Three 1:1 personalization strategies for hotel marketers

The hotel industry is resilient. Once facing the existential crisis of COVID-19, when travel ground to a near halt, consumers are now itching to leave home. More people are traveling more miles than at any point since the pandemic, and the industry is set to skyrocket in 2025. 

But in this climate, hotel marketers are faced with a worrying trend: loyalty programs have stagnated. With so many ways to book a trip, brands are facing a dip in on-site booking and increased competition from third-party websites. Some companies are also de-prioritizing financial incentives like free hotel nights, further eroding loyalty.

This is leading many marketers to find new, technology-driven solutions to the age old question of customer fidelity. Artificial intelligence is at the forefront of new travel and hospitality innovations. While travelers are leaning on AI for travel planning, marketers are using new AI tools to build real-world 1:1 personalization. 

Here are three ways marketers can build better relationships with customers through meaningful personalization:

Evolving price drop campaigns

The average American spent a little more than $5,000 per vacation in 2024, a 25 percent increase over the previous year. While travel appetite is still high, it’s also expensive and many consumers are eschewing loyalty to find the best deal. To combat this trend, brands can create campaigns that keep customers from website hopping, making it more enticing to book directly with them and not a third party.

Consumers will explore as many options as they can, often to find the right price for their budget. But as hotels know, those prices fluctuate daily. The price for a room on one day may be lower the next. Marketers traditionally use these campaigns to entice customers back to book directly by alerting them when prices drop.

But whereas previous automated campaigns relied on website searches alone, AI can help move marketers into new territories. AI decisioning, which analyzes data to create a “next best everything” approach to 1:1 personalization, can offer customers options that fit their budget based on previous travel history and other first-party data. AI lets marketers offer suggestions to destinations before customers have to search, offering budget options for cost-conscious customers.

Personalized post-booking campaigns

Travelers expect brands to understand their preferences, whether it’s a room with a view or a spa treatment. Boston Consulting Group research found that leading travel and hospitality brands have 68 percent more investment in artificial intelligence than laggards, specifically because hyper-personalization is now the norm across industries. By delivering that same personalization in booking that consumers experience in retail and banking, marketers can build better relationships while increasing the bottom line.

Personalized post-booking campaigns can offer both better experiences for customers and effective upsell opportunities for marketers. After loyal hotel customers book a room, artificial intelligence can analyze the customer’s previous stays, understanding their preferences and offering email or text notifications recommending personalized upgrades. If a customer often chooses a suite or a room with a view, 1:1 personalization can highlight and suggest the best options for them.

Hotels can also leverage AI-driven personalization to offer strategic upsell opportunities. Marketers can send post-booking notifications that offer upgrades based on customer preferences like mountain or beach views. If a customer occasionally books spa treatments, they could receive “treat yourself” notifications with discounts for spa days.

Campaigns that capitalize on post-trip excitement

It’s no secret travel makes people happier. More than 80 percent of consumers said in a recent survey they felt happier knowing they have a vacation planned. Neuroscientists have found that traveling can rewire the human brain by offering people the thrill of new experiences mixed with the ability to be one’s full self, unencumbered by the grind of daily life. Good post-trip marketing campaigns capitalize on both sentiments by keeping recent trips top of mind while building anticipation for the next journey.

With artificial intelligence, marketers can build post-trip campaigns personalized to each individual customer. First, AI can create a look back at the previous journey by highlighting customer milestones from the previous trip with images and language specific to their stay. Marketers can send emails with loyalty points earned from a customer’s previous flight or hotel stay along with any amenities they enjoyed on their travels, all with landmark images specific to the traveler's destination.

Next, marketers can build excitement for their next destination with 1:1 recommendations based on a customer’s previous travel history. AI can analyze their travel history, finding throughlines like adventure vacations or history buffs exploring age-old cultures. Customers can receive emails or notifications with “exclusive destinations and itineraries” personalized to the reasons they travel.

The goal of post-trip campaigns is to develop deeper relationships with customers and start inspiring ideas for their next destination. As Deloitte put it in the brand’s guide to personalization and customer loyalty, “personalized (post-purchase campaigns) reiterate a brand’s commitment to customers.” 

Conclusion

Travel and hospitality marketers are seeing the best of times as the industry rebounds to pre-pandemic numbers. But loyalty metrics are steadily decreasing, with more travel consumers shopping around and less recommending loyalty programs. As younger generations begin to dominate the segment, the brands that can respond will be in the best position to capitalize on travel demand. 

The modern consumer is either a digital native or has spent the majority of their lives online, where they have come to expect personalized marketing, algorithmic recommendations based on their data, and brands that respond to their individual desires. 

AI decisioning can help marketers revolutionize their lifecycle marketing campaigns with 1:1 personalization. Motivations for travel are growing more complex, and segmentation alone can no longer predict customer behavior. The best way to capitalize on consumers’ booming interest is to meet every customer with 1:1 personalization at all the touchpoints of their journey.

Want to learn more strategic uses of AI personalization for hotel marketers? Download 1:1 Personalization for Travel and Hospitality Marketers today!