Four Seasons Content Marketing Plan

For the content marketing campaign I am going with Four Season Toronto. In this post I am going to illustrate my idea of a brand new Content Marketing Campaign For Sheraton.

Name of The Campaign: Four Seasons Journey

Main Goal: To generate more brand awareness about Four Seasons Toronto and get new customers as well as keep regular customers engaged.

Campaign Detail:

• Create videos showcasing real world hotel guests with their testimonials. Upload videos and pictures of their stay in YouTube, Instagram as well as other social networks.
• The guests will have to sign a consent form of approval.
• Once Four Seasons's own branded content is up for a month or so we will focus attention towards customers to upload their own photos and experience.
• Anyone who uploads photo on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using hashtag #FourSeasonsTO will get a chance to win complementary stay for their next trip.
• There will be a series of prizes every month.

Timeframe

April To May 31st - Four Seasons Customer Stories.

June 1st To September 1st - Four Seasons #FourSeasonsTo contest.

September - December - Posting winner pictures and sharing their experience of complementary trips.

Platforms

The campaign will promote to existing followers with Four Season's own content and then use Facebook Ads, Twitter Ads, Youtube Ads and Google Adwords to promote the #FourSeasonsTO contest.

Ritz-Carlton vs. Shangri-La Content Marketing

By: Owais Hikmat

I will be creating a marketing campaign for Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts.

Name of Campaign: #Sensational Selfie Campaign

My Main Goals: To generate worldwide awareness of Shangri-La and its dedicated worldwide customers and staff by taking a selfie with the most amount of people in 1 photo which should include hotel staff, family and friends. My other goals are to generate likes, followers and subscribers.

The audience are travelers, non-travelers, hotel-goers and non-hotel goers worldwide.

Campaign Detail:

Take a selfie with the most amount of people possible at a Shangri-La Hotel wherever you are in the world and share it on Shangri-La’s website and post it to their social media channels. The person who generates the most likes, share and subscribers will win a free trip for two to a dream Shangri-La destination of their choice.

I plan on launching this campaign early spring (March) before summer in order to start the buzz.

The platforms that I will be using is Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Snapchat.

This campaign will attract and engage our audiences by creating a buzz worldwide where Shangri-La visitors will be encouraged to take that #SensationalSelfie. 

Shangri-La Fan Pages

By: Owais Hikmat

Since, there are no official fan pages for Shangri-La, some website promote their service and amenities.

Websites like tripadvisor.com and expedia.ca provide ample information of the hotel chain like photos, reviews, prices and reservations.

Ritz-Carlton Fan Pages

By: Owais Hikmat

Since, there are no official fan pages for The Ritz-Carlton, some website promote their service and amenities.

Websites like tripadvisor.com and expedia.ca provide ample information of the hotel chain like photos, reviews, prices and reservations.

Fan Pages For Four Seasons

While there are no official fan pages for the Four Seasons hotel, some websites do promote their services.

Forbes Travel Guide - The travel section of the famous Forbes blog often post Four Season's news, updates and other information.

TripAdvisor - They post content related to Four Season bookings, real user reviews, photos etc.

There are other travel blogs that feature some of their content as well.

Fan Pages For Sheraton Toronto

There are no official fan pages for Sheraton since it is a renowned hotel chain. However, there are a few blogs that promote Sheraton's content and authentic user reviews of the hotel in toronto mechanic.

TripAdvisor Sheraton Group - Offers insight into Sheraton hotels all across the world including Toronto. In this group you can share your experience, rewards and recommendation. Official sheraton people often respond to members.

Twitter Hashtags - Some twitter hashtags like #sheraton #ilovesheraton are used by fans all across the world to celebrate their stay at the hotel.

Ritz-Carlton vs. Shangri-la on YouTube

By: Owais Hikmat

The Ritz Carlton created a unique series on YouTube and also featured on Facebook where they highlight in a cartoon format how they helped and arranged to pull off some of the amazingly memorable moments in their customers lives; including marriage proposals. Take a look here. Most of the Ritz’s YouTube videos are of highlighting their hotels and resorts and well as how the Ritz-Carlton can make your dreams come true from weddings to glass blowing experiences. The Ritz posts YouTube videos once every two weeks on average. In the description section, links to other sites are included such as;  ritzcarlton.com,  Facebook Twitter Instagram Pinterest Foursquare Google+.

Keywords include “unforgettable travel moments, world’s most treasured destinations, lake-side resorts, mountain retreats, secluded beach sanctuaries, timeless escapes, gold standard, luxury hotel and resorts and iconic city-center hotels. Ritz Carlton’s most successful recent video is “Warm Welcome to the New RitzCarlton.com where it highlights they invite you to explore their new refreshed and distinctive new website giving the unique opportunity to simply plan your next travel destination. You could reserve a room or a suite, browse through luxurious hotels and resorts as well as read stories from other travelers.

This YouTube video has 1,446 views as well as 10 likes making it Ritz-Carlton’s most recent successful post. I believe that this video was successful because it told the customer how they have made many positive changes most importantly to their website.

Shangri-la Hotels and Resorts posts several YouTube videos per week with a total of 3 videos last week and 5 videos 2 weeks ago. The content that they produce are story like short films created by Shangri-la productions. Very unique and impressive, they stress the sophistication and elegance of Shangri-la Hotels and Resorts. The description includes links to  shangri-la.com, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram Google+ Google+.

Keywords in the description area include; hospitality, embrace, welcome to Shangri-La, It's in our nature”. The most successful recent video from Shangri-La is titled “Shangri-La London – Executive Decisions where within its first 20 hours of launch from today……it has already 131 views and 1 like.

I believe that this video is successful because it is a well-crafted production and already obtained 131 views in its first 20 hours of launch.   

Ritz-Carlton vs. Shangri-La on Instagram

By: Owais Hikmat

On Instagram, Ritz-Carlton makes a great impression. They produce content that is eye-catching, interesting and relevant. They post pictures of extraordinarily exotic locations, luxurious hotel suites and relaxing getaways. Ritz-Carlton posts their captivating Instagram content multiple times daily. The description is as follows; “Our official account is a collection of your #RCMemories, celebrating travel around the globe. To learn how we may use your photo, please click below."  The title heading for Ritz is; “The Ritz-Carlton (@ritzcarlton) • Instagram photos and videos”. Hashtags included are; #LakeTahoe, #California, #Rainbow, #Adventure, #RoomWithAView, #Dubai, #LuxuryTravel, #UAE, #Poolside and #Paradise to name a few. Ritz-Carlton’s memory gallery is a compilation of photos from customers who volunteered to upload their Ritz-Carlton memories. The link that takes you to the #RCMemories page is bit.ly/1TE7ZQw. . In terms of the Ritz-Carlton, their most successful post was titled “Serendipitous #sunsets at The Ritz-Carlton, #GrandCayman.

With 2192 like and 60 comments, this sunset photo taken in the Caribbean was by far the most successful post. This post was successful due to its raw and original content of a gorgeous sunset which resonates the elements of calmness, tranquility and quality.

Shangri-la’s Instagram will have you at hello! They produce content multiple times a day that shows stunning images of world and the most exotic of locations. Shangri-La leaves a lasting mark with its Instagram channel. The title heading includes ‘Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts (@shangrilahotels) • Instagram photos and videos’. The description tag includes “Capture your most memorable Shangri-La experience on photo/video and share it with us with #MyShangrila”. Hashtags employed by Shangri-la include; #ShangrilaDestinations, #traveltheworld, #topdestinations, #ShangrilaHotels, #makemoments, #paradise, and #beautifulresorts to name a few. Shangri-la’s has a link to its own photo gallery posted by Shangri-La as well as from customers from all over the world with captivating and memorable moments that they would love to share. The link for the gallery is as follows; gallery.shangri-la.com.

In terms of Shangri-la, their most successful post areas follows “Garden by the Bay is an award-winning horticultural attraction houses over 250 thousand rare plants, and is just a five-minute walk from the city, #GardensbytheBay #Singapore”.

With 1,112 likes and 17 comments, this post taken in Singapore was a definite winner. I believe this post was successful due to the uniqueness of Singapore’s Garden by the Bay especially at night where it is truly captivating. 

Ritz-Carlton vs. Shangri-La on Twitter

By Owais Hikmat

The Ritz-Carlton tweeted mostly about enhancing customer experience with their spa in Bali, their deep tissue massage at their hotel spas and promoting social movements like #Earth Hour. However, they did maintain many retweets and customer engagement. Shangri-la tweeted about their hotel lunches and experiences, as well as an Easter egg hunt, and did highlight many exotic destinations to die for. Both brands tweet multiple times a day and maintain great consumer and fan engagement. Both brands are highly implement the 50/50 rule where they are highly engaged with their target markets and well as maintain their business and social objectives. The keyword sentences that are highlighted between both brands include; “Beautiful spa, great weekend, amazing luxurious wedding cakes, dreams come true, signature dishes, diamond retreats, a mesmerizing view and capture your dining memory”. Hashtags include #FridayFeeling, #EarthHour, # Easter, #RCMemories, #DoradoBeach, #RCReserve, #Lisbon, #relaxation and #massage.

Ritz-Carlton’s most successful tweet was on how they gave their chefs an Instagram page dedicated to their #food. They obtained 21 likes, 10 re-tweets and 3 comments.

Shangri-la’s most successful tweet was about a getaway at Yancuna Island in Fiji where they obtained 12 likes and 3 retweets.

I believe that these two posts were very successful because it showed how the brands were building connections with their customers and fans. Who doesn’t like to look at and dream about travelling to Yancuna Island in Fjiji enjoying your stay at Shangri-La’s hotel and resorts.

Ritz-Carlton vs. Shangri-la on Facebook

By: Owais Hikmat

The Ritz-Carlton makes content highlighting many exotic destinations all over the world. From undersea adventures to 8 floors high at the spa at Ritz-Carlton in Jakarta, Indonesia. They often stress how they can make your dreams come true. Shangri-la makes creative content by turning your attention to their exotic hotel destinations all over the world from Dubai to Shanghai to Mauritius. They use stunning imagery and rhetorically ask, “Image yourself here”. Both brand do a great job of using the 50/50 rule.

The keyword sentences used by Ritz-Carlton include “experience, #RCMemories, dreams come true,  #Oman and  #Maldives and so on.

Shangri-la’s most successful recent post was about their location in Paris “Just enjoying a mid-afternoon oggle. - at Shangri-La Hotel, Paris”. The post had 474 likes and loves, 24 shares and 5 comments.

The Ritz-Carlton’s most successful recent post was about Brooklyn’s Botanical garden generating more than 519 likes, 17 loves, 15 shares and 1 comment.

 

I believe that these two posts were successful because they touched many hearts the first one being about Shangri-la in Paris. Many people long to visit Paris and are reminded of the “City of Love”. The second post highlighted the blossoming of Brookyln’s cherry trees with a beautiful picture of a flower reminding everyone about spring. 

Four Seasons Toronto Social Media Study

Four Season is known for their luxury hotel chain especially in North America and Asia. In this social media case study we will look at how four seasons is interacting with their customers using social media.

Objective – To understand how Four Seasons is interacting with their followers in social media.

How Often Do They Post?

Once or twice a day on Facebook, A tweet every couple of hours on Twitter. Also, they have a dedicated twitter account for customers looking help.

Most effective Social Media Channel?

Four Seasons invests a lot of time and money in YouTube as well as Facebook. Their YouTube videos are a great way to showcase what their brand is all about. They generate the most traction in Twitter and Facebook. Their YouTube is targeted to potential new customers.

What Kind OF Content Do They Post?

Press releases, monthly specials, chef recipes, any award or mention by other news publication. Their videos give you an in-depth tour of their hotel as well as the quality of service.

Example

Giving existing and new customers a reason to visit Four Seasons  via Facebook.

Conclusion

Four Seasons focusses on getting user attention by posting something new every day. Their videos are geared towards people visiting other luxury brands and how they are different. Their twitter service is pretty impressive. I did ask them a question on twitter and got a response within 20 minutes.