Hotel & Resort Links - “DoFollow” Tuesdays
Filed Under: Do Follow Tuesdays, Social Media
Welcome to “Do Follow” Tuesdays. To read what this is all about, you can check our announcement post.
In summary, every Tuesday we pick a vertical market based on the number of votes a market receives at our Vertical Market Poll. This week it is the Hotel & Resort market. We invite all of you out there to post in the comments a specific link building recommendation for the Hotel & Resort market (a good directory, authority website, blog, link search, etc.). If it adds value, we will approve it, give you the credit and a “do follow” link to your site. However, we will just delete stupid, irrelevant, spammy comments – only truly useful information will be allowed.
This week’s suggestion from our staff is all about social media. We get a lot of questions about how to use social media to increase links to a website. There are hundreds, probably thousands of social sites that, if worked properly, will provide opportunities for you to get links to your site. Below are three examples for the hotel & resort industry.
Flickr - Upload your hotel or resort pictures, and then link to your website in your profile. Aside from displaying your property, Flickr can be used in many creative ways. Pictures of events, staff and local entertainment can be used as well. If your images are unique and optimized, you might even find them hitting the search results themselves. And remember, many people conduct images searches which may lead them back to your website. Here is a short example of how to use Flickr for SEO.
YouTube - After conducting a bunch of searches looking for hotels making good use of YouTube, we have concluded this is an area that can really be exploited. In other words, we didn’t find much. Create a YouTube channel and post your SEO optimized videos. These do not have to be expensive, TV quality videos. Many successful videos are created by amateurs and edited with inexpensive software. But, they do need to be clever or add value to the viewer.
43 Places - This site has evolved into a solid social site about travel. It carries some decent authority with its links. Being featured on 43 Place’s can create some great promotion, and hotel would be smart to add their URLs to their 43 Places entries. For example a hotelier in Phoenix should check out and get involved in this section on 43Places.
OK, now lets hear from the rest of you. Place your advice for link building for the hotel & resort market in the comments below. Those that are accepted will get a nice "do follow" link from us.
Make sure you sign up for our email or RSS feed so that you are alerted every time a new niche market is covered. Even if we are not focusing on your niche, you just might see a pretty creative idea that will trigger an thought for your market.
Be sure to VOTE for your market today! VOTE HERE
Technorati Tags: hotel links, resorts, travel links, hospitality links, vertical markets, niche, markets, link building, YouTube, Flickr, 43Places
10 Comment(s)
2 Trackback(s)
- From Local Search and What it Can Do For Your Business | Jun 3, 2008
- From Link building-1 | Jun 6, 2008
oneunder | Jun 3, 2008 | Reply
We recently have started a free directory of GOLF Resorts at thegolfballfactory.com We would like to specialize in the “timeless resorts” and would welcome any “vintage” black and white ads that resorts would like us to display and link from as well. Thank you for considering posting of this comment.
Wiep | Jun 3, 2008 | Reply
For single hotels/ resorts:
- Go local. Every local website is a target, if you want to rank for -let’s say- “location hotel”
- Reward reviews. Every customer that writes a review (whether is on their own website or somebody else’s) gets a discount or something like that.
- Do something special. The “Salt Lake City Beach Volley Tournament” might attract a few (local) links.
For hotel chains:
- Again, reviews. If your service is great, customer reviews are your best friends.
- Again, local links. Target every country/ state/ city where you happen to have a hotel or resort. Which of the cities where you have a hotel does have a university?
- Partners/ suppliers. Lots of companies would love to display the logo and company info of a big, (inter)national hotel group.
- Tourist information sites. Especially for large cities, there are lots of specific tourist info sites, which make great targets.
Content tips:
- The World’s Strangest Hotel Rooms Part 2
(done before, so make it better)
- Top 10 most extraordinary hotel locations
- Resorts of the rich & famous: where do the top celebs go to?
Chris Lang | Jun 3, 2008 | Reply
Local Search can bring business to your door but they have to be able to find you using Local Search.
I have 10 great links for you this week Arnie.
Arizona Internet Marketers on Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=10122177763
Setting a geographic target for your site in Webmaster Tools:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r9r3PayqaZM
Google Maps : Drive Local Business to your Door!
I read Website Magazine every week and so should you.
Here is a great article on using Google maps and what you have to do to get listed in Google maps:
http://www.websitemagazine.com/content/blogs/posts/articles/Google_Maps_Drive_Local_Business_to_your_Door.aspx
With a modest investment of time and money (if someone else manages and writes the code for your site), you can open up a variety of effective local online marketing opportunities for your firm’s website including Google’s AdWords, Maps, and Local Business Center listings.
Yahoo is just as powerful when it comes to mapping, so don’t overlook this.
http://local.yahoo.com/?csz=Mesa+AZ
Yahoo Local search has become really powerful lately with many user oriented additions. The location is set to the Superstition Springs area in Mesa AZ.
I happen to hate Goggle maps, I always use MapQuest through Yahoo maps.
But you need to add your business location to Yahoo Local.
Keep abreast of what is going on in Yahoo Local search with the Yahoo Local blog:
href=”http://www.ylocalblog.com/
Tracking and Testing is your best resource and it’s FREE too:
http://analytics.google.com
Google Analytics is a free resource that we all should be using:
Combine it with the Webmaster tools that Susan Moskwa spoke about in the video and Google split testing application:
http://www.google.com/webmasters/tools
Website Optimizer to split test your landing pages.
https://www.google.com/analytics/siteopt/splash
Since I have no idea how this will render in the comments I have created a page just for you Arnie that has a little more readable and linked content than it may appear here.
http://www.keywebdata.com/?p=93
Se ya next Tuesday Arnie, unless I see you first on Facebook…..
Vertical Measures | Jun 3, 2008 | Reply
Chris,
Thanks for all the local info. We probably should have just turned your comment into a post focused on local links.
Let me know next time you have something this extensive and we will do that.
Arnie
Mary Bowling | Jun 4, 2008 | Reply
Travel Post - free listing
Trip Advisor -link exchange and/or they will link to reviews about you
Squidoo - the individual lenses aren’t doing much, but if you put them into “collections”, you can get links
Travel Library (www.travel-library.com) - free listing
Vertical Measures | Jun 4, 2008 | Reply
@Wiep, Chris, Mary - great suggestions. Thanks for taking the time to participate!
Charlie | Jun 6, 2008 | Reply
Use dofollow blog search engine
I use http://www.commenthunt.com/
Nikki Archer-Waring | Jun 9, 2008 | Reply
Just went and had a look at commenthunt.com and think I will sign up. We are an online hotel booking service. Please can someone suggest the best anchor text words - should we use things like hotels, cheap etc or be more specific London, Paris etc? Would welcome your comments. I am new to linking and would welcome any ideas. I am finding this site really interesting - THANK YOU.
Vertical Measures | Jun 9, 2008 | Reply
Nikki, the question you are asking is pretty complicated and can’t really be addressed properly on a blog post. There are many factors that go into choosing the correct keywords.
Your best bet is to engage an SEO or Keyword Research firm that can help you determine the best keyword phrases and landing pages to use for your website.
Or, try a keyword tool yourself. Here is one of our favorites: http://tools.seobook.com/keyword-tools/seobook/
Delhi Hotels | Sep 5, 2008 | Reply
Mary Bowling mention some great sites. I would like to Thanks Mary…