New York native and nomad by choice—Emily is a marketing & PR pro, now the founder of the award-winning R Public Relations, New York.
As a public relations professional working in the hospitality and lifestyle sector for over a decade, I’ve watched the state of hotel marketing and PR shift and change many times over. Now, as we approach the peak of the influencer marketing industry, hotels must navigate a challenging landscape filled with many influencers offering a wide variety of services at an equally wide range of rates. Here are the trends that have stood out to me over the past several years and where I think the industry is headed.
Why Hotels Have Become More Selective With Partnerships
The hospitality industry once embraced a simple influencer marketing model: offer free stays to as many influencers as possible and hope their posts convert into bookings. While this approach worked in the early days of influencer culture, the scattergun method has given way to targeted partnerships with a carefully selected few.
So, what changed, and why? The evolution of influencer marketing reflects a broader shift toward authenticity, measurable outcomes and alignment between brands and their partners. This transformation offers lessons not only for hospitality brands but also for influencers and marketers navigating a maturing digital landscape.
Prioritizing Return On Investment
As the social landscape has changed over the years, so has influencer culture. In the early 2010s, influencer marketing in hospitality revolved around visibility. The assumption was that the more influencers who promoted a hotel or resort, the greater the likelihood of reaching potential customers. While this strategy generated buzz, it often failed to deliver measurable return on investment. Many posts lacked authenticity, featuring overly polished content that audiences began to view skeptically.
As influencer marketing budgets have increased significantly, so has the demand for measurable results. The ability to tie influencer campaigns directly to key performance indicators, such as website traffic, bookings or engagement, has become paramount. A 2021 report by Linqia found that 65% of enterprise marketers rate ROI tracking as the most critical aspect of influencer collaborations.
Seeking Authenticity And Alignment
Authenticity drives trust, and modern travelers prioritize genuine experiences over curated luxury. This trend has led to a growing demand for influencers who can authentically connect with their audiences. A 2023 study by Nielsen found that 92% of consumers trust influencer recommendations when they feel authentic, compared to 33% for traditional advertisements.
We see this reflected in today’s collaborations. Successful hospitality brands now focus on authentic connections and engaged audiences rather than sheer follower counts. Hubspot’s 2024 Social Media Marketing Report (download required) found that 64% of marketers have worked with micro-influencers, and 47% of marketers experienced more success with this type of influencer. Hotels and resorts are seeking influencers whose storytelling aligns with their brand’s values, not just their audience size.
This shift has prompted a deeper focus on genuine engagement and clear alignment between influencers and hospitality brands, ensuring that campaigns resonate with target audiences while maintaining brand integrity. For example, a luxury resort might work exclusively with influencers known for promoting sustainable travel, reinforcing its eco-conscious image. Similarly, family-friendly hotels often partner with parenting influencers whose content appeals directly to their audience.
Challenges In The New Landscape
While the shift toward selectivity offers significant benefits, it also introduces challenges.
Weighing Higher Costs For Premium Talent
Partnering with top-tier or highly specialized influencers often comes at a premium. As their influence grows, so does their demand for compensation, especially for those who align well with niche markets such as eco-tourism or luxury travel. Brands must weigh these costs against the potential return, ensuring the partnership genuinely impacts their target audience. To navigate this, some brands are turning to hybrid strategies that blend collaborations with both micro-influencers, known for affordability and engagement, and macro-influencers, who offer broader reach.
Balancing Authenticity And Control
A successful influencer collaboration requires balancing creative freedom with brand consistency. Influencers need the liberty to craft authentic narratives that resonate with their audience, sometimes leading to messaging that diverges from a brand’s core objectives. To address this, brands increasingly use detailed briefs and co-creation sessions, fostering a partnership approach rather than dictating terms. This strategy helps ensure authenticity while aligning with the campaign’s goals.
Measuring Long-Term Impact
While tracking short-term metrics like clicks and bookings is now straightforward, thanks to tools like UTM codes and affiliate links, understanding the broader implications of influencer campaigns remains challenging. Metrics such as customer loyalty, brand sentiment or increased lifetime value often emerge long after the campaign concludes. Advanced analytics platforms can help assess these nuanced effects, but they require investments in both technology and expertise.
The Road Ahead
The hospitality industry’s approach to influencer marketing will continue evolving alongside technological advancements and changing consumer behaviors. As the landscape grows increasingly sophisticated, I believe the most successful brands will be those that prioritize authenticity, align with influencers who share their values and leverage data to continuously improve campaigns. For hotels and resorts ready to dive deeper into the world of influencer marketing, the key is not to follow trends but to set them, collaborating with influencers who tell stories that inspire, resonate and ultimately drive action.
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