Despite economic uncertainty, travel demand is strong. According to the 2025 TravelBoom Booking Trends Study, over 90% of U.S. travelers are planning or considering a vacation this summer. But rising costs and inflation are driving more cautious, calculated decision-making.
The hotel industry is evolving—and fast. With third-party cookies on the decline and OTAs charging hefty commissions, accessing the untapped power of first-party data in hotel marketing becomes critical. Independent hoteliers who adopt a smarter, more sustainable strategy leveraging first-party data to personalize email and CRM marketing, see better results. This direct approach not only boosts guest loyalty but also increases profit per available room (ProPAR) and drives long-term growth.
Social media has become a non-negotiable part of a modern hotel marketing strategy. For independent hotels, it’s a cost-effective and powerful way to increase brand visibility, build direct guest relationships, and reduce reliance on OTAs.
Pay-per-click (PPC) advertising for hotels remains one of the most powerful tools in your marketing strategy, but if not properly optimized, it’s an easy way to overspend. As digital competition intensifies in 2025, independent hotels must become more strategic than ever. The goal? Attract high-intent travelers while staying laser-focused on ROI.
Artificial intelligence (AI) tools like ChatGPT — the most popular AI tool in the world — can help hotel marketers by increasing efficiency, sparking creativity, providing valuable, strategy-enhancing insights and ultimately helping drive more bookings. Along with many other capabilities, AI can aid in content creation, support SEO efforts, help with campaign ideation and analyze data. And in this article, we’re sharing 30 ChatGPT prompts that can boost hotel marketing efforts in a range of areas critical to a property’s success:
TravelBoom’s 2025 Booking Trends Study has revealed a clear and valuable insight: U.S. travelers overwhelmingly prefer to plan and book their trips within a 1–3 month window. For hotel marketers, this predictability creates a prime opportunity to align promotions, timing, and messaging with real guest behavior.
In the hotel world, it’s not enough to just hope people find you. You’ve got to guide them through every stage of the travel planning journey, from that first spark of awareness to the moment they click “book now.” That’s where the hotel marketing funnel comes in.
If you’re an independent hotel, resort, or management group still relying heavily on online travel agencies (OTAs), you’re not alone—and you’re not maximizing your profit potential.
Stop settling for mediocre results. Partner with TravelBoom and transform your data into a competitive advantage.
