way of presenting space proves more engaging and exciting for them, while at the same time making a real impact on booking conversion. According to Google, browsers are 130% more likely to make a booking based on a virtual tour. And that’s what it should be, right?