Oyster.com's Hospitality Experts: How Hotels Can Improve Image in Tough Economy

NEW YORK, March 16 /PRNewswire/ -- Oyster Hotel Reviews (www.oyster.com), the new travel site that provides unbiased, professional reviews and un-doctored photos of the world's hotels, draws on the extensive experience of its professional hotel reviewers to offer five strategies hotels can employ to create a better image, attract business and build brand loyalty even in today's tight global economy.

"Our reviewers are seasoned travelers, objective observers and trained journalists who stay anonymously in a broad range of hotels. After swimming in the pools, dining in the restaurants, sleeping in the beds, and taking hundreds of photos of every inch of the property, they critically assess each hotel's overall value and compare it to other hotels in the area," explained Elie Seidman, CEO of Oyster. "With more than 600 hotels visited and reviewed over the past nine months, our reporters are uniquely qualified to offer expert advice to hotel managers on what travelers want and what hotels can do to attract them."

The Oyster Hotel Reviews team recommends the following five creative strategies:

1. Don't try to attract everyone: Determine the clientele that is the best fit for your property and do everything you can to appeal specifically to that clientele. Offer specials and promotions that address the needs of these guests, such as a quiet office space to get work done, family movie nights out by the pool, a complimentary facial in the spa or free shots at the bar. Speak to the guests you want to attract directly through your website and e-mails and via popular social media like Facebook and Twitter.
2. Offer free stuff: Simple freebies, such as a room upgrade, a wine hour in the lobby, minibar snacks, DVD rentals, or even toothpaste or contact lens solution in the rooms can earn you long-term repeat guests who are likely to talk about your hotel online. Also, it's important to remember that no one likes any surprises on the bill at check-out time, and these days travelers expect free Wi-Fi in their guest rooms and free access to the gym and spa facilities.
3. Invest in a website that works: If your website looks tacky and out of date, potential guests will assume the same about your guest rooms. Your website should showcase your property's features and amenities, provide up-to-date information about current specials, promotions and free offers, and make it easy for visitors to find information like room rates and availability.
4. Let photos make the sale: Photos are compelling. They make guests ready, confident and excited to book a room. Don't hide the bathrooms, the lobby, the pool, the neighborhood; the more visual information your website offers, the easier it is for someone to decide to stay at your hotel.
5. Embrace independent reviews: Make it clear to potential guests that you have nothing to hide. By offering a link from your website to a third-party review of your hotel (such as those on Oyster.com), you are making it much easier for your guests to learn about your property and to book with confidence.

The Oyster.com website now provides objective, comprehensive reviews and over 200,000 photos taken by Oyster reporters for Las Vegas hotels, New York hotels, Los Angeles hotels, San Francisco hotels, Boston hotels, Miami hotels, Hawaii hotels, Jamaica hotels, Aruba hotels, Dominican Republic hotels, U.S. Virgin Island hotels, and Bahamas hotels.

About Oyster Hotel Reviews

Oyster Hotel Reviews (www.oyster.com) is the first and only travel site dedicated to publishing objective, in-depth reviews, written by trained journalists, of the world's hotels. Oyster reviewers stay in hotels anonymously while systematically evaluating the properties and taking hundreds of photos of every hotel. Oyster Hotel Reviews adheres to the highest editorial standards; it does not accept compensation or incentives from hotels, and pays for all travel expenses. Hotels cannot pay to be reviewed nor can they influence the reviews in any way. The site aggregates hotel prices from leading travel sites and provides several booking options for each hotel. Oyster is financed by Bain Capital Ventures and is led by an accomplished and experienced management team including Oyster co-founder Elie Seidman and executive editor Scott Medintz.

SOURCE Oyster.com