Pre-arrival communication is one of the most overlooked yet powerful stages of the hotel guest experience.
When done right, it builds anticipation, sets the tone, and boosts revenue. But when handled poorly (a.k.a, falling for the common pre-arrival communication mistakes)? It creates confusion, unmet expectations, and missed opportunities.
Hotel marketing managers often focus on big-picture campaigns, but it’s the small details, like when and how you message your guests, that can make or break their stay.
In this article, we’ll walk you through the most common pre-arrival messaging errors that hotels make, and show you how to fix them to improve your guest communication strategy.
Timing matters more than most hotels realise. One of the most common pre-arrival communication mistakes is sending offers or arrival information either far too early or frustratingly late.
Here’s what usually happens:
- When it’s too early: The moment a guest books a stay, hotels rush to push upgrades, add-ons, or offers. But at that point, the guest has likely just committed to a budget – their wallet is closed. Bombarding them with extras straight after booking not only feels pushy but often gets ignored.
- When it’s too late: On the flip side, waiting until the day of arrival is too late. Imagine your guest is at the airport or juggling bags at reception, that’s not the time they want to read about breakfast packages or spa discounts.
The sweet spot? Around three to four days before arrival, when guests are mentally preparing for the trip and often reopening their wallets for convenience or added comfort.
This is when pre-arrival guest messaging is most effective. Use this window to offer upgrades, share check-in details, or provide personalised hotel messaging suggestions.
One common reason guests feel disappointed, even before they arrive, is because what they were shown or told doesn’t match reality. This often starts during the booking process but is made worse when it’s not clarified or corrected during pre-arrival communication.
Here are a few examples of this:
- When the room listing includes a photo of a sea view, even though the guest booked a standard room that faces a courtyard or an alley. If this isn’t clarified before the stay, the guest arrives expecting something they were never going to get, and that disconnect can harm the entire hotel guest experience.
- Showcasing amenities like a rooftop pool or restaurant without mentioning they’re only available during certain seasons. A guest might be looking forward to a swim, only to find the pool is closed for winter. Even if the closure is mentioned somewhere in small print, the lack of clear, timely communication leaves a bad impression.
To avoid this, it’s important to keep room descriptions and images up to date and aligned with what the guest has actually booked. Pre-arrival communication offers a valuable chance to manage expectations and clarify anything that might not have been obvious during booking.
If a facility is temporarily unavailable or if the room type lacks certain features shown in your promotional materials, it’s better to mention it upfront rather than risk disappointment on arrival. A solid guest communication strategy can proactively manage these expectations.
Wondering why guests don’t come back as much as you would like them to? Read about these common mistakes
Another mistake that hurts hotel guest experience is sending the wrong kind of offers, or sending the same offer to everyone.
For example, imagine a guest travelling for business receiving a pre-arrival message promoting a romantic dinner package. Or a family staying for one night gets a long list of add-ons that don’t apply to their short visit. Even if the message is well designed, it ends up feeling irrelevant, or worse, out of touch.
This often happens because guest data is scattered across different systems, like the PMS, booking engine, or email platform, with no clear connection between them.
Without a complete picture of who the guest is and what they need, it’s easy to fall into the trap of sending generic, one-size-fits-all messages.
How to fix this? Get a system that can centralise all your data, like a hospitality CRM. It will provide you with complete guest profiles and connected data. Then, it becomes easier to understand preferences, past behaviours, and stay in context. This allows you to send relevant, timely offers that actually add value to the guest’s experience.
Discover more ways to craft pre-arrival offers that help you stand out.
It’s not just about using more than one channel for your communication; it’s about using them in the right way.
For instance, sending a long-form message on SMS or ignoring WhatsApp for guests who’ve already engaged there can create friction. This isn’t just about variety, it’s about relevance.
Guests, especially younger travellers like Gen Z, are far more likely to read and respond to instant messages on platforms like WhatsApp or SMS.
These channels feel more direct, more immediate, and often more convenient, but if you send a huge text message, not only will it cost you more, but you will lose the guests’ attention.
So, it’s all about choosing the right channel for the right message and the right moment. Watch this video to learn more about when to use each channel:
If your hotel attracts bleisure guests, here are 5 ways to connect with them more effectively.
Yours Truly Hotel, part of TheNew Group, understood that not all guests should be treated the same. By partnering with Bookboost, they introduced a smarter approach to pre-arrival communication by addressing each guest differently depending on how many times they had stayed at the hotel.
A first-time visitor receives a different message compared to a frequent guest, a small change that makes a big difference in how valued guests feel. With Bookboost, they were able to automate this process and scale their hotel messaging personalisation while saving time for the team. As a result, they saw a clear improvement in hotel guest experience, guest satisfaction and loyalty.
Explore the full story here to learn more guest communication tips.
- Sending messages too early or too late
- Creating false or misleading expectations
- Using irrelevant or generic offers
- Choosing the wrong channel for the message and moment
Want more content like this right in your inbox? Get it monthly via More Than Bookings, a hospitality newsletter that cuts through the noise and gives you the advice you need. Subscribe today!
Are you ready to increase your revenue and build lasting guest relationships? Take the first step today.
