How to Get More Customers as a Hotel in Australia

Introduction

Most hotels in Australia still rely on word of mouth, repeat guests, and OTA listings to fill rooms. That approach worked a decade ago. Today, it leaves money on the table.

In 2026, 97% of customers search online before choosing a local business — and hotels are no exception. Whether someone's planning a weekend getaway to the Blue Mountains, a business trip to Melbourne CBD, or a family holiday on the Gold Coast, their journey starts with a search engine. They type something like "hotels near Bondi Beach" or "best boutique hotel in Hobart" and pick from the results that show up first.

If your hotel doesn't appear in those results, you're invisible. Not because your rooms aren't great. Not because your service isn't outstanding. Simply because your digital presence isn't pulling its weight.

This guide walks you through exactly how to get more customers as a hotel in Australia — step by step, from the foundations that cost nothing to the advanced strategies that separate market leaders from everyone else. We'll cover Google Business Profile optimisation, local SEO, review generation, content strategy, AI search optimisation, and tracking. Each step builds on the last.

The average hotel booking is worth $150–$500 per night, and many guests stay multiple nights. Even one additional booking per week from better online visibility adds up to $30,000–$100,000+ in annual revenue. The maths is hard to argue with.

Let's get into it.

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TL;DR

• This is a step-by-step guide to getting more direct bookings and enquiries as a hotel in Australia.
• We cover Google Maps, reviews, your website, content marketing, and AI search visibility.
• Average hotel booking value: $150–$500 per night (often multi-night stays).
• Most of these steps cost nothing but time — though doing them properly is what separates busy hotels from empty ones.
• If you want expert help, we offer packages from $500–$2,000/month designed specifically for accommodation providers.

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Step 1: Claim and Optimise Your Google Business Profile

Your Google Business Profile (GBP) is the single most powerful free tool available to your hotel right now. When someone searches "hotel in [your suburb]," Google shows a map pack — those three listings with star ratings, photos, and a call button — before anything else on the page. If your hotel sits in that map pack, you get calls. If it doesn't, your competitors do.

Here's how to set yours up properly:

Claim your listing. Go to business.google.com and search for your hotel. If it already exists (most do), claim ownership and verify it. Google will send a postcard, call, or email to confirm you're legitimate. Don't skip verification — unverified listings rank poorly and can't be fully edited.

Complete every single field. This means your hotel name (exactly as it appears on your signage — no keyword stuffing), your full street address, phone number, website URL, business hours, check-in and check-out times, and business category. Your primary category should be "Hotel." Add secondary categories like "Boutique Hotel," "Resort Hotel," or "Extended Stay Hotel" if they apply.

Write a compelling business description. You get 750 characters. Use them. Mention your location, what makes your hotel unique, nearby attractions, and the types of guests you serve. Include natural phrases like "boutique hotel in Surry Hills" or "family-friendly accommodation near Cairns Esplanade" — these help Google understand what searches to show you for.

Upload high-quality photos. Hotels with 20+ photos on their GBP get 150% more direction requests and 100% more website clicks than those without. Upload professional shots of your rooms, lobby, pool, restaurant, views, and surrounding area. Add new photos monthly. Google rewards fresh content.

Add your services and amenities. Free WiFi, parking, pool, breakfast included, pet-friendly — list everything. These details appear in search results and help travellers make faster decisions.

Post weekly updates. Google Business Profile has a "Posts" feature that most hotels ignore entirely. Use it. Share seasonal offers, local event guides, renovation updates, or new menu items at your restaurant. Each post signals to Google that your business is active and engaged.

We've seen hotels jump from page two of the map pack to the top three within 60 days just by completing these steps thoroughly. It's foundational — and it's free.

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Step 2: Get Your Website Ranking for Local Keywords

Your Google Business Profile drives map pack visibility. Your website drives everything else — organic search rankings, direct bookings, and the credibility that makes someone choose you over a competitor.

The strategy is straightforward: create dedicated pages for every service you offer and every location you serve.

Start with your core pages. You need a well-optimised homepage that clearly states what you are, where you are, and why someone should book. Then build out individual pages for your room types — "Deluxe King Room," "Family Suite," "Ocean View Room" — each with unique descriptions, photos, pricing guidance, and a clear booking call-to-action.

Now build location pages. If you're a hotel in Sydney's Darling Harbour, you should have pages targeting phrases like:

• "Hotel near Darling Harbour"
• "Accommodation in Sydney CBD"
• "Hotels near ICC Sydney"
• "Where to stay near Sydney Fish Market"

Each page should provide genuinely useful information about the area, nearby attractions, transport options, and walking distances — then naturally position your hotel as the ideal place to stay.

Nail the technical fundamentals. Your website must load in under three seconds on mobile. Over 70% of hotel searches in Australia happen on smartphones. If your site is slow, clunky, or hard to navigate on a phone, visitors bounce — and Google notices. Use compressed images, clean code, and a reliable hosting provider.

On-page SEO matters. Every page needs a unique title tag, meta description, H1 heading, and naturally placed keywords. Don't force it. Write for humans first, search engines second. A page titled "Boutique Hotel Accommodation in Fremantle | [Your Hotel Name]" is far more effective than "Hotel Hotel Accommodation Fremantle Perth WA Book Now."

Add schema markup. This is structured data that tells Google exactly what your business is — your star rating, price range, address, and availability. Hotels with proper schema markup appear with rich results in search, including star ratings and price ranges directly in the listing. It's a genuine competitive edge that most independent hotels overlook.

If you want to understand this process in more depth, check out our complete guide to SEO for hotels and our dedicated resource on local SEO for hotels.

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Step 3: Build a Review Generation System

Reviews are currency. A hotel with 200+ Google reviews and a 4.6-star rating will outperform a hotel with 15 reviews and a 4.9-star rating almost every time. Volume builds trust, and Google uses review quantity and recency as a ranking factor.

The problem isn't that guests don't want to leave reviews. It's that nobody asks them.

When to ask: The best time is within 24 hours of checkout, while the experience is still fresh. Send an automated email or SMS thanking them for their stay and including a direct link to your Google review page. Don't send them to a generic review platform — make it one click to leave a Google review specifically.

How to ask: Keep it simple and personal. Here's a template that works:

"Hi [First Name], thanks so much for staying with us at [Hotel Name]. We hope you had a wonderful time. If you have 30 seconds, we'd really appreciate a quick Google review — it helps other travellers find us and means a lot to our team. [Direct Link]"

Make it systematic. Don't rely on front desk staff remembering to mention it. Build it into your post-checkout email sequence. If you use a property management system like Little Hotelier, ResNexus, or Cloudbeds, most integrate with review request tools.

Respond to every review. Positive reviews deserve a genuine thank you that mentions something specific about their stay. Negative reviews deserve a calm, professional response that acknowledges the issue and offers to make it right. Potential guests read your responses as carefully as they read the reviews themselves.

Never offer incentives for reviews. It violates Google's policies and can get your listing penalised. Just ask — consistently, politely, and at the right moment.

Hotels we work with typically see review volume increase by 300–400% within three months of implementing a proper system. That alone can shift your map pack ranking significantly.

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Step 4: Create Content That Attracts Customers

Content marketing isn't just for tech companies and lifestyle brands. For hotels, it's one of the most effective ways to attract organic traffic from people who are actively planning trips to your area.

Think about what your ideal guests search for before they book a hotel:

• "Best things to do in Margaret River"
• "Byron Bay itinerary 3 days"
• "Where to eat near Circular Quay"
• "Is Hobart worth visiting in winter?"

If your hotel's blog answers these questions well, you capture that traffic early in the planning process — before they've even started comparing accommodation. You become a trusted resource. And when they're ready to book, you're already top of mind.

Start with local area guides. Write detailed, genuinely helpful guides about your neighbourhood, city, or region. Cover restaurants, attractions, hidden gems, seasonal events, and practical tips like parking and public transport. These pages rank well because they target long-tail keywords with clear intent.

Build an FAQ section. Answer the questions your front desk gets asked repeatedly. "Is there parking at the hotel?" "How far is the hotel from the airport?" "Can I check in early?" Each FAQ is a search opportunity.

Create seasonal content. "Best time to visit the Great Barrier Reef," "Sydney hotels for New Year's Eve," "Winter escapes in the Blue Mountains" — these pieces attract traffic at specific times of year when booking intent is highest.

Publish consistently. Two to four pieces per month is enough. Quality matters far more than quantity. One thorough, well-researched 1,500-word guide outperforms ten thin 300-word posts every time.

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Step 5: Optimise for AI Search (GEO)

Here's what most hotels aren't thinking about yet: AI-powered search is already changing how people find accommodation.

Tools like ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google's AI Overviews, and Microsoft Copilot now answer travel questions directly. Someone asks, "What's the best boutique hotel in Adelaide for couples?" and the AI recommends specific properties. If your hotel isn't in those recommendations, you're missing a growing channel.

This is called Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO), and it's the next frontier of digital marketing for hospitality.

How to position your hotel for AI recommendations:

• Build authority. AI models pull from trusted, well-structured websites. The stronger your SEO fundamentals, the more likely you are to be cited.
• Get mentioned on third-party sites. AI models reference travel blogs, review sites, and online publications. Pitch local journalists, collaborate with travel bloggers, and maintain strong profiles on TripAdvisor, Booking.com, and niche travel sites.
• Structure your content clearly. Use headers, lists, and concise descriptions that AI can easily parse and quote.
• Be specific about what makes you different. AI recommendations favour properties with clear differentiators — "rooftop bar with harbour views," "adults-only wellness retreat," "heritage-listed building."

We've written a detailed guide on GEO for hotels if you want to go deeper on this topic.

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Step 6: Track Your Results

You can't improve what you don't measure. Once you've implemented the steps above, you need a simple tracking system to understand what's working and where to double down.

Key metrics to track monthly:

• Google Business Profile insights: How many people viewed your listing, clicked to call, requested directions, or visited your website. Google provides this data free inside your GBP dashboard.
• Website traffic: Use Google Analytics to monitor total visitors, traffic sources (organic, direct, referral), and which pages get the most visits.
• Keyword rankings: Track where you appear for your target keywords — "hotel in [suburb]," "accommodation near [landmark]," etc. Tools like SEMrush or Ahrefs work well, or we can handle this for you.
• Phone calls and form submissions: Use call tracking numbers and form submission tracking to know exactly how many enquiries come from your online presence.
• Direct bookings vs OTA bookings: The goal is to shift the ratio toward direct bookings over time, reducing the 15–25% commission you pay platforms like Booking.com and Expedia.

Review these numbers monthly. Look for trends, not single data points. SEO compounds — results build on themselves over three to twelve months.

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When to Hire a Professional

Everything in this guide is doable yourself. But "doable" and "done well" are different things — and the opportunity cost of doing it slowly or incorrectly adds up fast when each booking is worth $150–$500+ per night.

Consider doing it yourself if: You have dedicated marketing staff with SEO experience, time to publish content consistently, and the technical skills to manage website optimisation and schema markup.

Consider hiring a professional if: You're a general manager or owner wearing ten hats, your online presence hasn't been updated in over a year, or you're losing direct bookings to OTA commissions and want to shift that balance.

At MoneyNearMe, we work exclusively with Australian service businesses, including hotels and accommodation providers. Our packages run from $500 to $2,000 per month and cover everything from Google Business Profile optimisation and local SEO to content creation and GEO strategy. Every dollar you spend is aimed at driving direct bookings and reducing your reliance on third-party platforms.

We'll show you exactly where you stand, what your competitors are doing, and where the biggest opportunities are. No obligation, no fluff.

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Frequently Asked Questions

How can hotels get more customers online?

Optimise your Google Business Profile, build a website that ranks for local search terms, generate consistent reviews, and create helpful content about your area.

What's the fastest way to get more calls as a hotel?

Claim and fully optimise your Google Business Profile. Most hotels see increased calls within 30–60 days of doing this properly.

How much should I spend on marketing as a hotel?

Most independent hotels should allocate 3–7% of revenue to marketing. For digital-specific efforts, $500–$2,000 per month delivers strong returns.

Is Google Ads or SEO better for hotels?

Both work. Google Ads delivers immediate visibility; SEO builds compounding long-term traffic. The best strategy combines both, starting with SEO foundations.

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Ready to fill more rooms without paying OTA commissions? Talk to our team about a tailored strategy for your hotel →