The Power of Conversational Marketing in Today’s Hospitality Landscape

In medieval times, around the 11th century, trade revolved around cities whose markets were frequented by buyers and sellers. Merchants with something to offer would go to the market, where their potential customers could be found, and present their goods. It was vital to be where the buyers were and to build relationships. Sales were made directly, winning customers one by one, earning their trust, showcasing the product and making each potential buyer aware of its quality and benefits. Merchants knew that the outcome of any transaction was closely linked to the conversation they were able to establish with their customers. There were no customer segments, marketing or advertising. Conversation and, ultimately, the degree of trust that merchants could generate were vital elements of commercial success. Transparency, truthfulness and honesty were essential, and every merchant had to protect their reputation in order to return on the next market day and continue selling. With the arrival of the 12th century, and at the height of the prosperity of certain Italian coastal cities such as Venice and Genoa, trade with the East intensified. From this point onwards, international trade, imports and exports—and, ultimately, marketing and advertising—began to take their first steps. Naturally, all in due proportion, but control over a territory brought commercial rights and large-scale product exports. The creation of demand, marketing and competition became the order of the day, bringing with them the depersonalisation of business. Until today… Today’s customer is better informed, has access to information and is, ultimately, far more demanding than in the past. Customers are not satisfied with our message alone; they want us to earn their trust and show a genuine interest in them. Ultimately, I believe we are returning to the medieval marketplace, where a world without segments, but with people, requires us to maintain a personal relationship with every individual. We must earn their trust, demonstrate that we care and show that we are able to meet their needs by offering personalised or fully tailored products and services. Today’s environment allows us to return to the Market Square, set up our shop in the form of a website, attract customers through SEO and SEM, and start the conversation. Perhaps for this reason, I prefer to demystify the concepts that have been instilled in us and approach them from a realistic perspective, without denying that something is changing. Mass marketing is dead. Conversational Marketing, as part of our CRM strategy, is what will turn our hotel into a customer-centric hotel. In fact, I believe that a hotel with a CRM strategy that is not customer-centric is a hotel destined to fail.