July 23, 2021
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Let’s face it. Regardless of what kind of tourism services you offer, you’re always looking to increase bookings. Unless you offer an activity or attraction that sells out every single day, you know there’s room to improve. When was the last time you revisited your marketing strategies? In the competitive world of tour marketing, you’ll need to do more than you ever have before to stand out from the crowd. Traditional approaches just won’t cut it anymore. To succeed in 2021, you’ll need a comprehensive strategy that touches on marketing tactics across the spectrum, from online sales to in-person connections.
Let’s explore some of the best marketing strategies to increase tour bookings.
Think about what you’re really selling. On the surface, this might seem simple: city tours, skydiving, whale watching. To hone your marketing strategy, you need to dig a bit deeper.
When people turn to your tour or activity, it’s because they’re looking for a particular experience. You’re not selling an item or even a service — you’re selling an experience.
To more effectively sell your experiences, you need to get back to the drawing board. Ask yourself a few questions:
Once you’ve narrowed down this ideal customer — and what they’re looking for — you need to use the right language to draw them in.
For example, a tour that appeals to children might speak more to the educational benefits or entertainment value. This goes beyond just the words on the page and into the design as well — brighter, more colorful photos and family-friendly language.
An attraction that appeals to those looking for an adventure, like rock climbing or a paranormal tour, might lean more into bolder language and eye-catching photos.
Every part of the way you approach your marketing materials should be informed by your audience. Think about what they want to see, feel, and experience. Then, reflect that in everything you do.
There’s still a lot to be said about old-school booking through phone and email. But these days, the vast majority of your customers will be turning online to book tours and attractions.
The online travel market was estimated at a worth of about $765 million in 2017. By 2026, it’s estimated to hit $1.9 billion.
That means it’s more important than ever to be able to accept online bookings. The good news is: You don’t need the coding skills or technical know-how to create a smooth booking process on your website. The right online booking software can help take your customers from viewing your marketing materials to booking your services, as quickly as possible.
To reach new corners of the Internet and cement your status as a reliable tourism company, you need to be investing in content marketing. By providing free content in the form of blog articles, you can become a reliable source of information about the tourism world that people will return to again and again.
This doesn’t just create trust in your brand and prove your industry knowledge. It also helps you rank in search engines and gives you fresh content to post on social media channels.
Think about common questions that people might have about your tours and activities, the industry as a whole, or the city they’re looking to visit. Whether it’s tips, tutorials, resources, or news articles, valuable content can help you boost your reach and get more tour bookings.
When booking travel, 89% of millennials look towards content posted by their peers. This means that reviews are more important than ever. Good reviews can influence purchasing decisions. Even just a handful of bad reviews, however, can have the opposite effect.
To polish your online presence, encourage happy customers to leave you a review on different sites.
You can also make use of social media posts and reviews to build your reputation. If your customers are posting pictures of your tour or attraction to Instagram or Facebook — repost it. This not only rewards your loyal customer for sharing, but it also puts this content in front of new eyes, who might now be more likely to follow through on booking.
As important as it is to invest in online outreach, in-person marketing is still an effective way to reach a new audience. Try to meet your customers where they’re at — physically.
A great way to connect with customers is to create strategic partnerships with other companies in the industry. For example, you could partner with a local hotel or hostel to advertise your services, or even offer customers discounted rooms with your tour packages.
It might feel like forums are a thing of the past, but online discussion forums are still booming in the travel industry. Thousands of travelers turn to these forums to answer their burning questions or research the place they’re visiting.
This is a great opportunity to establish a presence. Hand out industry tips, give travelers advice, answer their questions — and you might just get a new customer or two.
Many forums have rules against advertising, so don’t go over the top with constant promotion. Just putting links to your tour business in your signature and profile page is enough. As long as you’re acting as a valuable resource and making genuine connections with new travelers, you can naturally draw new people to what you offer.
In today’s oversaturated online market, it isn’t easy to compete. No matter how engaging your attraction is, it’s hard to gain ground if you aren’t putting your business in front of new eyes every day.
These marketing hacks can help you establish a solid, reputable presence online. Increasing the visibility of your tour business through proper branding, outreach, and networking will help you reach new corners of the world.
Once you’ve got their attention, it’s time to keep them there. To increase conversion and ensure more bookings, you need a smooth and seamless online booking platform. At Junglebee, we integrate directly onto your website to walk your customers step-by-step through the reservation process. To learn more about what sets us apart, schedule a 30-minute discovery call with our team!
