Drive More Bookings with Interactive Video

There’s no doubting the dominance and effectiveness of video. Five-hundred hours of video are uploaded to YouTube alone every single minute and according to a 2019 study by Blue Magnet, hotels that utilize video in their marketing mix enjoy a 56% increase in brand recognition and awareness. The massive consumption of video content pinpoints for hotels where the eyeballs are at. However, how can hotels effectively transition these viewers into booking guests?

The answer: Interactive video. Video that can be clicked on and engaged with is a “win-win” solution that mutually benefits both hotels and its guests.

Interactive video technologies convert hotels’ existing videos into immersive viewing experiences that allow viewers to explore the unique attributes today’s hotels have to offer, like a new location, swimming pool, unique restaurant, or attraction offering. Guests no longer have to endlessly scroll and search to find that amazing hotel right on the beach they just saw in a video: with interactive video, they can now be instantly connected with that property and book a room with just a click.

Furthermore, this allows hotels to provide a touchpoint at every stage of the digital booking journey (awareness, consideration, conversion) and capitalize on the excitement and impulse when planning a trip. Most importantly, the hotel is now in full control of the viewer's journey. By creating an interactive experience, the hotel defines the click-out URLs within the video, which helps retain and convert those guests on-property and further prevents bookings on third-party or competitors’ sites.

However, the opportunities go beyond just bookings. Interactive video can positively affect a guest’s digital journey post-booking as well before arrival, at check-in, or during their stay. Another opportunity for hotels to upsell amenities like spa treatments, restaurants, or golf packages that guests may not have otherwise been aware of.

And interactive video isn’t a fad; it’s a proven technology with the data to support it. By providing viewers an evolved video experience, hotels receive an equally evolved version of data to better understand their audience. Interactive video technologies seamlessly capture every single click and click-out that occurs during the video providing a more intimate knowledge of exactly what viewers are interested in.

Hotels need to continue to evolve their video strategy and adapt to their audiences viewing behaviors. Amidst a global pandemic, it’s never been more critical to develop an emotional connection with viewers and provide a seamless, simple and fun viewing experience that ultimately turns passive viewers into active travelers.

Sample videos of this type of technology in action can be found here: Memphis Tourism, Explore Minnesota, Travel Wyoming.

About the Author:

Ben Hatala is the COO of Clicktivated; a technology that brings destinations and viewers closer together through immersive video technology.

Utilizing Clicktivated's technology, viewers are able to directly click within a video to find more information about local attractions, locations, and excursions, without having to waste time searching for each individual activity/location.

Clicktivated's travel partners feature clickable information such as culinary trails, brewery tours, art museums, local culture, hotels and nature conservatories. Using Clicktivated's technology, destinations have seen a remarkable 68% average interaction rate within their videos.

To date, Clicktivated has helped numerous destination partners including Pure Michigan, Travel Wyoming, Daytona Beach and Explore Edmonton to share a few.

Learn more at: www.clicktivatedtravel.com