Hilton Hotels Earns Honors in Word of Mouth, While Waldorf Astoria and Ritz-Carlton Get Upgraded in Social Media

Engagement Labs Announces Rankings of the Top U.S. Hotels Based on Social Media Performance and Word of Mouth Conversations

TORONTO, ON – March 10, 2016 – Technology and data company Engagement Labs, released rankings on the top U.S. hotels on social media and through word of mouth (WOM) conversations.

The data consists of Engagement Labs’ proprietary eValue social media measurement tool and TalkTrack®, the leading measurement source of word of mouth conversations from the Keller Fay Group, an Engagement Labs company.

“As March break descends upon us, the hotel industry is preparing for a boost in bookings,” stated Bryan Segal, CEO at Engagement Labs. “Travelers are turning to social media to discover various options and receive recommendations on where to stay during their trips. As hotel bookings are highly influenced by recommendations, reviews and reputation, hoteliers have a prime opportunity to use social media to amplify their property’s best features, attract travelers and generate revenue.”

On Facebook Waldorf Astoria, The Ritz-Carlton and Fairmont Hotels were the highest-ranked hotels, ranking consistently in the top five for all eValue subcategories of Engagement, Impact and Responsiveness. Waldorf Astoria not only ranked first for overall eValue score but also had the highest Engagement score and the most likes and shares per 1,000 fans. Fourth-place finisher Hilton Hotels had the highest Impact score and experienced the most impressive fan growth with 12,505 new followers during the time period measured. The brand with the highest Responsiveness score was Four Points by Sheraton, which leveraged its Facebook channel as an avenue to interact in two-way conversations with consumers helping to build brand affinity.

On Twitter, Ritz-Carlton placed first with the highest eValue score and the highest Impact score. The highest Engagement score was generated by Radisson, which posted numerous high-quality, user-generated images showcasing its amenities at various locations. The highest Responsiveness score was generated by Fairmont Hotels, which took the time to thoughtfully respond to its followers’ tweets – both positive and negative.

Hilton Hotels ranked first for overall eValue score on Instagram, with Waldorf Astoria coming in at a close second. Hilton Hotels utilized user-generated content to showcase beautiful views from its numerous locations, while attaching themselves to popular hashtags such as #travel and #travelgram.

“Online research is a prime avenue for consumers to leverage when booking travel. Therefore it is vital for hotel brands to capture the essence of their hotel through online channels, especially on social media. Brands who build an online story that demonstrate the hotel experience through visuals and excellent two way communication with guests, builds brand affinity and trust with the consumer, thereby making them more inclined to book,” continued Segal. “While social channels influence purchasing decisions, travel shoppers are just as influenced by recommendations from offline sources.”

The success of the hotel industry relied on the guest experience. Social media has empowered consumers with an additional avenue to discuss those experiences. Therefore, it’s extremely important for hotel brands to understand the volume of conversations, happening both online and offline, to determine the impact on its business. Placing in the top five across the board for online eValue scores, Hilton Hotels also leads in offline WOM conversation, earning 20.7 percent of all conversations around the hotel industry. Marriott came in a close second place with 20.5 percent, while Holiday Inn followed with 11 percent of the conversation.

“There is an important synergy between online and offline conversations. Today, consumers move seamlessly between offline and online conversations and brands need to understand how to tap into those conversations and utilize this data in their marketing efforts,” noted Segal. “Offline conversation can drive online conversation, and vice versa, both serving as a reflection of consumers’ emotions and experiences. It is those experiences that cause people to talk about one hotel brand over another. Creating an experience which enables guests to generate conversation around a brand can have a major impact on the brand’s bottom line.”

About Engagement Labs

Engagement Labs offers intelligent data, analytics and insights for marketers and organizations enabling them to track, measure and benchmark the conversations happening around their brand or industry both online and offline. These conversations are proven to drive critical business outcomes, including sales, while Engagement Labs’ tools provide data and actionable insight to help guide business decisions and power marketing effectiveness.

Engagement Labs’ eValue™ Analytics tool is the global benchmark for social media scoring. eValue’s proprietary data technology offers real-time analysis to measure a brand’s social media and digital marketing efforts, distilling it down to a single meaningful number between 0 and 100 - an eValue score. Composed of a series of metrics and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), an eValue score measures social media Engagement, Impact and Responsiveness which is benchmarked against 100,000+ handpicked and verified brands. The Keller Fay Group, an Engagement Labs company, is the only firm to regularly measure offline conversation via TalkTrack ®; independent research finds offline conversation is a significant driver of sales with twice the impact of online conversation.

Engagement Labs maintains offices in Toronto ON, Montreal QC, London UK and New Brunswick NJ.

www.engagementlabs.com / www.kellerfay.com

For media inquiries please contact:

Kate Tumino / Kenneth Cousins
KCSA Strategic Communications
ktumino@kcsa.com / kcousins@kcsa.com
212-896-1252 / 212-896-1254