The Inbox Is The New Lobby

— Why Most Hotels Lose Me Before I Arrive

Full of pride, I actually started planning a trip in advance— which in my world means a whole three weeks. Olympic-level foresight! Very unlike me. Normally I only think about booking a week before. But when the idea pops up, I go all in — ADHD-style, diving headfirst down the hotel rabbit hole.

The sign-up scavenger hunt

The problem? My goldfish attention span won’t remember which hotels I liked. So the only way to keep them on my radar is to subscribe to their newsletters. Which sounds simple. Except it isn’t.

Most hotels make you dig through the footer to even find the sign-up. Meanwhile, their social media icons are proudly in the header, cheerfully sending you off to platforms that are designed to distract you from booking. It’s like setting up a bar in your lobby that serves free shots to anyone who walks in — and wondering why no one makes it to reception.

The silence after the hello

And if you do manage to sign up? Crickets. No confirmation, no welcome mail. Technically illegal under GDPR, but more importantly: just plain rude. It feels like walking into a lobby, saying “hello,” handing over your card — and having it shoved at a pimpled teenager mumbling “whatever” without looking up from his phone.

And then these same hotels wonder why their Christmas promo goes straight to spam. Of course it does. I don’t know who you are anymore. Neither does Gmail. You’ve trained us both to ignore you.

The 1% who get it

But the rare ones — the 1% who get it — send a proper welcome. Their newsletter actually lets me into their world. It makes me curious, makes me feel like an insider, makes me think: I’ve got to be there. That’s when I’ll book, even if it’s over budget.

Hospitality begins long before the lobby. It begins in the inbox. If the inbox is the new lobby, what first impression are you giving your guests?

Liked this? Get the Booking Detox — a free 5-point mini audit (en français !) + one free 15-minute mini-audit slot to help your hotel stop ghosting guests and start converting emails into bookings.

Liked this?

a free 5-point mini audit (en français!) + one free 15-minute mini-audit slot to help your hotel stop ghosting guests and start converting emails into bookings.