Is AI Replacing Hotel Search Marketing?
TLDR: Google’s AI search results are advancing quickly. They’ve moved beyond quick summaries, giving helpful answers to searchers with dramatically greater accuracy. Is it time to abandon paid search as part of a hotel marketing strategy? Not yet, says a new user survey of 1,500 search users. A significant majority of searchers still prefer traditional search results to AI summaries. These technologies will change, and so will user behavior. For now, we recommend continued investment in paid search campaigns that earn revenue, as well as AI optimization for your hotel. We’ll talk more about what this means below.
Hotel Marketing and AI: How Users Search Today
The new survey, conducted by Higher Visibility, concluded that Americans still prefer classic search to AI for many types of queries. Search Engine Land compiled a helpful summary, breaking down demographics and query preferences. The biggest takeaway for hotel marketers: Review sites like TripAdvisor contends with browsing Google Business Profiles and Google Maps for most searchers. Marketing should still focus on these channels. It’s also worth considering the core clientele of your hotel today. GenX and Baby Boomers strongly prefer traditional search, while younger generations focus on AI for certain activities.
Where Does AI Matter for Hotel Marketing Campaigns?
Users who prefer AI use it for professional queries and comparison shopping. They’re using it to learn something new, quickly review features, and get things done for work. Some aspects of your hotel may inform queries like these. “Which hotels in Boston have an indoor pool and a decent restaurant?” or “Top rated hotels with a conference center” — these are the types of search queries that lean on AI to aggregate complex details and attempt to offer a useful answer.
Hotels with strong SEO foundations are positioned to win here: they have structured website pages that Google’s AI model can easily read. Their amenities and offerings are clearly organized and broken out. AI can answer the question because the answers are easy to find. Remember, AI learning models are just another type of crawler. If your information is stuffed in pages deep on your site, other hotels will fare better in these potentially lucrative searches.
What Should Hotel Marketers Do Today?
First things first: Pay attention and don’t panic. Talk to your agency about ways your marketing strategy could adapt in the months to come as platforms evolve and user behavior changes. Together, you can identify pages on your website that would benefit from SEO optimization, comb through search campaigns to identify high-converting search terms, and review your competitive positioning. What do your guests love about you? Why do they choose you?
Make your strengths shine on your website, and ensure that these details are easy for AI to learn. This level of continued focus helps your hotel perform effectively wherever people look for information — in AI results, the traditional search page, and in business listings. Answer clearly wherever they search, and your guests will gain the confidence they need to book faster.
Not sure how people are searching for your hotel today? Dealing with a website in dire need of a restructure? We’re here to help. Reach out and start a conversation any time.