Influencer Marketing for Hotels: The Bold Strategy That Led to 93% Direct Bookings at ReTreet Resort
Okay, I’m just going to stay it… “Stop throwing money at ads that don’t tell your story.”
That’s what I told myself when I made one of the riskiest decisions of my marketing career: pulling the entire PPC budget for ReTreet Resort & Spa and going all-in on influencer marketing.
Sounds reckless, right? But in a hospitality landscape dominated by OTA fees, ad fatigue, and booking guesswork, it was the smartest move we could have made. And it paid off by driving 93% of our bookings directly.
In a recent episode of Foundry Talks with Rachel Stojanovski, I broke down the exact playbook I used. You can listen here or grab the full strategy in my free eBook (link at the end).
But if you want the quick story? Here it is.
The Industry's Digital Ad Hangover
Here’s the current mood in the boutique hotel world:
OTA dependency feels like a necessary evil.
Digital ads are getting more expensive, less effective.
Authentic connection with guests? Lost somewhere between “Book Now” buttons and remarketing pixels.
Most hotel GMs and Directors of Sales & Marketing I talk to are tired. Tired of generic campaigns. Tired of chasing metrics that don’t move the bottom line. Tired of burning through budgets without building a brand.
But influencer marketing for hotels isn’t the trendy gimmick it used to be. When done right, it’s a system. A high-conversion, relationship-driven growth engine.
From Construction Dust to Sold-Out Weekends
When I joined ReTreet Resort, we were still under construction. Just six polished treehouses. No TripAdvisor reviews. No “book now” urgency.
What we did have?
A vision
A mission to build something that felt different
And a willingness to tell the story before the doors even opened
So we started updating platforms with progress photos. Sharing our buildout on social media. Partnering with influencers who could tell the story with us—people who loved nature, quiet luxury, and weekend getaways.
And we made a crucial decision: we wouldn’t work with any creator who didn’t genuinely love the property.
Why? Because influencer marketing for hotels only works when the experience is real. And ReTreet is real.
Guest Reviews Became Brand Assets
We stopped treating reviews like checkboxes.
Instead, we pulled guest feedback into our marketing system:
Reposting guest content in real-time
Creating review roundups as social proof
Using direct quotes in our email campaigns and influencer pitches
The goal? Not just more reviews, but the right kind of reviews — authentic, descriptive, emotionally resonant.
A Repeatable System Any Boutique Hotel Can Build
Let’s get something straight:
I’m not anti-ads. But when your budget is $30K a year like mine was? Every dollar needs a job.
So instead of burning that budget on cold traffic, I:
Developed a network of aligned creators
Built trackable links for every post and promo
Created tiered incentives tied to engagement and bookings
Measured real ROI: who clicked, who converted, who returned
That’s influencer marketing for hotels—not as a hope-filled experiment, but as a conversion channel.
