How to Drive More Midweek Hotel Bookings

It’s no secret that midweek bookings pose a significant challenge for hoteliers. However, there are strategies that you can implement to increase visibility and reach more potential guests. In this blog, we’ll provide some useful tips to help you overcome the midweek hurdle. 

1. Understand the Midweek Market

In order to increase your midweek bookings, you’ll first need to choose the right target audience. It’s important to know that not all types of guests are likely to book a hotel in the middle of the week. Generally, the types of guests who would be the most likely to book a midweek stay at a hotel include: 

• Retirees 
• Business travellers 
• Regional residents 
• Frequent travellers 

That said, it’s important to analyze trends in midweek bookings in your own business to see if you can identify any unique groups who are more likely to book a midweek stay. 

2. Offer Value-Added Midweek Packages

After analyzing your own midweek bookings and categorizing the types of guests you should be targeting, consider what kinds of value-added midweek packages might entice them to book a stay with you.  

For example, if you’re targeting retired couples, perhaps offering a free spa treatment or a voucher for a romantic, candlelit dinner is a good idea. If you’re targeting business travellers, consider offering free or discounted breakfasts in a midweek package. It’s important to play to your hotel’s strengths when building these packages so that you encourage more repeat visits. 

Along with incorporating your hotel’s own amenities in midweek packages, you could also consider collaborating with local businesses in the area. For example, if your hotel is located near a winery, consider approaching them to create a package that offers a discounted winery tour along with a discounted rate to stay at your hotel.

3. Create a Midweek Email Marketing Campaign

Make use of your midweek guest data to create an email marketing campaign that promotes your midweek stay packages. When building your email list, you’ll want to ensure you are creating a highly targeted list of guests who have booked a midweek stay in the past (or those who would be most likely to book a midweek stay) and have stayed with you within the last 12 months. Guests who have not booked a stay with you for more than a year are less likely to be enticed by a midweek package. 

When creating your email marketing campaign, ensure your copy uses personalized messaging and consider focusing on developing multiple email campaigns that highlight particular packages and target the types of guests who are more likely to show interest in those packages. 

After you have put together your emails, you’ll also want to consider the days you send them. Based on your midweek guest analysis, determine trends in the days those guests booked their stays. If there is a particular day that your guests tend to book their stays, consider sending your emails on those days. 

4. Run a Google Ads Remarketing Search and Display Campaign

Another way you can promote your midweek packages is to run a remarketing campaign on Google Ads using your customer lists. If you’ve been collecting your guests’ contact information, you can use this data to build Customer Match lists in Google Ads. Once you have uploaded your list, you can then begin to build out search and display ad creative that promotes your midweek packages and targets your past guests. 

5. Consider Hiring an Agency to Develop and Implement a Midweek Strategy for You

If you don’t have the resources to develop a midweek marketing strategy for your hotel, you might want to consider hiring digital marketing experts to do it for you. At Ontario SEO, our team can work with you to develop a robust digital marketing strategy that increases brand visibility, attracts guests, and grows profit through direct bookings. 

Boost Your Midweek Bookings with a Robust Midweek Marketing Strategy

Midweek occupancy may never be as high as it is on the weekend, but with a concentrated effort, it is possible to boost guest numbers significantly. Before just offering heavy discounts on rooms midweek, consider developing a midweek marketing strategy that leverages your guest information to create enticing midweek packages and then promotes those packages to your target audience with personalized copy and creative. 

Need help creating a midweek marketing strategy?