How Hilton balances digital and 'traditional' marketing
At ClickZ Live New York, we spoke with Hilton Worldwide's Melissa Walner about the brand's digital spend balance and the challenges of infrequent interaction.
At ClickZ Live New York, we spoke with Hilton Worldwide's Melissa Walner about the brand's digital spend balance and the challenges of infrequent interaction.
At ClickZ Live New York, we spoke with Hilton Worldwide’s Melissa Walner about the brand’s digital spend balance and the challenges of infrequent interaction.
When it comes to the increasingly merging online and offline worlds, it can be difficult for a brand to ascertain how to split its budget between the two.
Founded nearly a century ago, Hilton Hotels & Resorts has decades of marketing experience. Therefore, the company’s traditional-digital balance is around 80/20 or even 90/10.
“Experimenting is very important so you always want to have a piece of the budget dedicated to it, but for me, it’s going to be a smaller place,” says ClickZ Live New York veteran Melissa Walner, director of global SEO at Hilton Worldwide. “For [my spend] specifically, I try to focus on the tried and true, the things we know for a fact keep the engine running for us.”
Being a legacy brand, it’s also important for Hilton to remain consistent across its more than 500 properties. That sounds challenging, given the fact that the hotel is heavily franchised. However, Hilton brought all its ecommerce and digital efforts in-house four years ago, so the brand is better able to guide the ship from its Washington area headquarters.
Another challenge Hilton faces is the fact that, like Best Western, the brand doesn’t see its customers too often. You may buy coffee twice a day, but how often do you stay in a hotel?
Social media allows Hilton to remain engaged with hotel guests, whether or not they’re guests at the moment. Hilton Suggests, a social listening program, helps a lot, according to Walner.
“We’ll provide tips on what’s a family-friendly restaurant in Los Angeles or what’s the best neighborhood in Dallas if you’re single,” she says. “It’s a way to keep the brand in front of them. We’re a hospitality company; it shows we’re hospitable whether you’re staying with us or not.”
More about:
Lucy helps organizations leverage knowledge for in... View Tech Talk
TVSquared is the global leader in cross-platform T... View Tech Talk
Grata is a B2B search engine for discovering small... View Tech Talk
Streaming has become a staple of US media-viewing ... Download Now
Data is the lifeblood of so many companies today. ... Download Now
This report documents the findings of a Fireside c... Download Now
Customers decide fast, influenced by only 2.5 touc... Download Now
Streaming has become a staple of US media-viewing habits. Streaming video, however, still comes with a variety of pesky frustrations that viewers are ...
View resourceData is the lifeblood of so many companies today. You need more of it, all of which at higher quality, and all the meanwhile being compliant with data...
View resourceThis report documents the findings of a Fireside chat held by ClickZ in the first quarter of 2022. It provides expert insight on how companies can ret...
View resourceCustomers decide fast, influenced by only 2.5 touchpoints – globally! Make sure your brand shines in those critical moments. Read More...
View resourceIn the dynamic landscape of digital marketing, Snapchat's innovative 7/0 optimisation window is redefining the game, but how does this impact you as a...
View articleHistorically, the day after Thanksgiving, known as Black Friday, marked the beginning of America’s Christmas shopping season. The origins of the...
View articleBar Louie was founded in 1990s Chicago as ‘The Original Gastrobar™’. Its foundation as a neighborhood bar is integral to Bar Louie&r...
View articleExperts are recommending that you focus on content and digital customer strategy as two key areas that require rethinking in a post-pandemic world Rea...
View articleIn this article learn three essential ways to communicate the importance of digital-first strategies to C-Suite decision-makers in your organization. ...
View articleA B2B marketing campaign in recent times is more capable of driving sales. We look at how AI and social media marketers together can enhance any B2B m...
View articleLomit Patel, Vice President of Growth at IMVU, provides an overview on the best practices for influencer marketing to Gen Z. Read More...
View articleNextdoor, the neighborhood app, reaches over 270,000 neighborhoods globally and seamlessly fits into your SMBs social media strategy. Read More...
View article