This is the fourth blog in the Hotel Marketing 101 series where we will discuss Pay-Per-Click (PPC), Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and Search Engine Marketing (SEM).

Hotel Marketing 101: Paid Search versus Organic Search

SEO and SEM: What’s the Difference?

SEO refers to organic search, or the keyword-rich content on your website that improves your website’s placement in a Google search return. SEM refers to paid search, or paying for improved Google search placement on certain keywords that are beneficial to you business. Every article you read tells business owners how important both are but you should understand how each can impact your business. Side note: while Google isn’t the only search engine, it is the most widely-used and provides the best tools for managing campaigns on your own.

The Idea Behind Keywords

Imagine that you are searching online for lawn mowers. Depending on where you’re at in the buying process you could search a variety of terms. To start, you just want to research various lawn mowers and compare features so you simply type ‘lawnmowers’ into Google. Next, you’ve chosen a specific feature so you search ‘self-propelled mowers’. Now you’re ready to buy and need to find a local store that carries that particular brand. Potential guests will search for hotels in the same manner and keywords help Google determine which website is most relevant to those keywords.

What is Pay-Per-Click (PPC)?

PPC is a form of paid search in which you purchase a specific keyword or phrase andcorresponding advertising space within prominent areas of Google search results. When your ad is clicked, you will be charged for that click regardless of conversion. On average, a small independent hotel could spend anywhere from $100 to $10,000 a month with PPC. However, depending on the search term you choose, your budget could be anywhere from $0.10 per click to $100 per click. That’s why choosing the right term for your hotel, and your budget, is so important.

Follow these guidelines when determining keywords:

Your hotel’s name
Any keywords your competitors would also use - such as ‘hotels Nashville TN’. You want to appear where your competitors do.
Long-tail keywords – such as ‘hotels with free breakfast Nashville TN’. These terms are cheaper and tend to generate less traffic but work great as a long-term strategy for hotels with small online budgets.
Geo-qualifiers - like your city and zipcode, also nearby landmarks.
Negative keywords – perhaps equally as important is not appearing for certain keywords, such as ‘hotels with pools’ if your hotel doesn’t have a pool.

Generate a list of keywords and create a Google Adwords account. You’ll want to run your list through the Keyword Planner tool to determine which words are within budget. If necessary, add more geo-qualifiers or be more specific with long-tail keywords to bring down the cost. Once you have a solid list, set your monthly budget within your Adwords account and bid on those terms. Develop a business ad that contains descriptive, catchy copy to lure people into clicking. Also take note of what competitors are doing, especially if they place higher in Google search. It’s ok to be aggressive!

What if I Don’t Have a Budget for Online Marketing?

Meet your new friend SEO. Optimizing your website for Google improves your placement and is also a necessity for any business website. You can use a Content Management System to edit your own website or use the criteria below to evaluate an outside company that you hire. Be sure to monitor your site with your Google Analytics account.

Focus on 4 key things when optimizing your website:

Content: Most important for laying the optimization groundwork is Evergreen content. Do you have an interesting story about your hotel? Is your city rich in history? Telling a story allows the potential guest to engage with your hotel and picture themselves there.
Domain name and page names: Your domain name should be short (no longer than 25 characters) and easy to remember. Likewise, your page names should be simple yet specific to what the viewer will find on that page, such as www.hotelessex.com/roomtypes.
Metadata: Each page of your website has a title, header, description, and focus keywords. This is metadata and it tells search engines like Google or Bing that your site is relevant to the keyword being searched. Thinking back to the process of choosing keywords for paid search, pick a relevant focus keyword for each page of your site and work it into the content of that page. Don’t force it or repeat the word over and over. Keep it relevant to that page’s content. Since search engines can’t read pictures, you also need to attached relevant keywords to your images (called alt tags).
SEO monitoring tools: There are many SEO management tools out there like Moz.com, which can help you monitor your site’s success and make adjustments.

Beware, there are a lot of self-proclaimed SEO experts out there but with the right research, great website content, and a little bit of patience you can achieve success with organic search without going broke.