Hospitality Sellers Can’t Afford to Sleep on LinkedIn in 2024: Your Pipeline Needs You to Wake Up
For hospitality sellers, LinkedIn isn’t a “nice-to-have”; it’s the #1 tool you need to build a robust pipeline. If you’re not leveraging it daily, you’re leaving opportunities on the table.
Who says?
The stats don't lie - and if you are a hospitality seller or sell into hospitality (hospitality tech/supply provider) I'm about to shed some light on what you may be missing out on.
Who is this Chick?
Hi. I'm Celeste and weekly, I'll be publishing a newsletter JUST for hospitality / hospitality tech sellers. This is my background. I come up through Association Management, a Director of Sales, Regional Director of Sales and hold a Master's in Tourism Administration. I now support hotel sellers and provide robust training through the Gap Selling Methodology for hospitality tech companies. I've also won a ton of awards, and blah, blah, blah. So that's my street cred. Follow along if you want to win more business.
Wake Up Call: Why LinkedIn is Your Secret Weapon
Let’s be real: the days of relying solely on prospects calling directly to your hotel or inquiring through your website are long gone. It's circa 2028 all over again when teams had to double down on prospecting. EXCEPT - the prospecting game has changed. You cannot send emails and think that they will get read. In fact, only about 2-3% of outbound is read. Most of the time - it is spam.
And if you are talking all about your features or your new renovation or the latest and greatest tech tool your company sells to help hoteliers gain visibility. You may as well be throwing a penny into a wishing well and wishing.
Don Barnett Director of Sales and Marketing at London House Chicago, has been leading the charge on using LinkedIn to build meaningful connections and drive business. In his own words, LinkedIn isn’t about selling; it’s about creating value, sharing stories, and staying top of mind with your audience.
Barnett’s journey began with something as simple as a bingo contest—a creative way to engage clients and build his personal brand before LinkedIn was even on the scene. Fast forward to today, and his posts aren’t just getting likes; they’re generating serious business leads, including a $40,000 group booking for 2025, all because of the relationships he’s nurtured on LinkedIn.
And it's not just Don. Others are doing it too - you just don't know HOW to YET.
How to Get Started: No More Excuses
Many hospitality sellers hesitate to dive into LinkedIn because they don’t know where to start or think they don’t have the time...or that others will judge you.
No one is judging you as harshly as you are judging yourself and secondly, the more you put it off, the more opportunity your competitor has to reach your prospects and top accounts.
I'm not talking quick wins here, I'm talking a marathon. You put in the repetitions and IT WILL PAY OFF.
How do I know?
Because teams I work with send messages like this! Plus, their stats (views, where they show up and engagement) are KPIS that VPS can ask for to see if teams are active on the platform!
A Word of Caution
Don emphasizes, this platform isn’t about quick wins; it’s about consistency and showing up every day. Treat LinkedIn as a mini part-time job, spending just 30 minutes a day engaging with posts, sharing valuable content, and building your brand.
Here’s how to get started:
- Optimize Your Profile: This is your digital first impression.
- Make sure your LinkedIn banner is branded - and you are using the real estate with a call to action.
- Your LinkedIn headline is the #1 viewed area of your profile. Use all 220 characters - build your credibility, expertise, and shows how you can help. Long gone are the days of Title at Company. LinkedIn is driven by keywords. The more keywords you have that your prospect searches for, the more times you show up!
Remember, our buyers use social media too and if your first impression isn't a good one for your connection/profile - they are moving on! See the stats below of over 2900 respondents.
The Cost Inaction: Future Customers
What’s the cost of inaction of not being on LinkedIn? For Don, it's thousands of dollars in missed opportunity - that which he cannot afford to miss. It's not just about likes and comments; it’s about the connections that quietly convert into business deals. The guy who never liked your post might be the one who books a group rate because he saw your content three weeks ago.
LinkedIn is about playing the long game, and the results speak for themselves.
But you have to start and stay consistent to see the results.
Call to Action: Take the First Step Today
Start by optimizing your profile. Simple as that. Crawl, Walk then Run.