Facebook and Pinterest for your accommodation: beyond Instagram

Facebook reaches your regular guests and Pinterest brings new bookers in the planning phase. Two different roles, two different ways of working, and both less demanding than maintaining Instagram daily.

The problem

Say you have 6 rooms and you hear everywhere that you "need to be on social media." So you open Instagram, posted like crazy for two weeks, then summer came and you stopped. Sound familiar?

The misunderstanding is that social media is one thing you do everywhere at once. It's not. Each platform has a different audience and purpose. Instagram is strong for mood and younger travelers, and how to do it without posting daily is in Instagram strategy for small hotels. LinkedIn works for business guests and partnerships, covered in LinkedIn as a hotel owner.

This article is about the two platforms that for small accommodations usually deliver the most with the least effort: Facebook and Pinterest. Not because they're trendy, but because they reach exactly the guest you want: the weekend booker aged 45 to 65 and the traveler planning now, weeks before booking.

Facebook and Pinterest are fundamentally different. Facebook is a social network: people see what friends and followed pages post. Pinterest is a visual search engine: people actively search for ideas. That difference determines how you use both.

Why look beyond Instagram? Not because Instagram is bad, but because it only serves one audience. For an accommodation attracting 50-plus weekend guests, a large part of those people aren't checking Instagram daily anymore. They're on Facebook, in local groups, and they plan their next trip via Pinterest or just Google. Anyone betting only on Instagram misses exactly the guest who books most. Adding two well-chosen platforms means your effort reaches people who actually book.

Example calculation

The difference between the two isn't just time, it's what you get back. This table puts them side by side so you see where your effort lands.

What this means: Facebook keeps warm what you already have. Pinterest opens a new door. A pin that scores well on "romantic B&B Veluwe" can still send bookers to your site a year later, while a Facebook post is gone after three days. That's why Pinterest is so strong for travel inspiration: it's the only place where people save your photo while they're still dreaming about their next trip.

Calculate it for a concrete scenario. Say you add 5 search-focused pins to Pinterest each month, an hour's work. After six months you have 30 pins each staying findable for months. If a handful appear regularly in search results, that delivers steady visitors without you doing anything more. On Facebook the math is different: 30 minutes per week keeps you visible to people you know, but it stops the moment you do. One channel builds inventory, the other maintains a relationship. Both valuable, but you need to know which effect to expect from which platform.

Action plan

1. Set up your Facebook business page properly. Not a personal profile but a business page. Fill out the About section completely: address, phone, a "Book Now" button linking to your own site (not Booking). Add 8 to 12 good photos of rooms, breakfast, and surroundings.
2. Join local Facebook groups. Search for groups around your region and hiking or cycling nearby. People there are planning stays. Reply helpfully, don't just advertise. One good tip in a group does more than ten posts on your own page.
3. Create a Pinterest business account. A business account (free) gives you statistics and the ability to link your website. Verify your site so every pin automatically shows your brand.
4. Build 4 to 6 boards around search terms. A board is a collection of pins on a theme. Think "Weekend getaway Friesland," "Bike routes from our B&B," "Romantic overnight stays Northern Netherlands." Use words guests actually type, because that's how Pinterest finds you.
5. Create vertical pins with links. Use portrait photos (2 to 3 ratio). Write a title and description with your search term in it. Link each pin to the right page on your site, like the room page or a blog about the area.
6. Plan a rhythm you'll stick to. Facebook once a week, Pinterest a few new pins per month. Lock it into a content calendar so it doesn't depend on your mood or busyness. How to create a content calendar you actually keep is in a content calendar you'll actually follow.

Common mistakes

• Treat Pinterest like Instagram. Pretty mood photos without search-focused titles disappear. Pinterest is a search engine: without the right words in title and description you won't be found, no matter how beautiful the photo.
• On Facebook push only your offers. People don't follow billboards. Mix it with tips about the area, a village event, or a breakfast photo. Booking follows trust, not the tenth discount post.
• Link the pin to your homepage instead of the relevant page. Someone who saves a pin about bike routes wants to land on your bike route page, not a general homepage. Always link to the page that fits the pin.
• Try to do all platforms at once. Maintaining two platforms well beats five platforms half. Choose based on your guest and leave the rest alone.
• Use a personal Facebook profile instead of a business page. A profile has a friend limit, no stats, and no booking button. A business page is free and belongs on an accommodation.

What you can do now

Start not with "I must be everywhere" but with the question: where is my guest and in what phase? If they book weekends and are 50-plus, Facebook is your warm channel. If they're planning weeks ahead and looking for inspiration, Pinterest opens new bookers. For most small B&Bs and accommodations these two together are the smartest choice.

A concrete first week looks like this. Day one: set up your Facebook business page right and check the booking button. Day two: join two local groups around your region. Day three: create your Pinterest business account and link your site. Day four: build three boards around search terms your guests type. Day five: make your first five vertical pins with links to the right pages. Then you're on maintenance mode of 30 minutes per week Facebook and an hour per month Pinterest. No more, because you won't stick with more alongside running your accommodation anyway.

Want to see the bigger picture, with all platforms and how they fit together? Read the overarching social media strategy for your accommodation. There you'll also find the trade off between Instagram, LinkedIn, and these two.

Before you start posting it's smart to know what direct bookings are worth compared to platform bookings. Calculate that in the savings calculator so you know why every click to your own site counts.

Rather not figure out which platforms fit your accommodation and how to set them up without living in them daily? We'll tackle that together at marketing for hotels.