We speak GOP, RevPAR, and ADR.

Wallop is a digital agency with a laser-like focus on boutique, four & five star hotels, resorts, and high-end hospitality brands.

We work with organizations that have an interesting or compelling story to tell, and articulate them using digital channels. We help General Managers, Sales Directors, PR Managers, or Marketing Managers:

• improve web presence & sharpen digital strategies
• develop visually compelling & engaging websites
• market brands more effectively on social, mobile, email & search engines
• design & build custom storefronts
• increase conversion rates & direct bookings
• perform usability testing & conversion optimization

Here are some  tactical advantages of working with an organization that specializes in hospitality:

Booking engines and CRMs

There are complexities and technical challenges posed by the integration of third-party booking engines and other internal software systems. We’ve worked with all the big players like Sabre/Synxsis and TravelClick/iHotelier, and have significant experience bridging the digital platforms we build with legacy and third party GDS, PMS, and CRMs. We work hand in hand with our search engine marketing partners to provide deep integration of Analytics and conversion tracking.

Increasing revenue by improving conversions

We’ve built a lot of hospitality websites, and coupled with our knowledge in usability, UX, and IA, we’ve figured out a thing or two about improving conversions. Being mindful of basic human tendencies and incorporating a series of “nudges” helps push people in the right direction and can have a notable effect on conversion rates. Refinement through Analytics and multivariate testing allows for further improvement over the long term.

Industry focused tools

We’ve conceived and built a quiver of hospitality-specific tools, and have a lot of experience integrating popular social media and third party tools, along with a slew of API’s.

Generally we aim to solve traditional business problems through the implementation of digital solutions. For example replacing paper forms with digital ones – i.e. RFP forms, pre-guest arrival forms, concierge forms, and amenity order forms.

Selling a luxury brand in the digital channel

We’ve been working with luxury brands for years, and our design and strategy is always being refined to increase appeal to this audience. Of course there are design attributes and styles conventional to luxury brands. But it’s also important to be cognizant of marketing trends within the context of luxury. Like in 2008, when the meteor hit the side of the earth – marketing luxury brands took on a whole new meaning for everyone. The good news is that this is a resilient demographic with unfaltering growth.

Affluent customers are early adopters, a higher percentage are on smart phones, and they spend more time online. These are important factors to consider when developing a digital marketing strategy for this demographic.

A holistic approach to digital marketing

One size doesn’t fit all, and varying degrees of expertise is required on each project. While core services are always handled internally and management is central, we rely on a trusted network of strategic partners and contractors to provide tailored solutions that are technology agnostic.

We’ve partnered with a select group of organizations that create hospitality-focused tools like CRMs that interface with your PMS/GDS, or social media monitoring tools that allow you to track your direct compset. Also in our company are video producers, photographers, and writers that have years of experience serving clients in hospitality.

Distilling the message

The success of any project is contingent on our collective ability to narrow the focus in our messaging. Our lengthy interview process uncovers your core purpose and becomes the foundation for your digital strategy.

One thing you’ll hear us say over and over, when it comes to hospitality – is that our goal is to make the digital experience commensurate with the physical property. What are the unique, defining features? What makes your hotel different from all the others? Why should people care?

We know the formula, but we can break the mold

Every engagement poses its own set of challenges, but our digital strategy is shaped by the information gathered through our discovery and research. We have established a set of principles that are applicable to hospitality clients that we abide by in the development process. But under the right circumstances, we’re not afraid to ignore conventions or “best practices”. This assumes, of course, that such a divergence is appropriate and supported by solid data.

Our focus is messaging, and we deliver a compelling message in ways that engage the customer and endear them to your brand.

Designed to be usable

We understand what people want when they’re looking for a hotel, resort, or restaurant. Where do people fall off the form? What do they want to know? What do they need to see? How do we get people to their destination as quickly as possible, and with as little thinking required?

Delivering an exceptional mobile experience

We’ve built a fair number of hospitality-specific mobile solutions, and we’re always pushing the technical boundaries to create even better experiences for our customers. Content strategy is a crucial part of any mobile strategy, but proper consideration of your audience and budget is important in determining suitable levels of technology and enhancements.

There is tremendous opportunity for hotel and organizations that accommodate mobile devices because a mobile user is usually much closer to a buying decision. This is especially true for hotels – chances are that if someone is looking at your hotel on a mobile device, they’re ready to book.

No cookie cutters

Do most hotel websites look the same to you? That’s because most of them are. Some of our larger competitors have made a lot of money using the factory model. Choose a template, throw in some photos, swap the logo and font color, plug in a CMS, voila: hotel website.

Your hotel is different, and you go to great lengths to refine the physical experience of your hotel. Our goal is always to create a narrative that highlights the differentiators of your property and deliver that message concisely on the appropriate channels. But our fundamental objective is always to design a digital experience that is commensurate with the physical.

Attention to detail

This is an area we differentiate ourselves on from our direct competitors in hospitality. There is an acute lack of attention to detail in the aesthetics of digital products and their execution. Individually they may not seem like much – but collectively it makes a big difference.

Under the factory model, the objective is to crank out a product as quickly as possible, expending the minimum amount of resources. We’re not the cheapest option out there, but the products we build are hand-crafted. This means attention to detail, quality, and peace of mind that you won’t suffer the indignity of having the same website as your competitor across the block.

Authentic social media marketing – be human

Share the stories from within your hotel; tell a story about the family that’s behind the business. Transparency implies integrity, increases customer awareness with respect to subtleties, and promotes a sense of belonging. Use the appropriate channels, and use them in the right context.

We’ve got years of experience working with hospitality-friendly social media channels like TripAdvisor, and we’ve done a lot of customization on platforms like YouTube, Flickr, Twitter, and Facebook in support of our digital strategies.

Put yourself where your customers are

These days, people don’t open a brochure or call their travel agent to research a hotel or destination. They look you up on the web. So it’s important that you put your best face on when engaging your customers online.

We understand that a proper investment in digital is a significant one. But that “fundamental shift” in how consumers research their travel? That happened years ago.  So stop throwing your money at magazines adverts and the yellow pages. Your marketing dollars go farther on digital, results are measurable, and your customers are already there. Investment in digital is less a new expenditure than a reallocation of your existing marketing dollars.