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6 Marketing Challenges in the Travel Industry Today

If it seems like everyone around you has been feeling the adventure itch lately, they’re in good company: More than 90% of Americans are planning to travel this year, with nearly one in three intending to venture abroad. After the total number of trips taken by US travelers decreased by 33% in 2020 , that number has steadily increased and is forecast to continue to grow in the coming years. And, spending in the travel industry reflects this trend. Despite economic uncertainty and the lasting impacts of the pandemic, the travel industry is returning to pre-pandemic levels and experiencing steady growth.

Still, airlines, hotels, restaurants, and other travel businesses across the world are facing unique challenges. From shifting consumer habits to rapidly evolving technologies, there’s a lot for travel marketing teams to juggle. Below, we outline six marketing challenges in the travel industry today as well as the strategies teams can use to address them. Ready? Let’s dive in.

1. Price is top-of-mind

Inflation peaked in June 2022 , and while the costs of consumer goods were skyrocketing, so too were travel expenses. In fact, they were increasing even more . As a result, vacationers in 2022 identified price as the most important consideration when selecting their travel providers. With prices remaining higher today than pre-pandemic, most travelers will continue to look at the price tag first, and everything else second.

To address this, travel marketers can lean into messaging that emphasizes low rates and highlights value. For example, ads should draw attention to discounts and bundling whenever possible. Loyalty programs should also be front-and center, with 72% of travelers reporting that a great loyalty program improves their opinion of a travel brand. By crafting ads that highlight value and low rates, travel marketers can speak directly to the factors that are most relevant to consumers.

2. Consumer habits are shifting

From the explosion of remote work, to the renewed focus on health and sustainability, to increased digital engagement, to a heightened sense of budget-consciousness, many of the shifts in consumer behavior that took hold during the first couple of years of the pandemic are still with us today. And while they’ve impacted all industries, they’ve had an outsized impact on travel and tourism.

For example, thanks to the number of people who now work from home, a new audience segment has emerged: bleisure travelers , or people who travel for a combination of business and leisure. This new category of travelers is substantial, and on track to overtake the category of traditional business travelers. And of course, the same marketing strategies that work for people traveling exclusively for either business or pleasure won’t be as effective with this new group.

Marketing teams must commit to tracking shifts like these and adjusting their strategies accordingly. This could be by leveraging a customer relationship management (CRM) platform to collect, organize, and research customer data; using machine learning technology to analyze first-party data and identify patterns, trends, and other insights; or by investing in a researcher (or team of researchers) to organize and dig into existing data so it can be used effectively. Regardless of which method(s) they use, marketers must consider the unique wants and needs of these new and emerging groups and adapt their campaigns to meet those needs.

Which leads us to our next challenge…       

3. There’s a heightened demand for personalization

While personalization in digital marketing has become a must-have for all industries, it’s particularly impactful for travel and tourism brands. In fact, 86% of travelers say they’re looking for personalization during their travel experiences and interactions. And personalization isn’t just a trend on the marketing side—businesses are leaning into it to improve product and service experiences as well.

Delta Airlines, for instance,  uses personalization technology to deliver personalized in-flight entertainment, onboard amenities, and more to customers. Hilton also leverages customer data—specifically, data obtained through their HHonors loyalty program—to provide a more intimate and individualized customer experience.

Marketers should personalize the experiences they curate for consumers to complement personalization on the product and services side. For example, a hotel brand might craft one variation of ad creative that emphasizes amenities that would appeal to families, and another that’s geared toward solo travelers. Or, a tourism company that offers immersive local experiences might target audiences 21+ with creative that features alcoholic beverages.    

Capturing audience information and leveraging it, however, are two different things entirely. Brands need systems to both collect this data and connect it to their CRM platforms to create personalized advertising experiences. The challenge? Many marketing teams today use a variety of point solutions to navigate the complexity of the digital media landscape. And, as a result, many travel marketing teams struggle with poor data quality and a lack of data consolidation .

There are a variety of ways to address this, from upping your team’s number of data analysts, to investing in tech like universal reporting system s and customer data platforms (CDPs) . Marketing teams with robust and secure systems for gathering, storing, and making the most of customer data will be well-positioned to create meaningful and personalized campaigns.

4. Marketing teams need to connect with travelers at every step of their journey

Remember when we mentioned that consumer habits are shifting? One of the reasons that travel marketers need to keep a pulse on these shifts is so they can connect with their target audiences throughout their entire customer journey. By first identifying key shifts in consumer behavior, travel brands can ensure that audiences are seeing the right messages at the right time.

What might this look like in practice? Well, a brand focused on vacation air travelers might focus on Instagram and Facebook to build awareness of their products and services, since these travelers often look for inspiration on social media. By leveraging an omnichannel advertising platform, teams could then retarget these prospective travelers via paid search or native ads as they move from awareness towards consideration and purchasing.

Or, a travel company targeting road trippers might focus on connected TV (CTV) and other digital video channels during early stages of the customer journey, as well as roadside digital out-of-home (DOOH) billboards, since these travelers watch a lot of online videos and spend a significant amount of time on the road. With retargeting, advertising teams can then place additional, personalized ads across digital channels like audio (for the drivers listening to their favorite music and podcasts) and social media (for the passengers posting photo dumps of their travels) to move these customers further down the funnel. By both leaning into current consumer trends and thinking holistically about their path to purchase, travel brands can make meaningful connections with travelers throughout their individual journeys.

5. Brands must keep up with new technologies to stay relevant 

Technology is constantly evolving. Consider the fact that, back in 2010, hotel and airline apps were just getting started, yet now they are an integral part of most travelers’ experiences. For travel marketers, there is a constant need to keep up with the latest innovations to ensure great experiences for target audiences and current customers.  

First and foremost, travel companies need to ensure their customer-facing technology ensures a great experience. When traveling (or planning for travel), many customers look for flexibility and efficiency in the booking process. And, in 2022, nearly twice as many travelers chose to book directly with a provider online than through an online travel aggregator. For brands, this means that leaning into innovations in technology will help with both garnering new customers and retaining existing ones. At the very least, your digital presence must ensure a good customer experience: When prospective customers see an ad for your company but encounter overly-complex or faulty tech when they click on it (i.e., their click brings them to a “page not found” error on your website or to a hard-to-navigate app), that experience can have negative impacts on conversions, not to mention customer loyalty.

Additionally, travel companies should take advantage of emerging technologies to maintain a competitive edge. One prominent example of a new(er) technology that travel businesses can embrace is dynamic pricing. Airlines and hotels can use factors such as time of year, day of the week, and corporate versus leisure travelers to estimate the right price point to drive conversions. Using technology backed by artificial intelligence, it’s possible to make these adjustments based on daily changes in market demand. Some pricing engines have the power to update fares as often as every 15 seconds, and businesses are starting to see the huge difference this makes in bookings. 

Though this new technology can result in significant benefits for travel companies, it can also present distinct challenges. To use dynamic pricing requires much more than just investing in the tech: Businesses must also rework their data management processes, including integrating CRM and revenue analytics. And, this can be made even more difficult if customer data is messy or has not been consolidated to a single interface—another reason why it’s so important for travel and tourism brands to prioritize data quality and consolidation.  

6. Sustainability is of increasing importance to travelers 

In the wake of the pandemic, more and more travelers are looking for environmentally sustainable travel options. This can prove to be both a challenge and an opportunity for travel brands and companies. In 2022, these were some of the top sustainability practices vacationers expected from travel providers:

• Reducing plastic waste
• Reducing food waste
• Reducing pollution
• Reducing water waste
• Reducing carbon emissions

And while it’s true that marketing teams may not have much say in their company’s larger sustainability initiatives, there are ways they can prioritize the environment through their advertising practices.     

First and foremost, marketing teams should avoid greenwashing at all costs. Making sustainability claims that your brand can’t back up is inauthentic and diminishes consumer trust in your company. And, these damages often extend beyond tarnishing a brand’s reputation: Making false or misleading claims can negatively impact customers’ experiences with the products or services you provide.

Additionally, there are strategies that digital advertising teams can use to help minimize their carbon footprint . One such strategy is to focus on attention metrics and eliminate impressions below a certain threshold. Since anywhere from 30% to 40% of online ads are “ not ultimately viewed by consumers ,” focusing on attention metrics can help advertisers reduce unnecessary emissions from these unseen (or sparsely viewed) ads. Another way that teams can help reduce their carbon emissions by streamlining their internal processes to reduce the amount of computing power needed for a typical campaign workflow. Rather than using many point solutions, consolidating to a single, automated platform for every step of the campaign can help advertising teams further minimize their environmental impact (and make their lives simpler, to boot!).

By leaning into sustainability, even in ways that may not be immediately apparent to consumers, travel and tourism brands can back up authentic statements about their commitment to the environment—and in doing so, match their consumers’ values.

Marketing Challenges in The Travel Industry: Next Steps

It’s clear that travel and tourism marketers are facing a variety of demands. To meet the needs of today’s travelers, they need to be flexible and intentional, consider the entire customer journey, lean into personalization, emphasize their value in an authentic way, and adapt to innovations in technology. It’s a lot, but hey—so is making all the arrangements for a memorable getaway!   —

Speaking of innovations in technology, advertising automation is a powerful tool for simplifying the campaign process and improving performance. It consolidates disparate point solutions into a single platform, empowers teams to make data-driven decisions through a comprehensive analytics dashboard, and allows for a simplified billing and reconciliation process.

Interested in learning more about how advertising automation can help travel brands reduce manual labor and spend more time meeting the complexities of today? Check out our guide, Meeting the Moment with Advertising Automation , for everything you need to know.

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11 min read

7 tourism marketing challenges and how to overcome them.

By: Susan Finch on May 10, 2021

The travel business is getting back on track as the United States recovers from the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic . 

In 2021, 88% of consumers planned to travel, and 39% said their next vacation would be at least a week, according to research from Expedia and HomeToGo.

So, while the industry comes back to life, travel companies will want to ensure they're top of mind for their target audiences.

How do you stand out in a crowded marketplace with so many travel choices?

The answer lies in how you market your offerings, from your Unique Selling Proposition (USP) all the way to your overarching brand strategy.

Here's an overview of seven travel and tourism marketing challenges and how to overcome them.

Types of Tourism Businesses and Their Marketing Challenges

Here are the main challenges for tourism businesses. We'll go over proposed solutions to these challenges in the following section.

Accommodations

Key challenges: catering to niche groups.

Hotels, resorts, and vacation communities catering to small, niche groups need channels to market themselves accordingly.

For example, Travel and Leisure's top-rated Maui resort  Hotel Wailea offers an oasis from beach-crowded hotels.

As an adult-only resort, the hotel needed to focus on catering to a niche, adult-only crowd eager for a kid-free environment.

The hotel also wanted to find ways to engage guests and create an independent spirit to help brand the resort. This presented a challenge since Hawaii is typically known for family vacations.

Transportation

Key challenges: enhancing the customer experience.

Airlines aren’t exactly known for focusing on passenger comfort - in fact, their profitability has largely been at the peril of passenger comfort.

But when revenues are determined by how many flights and seats they can fill, adding more seats is often the answer to increasing profits.

Not to mention the added concerns around flying following the COVID-19 pandemic.

Airlines have a challenge of finding tourism marketing solutions to earn new customers while finding new ways to create comfort and enhance the passenger experience.

Retail Travel Agents

Key challenges: too many choices.

Today’s travelers have endless options for researching, planning, and booking travel, from online booking engines to travel blogs.

And although reports show Millennials are relying on travel agents in record numbers, there is still an issue of wading through the endless choices among both travel agents, as well as online resources.

Millennials are seeking experiential travel that transforms the way they take a vacation, making it difficult for agents to convey those experiences.

Tour Operators

Key challenges: market shifts.

More users aren’t just looking for on-site WiFi and amenities in their transportation options; they want the customer experience to start online.

According to an interview with James River Transportation in LCT Magazine , only 5% of their charter bus tour and operation sales came from the Internet 10 years ago.

But at the moment, 60% of their reservation requests are either quotes that get converted or requested through online sales, which is an enormous increase.

But it's not just current travelers seeking a user experience that starts with a first online touch point. Tour operators also see a rapid shift in the long-term tour market as fewer Millennials and Generation X individuals take tours.

Shopping Centers and Retail / Souvenir Shops

Key challenges: off-season slump.

Retail centers and souvenir shops located within tourist destinations face the challenge of dipping sales and foot traffic during tourism slumps.

And the shopping slump extends beyond tourist destinations.

Retail giant Burberry attributed a recent wave of disappointing sales to a drop in tourist spending. Smaller shops and souvenir shops face Burberry’s fate at the end of every tourist season if they don't strategize and put a travel and tourism marketing plan in place.

Restaurants

Key challenges: staying top of mind.

A well-foot-trafficked area in a tourist destination already has a built-in presence and ability to stay on top of mind.

But restaurants and eateries struggling to stay current in a sea of food options or that are off the beaten path are tasked with a daunting feat.

Aside from continuous discounts and promotions, restaurants must look towards innovative tourism marketing solutions to attract a steady flow of customers.

Museums, Temples, Gardens, and Theme parks

Key challenges: attracting changing demographic.

Major attractions like museums , temples, gardens, and theme parks often cater to a small, focused crowd.

Disney initially catered to families and small children.

Museums and temples traditionally attract history and culture enthusiasts, and gardens are often reserves for nature lovers.

Key attraction sites lose sales and relevancy in a flooded marketplace without the ability to broaden the focus and attract broader demographics.

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Travel and tourism marketing solutions.

Fortunately, there are solutions to these marketing problems . Follow these guidelines to ensure your travel brand can overcome whatever challenges are thrown your way.

Problem 1: Catering to a small, niche crowd while engaging guests

Solution: create an independent voice and brand.

Hotel Wailea faced the challenge of catering to adult-only travelers and creating an independent, unique spirit.

To captivate an audience looking for a unique, kid-free experience they couldn't get at other luxury Hawaiian resorts; the hotel cultivated a beach safari that included exploring exotic beaches and driving a vintage Porsche.

They also engaged the LGBTQ community during Pride Week celebrations, and Hearst Bay Area developed a custom brand story to target an ideal, kid-free clientele.

The brand avoided the white glove tradition associated with luxury brands to focus on developing a bold, independent brand. Management also encouraged employees to engage with their guests and express their own unique personalities.

The blend of unique experiences with a decidedly down-to-earth and personable approach by the staff paid off. A four-day travel and tourism marketing campaign by Hearst Bay Area helped Hotel Wailea generate a 367% ROI through hotel room bookings.

Problem 2: Increase profits while focusing on the customer

Solution: enhance customer experience.

Finding ways to enhance the customer experience presents big challenges with travel marketing for companies like airlines. But the industry also needs to fill more seats and potentially decrease perks and amenities to earn more profit.

It takes more than just offering a rotating menu of snacks or increasing ticket costs to get more legroom and increase comfort.

More airlines are turning towards social media campaigns to raise brand awareness. But instead of focusing on comfort as the customer experience, the industry relies on travel and tourism marketing to showcase innovative stories.

Kayak ran video ads in Instagram Stories  and found that combining ad formats drove a 5X increase in conversions.  

Problem 3: Attracting customers in a crowded marketplace

Solution: create amazing travel experiences.

Too many choices in a crowded marketplace may offer endless variety and price points for travelers but make it difficult for the travel industry to attract new customers.

However, companies can look towards the trend of Millennials craving experiential travel to curate memorable experiences.

But, once you design that "off-the-beaten-path" experience, how do you market it to an audience?

Using "fam trips" to social media influencers can target a niche audience and broaden brand awareness and showcase those unique experiences.

Kayaking champion and British sensation Mr. Ben Brown produces video blogs, or vlogs, that earn over 200,000 views each. Aligning with the right influencer can showcase your travel experience and continue earning views long after the campaign is over.

Problem 4: Increase Sales Beyond Tourist Season

Solution: leverage contextual marketing.

Theme parks and attractions have figured out how to reinvent their offering during the off-season. Botanical Gardens and Zoos design nighttime light displays and events to attract customers in colder months.

However, retail shops and souvenir stands struggle to provide those same experiences to attract the sales needed to thrive.

Instead of waiting it out until the next booming travel season, shops can look to moving their items to an online store and reinvent themselves.

Instead of just offering beach-themed souvenirs at a resort in Hawaii, the online shop can brand itself as a Hawaiian craft and homeware store selling island accents.

Building a contextual marketing campaign can also help create a personal connection with your audience.

Essentially, contextual marketing is all about understanding one's audience and using the right message at the right time to connect with them.

What we communicate, whether in our personal lives or professional interactions, is only relevant to our audience when they understand the context of the message. Without context, the meaning is lost.

An example of contextual marketing in practice would be how Cotopaxi , an outdoor sports store, demonstrates its purpose of creating "gear for good" - a mission its audience cares about.

Their homepage speaks directly to their visitors about their mission and purpose, and they've even incorporated several elements into their navigation bar that help to reiterate their position. Cotopaxi doesn't just want you to shop at their store.

They also want you to participate in their "Questival" (an adventure-themed race), and they want you to see that they are a certified B Corp who has even started a foundation that aims to alleviate poverty. 

Their strategy of weaving relevant imagery, carefully considered copy, and strong, purpose-driven branding throughout their website makes individuals feel as though they are part of a tribe.

Clearly, this company knows its audience, and they have done a phenomenal job of bringing context to its marketing efforts. 

Problem 5: Staying Relevant and Top of Mind

Solution: widen your digital footprint.

Restaurants and eateries face the challenge of constantly staying on top of the minds of locals and travelers looking for new experiences. Look to Taco Bell to take an innovative, digital lesson.

The fast-food restaurant monitors social media complaints to improve their service, study what menu items prove the most popular on Instagram, and partner with micro-influencers with a broad reach.

Pizza Hut skyrocketed its sales by relying on algorithms and GPS tracking to increase its sales.

Customers know when to expect their pizza before placing an order and use GPS location tracking for delivery drivers so they can find out how close their pizza is.

However, just like the local souvenir shop, brick-and-mortar restaurants should also embrace organic and paid search to stay at the top of search engine rankings and earn customers looking for a place to stop and eat.

Better yet, restaurants should empower their happiest customers to leave Facebook, Google, and Yelp reviews to build social proof and audience trust.

Problem 6: Competing in a Rapidly Shifting Marketplace

Solution: broaden demographics.

Attractions catering to particular demographic face challenges as that audience’s interests change and mature.

For example, Disney’s various theme parks cater to a young, awestruck crowd. Their focus on creating magical childhood memories kicked off in 1955; however, they didn’t just wait for each generation to age out of their theme park fun.

Instead, Disney evolved into multiple theme parks and experiences, from the Epcot Wine Festival to Disney after-hours entertainment, shopping, and fine dining.

The National Museum of American History in Washington D.C. also broadened its offerings to attract a broader demographic.

Instead of just catering to history buffs, their Spark!Lab and Wegmans Wonderplace offer a kid-centric exhibition for ages 0 to 6, including an interactive play kitchen and a tugboat.

Gathering testimonials from your broadened demographic can help refocus your offerings. Working with locals who fit your desired demographic also promotes your brand in the ever-evolving tourism landscape.  

Tourism Marketing Challenges: Key Takeaways

Marketing for travel brands requires more than a "set it and forget it" mentality.

Studying the challenges along the way and applying innovative solutions can help you achieve your desired brand promotion results..

The main takeaways here are:

• Create a Unique Selling Proposition (USP): Standing-out in a crowded marketplace requires a Unique Selling Proposition to attract travelers. In the case of Hotel Wailea, they focused on adult-only offerings and audiences and encouraged their staff to engage and interact.
• Create Amazing Travel Experiences: Today’s travelers want experiences, not just vacation destinations. Whether you’re offering a Porsche tour through the countryside or an off-the-beaten-path kayaking tour, working with influencers to create custom videos and images can help showcase your experiences.
• Strengthen Your Marketing Strategy by Combining Techniques: Whether you’re working with local influencers, amplifying your SEO efforts, or designing new travel experiences, you can strengthen your marketing efforts by using an integrated, multi-channel approach.
• Know Your Audience:  Companies who don't know who their personas are cannot be helped by marketing. You may think that just because your business serves a regional audience, you don't need to niche down any harder, but that is simply not true. Figure out who you are as a brand by deeply understanding who you serve, and go all in on speaking directly to only those people.

Have questions about how you can overcome your specific travel or hospitality marketing challenges? Please reach out. We are always happy to talk shop with you!

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Top 8 Challenges Affecting the Digital Travel Industry, Right Now

There is a huge variety of challenges that the digital travel industry is having to find solutions to. These challenges call for different responses from the various companies involved, all of which must ultimately serve to improve customer experiences.

Here are the top eight challenges affecting the travel industry right now, and some of the solutions that are being proposed to overcome them.

1. Brand Differentiation

Whether it's a seat on a plane, a room in a hotel, or a car rental, there are many companies out there all selling the exact same product. Companies are now having to find different ways of marketing their particular brand, products, and services to make themselves stand out from their competitors.

Many up-and-coming travel companies and OTAs are building their brands within a particular niche - honeymoon and destination weddings, for example, or adventure holidays, or as region/destination-specific specialists. In doing so, they avoid becoming "all-in-one" travel shops - Jacks of all trades but masters of none. By focusing on one niche or just a few related niches, these brands create differentiation in their marketing efforts, which become more effective as there is less competition.

As David Angotti , Co-Founder of SmokyMountains.com puts it : "While national websites like HomeAway and Airbnb deliver exceptional booking experiences and raise overall industry awareness, the hyper-relevant nature of geo-targeted niche sites is better equipped to deliver additional demand for specific localized markets. For example, high-quality video content that highlights a destination, combined with paid amplification through Facebook, can raise awareness for a specific market. This delivers additional demand and visitors that likely would not have visited the region in absence of this marketing approach. Smaller, niche websites excel at geo-local strategies like this. In addition to increased demand, the niche website increases the overall distribution health of a brand through channel and lead diversification."

2. Budgeting

In the constantly evolving world of technology, along with customer expectations changing faster than it's possible for companies to keep up with, budgeting becomes a very important factor in keeping up with trends.

Companies are being forced to use their budgets in smarter ways and advertise their business through different means.

One way they're doing this is with social media platforms, through which brands are able to promote themselves and connect with their audiences for little or no financial outlay. By taking advantage of the marketing opportunities social media provides, brands can effectively market their products and services in a more cost-efficient manner.

As a popular industry among young people, social media provides a great opportunity for travel brands to connect with target customers where they are, promote their products and services, and gain organic traffic to their websites - all without having to lay out a lot of money.

3. Multichannel Attribution

Multichannel attribution refers to the process of determining which marketing channels lead to conversions and sales, and giving each channel an appropriate amount of budget and attention accordingly.

Having a clear idea of which marketing channels are driving sales means companies can better allocate their marketing efforts. This then helps the business increase its efficiency of spending by only investing time and money into the channels which are driving growth.

Additionally, when a business knows its market and customer demographics, it can engage accordingly and optimize content to fit each platform for specific groups. This again increases the efficiency of a company's budget as it's able to witness higher engagement on these platforms and focus on enhancing the customer experience.

One company doing this particularly well is Marriott International , which created a culinary challenge and associated hashtag which trended on Twitter and Instagram. By using multichannel attribution to identify the best platforms on which to run the contest, the hotel brand was able to reach a diverse range of people, ultimately gaining a much wider audience.

4. Customer security

With the EU's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) now in force, customer security and privacy are becoming ever more important. While targeted ads and personalized marketing are massively popular and effective ways of advertising, travel companies need to be careful about what type of information they're using to personalize the ads directed at potential customers.

With ever-changing technologies, including voice, AR, and VR, keeping up with customer security is becoming a much more difficult job. New threats are forcing businesses to have to use new technologies and software in order to protect their customers' data.

If a business is taking the appropriate steps to ensure customers are secure on its site, it encourages repeat business and helps to drive revenue. When a site is secure, not only is a company improving customer experience, but it's also building trust in the eyes of its audience. This provides customers with the peace of mind that their information is being treated with the respect it deserves, and that the company itself is responsible and stable in its position within the digital travel market.

Many customers have stated they would have no problem booking with another brand or company if certain conditions, including price, schedule, or locations, were preferable.

This indicates that customer loyalty is a rarity, with customers having no ties to the company that they are choosing to travel with. Price comparison sites compound this problem by making it simpler than ever for customers to shop around for the best deal. It's also more unusual now for travelers to book their entire vacation in a single package, with innovative platforms such as Airbnb and Kayak providing a much easier booking experience to book flights, hotels, etc. separately.

Loyalty programs are something that many travel companies are setting up to ensure customers keep coming back. Hilton , for example, offers fitness classes in return for loyalty points for its guests. This encourages its customers to return to its hotels to build their loyalty points up.

6. Inspiration

Inspiration for trips and holidays can come from anywhere. Travel companies need to be ready to seize onto this inspiration when it occurs - or even create it themselves - and convert it into sales.

This is why you'll often find travel companies posting beautiful images of travel locations on their social media accounts. These images are designed to spark inspiration in those who view them, and then (hopefully) encourage and inspire holiday bookings.

Platforms such as TripTuner can help generate this inspiration in an audience. TripTuner describes itself as a "travel inspiration engine" and uses powerful artificial intelligence software to help travelers discover new vacation opportunities based on their travel history, searches, and interests. TripTuner also uses data to offer customized and personalized advertisements in order to further inspire customers.

7. Marketing Automation/Segmenting/Messaging Strategies

Many marketing departments must perform repetitive tasks like sending emails, posting to social media, and other mundane actions. However, marketing automation technology can take care of these tasks, leaving marketers free to focus on developing new strategies and interacting directly with their audiences.

Segmenting seeks to divide a broad consumer or business market into sub-groups of customers - known as segments - which are based on some type of shared characteristic/s. These groups are also usually subdivided into further groups of existing customers and potential customers. Segmentation helps marketers deliver the right information to the right people at the right time - by not sending top-of-the-funnel content to those in the middle, for example.

Brand messaging is the language and phrasing that appears on a company's website and other advertising materials. It covers everything from the fonts and images used on marketing materials to the type of music played on advertisements. Brand messaging ultimately informs audiences whether a product or service is aimed at them and can make the difference between success and failure.

The most important thing about brand messaging is that it's consistent across all channels. Your brand should have one identity and one voice, so you need to make sure all those responsible for putting out brand messages are savvy to this fact and have the necessary guidelines and training to make it happen.

8. Social Media

Travel brands are looking at how social media can be used for (almost) free advertising and to create organic buzz around their offerings.

Social media is massively influential to younger generations in particular, with many only using products and services they see advertised on their favorite platforms. Not only this, but they are living lifestyles in accordance with the trends they see on social media, with travel being a massive influencer in this regard. Instagram is a particularly useful social media platform for the travel industry as it allows brands to use hashtags to encourage people to share their travel experiences and create organic content as a result.

Social media is also being used to form relationships and enable communication between businesses and their customers, provide excellent customer service, and encourage loyalty. Being able to communicate with a company using a platform such as Facebook Messenger is, for most people, preferable to sitting on hold on the phone.

Final Thoughts

The challenges facing travel companies are forcing them to come up with new, creative solutions to combat them.

However, those companies which are willing to meet these challenges head-on will see customer experience improve across the board. In turn, this will encourage not only repeat business from those customers who have booked with them previously but inspire new customers to come on board as well.

The various challenges facing digital travel marketers will be hot topics at Digital Travel Connect US 2019 , taking place this October at the Rancho Bernardo Inn, San Diego, CA.

Download the agenda today for more information and insights.

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Travel Marketing During COVID-19

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Report Overview

When the entire travel industry comes to an abrupt stop, marketing is often among the first expenses to be cut, as it’s not considered critical spending and it doesn’t make sense to promote travel when nobody is allowed to travel.

However, budget cuts without having an optimization strategy risk losing marketing talent and opportunities to keep up with consumer needs and shifting behavior in the short term, to eventually falling behind in market share and revenue when the economy bounces back.

We surveyed 756 travel marketing professionals globally to assess the impact of COVID-19 on marketing and advertising spending and identify challenges and opportunities travel marketers are facing in response to the pandemic.

In addition to the benchmark data from this survey, we examine tactics and strategies that winning companies and marketing teams have in common in navigating through a crisis and provide best practices for leading the marketing team out of this crisis stronger.

What You'll Learn From This Report

• Benchmark data on levels of marketing budget cuts, breaking down by travel vertical
• Key tactics that travel marketers are adopting and major challenges they are facing in response to COVID-19
• Travel marketers’ predictions on the timing of full recovery
• A framework and best practices on how to be best positioned to come out the pandemic stronger

Executives Interviewed

• Kristie Goshow – Chief Marketing Officer, Preferred Hotels & Resorts
• Louise Casamento, Sr. Director of Marketing, Oracle Hospitality

Phases of Marketing Responses During COVID-19

Most of the analysis of and advice on what is the right marketing during this crisis reads as a checklist. You need to do these things and avoid doing those things. In reality, companies are dealing with this abrupt and absolute disruption in the same way that individuals are. Most companies will react and respond to stresses in different phases, each in close correspondence with the chronological stage and nature of the crisis.

Actions in the first phase have been characterized by shock, a sharp brake on activities, and response to immediate new demands. In the second phase, companies start to pay attention to the broader contextual environment, in addition to the direct impact on its own business. There should be some structure in place around the immediate responses in this phase and some companies will find new and innovative ways to pivot marketing campaigns addressing in-the-moment issues faced by the consumers.

The third phase comes when lockdowns start to be lifted with caution, businesses are reopened gradually, and there is some travel uplift. Most companies will watch and examine closely all travel indicators and start to market again on capturing some traction of the early travelers. The fourth phase is when travel restrictions are lifted, either locally, regionally or globally. Companies will expand marketing to capture the market share in this phase. However, there will be a lot of uncertainty around the macro-economy and the full travel recovery, which makes the fourth phase a prolonged period of ups and downs.

Of course, companies and leadership teams vary. While these phases and typical actions lay out the general trajectories that marketing responses of travel sectors take, there are substantial divergences in specific actions within each phase. More importantly, the ability to take more holistic and parallel actions, instead of operating in a purely sequential order as the crisis itself unfolds, are often defining differences between leaders and the mass.

Phase One: Deep Marketing Cuts

When no room or seat can or should be filled, it doesn’t make sense to market and sell rooms or seats. Performance marketing needs to be put on pause so that budget doesn’t get wasted. When the entire population is living under fear of losing lives and struggling to cope with lost jobs and home confinement, your brand marketing campaigns that inspire people to travel will appear to be tone-deaf and need to be shelved.

These are all necessary cuts. What’s more severe is the systemic reduction of marketing budget as a consequence of revenue loss. Under normal circumstances, marketing is considered as a critical engine that drives revenue growth. According to the annual CMO surveys conducted by research firms such as Deloitte and Gartner in the past few years, in 30-50% of companies, marketing is responsible for revenue growth. While industries and companies vary, a commonly agreed-on estimate is that, on average, companies spend about 10% of revenues on marketing. It is not unusual for large companies with revenues above $1 billion to allocate at least 15% of revenues to marketing and research and development (R&D).

At Skift Research, we have already started to estimate the financial damage the pandemic has caused for different travel sectors. For instance, in our Impact of COVID-19 on the Hotel Industry report we pieced together a myriad of hotel performance data to give a 360-degree view of the dire situation that the hospitality industry is in, including occupancy rates, cancellation rates, RevPAR (revenue per available room), pricing changes, reservation/booking and search trends. Digging into the online travel sector, we estimate that the largest seven public online travel agencies will lose at least $11.5 billion in revenue this year due to the virus (see The Impact of COVID-19 on the Online Travel Industry for details). The sharp revenue decline has led to widespread marketing budget slashes across all travel sectors.

For this report, we conducted a short survey with our large network of travel companies and travel professionals to get a sense of how profoundly the pandemic has impacted travel marketing teams. We received 756 complete responses in three days. Many C-suite executives and senior marketing managers participated in the survey. The respondents are from all major travel verticals and 73 countries. The level of interest indicates the lack of, and therefore huge need for, solid benchmark data as marketers navigate through this unprecedented crisis.

Even though we had all guessed how bad the numbers would be, what our survey respondents revealed is nothing but jaw-dropping. Out of the 756 companies surveyed, only 10% haven’t cut their marketing budget. Airlines, corporate travel, and meetings and events are the hardest hit sectors within travel. As shown in our survey, companies in these sectors suffer the biggest marketing cuts as a result, with all participating companies indicating budget cuts for marketing teams.

Hotels, vacation rentals, and destinations are the most resilient segments. For the accommodation sector in general, occupancy rates are plummeting. But some companies quickly pivoted to provide services to accommodate essential service workers, healthcare providers, and individuals who need space for self-quarantine, which has helped them to stay open and relevant. We will look into more detail at this practice later in the report.

With travel revenue deeply crippled, national and local governments need to rely on destination organizations (DMOs) to estimate the financial damage, research and assess recovery signs, and provide guidelines for members and stakeholders. The accentuated role of the DMOs has shielded them from funding cuts, if the majority of their funding is from the government instead of member contributions.

Cuts in Paid Media

Media spending across all industries has been cut down significantly and is expected to continue the decline at least until June. The U.S. Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) , the digital advertising trade organization, conducted a survey of media planners, buyers, and brand executives who are responsible for media budgets in late March. 70% of buyers had already paused or adjusted their planned ad spending between March and June.

The budget slash for paid media is even more dire within the travel industry. Seventy-eight percent of companies surveyed have cut down paid media spending. When most people are ordered to stay at home and there is no guarantee of when they can safely travel again, travel companies need to assess their specific sources of revenue and cut down performance marketing to avoid waste. And in most cases, brand marketing campaigns are usually filled with images of happy crowds and paradise-like entertainment and destinations. They would be a stark contrast with the reality people were forced in and need to be pulled out from all marketing channels right away.

The deep cuts spread across all media channels and formats. Paid search and social had risen to be the dominant ad channels for years. For the surveyed companies that indicated they cut down media spending, only 8% didn’t invest in social and 16% didn’t invest in paid search prior to the pandemic. Both of these two critical marketing channels were slashed by deep budget cuts. Of the companies who cut down paid media, 36% withdrew all search spending and 28% withdrew all social spending. Digital video advertising is the third most important ad format, with streaming video content yet to reach the saturation point. Of the travel companies surveyed, 66% had allocated marketing budget on digital video, of which 29% removed all their digital video campaigns since COVID-19 started.

As we were working on this report, Google and Facebook both announced their Q1 earnings. Both parties of the duopoly digital media world mentioned steep revenue decline in March, despite the overall positive growth in Q1. Alphabets’ CFO Ruth Porat said in Q1 earnings call that while search revenue was up 9% in Q1, March saw an “abrupt” decline of revenue. The year-over-year search revenue drop was in the mid-teens.

Skift Research estimates that in 2019, the travel industry spent about $16 billion advertising with Google, which accounted for 12% of Google’s total advertising revenue. We expect to see the travel verticals cut at least 30-40% of their spending on Google in 2020. The two biggest online travel competitors, Expedia Group and Booking Holdings, are likely to slash their search spending by more than half in 2020. As we estimated in our Deep Dive Into Google’s Impact on Travel 2020 report, the global OTA duopoly spent over $8 billion on performance advertising in 2019, with a majority of that going to Google. In mid-April, Expedia’s chairman Berry Diller told CNBC in an Interview that “at Expedia, for instance, we spend $5 billion a year on advertising. We won’t spend $1 billion on advertising probably this year.” Similarly, as reported by CNBC , Mark Mahaney, an analyst at RBC Capital Markets, predicts that Booking could slash Google ad spending on Google from about $4 billion in 2019 to $1 – 2 billion in 2020.

Investment in traditional media channels have been in decline for years. However, depending on the specific verticals and consumer segments, some traditional channels are still effective marketing outlets. For instance, print with powerful images is still a very effective tool for the tours and activities sector targeting older audiences. With better attribution and measurement tools, linear TV is increasingly bundled as part of the larger video strategy to reach audiences anywhere on any screen.

Similar to digital, for the companies that ran advertising campaigns in linear TV, print, outdoor and terrestrial radio, there have been deep cuts on all the budget allocations in these channels, with a large majority of them pulling 100% of spending. Data from ispot.tv, a TV advertising analytics and measurement firm with national spot TV data for the U.S. market, showed the actual ad spending decline in dollar figures. From March 1 to April 27 2020, the major travel verticals spent $73.8 million on national tv ads, a 78% decline from the $318 million in the same time period of 2019. Online travel sites, hotels and airlines saw the steepest decline, all with over an 80% YOY drop in spending.

Cuts in Agency Spending

Agency spending, which is closely tied to media investment, faces the second highest cut. 64% of surveyed travel companies indicated they had cut agency spending. Among those who cut spending, nearly a quarter severed agency partnership completely.

Cuts in Martech Spending

The days are gone when you can do marketing without the support of marketing technology. Increasingly, the centrality of data is a key factor that gave rise to marketing’s crucial role in business. As Skift Research estimated, roughly 25% of travel marketing’s budget is spent on technology investment and vendor purchases. In a survey we conducted in early 2019, 73% travel marketing executives said martech is crucial to their companies’ competitive edge (See The State of Marketing Technology in Travel 2019 for more details).

About 56% of travel companies in our survey indicated they had cut down martech spending since the pandemic. For those who cut down vendor services, over half decreased spending by 60% or more. On the one hand, the industry was overdue for a much-needed but oft-delayed consolidation of redundant martech systems. If the pandemic was the catalyst for these cuts, so be it. But businesses that cut deeper than needed will find that inadequate martech infrastructure can greatly limit marketing’s capacity for effective tactics during the crisis and, even worse, once the recovery phase arrives.

Cuts in Marketing Staff

In-house employees are the least affected, among all the major marketing areas. But even here, 54% of companies surveyed made some cuts. And 12% of the affected companies shut down their entire marketing department. If we put the number against the entire sample size of our survey, that means 6.5% of all travel companies have already closed down their marketing division.

Marketing Cuts by Travel Vertical

The following data exhibits provide detailed sector-by-sector marketing cuts for each major area of spending. In general, the verticals that are undergoing more wide-spread cuts, as shown above, are also the ones that are seeing deeper cuts in each marketing function and capacity. Online travel, aviation, hotels, tours and activities, and meetings and events are all registering quick revenue declines and as a result, over-index other verticals in cutting down paid media and agency partnership. Tech vendors tend to have more diversified products and services or a subscription based pricing model that makes revenue less likely to dry up right away . They also need to keep marketing up to help their clients navigate through the crisis. The sector seems the least likely to have seen paid media and agency cuts among all verticals.

What’s interesting to see is how corporate travel and meeting and events sectors are holding up their martech investment spend. While on average, 56% of companies had cut down martech spending, only 40% of corporate travel companies and 29% of meeting and events companies had done so, making them two of the bottom three sectors in martech reduction prevalence. It’s hard to prove if the assumption is valid yet, but we believe the work of EventMB, our Skift brand and the world’s most influential media and research outlet for event professionals, might have contributed to this anomaly. EventMB was the first vocal source in the industry to coin the term “pivot to virtual,” and provides practical guidelines and tools for shifting physical events to virtual. As of March 18, 90% of event professionals saw some or most of their business gone. In the immediate days after the first lockdowns, EventMB held a two-hour “Pivot to Virtual” event, offering advice from the world’s most renowned experts on crisis communication and virtual events. The event drew in 2,600 live attendees and over 7,000 on-demand viewers. And the industry has seen a surge of online events. Technology investment, including martech, is key to making the transition a success.

Phase One and Two: Communications Rising to the Center of Marketing

In addition to budget reduction, another immediate new marketing demand in the first and second phases are consumer communications. When travel is prohibited by law or consumers are too afraid to travel, the most important thing for travel companies to do is to make sure their customers can cancel or postpone their booking with ease and communicate policy changes to them as soon as possible.

Most travel companies have done so. By late January, most major U.S. airlines had already issued travel waivers to countries experiencing the worst outbreak. As the virus spread to more countries and regions, airlines have been constantly updating their policies to accommodate more changes. By the end of April, on top of waiving cancellation or change fees to existing bookings, major airlines all offered fee waivers for new bookings, with various timeframes. Large public hotel companies have also acted fast in changing their reservation policies.

With all the changes and updates, marketing needs to step in and ensure customers have a clear understanding of what the changes entail and what are the steps they need to take to change their booking. Emails, websites, and social are the core channels to deliver prompt messages and answer consumer inquiries.

In addition to communicating to consumers about policy changes, letting customers know that the company empathizes with the difficult situation and providing emotional support is also a commonly adopted marketing tactic.

Of the 756 companies surveyed, 71% have communicated cancellation or other policy changes to consumers. In addition, 76% have launched COVID-19 related communications to customers. Echoing the level of media cut revealed above, 86% of participants shared that they had paused non-relevant or inappropriate marketing campaigns.

Phase Two and Three: Pivoting Services and Creating In-The-Moment Marketing

After the initial focus on responding to the abrupt disruption, travel marketers need to recalibrate strategies around the new reality that consumers are in, which is being confined at home and dealing with the living difficulties associated with the disease, and create new campaigns that can help relieve the distress or solve their problems.

Three major themes have emerged during these phases. One is inspirational marketing that reminds people that while they cannot and should not travel at the moment, travel will be even more inspiring for the world once the pandemic is over. Uplifting and positive content and messages that alleviate anxiety and promote a sense of solidarity will go a long way to enhancing the brand. A good example is the “Can’t Skip Hope” video campaign by Visit Portugal . A series of captivating images with equally powerful narration – “Sometimes to rise is to stand still” – sends an uplifting and empowering message for people who feel stuck.

The second theme is practical marketing. Here travel marketers offer virtual classes, activities, and experiences for consumers, for free. Many hotels, tour operators, tourist attractions, and destinations started to offer a myriad of online activities from late March. Travel Saint Lucia , for instance, kicked off a “7 Minutes in St Lucia” campaign, inviting followers to experience the destination via Instagram Live. The program streams yoga practice in view of its famous Pitons, world-famous volcanic spires, cooking classes, dance parties, and guided meditations.

The third theme is social responsibility marketing. With so many people’s lives impacted by the pandemic, what can travel companies do to help? Many travel companies stepped up to create programs that can help their employees, the local community, and the fight against the virus. Done right, this can have some profound long-lasting impact on a brand’s image and loyalty. Nearly half of the travel marketing teams in our survey have promoted company actions for crisis relief. We will look into some cases in detail in the sections below.

However, with deep budget cuts, travel marketers are overwhelmingly facing resource restraints on executing the new marketing initiatives, most of which need to be created from scratch. When asked about the top challenges during this difficult time, 53% of travel marketing executives stressed resource restraint due to budget cuts as the top challenge and another 44% pointed out that realigning limited resources to new strategies and priorities is challenging.

Phase 4: Preparing for the Full Recovery

The biggest unknown for every individual and company now is when the pandemic will be under control and in what form. As we enter May, many U.S. states have relaxed their lockdown policies and partially reopened. Yet, without a viable solution to the virus itself, the question remains if there might be a resurgence of cases that can quickly collapse into the hellish past again.

From where we stand now, it doesn’t look promising we can completely contain the virus through vaccination or effective treatment before the end of 2020. But there should be some phased opening up and coordinated efforts to lift travel restrictions. Travel marketing professionals’ projections of when full recovery will happen is a reflection of this thinking.

Marketing executives from different travel verticals expect to see their marketing budget back to the pre-COVID-19 level at different timelines. Domestic leisure travel by car is likely to come back the earliest. In our U.S. March Travel Tracker survey , two thirds of Americans said their first trip after the outbreak would be a road trip. Sectors that can cater to this travel segment, including accommodation, destinations, and attractions are the most optimistic about bouncing back in the second half of 2020. On the other end of the spectrum are meetings and events, corporate travel, and tour operators. Many government officials and healthy experts predict large social gatherings won’t happen safely until the second half of 2021. And many tour operators rely on multi-day travel or international travelers, the leisure segment that’s the slowest to recover.

What’s certain is that with a disruption at this large scale, the recovery roadmap will be slow and complex. To be able to respond to the opportunities and challenges ahead quickly and effectively, leaders of travel marketing teams need to create detailed scenario plans. What’s the worst scenario? What’s the most likely scenario? What’s the best scenario? What would be the most appropriate strategy and tactics under each scenario? These are all crucial questions for marketing teams to assess resources and capabilities and get prepared. Yet, by the end of April when we conducted the survey, 42% of travel marketing teams surveyed hadn’t created scenario plans for recovery.

Another critical action during this phase is closely monitoring consumer behavioral and attitudinal shifts to capture signals of opportunities. In this data-rich world, most marketers already have many sources at their fingertips to do so. Social media, consumer databases, and customer service centers are all great owned channels to implement real-time monitoring and insights. In addition to passive listening, regular surveys, either first-party or from research partners, can validate the observational insights and identify expectations more quickly. These measurements and insights are not only necessary for marketing decisions, but of critical importance for company-level strategies.

Who Will Be Best Positioned to Come Out of the Pandemic Stronger

The reality is: there will be winners and losers on the other side of this crisis. History has proven so and will continue to prove so. History has also proven that performance gaps between leaders and the rest of the pack often get bigger after a recession and then the gaps will get flattened in a couple of years. This means leadership matters much more during downturns than in time of stability and growth. A 2010 study led by two Harvard Business School professors of 4,700 public companies during and after the three global recessions prior to the 2019 recession has provided some profound and replicable lessons for not just surviving, but thriving out of a recession. The first unsettling finding is the detrimental impact the recessions have on companies. Of the 4,700 companies analyzed, 17% didn’t survive a recession. For those who did survive, 80% of them had not regained their pre-recession sales and profits three years after a recession. Only 9% of the analyzed companies performed better on key financial indicators than they had before a recession.

These outperforming companies all shared a similar trait in mastering the balance between cutting costs to survive the revenue loss during the recession and continued investment to prepare for growth after the recession. As summarized by Ranjay Gulati and Nitin Nohria, the co-authors of the article distilling key takeaways of the study, “These companies reduce costs selectively by focusing more on operational efficiency than their rivals do, even as they invest relatively comprehensively in the future by spending on marketing, R&D, and new assets. Their multipronged strategy …. is the best antidote to a recession.”

While no two downturns are the same, the successes and failures of the past provide patterns that marketers can emulate to navigate out of this crisis stronger. In managing marketing expenses, CMOs and the senior executive teams must have a clear vision of what’s wasteful and redundant versus what’s necessary and crucial. Leaders can then continue to invest in areas that are crucial for short-, medium- and long-term businesses.

To win in this crisis, leading CMOs need an agile strategy that allows their teams to detect, adapt to, and respond to changes. A wait-and-see approach has little chance of weathering through this adversity. People are going through pains and fear now. Focusing attention on consumer needs and helping them mitigate the stress has a higher chance of turning challenges into opportunities. Building and growing a strong brand through these people-centric actions will ensure a faster and long-term recovery and growth.

Bold strategies and a cautious growth mindset will likely set winners apart from the pack. Many marketing leaders decide not to make big moves until there is more clarity on the market outlook. But that will be too late. Constant evaluation of the evolving situation needs to lead to decisions that put their company ahead of the curve, so it can be the first to offer new services to new consumer needs. Companies that will succeed are the ones who are planning for the post-crisis world now. We expect to see two major themes that will define the path of recovery and success for the travel markets post-COVID-19.

The New Normal

While there are various versions and speculations on what the new normal entails, there is one element that everyone agrees will greatly impact travel behavior after the pandemic: a new focus on safety and health. The traumatic experience during the lockdown will have a lasting effect on people’s psychology. While major travel companies have already adopted new cleaning and disinfecting protocols to mitigate the fear, it’s only the tip of the iceberg. It requires an industry-wide overhaul to gain consumer trust. And companies who lead the process will win big.

The New Consumer Segmentation

Travel is among the most pent-up consumer segments that are going to see a surge of demand after this crisis. There is no question about it. However, travelers coming out of this pandemic will be different from those before we entered it. An experience like this will greatly intensify the psychological divides of individuals. Remember the college crowds at Miami beach in the middle of the outbreak? Economic situation allowed, there will be people who are like those college students, plunge into travel right away, regardless of the public concerns about the possibility of another wave of outbreak . And there will be people who act with extreme caution to a degree of paranoia. The typical consumer sociodemographic segmentation needs to be reexamined and redefined to understand who will travel first and what needs to be done to get the others to travel again.

Q&A with Kristie Goshow, Chief Marketing Officer of Preferred Hotels & Resorts

How much have you cut your marketing budget since the onset of the crisis? Did you put all paid media on halt or are you still running some campaigns? First and foremost, remaining visible throughout the pandemic has been a critical objective for our holistic engagement efforts across all key stakeholders groups we serve: the traveler, the travel trade, corporate buyers, and our member hotels. Any adjustments made to our paid media strategy are reviewed within the context of our integrated marketing plans in each region of the world. While we did reduce our investments in paid media towards late March, we have, and plan to continue doing so, maintained a minimum spend to capture any opportunities for longer-lead business. Meta[search] has continued to deliver some booking volume, albeit vastly reduced, and has also demonstrated that certain source markets and traveler types are booking for August and September arrival. Based on these indicators, it makes good sense to sustain this approach over the short and medium term.

Has the crisis changed marketing’s role? From our perspective, the role of marketing will always be the activity of “asking for the business” across channels, audiences, and geographies. That has not changed during the crisis and will only become even more important post-crisis, as hoteliers start to understand the behavioral changes of their buyer communities and pivot their product, message, and campaign deployment accordingly. This situation has, however, highlighted the importance of an up-to-date crisis management plan and the requisite internal capabilities to ensure that all engagement (brand social, public relations, sales team outreach, loyalty and marketing campaigns) continues in a thoughtful, effective way to protect the integrity of a hotel’s brand and positioning.

What’s the focus of the marketing team at the moment? Our approach has been highly pragmatic. Our core marketing group has continued to focus on business projects that are essential to the commercial success of our hotels – both before and after the pandemic.

Communicating effectively with member hotels, partners, and end consumers is as important as ever. We are obviously revisiting all written materials and creative assets to ensure these are sensitive to the current situation and undertaking a gap analysis to see what new needs we may have.

Although we have pivoted our message away from “information to book” to “inspiration to dream,” we are preparing a series of recovery campaigns that will deploy domestically as each market begins to lift their travel restrictions. It’s imperative that we guide hotels away from discount wars and mega-deals, so we are designing a blended approach based on certain assumptions around domestic demand drivers, traveler expectations, corporate per diems, “new seasonal patterns,” and a revised “value quotient.”

Like most other travel and hospitality brands, our team is working hard on a series of rebound initiatives. And although we never expected to find ourselves in this situation, we are testing our creativity to deliver what we hope will be fresh and innovative campaigns for the new paradigm of travel.

Is Preferred pivoting service offerings during the lockdown? What’s marketing’s role in it if so? As with many of the large chains, we are working closely with our service provider LRA to review our existing standards within our Integrated Quality Assurance program and identify changes our hotels will need to make in regards to standards for cleaning, housekeeping, and food and beverage service. These updates will allow us to support our independent hotels in actioning on new protocols for ensuring guest protection and health to the best of their ability and communicating these updates to attract future travelers.

Further, through our sister company, PHG Consulting, our team is providing crisis management services to independent hotels and tourism destinations worldwide, helping them mitigate the pandemic to lessen the impact of COVID-19 and be well positioned to bounce back once recovery begins. We assist in defining and communicating their messages clearly and with full transparency; control their position and maintain visibility through a variety of services ranging from public relations to travel trade outreach; and have an array of strategies in place to employ on their behalf during the recovery period to drive arrivals and revenue.

How is the marketing team prepared for recovery? In addition to the commentary above, we are evaluating additional routes to market, new partnerships, and fresh angles on existing collaborations. The extent of flexibility and “original thinking” being offered by our existing brand partners has presented opportunities that would have otherwise been overlooked.

Lead by Turning Customer-Centric to People-Centric

The only uplifting part of this pandemic is the fact that for the first time in our lives, the entire human population is truly in it all together. We are all connected, after all. Can we turn this once-in-a-lifetime challenge into a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity?

Marketers have been adopting a customer-centric approach to guide marketing strategies for years. Now that we are all on the same side of the pandemic, winning marketers are those who can expand their relationship to include all of those affected by this: customers, employees, suppliers, partners, neighbors and communities. Working with all these affected people and earning trust will have a lasting impact on building a strong brand.

Expand communication channels

Individuals and companies alike, we have never been in a situation where things are changing on a daily basis. In a situation that is changing hour by hour, it has never been more critical for travel companies to keep in touch with their customers. The messages need to be consistent across all channels, website, email, social media, and others

This is an opportunity for marketing, PR, and communications teams to work together and connect on a daily basis on new challenges. All messaging and campaigns need to be a coordinated effort.

Example Marriott: When you go to Marriott.com , you get two messages right away. One message is their priority is their guests during COVID-19. The other is Marriott is providing rooms for frontline doctors and nurses. When you click on the “COVID-19 Update and Extended Cancellation Policy”, you enter a page with the entire suite of information related to Marriott’s policy and community responses to COVID-19. The messages are transparent, simple, and clear.

Create relevant and empowering marketing messages and campaigns

Be agile and able to pivot communications in real-time. In normal terms, a marketing campaign launch might take at least a few months. That strategy won’t work during this crisis.

For global brands that have operations in multiple regions and countries, this also means your marketing messages and campaigns should be relevant to the local situation as the pandemic hits different regions with different phases.

Example National Cowboy Museum: While the Oklahoma City based museum closed to visitors, they found their very own celebrity in the security and operations manager, Tim Tiller. He became a social media hit helping increase the museum’s social media profile. From March 17 to April 26, the museum’s Twitter followers grew from just shy of 10,000 to 309,000. The museum’s Instagram and Facebook followings grew by 510 percent and 69 percent, respectively, during the same time frame.

Pivot service offering and communicate to consumers

Many travel companies pivot their service offerings to meet the needs arisen from the pandemic. Marketing teams need to work closely with the executive and the product teams and communicate to consumers in real-time about the new services.

Example 1 China-Based Huazhu Group : They decided to remain open and not lay off any employees during the crisis in China. The chain pivoted service to corporate travelers who needed accommodation for self-quarantine. They also instituted a sales package that included 26-steps cleaning process, intelligent non-contact services and COVID-19 health insurance for staff and consumers and heavily marketed the package to corporate travelers.

Example 2 Oracle Hospitality: As Louise Casamento, Sr. Director of Marketing told Skift Research, “We are providing our customers information and resources to pivot in this environment. For example, several customers are choosing to, or are required to move their property to a hospital environment. We are offering free virtual consulting services to help customers convert hotels to a hospital. Separately, we have published online checklist for using Oracle OPERA to operationalize a hotel property as a “hospital” and PMS and POS checklists for our customers to use when closing their properties due to government edict or market conditions. We are enabling restaurants to easily add delivery capabilities through our partnerships with delivery companies. We are releasing webinars and short tips and tricks videos that advise customers on how to get new usage out of their existing Oracle solutions, during and post COVID.”

Support your employees

As estimated by Oxford Economics , nearly 4 million people working in or for the U.S hospitality industry would likely lose their jobs due to the pandemic. How can you help your furloughed or laid-off employees to mitigate the financial difficulties?

Example Hilton: The company has proactively partnered with companies seeing high demand for temporary workers during the crisis to help its furloughed employees. Through an online portal, furloughed Hilton workers have an expedited recruiting and onboarding path to companies like Amazon, CVS, Walgreens, and grocery stores like Albertsons and Publix.

Purpose driven marketing

There has been a rise of research and advocacy for purpose driven businesses in the past few years. Not only does a purpose driven company have a higher chance of gaining loyal consumers, it also is more likely to succeed. Research by Harvard Business Review Analytic Services and EY found that companies that operate with a clear and driving sense of purpose, beyond the goal of just making money, outperformed the S&P 500 by a factor of 10 between 1996 and 2011.

People will remember what you do at a time like this. Looking outside of your company’s internal priorities and taking bold initiatives to keep your employees, consumers, and communities safe and secure will go a long way. Reimagining a higher purpose and acting on it in a situation like this might never happen again.

Example 1 Etihad: This second largest airline in the UAE , started offering their food facilities to provide meals for affected populations, giving away thousands of meals everyday.

Example 2 Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau: In addition to offering virtual activities for would-be visitors, the destination marketer created online campaigns connecting locals with restaurants and other services to support the suffered businesses.

Appendix: Sample Demographics

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12 Travel Marketing Strategies To Help You Out-Market Your Competitors in 2023

Kyle Morley

January 26, 2023

The world of travel has evolved, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Travelers are valuing their time off more and researching more heavily before making travel decisions. Additionally, brands are competing to drive bookings and increase revenue to make up for the large losses the industry took in 2020. 

Utilizing new and unique marketing strategies can help travel brands separate themselves from the competition, reach new audiences, and increase bookings. Take a look at our top 12 marketing strategies that can help travel brands stand out and out-market their competitors. 

What Is The State of the Travel Marketing Industry in 2023? 

The travel industry took a huge hit in 2020 with the emergence of the global COVID-19 pandemic. Both domestic and international travel stopped almost overnight, leaving the travel and tourism industry with little-to-no business. However, over the past three years, the industry has steadily increased to semi-regular rates, though still slightly lower than 2019. 

According to the International Air Transport Association , global air travel is expected to make a full recovery by 2024. Additionally, the IATA expects domestic air travel to increase by 3% in 2023 compared to pre-pandemic levels in 2019. With that being said, many travel companies are looking to dedicate time and resources to out-marketing their top competitors and return business to pre-pandemic levels. 

12 Travel Marketing Strategies For 2023

Using a combination of tried-and-true marketing strategies and unique ideas will offer a fresh foundation for travel destinations to attract new tourists and increase bookings. In 2023, the way consumers make travel decisions has changes. People are valuing sustainable travel options and relying heavily on social media and video content to make their travel decisions. 

Luckily, we’ve compiled a list of 12 key marketing strategies and tips to help travel companies increase bookings and drive consumers to their destination. 

1. Create A Seamless Website Experience 

All of your marketing channels will be driving traffic to the same place – your website. If the user experience is lacking, it could drive away potential customers or have them book a stay with a separate OTA. 

As direct bookings become increasingly important for travel companies, a seamless user experience on the website is of the utmost importance. A travel website should showcase all of the best things about the destination to really show consumers what their vacation will be like. Additionally, users should be able to seamlessly book travel experiences directly from the site. 

2. Publish Blog Content on a Regular Basis

Blog content is a great way to capture the attention of untapped audiences and focus on search engine optimization. By creating content that targets highly searched keywords in the travel space and keywords specific to your destination, brands can dominate the search engine results page. 

Not only does long-form editorial content help put a brand in front of new audiences, it also showcases the beauty of your travel destination. Consumers want to learn a lot about a destination before traveling there. According to TripAdvisor , consumers will spend an average of four weeks researching their travel destination. With blog content, brands can create a high quality resource for consumers to turn to throughout their research process.  

3. Lean On Your Customer Reviews

Consumers are spending more on travel now than ever before. According to the ASTA , 40% of consumers are spending more on travel now than they did before the pandemic in 2019. However, consumers also want to be sure that their money is being spent in the right place. 

Traveler reviews are some of the most valuable pieces of content that brands can use in advertising. Sites like TripAdvisor and Yelp are growing increasingly popular and can make or break a travel destination. By showcasing positive experiences that other travelers have had, brands can increase social proof and gain trust with new customers. 

4. Upgrade Your Social Media Game

Social media is an integral part of any marketing strategy for 2023 and beyond. With the growing popularity of platforms like TikTok and Instagram, travel companies can leverage their social media following to increase bookings and drive traffic to other marketing channels. Regularly posting content and engaging with your audience is incredibly valuable for companies in the travel industry. 

Influencers are also a key part of a social media marketing strategy. Utilizing influencer content allows you to reach completely new audiences and showcase the best parts about your brand and vacation destination. If you are looking to increase your reach with photo and video content, social media marketing is the best way to do so.

5. Rely On Data for Key Insights

Data is everywhere – you just need to know how to track it properly. Between websites, social media, online advertisements, and more, there is an abundance of consumer data that can be used to optimize your marketing strategy. 

Travel companies can track user behavior, see where high-converting consumers are coming from, and see what marketing strategies are currently working. Using this data to further improve and optimize your marketing efforts will provide unbeatable insights and deliver quality results. However, you need to be confident that the data you are using is trustworthy and accurate.

6. Don’t Underestimate the Power of Remarketing

Remarketing is a powerful tool that can help direct audiences to your travel website or destination. A customer journey, especially in the travel space, can include tons of different searches and websites. 

Remarketing may prove to be one of the most valuable tools in your marketing toolbelt. When consumers are more familiar with your brand, they may be more receptive to advertisements. Additionally, consumers may be more likely to convert after visiting your website more than once. 

7. Improve Your Mobile User Experience

With the advancement of smartphone technology, consumers are starting to rely heavily on the mobile experience instead of a desktop experience. Travel brands need to shift their focus to the user experience from a mobile standpoint. Whether that means a quality mobile app or website experience can vary from brand to brand.

According to a study performed by SalesCycle , 44% of travelers will book their vacations online. Additionally, those booking on a mobile app or mobile site have a lower cart abandonment rate compared to those on desktop. Mobile consumers are becoming more and more valuable as the travel industry evolves. It is important to ensure that your brand has a seamless booking experience for both desktop and mobile users.

8. Utilize Email Marketing Campaigns

Email marketing is one of the oldest marketing strategies in the book. It continues to be a helpful tool for travel marketers to increase bookings, get more eyes on their destination, and actively engage with their audiences. 

If you have an email list of consumers, you should be utilizing it! And, if you don’t, you should start building one. Including a simple spot on your website for users to input their email address and some basic personal information will allow you to organically grow your list and engage with your audience organically. 

9. Use Video To Enhance The User Experience

As consumers are changing the way they research for a big vacation or small weekend trip, video is becoming more and more popular. Users like to feel like they’ve traveled to a destination before they have even left their house. Video is a great way to market your destination as highly desirable and fun. 

Travel brands can either create their own video content, use consumer created content, or rely on influencers to create video content for them. Each type of content will provide it’s own unique benefit from a marketing perspective. 

Branded video content created internally will be a great way for travel companies to interact with their existing audiences. These can actively be promoted on social media accounts, through email, and on the brand’s website. User generated content will appear the most organic and allow you to interact with your consumers’ networks. Influencer marketing videos may not be as organic as user generated content, but it will reach the widest audience. 

10. Introduce New Technology To Your Marketing Strategies

New technologies in the travel industry are constantly evolving and are a great way to revitalize your marketing efforts. While AI Chatbots have been popular in the industry to assist with online bookings and answer quick questions from customers, the technology has majorly evolved since then. Outside of automated FAQ responses, AI can really have an impact on travel marketing.

There are AI technologies out there that can make personalized travel recommendations for tourists, can interact with consumers via voice throughout their vacation, track and trace baggage via image, and more. With so many new, AI-driven technologies emerging in the travel industry, it is important for brands to stay ahead of the curve to ultimately create an ideal travel experience. 

11. Engage With Local Audiences Too

Local audiences may not seem that important to the travel industry, but they can be an additional untapped audience to target with marketing campaigns. While you may think that locals are familiar with the travel and tourism destinations in their area, you may be surprised to see how many have not visited. 

Not only an this help you encourage repeat visits to your location, it can also help unlock untapped audiences. Successfully marketing towards locals may seem like a difficult task, as they likely try to avoid the tourist areas of their home. However, offering discounts to locals may help encourage increased attendance and may help your local marketing campaigns gain traction.  

12. Tell A Story with Your Destination

Consumers want to travel to a destination with a unique identity and a clear story attached to it. In order to have a successful travel marketing campaign, travel brands need to do more than just showcase their beautiful destinations. 

Every destination will have a unique identity and a unique story attached that can really help consumers picture themselves vacationing there. Whether marketers decide to lean into their destination’s rich culture and history, beautiful, calm scenery, or booming cities, a unique story will help travelers make their decisions easier. 

Refresh Your Marketing Strategy with From the Future’s New Travel Marketing Platform™

Travel marketing can be a complicated undertaking. With that being said, it is important for travel companies to rely on expert marketers to help them understand what strategies are best for their brand. 

At From the Future, we have over a decade of travel marketing experience and have used our expertise to change the way you see marketing. With our Travel Marketing Platform™ , marketers can access brand new audiences and tell their unique story. Get in touch with one of our specialists to see how the Travel Marketing Platform™ can revitalize your marketing strategies. 

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Travel Marketing 101: Everything You Need to Know

People are ready to travel. Where, when, and how varies as much as the individual. Passion, timing, and budgets lead the way. A smart media strategy, combined with evocative storytelling, will transport consumers to your destination.

• What is Travel Marketing?
• Top Travel Industry Trends

Essential Travel and Tourism Marketing Strategies

• — Video Marketing
• — Virtual Reality Experiences
• — Augmented Reality
• — Increase Search Visibility
• — Content Marketing & Native Ads
• — Digital Audio
• — Personalized Messaging
• Big Data in the Travel Industry

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What is travel marketing and why is it i mportant.

• The Travel & Tourism market is projected to reach $54 billion in 2023.
• Revenue is expected to show an annual growth rate from 2027 of 4.41%, resulting in a projected market value of over one billion by 2027. 74% of this will be generated by online sales. 

It's clear why travel marketing is important. Having a data-driven travel marketing strategy makes all the difference in overall business performance. It promotes travel services to new markets, strengthens awareness of one's brand, and increases the rates of both conversions and sales.

Just as travelers— for business or pleasure—have priorities and purpose in mind, so too should travel and tourism brands. What distinguishes your hotel from the others? What’s unique about your location? Who are your primary targets and how are you going to make their experience exemplary to earn their affinity? It all starts with defining your audience personas, crafting your brand, and knowing your KPIs.

Top Travel Industry Trends (2022–2025)

Again, how and where we travel varies, just as much as the destinations themselves. Below are just a few ways people are traveling. Understanding who is traveling where—and why—will inform strategies and personalization.

• Travelers Go it Alone : 25% of all American millennials plan to travel by themselves each year.
• Travelers Crave Local Experiences : The “experience economy” is huge in the travel industry. Consumers crave authentic experiences that distance them from mainstream tourism.
• Going Virtual : For consumers who want to sample and learn about different places without leaving their homes, there’s the alternative of booking a private tour and activity with locals around the world virtually, and viewing in the metaverse.
• Bucket List Travel: Always wanted to see an Emperor Penguin? There’s a cruise for that. Interested in seeing the beaches of Normandy? There’s a personal tour guide for that. Chances are the journey for these experiences starts with a recommendation from a friend and a good old-fashioned Google search to get the lay of the land.
• Business and Leisure Travel : Working remotely can mean Italy as much as Hoboken. The concept of being location-independent— traveling and working remotely— has become a new mainstay post-pandemic. In turn, digital nomads are searching for locations and deals on where to work and play.
• Sustainable Travel : Most U.S. travelers believe there aren’t enough options when it comes to sustainable travel. Nearly 70% of travelers say they are more likely to book accommodations if they know the property is planet-friendly .

Travel Industry Trends Resources: Generational Marketing 2023 Marketing Trends and Predictions

One of the best travel marketing tips to keep in mind is that most customers are not really paying for products or services in their minds. They are paying for experiences . As with nearly all businesses, technology presents the travel industry with seemingly endless opportunities to connect with customers. Below are just a few way brands are getting noticed:

Video Marketing

In the travel industry, videos have long been an indispensable marketing tool. They show off destinations and hospitality businesses in their full glory. Travel marketers that lean into video creation—and that doesn’t have to equal big budget productions—will forge connections with target audiences. Digital video is an amazing way for brands to educate, elicit emotion, and tell compelling stories.

Virtual Reality Experiences—The Metaverse and You:

It’s the ultimate test vacation. The metaverse can transport you just about anywhere and no passport is required. Like what you see? Post an offer and start planning. While still in the early stages, the tourism industry is already making the jump in the virtual reality (VR) world . Over the past few years, museums have introduced more creative ways to interact with exhibits and some have even taken consumers on pub crawls. Thomas Cook , a pioneer in the travel and tourism industry for more than 170 years, is using 360 VR films so travelers can test the waters of Sharm-el-Sheikh in Egypt and more. And if you’re trying to reach Gen Z, they’re here and they’re ready to go places.

Augmented Reality Enhances Real-World Settings

AR, or augmented reality, differs slightly from virtual reality. AR uses apps and overlays to create an experience and show additions to a particular setting. Travel companies can use this to advantage by using AR to transport and showcase their offerings.

Increase Search Visibility and See Bookings Soar

It’s easy to take the importance of a focused SEO strategy for granted with so many other options vying for your attention, but that would be a mistake­. Not having a mindful search strategy as a key tenet in your media strategy would be like not seeing the Eiffel Tower when in Paris. A well-rounded SEO strategy facilitates direct bookings, drives site engagement, and increases overall cost-effectiveness.

Do it right, and you’ll see your Google rankings increase. Getting your brand name on the first page of results is the holy grail to success when 94% of search starts with a search engine and more than 25% click the first result that comes up.

While you may already spend on SEO, it's a good idea to have an SEO check-in from time to time to make sure you’re targeting the right folks and doing so the way they want you to.

Content Marketing and Native Advertising

Few things combine time and place to greater effect than native advertising. It’s the ultimate storytelling device, empowering marketers to say exactly what they want to say and where. A good magazine ad or digital native advertising piece will take the shape of an article—for example, by showcasing a vineyard in Napa on the cover of Travel + Leisure or a video highlighting the beaches of Mexico within a surfing site. The creative will transport viewers, and hopefully a nicely placed call-to-action leads to a website that will give audiences more of the information they seek.

A few native advertising tips:

• Create content that encourages the reader to act
• Know how you’re going to measure results: what is it that you want user to do after they read your article or play your video?
• Try to be original. If you are one of several players trying to host destination weddings, why should they pick you? Are you offering a special incentive code?
• Be authentic. Be real. Native content is storytelling, not overt advertising. It isn't directly selling, per se, but rather sparking ideas.
• Find a fit: Be mindful of where you’re running your creative and complement the space. It’s a curated audience you’re being seen in, so make the most of it.

For many, the first step to a journey is “hey Siri,” "ok Google," or “Alexa,” so it’s little surprise that increasingly travelers (and potential travelers) are turning to devices to book hotels or flights, and learn more about excursions and dining experiences. Markers can optimize content to capitalize on voice searches.

Personalized Messaging Enhances Customer Experience

The goal of effective advertising is to personalize messaging so it's as relevant and beneficial to the recipient as possible. If a travel brand is targeting a young family, it makes sense to highlight the activities for minors. If trying to become a bachelor or bachelorette destination, it may make sense to include in your ad the customized experiences available to enhance their stay (and perhaps a discount code). Leading with a customer-centric perspective distinguishes brands, creates affinity, and earns loyalty.

Data Draws the Big Picture: Big Data in the Travel Industry

The importance of data analytics to drive performance and ROI cannot be overstated and data visualization platforms play an important role in this. They—quite literally—provide a big picture of how all elements in any particular ad campaign are performing. Operators, in turn, can use this information to see what creative is performing strongest, and which platforms are driving the most visit to optimize performance.

Gathering the data enables travel and tourism entities to discern data sets and maximize budgets. Data visualization platforms, such as MNI’s industry-praised Optics , gives advertisers the ability to evaluate key metrics and optimize ROI.

• Engagement rate: How are people engaging with your content? Are they commenting, saving, and sharing, or merely scrolling past? If you have a million followers but only 1,000 interact with your marketing, that is not a great return on your effort.
• Targeting/Retargeting: Are your ads reaching new audiences and are you using data to re-engage potential leads or customers who leave your website without converting? Retargeting ads are designed to help advertisers reach visitors who do not convert right away. These campaigns are effective because they allow advertisers to target engaged customers with a highly relevant ad. Retargeting delivers strong results for increased awareness, website traffic, and conversion rate.
• Putting it all together: Let the picture of what you see tell you where you want to go, where you should be spending more, what ads you should optimize. For the effort that your business is putting into collecting and maintaining a database, you should be able to obtain an equal or greater amount of value from the insights it gathers. 

Attitudes to travel are a moving target. Whether traveling for business or leisure, going by air or train or car, the desire to travel is real. Telling your target audience how you will be providing value and keeping them safe is essential. Step #1, know your audience. Step #2, connect with them. Step #3, embrace a multi-channel strategy. To do this, it’s incumbent to keep up to date with the very latest travel marketing strategies and to partner with those that do it best.

7 travel marketing trends for 2022

So where should we focus our priorities for the upcoming years? Here are seven trends that I believe will shape our marketing as we move forward.

1. TRAVELER EXPECTATIONS HAVE CHANGED

One of the biggest consequences stemming from this pandemic is how it changed our needs and wants when it comes to travel. In fact, many studies found that low prices were no longer the number one consideration when it came to decision-making in purchasing travel. In a recent article, I shared  what travelers expect in 2021  and we see a clear shift from traditional views, with flexible booking conditions and sanitary measures now coming in at #1 and #2 in terms of importance for travelers.

How is your hotel, restaurant or attraction conveying this on your website? On your social media posts? Are you addressing these concerns with a dedicated tab on your website menu or with information in your regular newsletter? Integrating these aspects in your ongoing communications will be key.

Nature of travel is changing, too

2022 will mark the return of the international traveler, finall. But your organization should also pay attention to evolving behaviors in the travel landscape that were clearly shaped from this recent pandeminc. For example the working travelers, or digital nomads. If these travelers were marginal a couple of years ago, we can expect more and more leisure travelers mixing some business into the equation.

Just like business travelers will also add a few days onto their trip since technologies make it easier than ever to have meetings by the poolside or in a wifi-enabled room. Is your brand ready for this new reality and how are you communicating it across your digital touchpoints?

2. THE EVOLUTION OF LOYALTY PROGRAMS

Loyalty programs have been around for ever, and were able to move the needle (somewhat) of retention mostly with customers in the airline industry, where they were born originally. Hotel loyalty programs are a dime a dozen, and too many of these programs have failed to have distinctive features or get customers to increase their spend. For bigger chain hotels and resorts that can scale offers, loyalty programs still provide value but this is less the case for independent hotels and smaller players.

Now, we are also seeing subscription-based approaches such as  TripAdvisor  with its Plus program. And more recently,  Expedia  revamped and unified the loyalty programs within its portfolio of brands (Expedia, Hotels.com, Orbitz, Vrbo, etc.) in order to better position itself against competition such as Booking.com’s Genius Loyalty program. The new program will span flights, hotels, vacation rentals, car rentals, cruises, and activities.

We can expect more movement on this front, as hotels, restaurants and other hospitality providers will want to maintain their appeal within the broad loyalty and reward programs universe. This is also a key tactic to preserve the direct booking channel alive and kicking (see next point).

3. DIRECT BOOKINGS WILL PREVAIL, BUT LESS

For years now, hotels have been striving to get customers to book directly on their own website, where costs are low, rather than through brand.com or third parties like Expedia or Booking, where commission levels are steep. With more or less success.

This pandemic has brought in a rare opportunity, making domestic travel a must and only option. When booking locally, travelers feel less of a need to search on OTA platforms and are more confident about dealing directly with travel providers. Thus, direct bookings percentages when through the roof in 2020… but a bit less so in 2021, according to preliminary data from various reports.

In 2022, we can expect a shift back to reservations going to brand.com and, to a lesser extent, back to OTA catering more to an international clientele in general. Direct bookings will remain strong, but won’t stay at levels seen in 2020.

4. TIKTOK NOW A MAINSTREAM PLATFORM

It was almost two years ago when I posted an article stating  Why TikTok matters for travel brands . Now, more than ever, travel and hospitality need to pay attention. Here are a few reasons why:

• TikTok now has more than 1 billion active users (MAU)
• It has been among the most downloaded mobile apps worldwide for over 6 consecutive quarters
• The average user spends over 52 minutes per day on the platform
• TikTok gets the highest levels of engagement per post of any social media
• The fastest growing segment of users are 25-39 year-old

That last bit of information is perhaps the most crucial one. Whenever I talk to brands about the possibility of TikTok, the classic rebuttal I get is that “ it’s for young teenagers only “. That might have been true in its earlier stages, but less so today. Content is more varied than it once was, with tutorials, cooking recipes, movie critics, travel recommendations, and so much more.

Don’t get me wrong, TikTok IS a platform that caters very well to a younger audience, because of it’s very nature and features: music, dancing, trends, pranks, etc. But as it grew in the past two years, so did its userbase. It would therefore be a critical mistake to dismiss it as possibility for your marketing mix in the coming year.

Going mainstream

One last point about TikTok. Late September, it held its first ever TikTok World Event during which many new features were shared for both content creators AND brands wishing to invest on the platform. Advertising is becoming more fluid and accessible, while longer videos are now possible. All in all, we are dealing with a platform reaching a maturity level that has Facebook (and Instagram) shaking and reacting… so it will be interesting to see how this battles unfolds!

5. INSTAGRAM AS THE GO-TO SOCIAL MEDIA

If there is anything the past couple of weeks have shown us, one thing is clear: Facebook is no longer the key social platform for storytelling. It remains a necessary evil, with its Events, Groups, Messenger, Marketplace and other useful features. But as younger audiences continue to flock away from Facebook, there is one silver lining that remains: Instagram.

Case in point, last year SocialBakers evaluated how top Fortune 50 companies were dealing with their presence on Facebook and Instagram. As we can see in the chart above, comparing Q1 2019 with Q1 2020, audiences on Facebook shrank while those on Instagram increased. Interestingly, this increase occured even though brands were posting less, as we can see in the middle column. But to me, the most interesting finding comes from the third column, where we see total interactions, or engagement. Facebook already had dismal engagement levels, and it continues on shrinking while Instagram continues to see robust interaction.

Stories work well on Instagram, less so on Facebook. Reels are working relatively well on Instagram, even though they don’t match TikTok posts, which they clealy emulate. Reels are just arriving on Facebook, but I suspect they will do just like stories, which means not much. AR lens are useful and plentiful on Instagram, less so on Facebook.

Can you see a pattern, here?

Brands must stick with Facebook. For now.

Having said that, I am not saying travel brands should ditch Facebook just yet. Facebook has become a  de facto  outpost for customer service, recruiting, content sharing and overall communication with your community. A dynamic page means better ad campaign performance across the Facebook landscape, which includes Instagram, Messenger and Whatsapp. And there are many brands out there that still do a stellar job at creating quality content, which results in great reach and engagement levels.

But as the recent seven hours shutdown showed, it’s dangerous to put all your eggs in the same (Facebook) basket. Thus, having a diversified approach online is key.

6. NEWSLETTERS AND EMAIL MARKETING MAKE A COME BACK

For the past 20 years now, I have been hearing that email is dead, or that newsletters don’t work “as well as they used to”. Really? In a world where social media algorithms block off up to 95% of the content you post on your pages, one-to-one communication like emails, SMS and newsletters are more pertinent than ever.

If you read the points #3 and #4 above, you will also see a cause and effect correlation here. That is, with travel brands pushing more direct reservations and increasing efforts for retention and loyalty, having an email strategy in place is fundamental to fostering that relationship. This also means having automated processes prior to, during and after a stay, including invitations to leave a review after the experience on key platforms, i.e. Google, TripAdvisor, Facebook, etc.

7. WEBSITE SEO MORE IMPORTANT THAN EVER

According to a Google survey from December 2020, searches for “available near me” grew globally by more than 100% since 2019. In 2021, these searches are up another 60% according to SearchEngineLand. What’s even more interesting is when we dig further to see which were the top categories for these searches over a given period of time.

The top categories for those searches were:

• Entertainment (56%)
• Banking (50%)
• Apparel (41%)
• Personal Care (38%)

These are all categories deeply rooted in the travel experience, as we seek places to eat, things to do and stuff to buy whenever we are in a new destination for leisure or business. So how is your website ranking whenever travelers search with keywords that should lead to your brand?

Your website should not only be mobile optimized, in fact in many cases it should be properly be designed with mobile-first in mind.

Read also:  Understanding the difference between mobile-first, adaptive and responsive design

More importantly, you will want to make sure you claim and manage your  Google My Business  profile. This will ensure you complete all relevant details with regards to your opening hours, amenities and services, photos and videos. This is also where you can manage and respond to reviews, since this has become an important facet for your online reputation.

BONUS: HR MARKETING TO HELP LABOR SHORTAGES

Last but not least, I thought I would mention the fact that all these marketing strategies and tactics are fine and swell in normal times. Or rather, in times when operations are growing smoothly as they should coming out of a worldwide pandemic. Truth is, however, there is a major issue that has been looming over the industry for the past 3-4 years and that is now exacerbated to unseen levels: the shortage of labor.

Earlier this summer, I shared  5 ways to mitigate shortage of labor in Hospitality  and one of the tactics was actually to have a proper HR Marketing strategy in place. Well, I suspect we will be seeing lots more of this integration in 2022, where human ressources will work closely with marketing and communications to convey the employer brand vision, mission and values on social networks and other digital outposts.

Labor shortage will be a problem for the next decade, and marketing alone will not solve it. But a strong and creative digital presence can certainly contribute to a stronger employer brand which, in turn, will help with recruiting and maintaining workforce stability.

First posted on federicgonzalo.com

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The ultimate travel marketing strategy guide

Discover the ultimate travel marketing tactics to succeed and stay ahead.

The importance of getting your marketing right in the travel sector is at an all-time high. Social media and influencers have helped make the world more visible than ever before. Consumers are turning to social channels as a source of inspiration. They’re hunting for the next trending destination and best travel deals.

On top of this, there has been a much-needed post-COVID travel boom. So-called ‘revenge holidays’ are in full swing and worldwide tourist arrivals are expected to reach up to  95% of pre-pandemic levels . It finally looks like things are getting back to normal and opportunities are everywhere.

But competition is growing. Standing out from the crowd is becoming increasingly difficult and keeping travelers engaged enough to complete the checkout process is a challenge.

At the same time, there are question marks over how long this travel boom will last. Staffing issues, the cost of fuel and energy, and uncertainty around the cost of living are causing concern for travelers and travel marketers alike.

In this ultimate guide, we will have a look at the current state of the travel marketing landscape and break down all the channels and tactics you need to utilize to succeed in the highly competitive sectorwere

• Travel marketing strategy
• Email marketing for travel marketers  
• Segmentation strategies
• SMS marketing for travel brands
• Marketing automation programs

6. Web personalization for travel brands 7. Push notification marketing 8. Reporting and analytics  9. AI for travel marketing 10. Integrations for travel marketers

What is travel marketing and why is it important?

People are always dreaming of their next vacation, surely that means travel brands basically sell themselves, right?

Unfortunately, not. How brands market themselves is what makes travelers choose one resort and airline over another. Travel brands must promote and sell their products, services, and experiences to customers. You need to showcase the distinctive features of your destination, accommodation, leisure activities, and travel packages to spark interest and motivate bookings.

The travel industry is vast and continuously evolving. Some of the primary types of businesses that make up the industry include:

• Train operators
• Cruise liners
• Bus companies
• Car rental agencies
• Hotels and resorts
• Bed & breakfasts (B&B)
• Vacation rentals (e.g. Airbnb, VRBO)
• Camping and glamping sites
• Travel agencies (online and offline)
• Tour operators
• Online travel agencies (OTAs)
• Travel management companies (TMCs)
• Travel insurance providers
• Guided tours and sightseeing excursions
• Adventure activities and sports (e.g. skiing, scuba diving)
• Museums, galleries, and cultural centers
• Theme parks and amusement parks
• Restaurants, bars, and cafes
• National tourism boards
• Regional and state tourism offices
• City visitor bureaus
• Travel booking and comparison sites
• Mobile applications for travel planning and navigation
• Travel review and recommendation sites (e.g. TripAdvisor)
• Metasearch engines for flights, hotels, and car rentals (e.g. Kayak, Skyscanner)

Why is marketing in the travel industry important?

Marketing is an indispensable tool for travel brands. Without it, you would struggle to achieve your business goals. Effective marketing can help you attract more customers, increase your revenue, and establish a strong brand.

What are the benefits of travel marketing?

• Increased visibility: Marketing helps significantly to increase your brand’s exposure. This ensures that potential customers are aware of the travel services and experiences you offer and boosts overall visibility in the crowded marketplace.
• Customer acquisition: A well-executed marketing campaign attracts new customers by showcasing the value and unique aspects of your travel business, ultimately driving revenue growth.
• Improved customer retention: Marketing enables your travel brand to maintain long-term relationships with your existing customers by offering personalized and contextually relevant content and engaging with them consistently across channels.
• Enhanced customer loyalty: Including loyalty programs, exclusive offers, and personalized promotions in your marketing can build customer loyalty, leading to repeat business and higher customer lifetime value (CLV).
• Competitive advantage: Innovative and targeted marketing strategies can help your travel brand stand out from the competition, positioning you as a leader and providing an advantage in a highly competitive market.
• Increased revenue: Marketing can be used to generate upselling and cross-selling opportunities, increasing the average transaction value and ultimately resulting in higher revenue.
• Improved brand reputation: Using marketing, you can manage your online presence, customer reviews, and social media engagement. This positively influences your brand reputation, driving more business from potential customers who trust and value your brand.
• Informed decision-making: Leveraging data collected through your marketing activities for analysis and insights can help your business make informed decisions about product and service offerings, and marketing strategies, allowing you to optimize your efforts and boost performance.
• Expansion into new markets: Marketing can play a critical role in identifying new potential markets, demographics, and customer segments to target, enabling you to expand your reach and tap into new growth opportunities.
• Adaptability and resilience: Marketing enables you to react quickly to unpredictable events, market trends, and competitive moves, adapting your strategies to maintain customer engagement and drive bookings while ensuring resilience in the face of challenges.

Need to know marketing statistics for the travel industry

In today’s complicated and dynamic digital world, you must do all you can to understand the intricacies of the travel industry. Using these statistics, you will be able to get a bird’s eye view of global trends, customer behavior trends, and forces that are set to drive the multibillion-dollar industry forward in the years to come.

What are the challenges of travel marketing?

Despite economic uncertainty and the lasting impact of the pandemic, the travel industry is returning to pre-pandemic levels and enjoying steady growth.

Still, airlines, hotels, travel agencies, and other travel brands across the world are facing unique challenges that set you apart from typical marketing teams. In the ever-changing world of travel marketing, you have your hands full keeping up with the latest trends and technological advancements. Below are just a few of the top challenges you’re facing on an almost daily basis and how to overcome them.

With inflation in flux and travel expenses rising, travelers now consider price to be their top priority. To connect with your audience, you should emphasize low rates and demonstrate high value. Promoting discounts, bundles, and loyalty programs will appeal to budget-conscious consumers.

As remote work, digital engagement, and eco-consciousness continue to impact customer behaviors, you need to stay on top of trends to cater to emerging segments like bleisure (business and leisure) travelers. Data-centric platforms like Dotdigital plug into CRM systems and use machine learning can help brands understand these new customer groups.

With 86% of travelers seeking personalized experiences , you need to create tailored campaigns that resonate with your audience. Data collection and integration with CRM platforms are essential for delivering enjoyable, relevant, and personalized marketing experiences.

By understanding and following emerging travel trends, you can engage with audiences throughout the whole customer journey. You need to approach the journey holistically and create a cohesive experience across channels. Tools like single customer view (SCV) and eRFM will help you get a clearer view of travelers’ behavior.

To maintain your competitive edge, you must offer a seamless, efficient experience for customers, from booking to post-break feedback. You should tap into technology to adapt to market changes. Ensuring data quality and consolidation will help you reap the full benefits of new tech advancements.

To cater to your more environmentally-conscious travelers, you need to demonstrate a genuine commitment to sustainable practices. Avoiding greenwashing and adopting eco-friendly practices help you align your campaigns with customer values and support a greener future.

How to build a successful travel marketing strategy

Building a successful travel marketing strategy involves careful planning, targeting the right audience, and effectively leveraging your various marketing channels. Here’s a step-by-step guide to creating a winning travel marketing strategy:

Step 1: Define your target audience

Start by clearly defining your target audience. Conduct market research to determine their demographics, preferences, and behaviors. This will help you tailor your marketing materials to resonate with this specific group and achieve better results.

Step 2: Develop a strong brand identity

Create a memorable and eye-catching brand identity that encapsulates your company’s ethos and values. This includes your company name, logo, tagline, color scheme, and visual style. Consistency across all marketing channels reinforces brand recognition and establishes trust.

Step 3: Optimize your online presence

Create a user-friendly website that provides relevant information, showcases your offerings, and guides visitors to conversions (i.e. bookings or inquiries). Ensure your website has strong SEO to improve search engine ranking. Utilize social media platforms to engage with your audience and share valuable content.

Step 4: Leverage content marketing

Produce high-quality, informative, and engaging content that inspires travelers and provides value. This could include blog articles, videos, or destination guides. Diversifying your content not only keeps your audience interested but also addresses different stages of their customer journey.

Step 5: Monitor, analyze, and adapt 

Implement analytics tools to track your marketing efforts and identify what works best. Monitor key performance indicators (KPIs) and adjust your strategy accordingly to optimize results. By continually learning from your data, you can make informed decisions and enhance your marketing effectiveness.

Boost growth with cutting-edge marketing technology

To enhance your visibility, captivate travelers, and boost bookings and inquiries, it’s essential to tap into the technology you have available. For peak success in the travel sector, you need technology that collaborates seamlessly with your existing tech solutions. 

Dotdigital’s customer experience and data platform (CXDP) delivers an array of travel marketing tools and channels through a unified, all-encompassing platform. By maximizing your technology usage, you can elevate traveler engagement, increase bookings, and optimize your travel marketing initiatives.

Email marketing for travel marketers

Email marketing is a powerful tool for the travel industry, as it enables you to reach your target audience, build lasting relationships, and drive conversions.

In this section, we’ll explore the benefits of email marketing and the essential elements of successful email marketing for travel businesses, including creating targeted campaigns, utilizing data to send personalized content, and ensuring that emails are engaging and mobile-friendly.

The benefits of email marketing for travel brands 

Email marketing is an essential tool for marketers in the travel industry for several reasons:

1. Direct communication channel

Email marketing is a direct line of communication with your target audience, allowing you to share news, updates, offers, and content straight to subscribers’ inboxes, enhancing engagement and nurturing long-term relationships.

2. Strong ROI

Compared to other forms of marketing in the travel sector, email marketing is relatively inexpensive while maintaining a high return on investment (ROI). This makes it one of the best options for travel brands looking to reach large audiences or target specific segments without breaking the bank.

3. Personalization capabilities

Email marketing enables you to create perfectly personalized content and offers based on your subscriber’s demographics, preferences, and travel or engagement history. Ultimately, personalization leads to increased customer satisfaction and loyalty, as your audience feels catered to and valued by your brand.

4. Behavioral targeting

With email marketing campaigns, you can track various metrics such as open rates, click-through rates, and conversions, allowing a better understanding of travelers’ behaviors and preferences. This valuable information can be utilized to optimize future campaigns, ensuring better audience targeting and fostering long-term customer relationships.

5. Urgency and exclusivity

You can use email marketing to create a sense of urgency through time-sensitive offers, limited promotions, and exclusive deals, encouraging customers to book their travel or upgrade reservations.

6. Increased customer retention

By regularly sending informative content, helpful resources, and engaging promotions through email marketing campaigns, you will nurture customer loyalty and increase repeat bookings over time.

7. Relevance and timeliness

Email campaigns can be triggered based on specific events or customer actions, ensuring that the content is relevant and timely as per each individual’s needs. This could include sending reminder emails about upcoming trips or limited-time promotions resulting in better engagements and more conversions. 

Email marketing best practice for travel marketers 

Travel marketers can employ these best practices to create effective and engaging email campaigns:

Write catchy and enticing subject lines to increase open rates. Make your subject line relevant to the email’s content, and ensure it resonates with your target audience. Tap into the power of generative AI to really save time and improve results. 

Personalize your email campaigns by using the recipient’s first name and providing recommendations, content, or offers based on their preferences, travel history, or demographics.

Divide your subscribers into targeted segments based on factors such as geographical location, interests, booking history, or language, and send tailored content that appeals to each segment’s unique attributes.

Embed high-quality images and videos of destinations, accommodations, or activities to inspire and evoke emotions, leading to higher engagement levels.

Make your CTAs clear, concise, and visually emphasized, directing subscribers toward the desired action, such as visiting a web page, booking a travel package, or redeeming special offers.

Ensure that your email template is mobile-friendly, with easy-to-read text and a clean layout, as a large portion of your audience will likely read your emails on mobile devices.

Aim to provide valuable, informative, and engaging content that relates to the interests and needs of your subscribers, building trust and fostering lasting customer relationships.

A/B test various elements of your emails, such as subject lines, send times, layout, or content, to determine what generates higher engagement and conversions. Continuously optimize your campaigns based on the insights gained from these tests.

Keep track of key email marketing metrics such as open rates, click-through rates, conversion rates, and unsubscribe rates to measure the effectiveness of your campaigns and identify areas for improvement.

Regularly review and clean your email list, removing inactive subscribers or outdated addresses to improve deliverability and maintain a high-quality mailing list.

Segmentation strategies for travel marketers

Segmentation is a crucial tactic for all marketers, but none more so than marketers in the travel sector. It involves dividing your target audience into distinct groups based on their preferences, demographics, or behaviors.

Implementing a segmentation strategy allows you to create highly targeted marketing campaigns that resonate better with each group, ultimately driving higher customer engagement and conversions.

Top five benefits of segmentation

1. targeted marketing messages.

Segmentation allows you to tailor your marketing messages and content to specific segments, resulting in greater relevance, customer engagement, and conversion rates.

2. Improved customer experience

Offering personalized content, recommendations, and offers based on segmentation fosters a better customer experience, deepening brand loyalty, and strengthening long-term relationships.

3. Resource allocation

By focusing marketing resources on specific customer segments, you can effectively allocate your budget, time, and efforts, ensuring maximum impact for your marketing activities. eRFM customer modeling will help you identify highly engaged, high-value customers to prioritize.

4. Increased ROI

Using segmentation, you can build tailored campaigns designed to appeal to different groups, resulting in higher response rates and, ultimately, an increased return on marketing investment.

5. Market insights

Segmentation provides insights into your customer preferences and behaviors, helping you identify new market opportunities, improvement areas, or trends that can inform marketing strategy.

Top tips for implementing a segmentation strategy

Collect customer data from various sources, such as website behavior, booking history, survey responses, third-party travel partners, and CRM systems, and unify them to build a comprehensive understanding of your audience.

Utilize Dotdigital’s advanced segmentation tools, including eRFM (engagement, recency, frequency, monetary) modeling and single customer view (SCV) data. These features allow you to achieve more precise targeting and improved insights into customer behavior.

Develop content and promotional offers that resonate with the specific needs, desires, and pain points of each segment. Personalized marketing messages have a higher chance of engaging and converting customers. Use the data collected from Dotdigital’s eRFM and SCV features to inform these strategies.

Ensure that appropriate marketing channels are used for each segment. Different customer groups may prefer email, SMS, or other channels, so align your strategy accordingly. Dotdigital’s customer insights will help you build a seamless cross-channel marketing plan.

Continuously test and analyze the performance of segmented campaigns. Monitor key metrics such as open rates, click-through rates, conversion rates, and CLV to identify areas for improvement. Adjust your segmentation approach and marketing strategies based on these data-driven insights.

Customer preferences and behaviors change over time. Periodically reassess your segments, refresh your data, and leverage updated customer insights to ensure your marketing efforts remain relevant and effective.

Successful customer re-targeting

Discover how the holiday comparison site, Icelolly boosted conversion rates and enhanced its email marketing performance with personalized re-targeted marketing.

SMS marketing in the travel industry

SMS marketing is a powerful and often underutilized marketing channel that can boost engagement and provide exceptional value for travel businesses like yours. As a direct and immediate form of communication, SMS marketing can help you reach customers in ways other channels might not.

Benefits of SMS marketing for travel marketers

1. high open rates.

SMS messages have an exceptional open rate, with most recipients reading the message within minutes of receiving it. This ensures that promotional offers, updates, or reminders are seen by the vast majority of your target audience.

2. Real-time communication

SMS provides real-time, immediate communication that allows you to send time-sensitive offers, last-minute deals, or critical travel updates to your customers.

3. Mobile accessibility

With the vast majority of the population carrying mobile devices, SMS marketing provides an efficient way to reach your customers regardless of their location or internet access.

4. Cost-effective

SMS marketing campaigns are easy to set up and cheaper than most other marketing channels. This means you can effectively reach your target audience, even on a budget.

5. Personalized experiences

SMS campaigns can be tailored to individual users based on their preferences, interests, or travel history, creating a more personalized and engaging experience for your customers.

6. Easy integration with other marketing channels

SMS marketing can be easily combined with other channels such as email, app, or social media, to create a comprehensive and cohesive marketing campaign for your travel brand.

How to integrate SMS into your travel marketing

By adopting SMS marketing, your travel business can unlock new avenues of customer engagement and diversify your overall marketing efforts, ultimately boosting bookings and customer satisfaction. Here are some campaign ideas that can be implemented through SMS marketing:

Send helpful reminders for upcoming trips, pre-travel checklists, departure times, locations, or travel document requirements.

Share essential real-time updates like flight delays, gate changes, or itinerary adjustments, ensuring customers are well-informed and prepared. Ultimately, this will lead to higher satisfaction and experience overall. 

Send exclusive deals, discounts, limited-time offers, or last-minute specials to encourage customers to book travel or secure a service through your business.

Remind customers about travel packages, accommodation options, or services they were considering but have not completed the booking process.

Suggest relevant add-ons or upgrades to customers based on their travel plans, such as excursions, activity bookings, premium seating, or transportation options.

Request post-trip feedback, ratings, or reviews through an SMS message, using the insights to improve your services and customer satisfaction. SMS is a great channel for this because it requires little lift from your team and has a high completion rate. 

Notify customers of their rewards or loyalty points balance and inform them of any opportunities to earn additional points or redeem special offers.

Share useful destination-based information, such as local attractions, events, dining options, or safety tips, to enhance your customers’ travel experiences.

Top tips for successfully incorporating SMS into your travel marketing campaigns

• Combine SMS with email marketing Integrate SMS marketing into your existing email marketing strategy, sending important alerts, reminders, or limited-time offers through SMS to complement your email marketing activity.
• Segment your audience Create targeted SMS campaigns based on demographics, geographic location, or travel preferences, ensuring that your messages resonate with subscribers and are relevant to their needs in the moment.
• Personalize messages Deliver tailored content and offers based on customers’ booking history, travel destinations, or preferences, creating a sense of exclusivity and personal connection.
• Use automation Use customer actions to trigger SMS marketing campaigns, such as booking confirmation, travel reminders, or payment due notices. This will ensure your text messages are landing at the best time to drive customer conversions.
• Keep messages concise Deliver the key message or the call-to-action within the constraints of the character limit. Stay concise, and focused, and ensure your message is easy to understand. Tap into AI tools to help.

Using SMS for two-way communications

Discover how British Airways used Dotdigital’s two-way SMS functionality to encourage travelers to complete monthly customer satisfaction surveys. 

MMS for travel marketing campaigns

MMS (multimedia messaging service) is a branch of SMS marketing that allows the sending of multimedia content, such as images, videos, and audio files, alongside text messages. It presents new and exciting opportunities to engage customers in a more dynamic and visually appealing way.

MMS allows you to send rich visual content, including high-quality images and videos that showcase destinations, accommodations, or activities. This allows customers to get a better sense of the travel experience being offered and will inspire them to book.

Multimedia messages, including images and videos, have higher engagement rates compared to simple text messages. By leveraging MMS, you can evoke stronger emotional responses and drive customer interest, resulting in increased conversions and bookings.

MMS helps you to create immersive narratives by sharing pictures, videos, or audio clips of real travel experiences. This storytelling approach can help build a connection with potential travelers, increasing the likelihood of them engaging with your brand.

MMS can be customized based on individual preferences, interests, or travel history. By sending personalized multimedia content to customers, you can create a more relevant and memorable connection, ultimately fostering brand loyalty.

Although MMS adoption is growing, many businesses still primarily rely on text-based marketing. By being an early adopter of MMS, you can differentiate yourself from competitors and establish a unique brand identity in the minds of consumers.

MMS works well in conjunction with SMS, email, and social media campaigns. Integrating MMS into your overall marketing strategy can help create a comprehensive and cohesive approach that covers different stages of the customer journey.

Marketing automation for travel marketers

Marketing automation streamlines and optimizes repetitive marketing tasks, leading to enhanced efficiency, reduced manual efforts, and improved results. Intelligent marketing automation tools like Dotdigital create conversion-driving, loyalty-inspiring experiences by tapping into customer data and turning it into real-time marketing campaigns.

Benefits of marketing automation for travel brands

1. time-saving and cost-efficiency.

Marketing automation significantly reduces manual tasks associated with campaign management and customer segmentation, freeing up time for you and your teams to focus on strategic tasks, such as content creation and performance analysis.

2. Seamless communication

Marketing automation ensures regularly scheduled and consistent communication with customers across different channels. This is essential for maintaining customer engagement and building long-term brand loyalty.

3. Personalization

By tracking customers’ actions, preferences, and booking history, marketing automation tools help you deliver personalized and relevant content that resonates with your target audience. This moments-based approach to marketing enhances the overall customer experience, improving ROI, average order value (AOV), and customer lifetime value (CLV).

4. Cross-channel campaign management

Marketing automation platforms help you manage and coordinate campaigns across various channels, such as email, SMS, social media, and web push notifications, ensuring a seamless and cohesive marketing strategy.

5. Data-driven insights

With the help of detailed analytics provided by Dotdigital, you can make data-driven decisions, monitor campaign performance, and optimize your strategies for maximum results.

Essential automation programs for travel brands 

Set up automated welcome emails or messages for new subscribers, providing an initial introduction to your brand, exclusive offers, and personalized travel recommendations based on their preferences.

Automate booking confirmations, reservation details, and pre-travel reminders, ensuring all necessary information reaches the customer on time. This can include flight check-in reminders, pre-trip preparation tips, and travel documentation requirements.

Implement automated messages for customers who added travel packages or services to their cart but didn’t complete the booking process. These messages can include personalized incentives or offers to encourage conversion, AI-powered recommendations, or exclusive discounts for high-value customers.

Build automated re-engagement or nurture campaigns to connect with inactive or lapsed customers, offering relevant travel deals or content that sparks renewed interest in your brand. Use eRFM to identify these customers and SCV to gain insight into the channels and content that will drive them toward conversions.

Loyalty programs are a big motivating factor in the decision-making process of modern travelers. Automate loyalty program updates, notifications, or special offers to reward repeat customers and enhance long-term brand loyalty.

Automate post-trip feedback requests, analyze customer experiences, and collect valuable insights to inform improvements in your offerings and services. Positive reviews also make great marketing collateral so the importance of this program must not be underestimated. 

Schedule automated campaigns centered around holidays, seasonal offers, or special events, targeting customers with relevant deals and packages. Use customer insights to see when customers are most engaged or typically looking at your website to identify essential times to launch annual offers.

By understanding the benefits of marketing automation and implementing these recommended automation programs, you can streamline your marketing efforts, engage customers across multiple touchpoints, and enhance the overall customer experience while driving revenue and brand loyalty.

Marketing automation in action

Discover how international flight operator, Copa Airlines used Dotdigital to streamline its automated marketing communications to deliver a significant increase in revenue.

Web personalization for travel marketing teams

Web personalization involves tailoring website content to individual visitors based on their preferences, behavior, and demographic data.

In the travel industry, web personalization offers significant benefits and opportunities for enhancing customer engagement and boosting conversion rates. In this section, we’ll discuss the advantages of web personalization for travel marketers and provide strategies to create personalized online experiences.

Benefits of web personalization for travel marketers

1. enhanced customer engagement.

Personalized content and offers on your website can capture users’ attention and create a positive, engaging experience, increasing the likelihood of bookings and purchases.

2. Improved relevance

By addressing customers’ preferences and needs, web personalization ensures that your website’s content remains relevant and tailored to each user, making your brand more appealing to potential customers.

3. Increased conversion rates

Personalized content, offers, and recommendations can lead to an increase in customers taking action, whether booking a trip, subscribing to newsletters, or requesting more information.

4. Reduced bounce rates

An engaging and personalized website encourages visitors to spend more time exploring your offerings, reducing bounce rates and increasing the chances of customer conversions.

5. Improved ROI

By delivering personalized content and experiences to specific segments, web personalization can result in better use of marketing resources and a higher return on investment.

Strategies for personalizing web experiences

Show customers recommended travel destinations, offers, or services based on their current location, accounting for local events or geographic preferences.

Leverage customer behavior, such as browsing habits, pages visited, or previous booking history, to deliver personalized content, deals, or recommendations.

Divide your website visitors into specific segments based on demographics, interests, or travel preferences, and tailor website content to cater to these segments.

Implement exit intent pop-overs with tailored, last-minute offers or incentives that persuade visitors to book, subscribe, or engage further with your brand before leaving the website.

Use dynamic content that adapts based on user interactions, website behavior, or previous travel bookings, recommending related destinations, accommodations, or activities.

Employ remarketing campaigns that display personalized ads to users who have previously visited your website, featuring customized offers, messages, or promotions.

Integrate AI-driven recommendations into your website, providing visitors with personalized travel options across your homepage, product, and service pages.

Create dedicated, personalized landing pages for various promotions or travel offers based on customer segments, increasing the chances of conversions and bookings.

Push notification marketing for travel brands

Push notification marketing is a powerful tool for brands operating in the travel industry. It allows you to engage with customers directly through real-time, targeted, moments-based messages delivered directly to users’ mobile devices or web browsers.

Benefits of using push notifications in your travel marketing

1. increased engagement.

Push notifications give you new opportunities to re-engage customers by sending personalized promotions, announcements, and reminders. Ultimately, this enhances customer interactions and brand connection.

Timely and relevant notifications help you to communicate instantly with users, facilitating real-time updates on special deals, flight status, itinerary changes, or exclusive offers.

3. Higher conversion rates

By delivering tailored offers and targeted content, push notifications can increase conversion rates, driving bookings and encouraging customers to take action.

4. Improved user experience

Push notifications can enhance the user experience by offering personalized recommendations, location-based offers, and immediate assistance, fostering a stronger bond between customers and your brand.

5. Trackable performance metrics

Push notifications offer valuable performance insights, such as open rates, click-through rates, and conversion rates, helping you optimize campaigns and improve future marketing efforts.

Reporting and analytics for travel marketers

For marketers in the travel industry, maximizing efficiency and leveraging your budget and resources effectively is crucial. Utilizing advanced reporting and analytic tools can streamline and optimize your digital marketing efforts.

Advanced analytics and reporting tools 

Email reporting and analytics.

Email reporting and analytics provide insights into the performance of your email marketing campaigns. This information helps you to:

• Identify trends in your email marketing campaigns
• Ensure your campaigns are meeting their objectives
• Pinpoint areas that need optimization to enhance campaign performance

Email dashboards

Email dashboards provide you with an overview of all your email marketing campaigns, while email reports focus on a single campaign, outlining key performance metrics. By getting a bird’s eye look at your email marketing campaigns, you can discover:

• Statistics about your delivered, bounced, and skipped emails.
• Data about opens, unique opens, non-opens, and social shares.
• A heat map showing the areas of the world where your email campaign was most opened.
• The most popular links in your campaign, clicks, unique clicks, and click-to-open rates.
• Details about your winning and losing split tests.

SMS reporting

SMS campaign reports monitor channel performance, enabling you to continuously improve your marketing results. These reports showcase:

Helps track the frequency of SMS campaigns and analyze performance metrics over time.

Measures the effectiveness of your campaign, comparing the number of clicks to successfully delivered messages, which can inform improvements in content or targeting.

Indicates the percentage of recipients who completed a desired action, such as booking a trip or signing up for a newsletter, helping to evaluate the success of promotional efforts.

Evaluates the total revenue generated by a specific SMS campaign, determining ROI and guiding budgeting decisions.

Provides insight into the revenue generated from bookings or purchases influenced by an SMS campaign, even if completed through different channels.

Informs segmentation strategy by showing the number of segment groups targeted in the campaign, helping you assess the depth and breadth of your reach.

Indicates engagement with SMS content by revealing the number of clicks on embedded links, allowing you to better analyze which messages resonate best with your target audience.

Measures the reach of an SMS campaign by tallying messages successfully received, helping to gauge overall marketing effectiveness.

Provides an overview of SMS campaign volume, enabling evaluation of the relationship between quantity and campaign success.

Program analytics

Dotdigital’s program analytics tools offer several benefits to travel marketers, especially by helping you optimize your marketing automation programs and maximize campaign impact. Key benefits include:

Program analytics provide a comprehensive and data-driven overview of your marketing automation programs, allowing you to make informed decisions about marketing strategies and tactics.

The visual representation of the different nodes in your marketing automation workflow enables you to gain a deeper understanding of your programs and quickly identify areas that require optimization.

Dotdigital’s program analytics tools allow you to monitor the performance of your marketing automation programs in real-time, enabling you to quickly adapt to changing trends and make necessary adjustments.

The detailed view feature allows you to choose between different chart views (trend and cumulative) to get a granular analysis of key program metrics, providing insights tailored to your specific needs.

By evaluating the performance of start nodes, decision nodes, and action nodes, you can better understand customer interactions and optimize your marketing automation programs to increase effectiveness.

Program analytics tools can help you identify the success of different segments and decision paths in your automation workflows. This allows you to refine your targeting strategies and drive better results.

The ability to analyze the detailed data and insights provided by program analytics tools enables you to streamline your efforts, eliminate inefficiencies, and allocate resources more effectively. 

By providing in-depth data and insights on marketing automation programs’ performance, program analytics tools can help you optimize campaigns to maximize ROI. Through continuous improvement, marketers can generate better results and higher revenue, ultimately improving the overall ROI of their marketing efforts.

Advanced revenue attribution

Advanced revenue attribution is a method used to calculate the revenue generated by email and SMS marketing campaigns, based on clicks that lead to a purchase within a specified conversion window. Unlike direct tracking, which attributes revenue to clicks within a single window, advanced revenue attribution provides a more accurate and comprehensive assessment of how a campaign may have influenced the customer’s purchasing decision.

The benefits of using advanced revenue attribution include:

By tracing revenue to specific email and SMS campaigns, you can better assess the true influence of your marketing efforts on customers’ purchases, even if the purchase occurs outside the one-hour window of direct tracking.

Advanced revenue attribution offers a more complete picture of how different touchpoints contribute to your customer’s decision-making process, enabling you to optimize your campaigns for higher engagement and conversion rates.

Visibility into campaign performance through revenue attribution helps you to allocate budget and resources more effectively, focusing on campaigns that deliver the most significant ROI.

You can analyze the performance of email and SMS campaigns side by side, determining which channel is more effective at driving revenue and adjusting your marketing strategies accordingly.

By understanding which campaigns generate higher revenue, you can refine your targeting and segmentation strategies to engage the right audience with relevant and persuasive messaging, resulting in higher conversion rates.

Advanced revenue attribution can reveal patterns in customers’ behavior over extended periods, helping you identify crucial touchpoints for nurturing long-term relationships and customer loyalty.

WinstonAI™️ marketing intelligence engine

Designing a successful marketing campaign is far from easy. Especially in the ever-evolving travel sector, you must stay ahead of your competition. Embracing artificial intelligence (AI) at this early stage and leveraging it in your day-to-day marketing will improve the efficiency and effectiveness of your marketing efforts.

Benefits of early AI adoption

1. perfect personalization.

AI ensures you offer highly tailored experiences to your customers. By analyzing a vast amount of customer data, AI can identify patterns and preferences that are crucial for the creation of personalized marketing campaigns. As a result, your customers are more likely to be engaged and satisfied with their overall experience.

2. Data-driven decision making

AI-driven analytics provides you with actionable insights and data that help you make informed decisions. Early AI adopters can use powerful tools that analyze customer behavior, identify trends, and provide valuable recommendations. This ensures that your marketing resources are optimally allocated and drives higher ROI.

3. Time and cost efficiency

Adopting AI early on helps to streamline and automate your routine tasks. As AI can process a vast amount of data quickly, it saves time, increases productivity, and greatly reduces human errors. This frees up your time to focus on higher-value strategic and creative tasks.

4. Real-time optimization

AI provides real-time performance tracking and optimization opportunities for your marketing campaigns. By continually monitoring and adjusting, you can optimize your outreach methods, ultimately enhancing customer engagement, conversions, and revenue.

5. Competitive edge

Early AI adopters in the travel marketing sector will stay ahead of the competition by leveraging technologies that many competitors may not even be aware of. This provides a unique opportunity to gain market share and establish a brand reputation as a forward-thinking, innovative business.

WinstonAI capabilities

WinstonAI is Dotdigital’s industry-leading marketing intelligence engine, designed to simplify your daily marketing activity. Its ever-growing capabilities help you save time, money, and effort, further streamlining your market teams’ outputs.

Effortlessly create compelling content with WinstonAI’s innovative features, which include:

• Subject line assistant: WinstonAI helps elevate your subject lines by analyzing past engagement rates and generating inspiring suggestions for your next travel campaign.
• Email campaign assistant: WinstonAI not only offers alternative subject lines but also provides valuable feedback to refine your content. Get insights on tone evaluation and creative suggestions for your upcoming email campaigns.
• Grammar and spell check assistant: Eliminate time-consuming manual proofreading by using WinstonAI’s grammar check for emails, SMS, landing pages, and forms.
• One-click email to SMS generator: Save time by repurposing valuable email content into SMS messages for subscribers who prefer text messages. WinstonAI achieves this with just one click.

Transform your data into insightful actions with WinstonAI’s powerful analytics capabilities:

• Predictive analytics: Anticipate your customers’ behavior and adapt your marketing strategies accordingly, ensuring continuous engagement throughout their journey.
• eRFM segments and opportunities: Develop a deeper understanding of your customer base by integrating engagement scores with RFM (recency, frequency, monetary) ratings to create distinct personas.
• SCV and lookalike segments: Engage deeply with individual customer profiles using single customer view and generate segments with similar traits to your ideal customers.

Maximize your outreach potential and ensure your messages land at just the right moment with WinstonAI:

• Send time optimization: Enhance engagement levels by utilizing AI-driven send time optimization (STO) to deliver emails at the most opportune moment for the recipients.
• Automated reputation manager: Improve campaign performance and sender reputation by employing top-quality data that WinstonAI continuously monitors and evaluates.
• Watchdog data importer: WinstonAI’s data watchdog acts as a vigilant guardian of your sender reputation by safeguarding your delivery rates and thoroughly analyzing incoming email addresses.
• Non-human interaction (NHI) filtering: WinstonAI filters out activity from security tools or bots that can skew marketing results, providing you with a more accurate assessment of your campaigns’ performance.

Integrations and data management for travel marketers

From your booking systems and CRM to ticketing and customer service software, tech stacks for travel brands are vast and spiraling. The only solution is to have a customer experience and data platform that connects and unifies all your systems into a single source of truth. This will help you provide seamless and personalized customer experiences, streamline operations, and enable relevant and timely marketing activity.

Key integration and agency partners 

CRM systems allow you to manage and analyze interactions with potential and existing customers. This helps to maintain and improve customer retention, satisfaction, and revenue generation. Integrating your CRM and marketing channel providers ensures you have all the data you need to provide data-driven marketing campaigns. 

Integrations with booking platforms and reservation systems are crucial for streamlining traveler information management, allowing you to personalize offers and communications based on booking history and preferences.

Ticketing systems are vital for travel brands as they help manage and streamline customer support inquiries, leading to enhanced customer experiences. Integrating these into your marketing platform empowers cross-team collaboration, ensures timely communication, and improves customer retention as every interaction is accessible for marketers and customer service teams alike. 

Loyalty programs play a significant role in retaining customers and enhancing brand loyalty for travel brands. Integrating these systems into your marketing platform helps you tailor rewards and offers to customers based on their preferences, purchase history, loyalty points, and other relevant data. Personalized rewards lead to higher customer satisfaction and engagement, strengthening brand loyalty.

Integrations with review platforms such as TripAdvisor, Feefo, and Trustpilot enable you to monitor customer feedback, identify areas for improvement, and showcase highlighted reviews to increase credibility and trust.

Integrations that deliver results

Discover how the Australian tourism board, Visit Victoria used Dotdigital’s Zapier integration to segment, personalize, and automate tailored cross-channel re-targeting campaigns.

Travel businesses need to understand the different types of marketing channels and tactics available to them to effectively promote their products, services, and experiences. By utilizing innovative strategies, personalized promotions, and data-driven insights, travel businesses can stand out from the competition, attract new customers, and retain existing ones.

The travel industry is constantly evolving, and you need to keep up with the latest trends and technologies to succeed in the highly competitive market. With the right marketing strategy in place, travel businesses can capitalize on the current post-COVID travel boom and take advantage of the many opportunities available in the industry.

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Top 5 Challenges Confronting Tourism and the Travel Industry

When it comes to volatile industries, there are many that come to mind. The travel industry is definitely one of them. For starters, tourism is far from being immune to economic, political, and social shifts.

Now, it’s agreed upon that most of these factors are outside the control of tourism boards and travel companies. However, staying aware can help the travel industry become more proactive and develop adaptive strategies quickly.

Here are 5 key challenges that the travel industry is currently confronting and needs to address.

Globalisation

Globalisation is leading to the creation of uniform standards and protocols. However, the unique selling point (USP) of travel companies or destination marketing organizations (DMOs) lies in providing a rare and unique experience. The travel industry, therefore, works towards offering products that allow the average tourist or traveller to experience something they have never experienced before. Novelty is a much-needed element in today’s travel aspirations.

However, at the same time, localization is also important. Tourism boards and travel companies must know how to connect with foreign travellers. They must make use of  translation services  to create  multilingual websites , vital travel information, and essential signages that can guide tourists in the proper manner. Tourists must feel welcomed and at ease while they are away from home.

Tourism is one of the most taxed sectors. A simple glance at the taxes paid on airline tickets and hotel rooms gives an idea of how taxation can greatly affect tourism. Therefore, it’s necessary for the travel industry to offer competitively priced offerings in order to balance out the equation.

Governments must also come to the realization that tourists already contribute to the local economy via purchases, travel retail, and other tourism expenditures.

Travel Marketing

Travel marketing can sometimes be deemed by travellers or tourists as being inadequate, false, or exaggerated. In order to change this perception, marketing entities must work toward developing innovative marketing solutions to lure the new crop of travellers who are becoming more discerning and informed. In addition, technological disruptions and the influence of social media also mean that it’s a time of both opportunities and risks. Travel marketers must look to harness tech and creativity to find their way into tourists’ travel plans. On the other hand, they must also pay attention to localized content.

8 Tips to Boost Bookings for Your Travel Packages

The Importance of Translation in the Travel and Tourism Industry

Infrastructure

Tourism infrastructure in many locations is outdated and underdeveloped. Governments, tourism boards, and destination marketing organizations must work towards improving the current infrastructure with foresight. Future challenges must also be addressed in this area. Solutions could include faster immigration at airports, faster checkout processes in hotels, better public transportation, and interpreting solutions at airports, stations or ports.

Industry players must work towards establishing better security infrastructure for tourists and travellers. This can be achieved by working with local law enforcement, city councils, and local governments. Governments must work towards sourcing for more manpower and economic resources to boost security and vigilance without stifling the travel experience within the country.

Now, the big question is, can these challenges be overcome? Well, some of these challenges can become growth opportunities for travel companies, tourism boards, and destination marketing organizations. As for the others with external factors involved, it would be unthinkable for individual travel businesses to make significant changes. The travel industry as a whole must unite and be willing to negotiate and discuss its terms – sometimes with governments and unions. At the same time, it must also be willing to adapt to changing scenarios and trends.

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The challenges of tourism marketing – The solutions of Destination Marketing

The challenges of  tourism marketing, the solutions of destination marketing.

The travel sector is one of the many very volatile industries. For instance, tourism is far from remaining invulnerable to political or social shifts, economic changes, government regulations.

Sure, most of these circumstances are well outside your control and your company’s control. However, stay aware and ready to use adaptive approaches quickly.

Right here are 5 critical obstacles that the travel industry is currently challenging and needs to address.

Tourism Infrastructures

Governments, tourist boards, and also destination marketing companies have to function in the direction of boosting the existing framework with foresight. Future difficulties should also appear in this area.

You might love to consult our free Travel And Tours Marketing Formula [The How To – Actionable Strategy For Tour Operators]

Few of the latest works: mysiemreaptours.com , mythailandtours.com .

Tourism Globalization

Globalization is leading the production of consistent criteria and also protocols. The unique marketing point (USP) of traveling companies or destination advertising and marketing organizations (DMOs) exists in supplying a one-of-a-kind and unusual experience.

The travel sector, therefore, functions towards providing products that allow the average tourist or tourist to experience something they have never experienced before. Uniqueness is a much-needed component in today’s travel aspirations.

Tourist boards and also traveling companies must recognize just how to connect with the international tourist. They have to make use of translation services to create multilingual websites, vital travel info, and also vital signs that can accurately lead vacationers.

Tourist is among one of the most taxed industries. A necessary eye the tax obligations paid on airline tickets as well as resort areas provides an idea of how taxation can substantially influence tourists.

The traveling sector needs to provide competitively valued offerings to stabilize out the formula. Governments should also involve the realization that travelers currently contribute to the regional economic climate via purchases, travel retail, and other tourism expenses.

Tourism Protection And Safety

Industry gamers have to function towards establishing better safety infrastructure for visitors and also tourists. Results can be accomplished by collaborating with local police, the common council, and also local governments. Federal governments have to work towards sourcing for even more workforce and economic sources to increase protection and caution without suppressing the traveling experience within the country.

Currently, the big question is, can these difficulties relapse? Well, a few of these difficulties can end up being development opportunities for travel firms, tourist boards, and also location advertising and marketing companies.

When it comes to the others with outside factors included, it would be unthinkable for private traveling services to make considerable changes.

The travel industry all at once must unify and also be willing to work out and also review its terms– occasionally with federal governments and unions. At the same time, it has to agree to adjust to altering trends and situations additionally.

Travel Marketing

Travel marketing can sometimes be deemed by vacationers or travelers as being inadequate, false, or overstated.

To change this assumption, advertising entities must function in the direction of establishing ingenious marketing options to tempt the new crop of travelers that are coming to be more discerning and educated.

Besides, technological interruptions, as well as the impact of social networks, additionally, indicate that it’s a time of both possibilities and also dangers.

Travel marketing professionals must look to harness technology as well as creative thinking to find their means right into visitors’ itineraries. On the other hand, they also need to pay attention to local content.

Our team is now focusing on things like these important pages for the tour websites:

• Phi Phi island tour by speedboat from Phuket
• James Bond island tour by speedboat from Phuket
• Private Angkor Wat Sunrise tour

We will update you here about the developments!

We move on now to see in-depth the challenges and the related strategies to adopt

• There is a decline of high-end street travel agents
• Social media. The record tracking management
• The appeal of sharing economies. The new peer to peer travel

Why use Destination Marketing? A strategy with 17 expert tips

The Decline Of High Street Travel Agents

Do you remember how we were reserving a vacation before the web?

When we were having a real-life dialogue with a real-life human person at a real-life travel representative? Scary now?

Gone are the days of snapping via a pamphlet and also taking the travel representative’s word as gospel.

As are, fortunately, the days of keeping your fingers crossed, the traveling representatives hadn’t tactically removed the structure website besides your resort from the advertising and marketing shots.

Yes, the internet has transformed things considerably. We can now search ourselves for the very best deal on the resemblance booking.com or lastminute.com, besides, to review analyses on TripAdvisor to inform our choice making.

We can additionally stay clear of one-on-one conversations, involving through new technologies such as online chat as well as chatbots rather.

With this unrelenting change to electronic, high street traveling representatives have taken a big knock.

Granted, this is barely brand-new or unique to 2019. However, the pattern for scheduling holidays online continues to be a difficulty the high street travel agent, particularly independent chains, should browse.

More youthful generations, in particular, are not likely to have ever step foot inside a travel agent and feel more at ease with reservations online. Chatbots, particularly, tap into millennials’ requirements for pleasure principle, and they usually choose this form of interaction above any other.

The travel booking website Expedia is an example of a business that utilizes this technology. Facebook users can reserve flights using the messenger app. It also sponsors the 5 most prevalent hotel choices in their prime location.

By clicking any of the hotels recommended, the user gets rerouted to the Expedia website where they can reserve directly. Following a deal, the user receives a message within messenger with a link to their itinerary. Easy things.

Some believe that we shouldn’t cross out the high street travel representative in favor of online competitors just yet. There are currently some innovative and inspiring initiatives, VR for example, with immersive content, few ways travel agents try to seduce customers back in the stores. Some of these actions also had great results, bringing even a 40% return on investment.

If you’re a high street travel representative, here are simply a few other methods you can take on your online peers: Online travel representatives are successful as they accommodate today’s requirement for instant gratification, in addition to using a seamless method to travel research, reservation, and payment.

Guarantee your payment procedure is similarly streamlined by presenting online and mobile payment methods.

A great rule is to make equally beneficial relationships with other market gamers to reinforce your travel service.

Reaching out to new relationships and markets, you can both increase the offer and the reach/customer base.

Motivate consumers to compose online reviews and reviews about their experience of reserving in-store.

Social Media And Credibility Management

For most of us, reserving a vacation is a substantial expenditure and an occasion that we wait all year for. Subsequently, we aim to plan every detail of the itinerary, down to every single moment.

Anything that remotely threatens this has the potential to provoke an extremely emotional reaction (we’ve all seen those old episodes of Airline).

Be it a postponed flight, an insufficiency with your travel operator, or a less than satisfactory hotel service, in years passed, we’d be required to wait till we returned from vacation to compose a letter or an email of complaint.

Then along came Twitter. All of a sudden, we were able to share our bad experiences and frustration with airline companies, hotels, and tour operators on a big, public platform.

To some extent, we’ve come to anticipate the typical, low-level, daily complaints, such as flight hold-ups, made utilizing social media, and typically, these social outbursts aren’t immensely damaging to the reputation of the company in question.

But indeed they can be. Some circumstances can rapidly intensify like social media wildfire.

Do you remember when a United Airlines passenger was randomly picked and then dragged out from the airplane because of a case of overbooking? Who forgot that! It became a social network sensation.

Companies in the travel industry, need to make sure to be adequately qualified to handle their standing in the event of a PR crisis.

So what moves can those working in the travel business take to help them manage their reputation online? Here are some quick ideas for online reputation management:

• Engage with reviews online, with as many reviewers as possible, all of them, even if they aren’t in your favor.
• Engage with those talking about your brand on social media.
• Tools and platforms such as Google signals, Social Mentions can help you do this.
• You undoubtedly will not be able to engage with everyone, so make a good plan and study a good timing to react and when not to.
• Be transparent and open to any kind of feedback or criticism.
• If your company does mess up, do something wrong, act like if you own it, offer a real apology, and more support to anybody impacted.
• Remain authentic and polite in any online communications or discussions.

Ongoing Popularity Peer To Peer Travel Or Sharing Economies

The sharing economy has conflicted with the travel and hospitality industry? Yes, it had a significant effect, as crucial as the appearance of the web affected the way airlines and travel offices make sales. The sharing economy refers to this:

Actively networking for an architecture that partitions tasks or workloads between peers. Peers are equally privileged, equipotent participants in the application.

It is often considerably cheaper than buying a comparable product/service from a successful organization.

Other alternative accommodations, such as CouchSurfing, are also chipping away at online travel agents and hotels. Airbnb is an excellent example of these recurrent events; it is becoming more prominent than first thought, forcing hotels to up their game.

For example, for some online travel businesses such as Expedia, acquiring new websites and market exposure is crucial. At the same time, while these types of online platforms are increasingly popular, there will always be individuals who prefer the security and high-end of a hotel stay and have the ways to do so.

Of course, there will. This is why there will always be business ideas popping up, such as Airbnb and Airbnb Plus, services offering opportunities for high-end accommodation.

Search Engines Monopoly Of  The Online Travel Space

Google Flights, Hotels, Maps, It’s obvious that the search giant has actually slowly encroached on, and continues to broaden right into, the online traveling area.

The launch of Google Flights, as well as the capacity to book straight from the SERP’s, has, particularly, been a sector gamechanger.

Some fans of Google Flights say that it has many positive points for being clean, ad-free, and quickly distinguishable from Skyscanner and various other flight search aggregation websites. (There is a lot to learn in these words!)

A lot more most importantly, however, Google Flights often tend to include right at the top of the SERP’s. This, of course, leaves smaller space on the leading page for travel firms providing a similar solution. Google does not target only this. An additional item in Google’s traveling item offering is Google Trips. Those who are committed and also dedicated to the brand name tend to applaud the reality it can be integrated with various other Google products such as Google Calendar and Google Now.

Plainly, Google is making significant invasions in the travel field.

At present, it’s common for tourists as well as holidaymakers to make use of different systems such as Skyscanner, Expedia, Airbnb, to get information and also book their holiday. In the future, nonetheless, it could be that we study, prepare, and whole publication journeys via Google.

So, you can always be doing to defend your service profits versus such search titans? Well, one thing that jumps to mind very obviously, compared to various other online traveling carriers, a big differing point is a lack of human component.

Airlines and also various other travel carriers can utilize this to their benefit and construct a brand name that emphasizes the human link in the travel experience.

Do you have a travel firm or operate in the traveling industry? Have you determined any added obstacles in the industry?

The Strategies

Your business-specific goals or targets to achieve within a given timescale. • Achieving a certain level of sales growth within a given time. • Increasing the profitability by a given percentage within an agreed time scale. • Obtaining a given percentage market share within a given period. • Reducing business risk by diversifying the product range.

Niche Marketing Strategy

This marketing is adopted when an organization appreciates that what it has to offer serves a limited number of market segments, or conversely, that there is a limited market that can be readily served. The assumption lies in the fact that there will be limited competition.

Concentrating on a particular market, understanding its needs and, therefore, developing products and promotions which are completely appropriate for those markets can be an effective strategy, especially for smaller companies without massive resources but with an excellent understanding of their target markets.

These companies can operate within niche markets, which are too small to attract market leaders. A focused approach is particularly suitable for those who wish to develop closer and more direct relationships with their clients.

Marketing Leader Strategy

For this method to be crafted, significant ability and determination are needed. To dominate in terms of volume and value of sales or bookings is not an easy task.

Such power permits the organization to establish benchmarks or requirements in the market to make it tough for competitors to remain in the market.

A reasonable marketing audit evaluates the business’s products in contrast with competitors’ volumes, interest market sectors, and their contribution to the organization’s earnings and expenses.

This might assist in decision-making to enable the organization to build the company strategy over the next period. Besides, other factors may be considered to be significant, such as changes to relevant legislation, or new conditions in the economy. (As I already stated before) A proper diagnosis needs to be in-depth, creating an analysis

• of the current and future trends
• of each of the marketplace sectors
• of the interest of the organization.

Concerning this technique, the organization can develop a policy of either management or item distinction. In this way, it may prevent the risk of trying to be the leader in everything but excelling in none.

” Operators have moved more to mass market, low price methods; smaller sized operators have relied on expertise, whether by geographical area, type of activity or market served”

Let us assume that one of the trip operators chooses to become professional in establishing package vacations for customers residing in a specific area of the United States.

The advantages of this group can be the benefit of local airport departures, free transport to the airport, or complimentary parking at the airport.

Lots of clients will be pleased to pay slightly higher prices for the convenience of a regional departure and the additional benefits provided.

When it appears to clients that this local trip operator or travel agency is supporting the economy of the area, and is active in local community occasions, residents will consider this specific organization first when preparing their holidays. In this method, diversification is particularly valuable when the organization spreads its risk throughout several markets and sees the chance of buying a new trademark name.

Advertising is one of the most basic methods of distinguishing services.

Advertising develops and strengthens substantial barriers versus brand-new organizations going into a market.

Any beginner needs to buy exposure to overcome recognized companies’ awareness and brand commitment.

The ”Follower” Strategy

If the organization did not attain success in such a short-term to end up being market leader, the business might use this structure, to permit it to preserve a strong position in the market near the leader. Hence, the business will hold a significant market share and will embrace, as a matter of course, a similar strategic direction to the market leader.

The method depends on intensive rival intelligence, versatility, and quickly performed tactical projects. The ultimate objective will be to become an opposition to the marketplace leader when market conditions allow this.

This type of technique can be adapted to specialize in distinct sorts of items, which are not offered by its competitors. It can also concentrate on quality, validating a higher rate than the big competitors, by providing enhanced value. As an example of this strategy, significant hotel chains have determined a steady rise in the number of organization females to whom they are catering; so they had to react meeting their needs consisting of more feminine decoration, cosmetic mirrors, hairdryers, etc…

Source: Le sfide del marketing per il turismo

The Challenger Strategy

This is a structure utilized when the organization is not in a position to follow a market leader’s technique or follower method, due to resource restrictions.

Making use of this strategy is to settle a company’s position in the market by copying the method of the marketplace leader in a diluted format. The organization will be slower to respond to the marketplace modifications and not be ingenious, where it might be efficient in remaining within an external zone of competition. The focus of the strategy lies in copying the effective formula of market leaders to stay in the market.

Keep in mind: Produce a product-positioning map, revealing the clients’ picture of existing organizations contending in particular fields.

This can be very useful both to a company currently operating in the market, or one considering introducing a new product.

Time and money can be conserved by keeping a keen eye on market leader’s activities, learning by their success and failures. Finding a marketing leader’s benefits indicates knowing and competing more effectively. Whenever possible, the tour operators require to see the marketing leader’s brochures and know what sort of items are on offer.

Also, it will be practical, if mindful efforts can be made to carry out a fair analysis every few months, jotting down findings to choose how the details can be utilized, examining their costs, their visitors, facilities and promotional activities.

Specific Niche Marketing Strategy

This is embraced when an organization appreciates that what it needs to use serves a minimal variety of market sections, or on the other hand, that there is a restricted market that can be quickly served.

The assumption lies in the truth that there will be limited competitors.

Concentrating on a particular market, comprehending its requirements and for that reason developing items and promos which are suitable for those markets can be an efficient strategy, especially for smaller businesses without enormous resources but with an exceptional understanding of their target audience.

These businesses can run within niche markets, which are too small to draw in market leaders. A focused method is especially appropriate for those who want to develop closer and more direct relationships with their clients.

Relevant Actions You Can Take To Improve Your Brand Marketing

Utilize Contextual Marketing

Instead of waiting it out till the next flourishing travel season, stores can seek to move their products to an online E-commerce shop and transform themselves.

Instead of merely providing, for example, one theme souvenirs at a specific location, on a specific destination, an online shop can improve brand awareness selling those locations best souvenirs worldwide or nationwide. Constructing a contextual marketing campaign can also help develop a personal connection with your audience. Essentially, contextual marketing is everything about understanding one’s audience and utilizing the best message at the correct time to connect with them.

When what and how we interact, whether in our expert interactions or individual lives, is directly relevant to our audience, as they will know the context of the message. Without context, we lose significance.

Widen Your Digital Footprint

There are many difficulties to continually remaining on top of mind to both locals and travelers trying to find new experiences.

You can, for example, make a campaign to engage all social media complaints that you can intercept. You can improve your services and response on the most popular social media platforms.

You can partner with micro-influencers with a widespread reach.

As all brands do, you also need to also embrace natural and paid search to stay at the top of search engine rankings.

Empower your happiest customers to develop social proof and audience trust, to leave any kind of reviews.

Enhance Customer Experience

Discovering methods to improve the client experience provides significant obstacles to travel marketing for companies like airlines. The market likewise needs to fill more seats and potentially decrease advantages and features to make more revenue.

It takes more than just using a rotating menu of treats or increasing ticket expenses to get more legroom and increase convenience.

More and more brands are converting towards social media crusades to establish brand awareness. To focus on customer experience, you can rely on travel and tourism marketing to showcase innovative stories.

Develop Amazing Travel Experiences

Too many options in a crowded market may provide limitless variety and cost points for tourists, but make it tough for the travel market to bring in new customers.

However, companies can look towards the pattern of Millennials craving experiential travel to curate remarkable experiences.

However, when you design that “off-the-beaten-path” experience, how do you market it to an audience? Utilizing youtube and social networks, influencers can target specific niche fans, also increasing brand name awareness, publicizing those distinguished experiences.

What You Should Do Is Very Clear

The growth of the tourism sector is a major grantor to improve infrastructure or many other tourism-linked services, in your country as well as in many developing countries.

A good plan should be created to link your business goals and resources to your marketing opportunities.

This may result in making the best use of its resources. Concentrate your consideration on the development of your tourism marketing planning model, this will be very useful for every tourism administrator.

Make a strategic program that can be detailed in a structure or model, with a number of major steps to be followed. Here is also How Do You Advertise a City!

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Marketing challenges in travel, tourism and hospitality industries of the European and Mediterranean regions

EuroMed Journal of Business

ISSN : 1450-2194

Article publication date: 7 September 2015

Sotiriadis, M. and Apostolakis, A. (2015), "Marketing challenges in travel, tourism and hospitality industries of the European and Mediterranean regions", EuroMed Journal of Business , Vol. 10 No. 3. https://doi.org/10.1108/EMJB-07-2015-0035

Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Article Type: Editorial From: EuroMed Journal of Business, Volume 10, Issue 3.

Modern marketing is a management orientation and a systematic process integrating the techniques used by managers to influence demand. Further, marketing is outward looking and proactive to the changing business environment, and customers’ or visitors’ needs, expectations and behaviour (Middleton et al. , 2009). It also constitutes a response to business conditions, especially amidst fierce competitive pressures that are now found to underpin the travel and tourism markets in almost all parts of the world. The importance of marketing orientation and approach and the need for improved marketing techniques has been well documented (see, for instance, McCabe, 2014; Morrison, 2013). It is quite clear that marketing is a proactive approach to business, conducted at best within a volatile market environment.

The European-Mediterranean region is an important destination in the globalized tourism market. During the last four decades, all Mediterranean destinations have experienced a rapid growth and, sometimes, over-expansion of tourism industries. Nowadays, these destinations have to address and overcome the challenges and threats resulting in the market developments and business environmental changes. Marketing in the fields of tourism, travel, hospitality and leisure industries is one of cutting edge and most challenging themes of recent years. Within the context of “Experience Economy” in general business environment and consumer behaviour in particular, the task of providing unforgettable tourism experiences to visitors and guests is the most critical priority for all tourism-related businesses and destination marketers (Sotiriadis, 2012).

That is why the EuroMed Journal of Business ( EMJB ) has decided to dedicate a special issue on this theme. The main aim of this Special Issue was to invite papers that provide insights and an enhanced understanding of the current state-of-art research in tourism-related industries in European and Mediterranean regions. This Special Issue focuses on the marketing responses to contemporary challenges and issues within the context of the current environment of fierce competition. It also focuses on the marketing strategies and practices that organizations develop in order to manage their way through the existing problems.

This Special Issue of the EMJB encompasses six papers, each one of them focusing on various marketing issues in the tourism and hospitality industries. The majority of the papers use case studies located in and across the Mediterranean. All six papers aim to put forward ideas and concepts that would help shed some light in the travel, tourism and hospitality fields of study. Each one of the papers provides a timely and topical application of contemporary marketing practices to readers and scholars in the area.

The selected papers in this Special Issue reflect the current discussion on some very up-to-date topics. In particular, the study “Preferring green and rejecting ‘unethical’ hotels”, by Tilikidou and Delistavrou, focuses on the classification of ethical tourists in the hospitality industry in Greece, while subsequently frame the market of green or ethical hotel customer guests and identify the factors that influence ethical consumer behaviour in the hospitality industry. One of the most interesting findings of their paper was that external influences (i.e. what opinion leaders advocate) tend to influence ethical consumers’ hehaviour in the hospitality more, as compared to internal influences (i.e. what respondents believe to be right). Pursuing a structural equation modelling (SEM) approach in their study entitled “Britain in bloom? A study into Chinese tourists’ experience”, Lin, He and Vlachos target Chinese visitors in the UK and examine their experiences based on a conceptual model of tourist satisfaction and destination loyalty. The driving force behind this investigation rests on the considerable impact of Chinese outbound tourists to European destinations.

The empirical findings confirm that visitors of Chinese origin tend to be more influenced from culture-specific, as opposed to destination-specific factors. The authors conclude that this could be an important finding for every destination aiming to attract Chinese tourists. The abovementioned findings are confirmed in the study entitled “Strategic framework showcasing Greece in the Chinese tourism market” by Kapiki et al ., where they conclude that Chinese visitors to Greece are mostly drawn by the authenticity of the Greek islands, cultural heritage and safety. The study is particularly important because it represents one of the first attempts to concentrate on the particular requirements of this tourism market in Greece.

On the other hand, the paper, entitled “Contrasting quality of service experience for northern and southern Mediterranean tourists” co-authored by Schlesinger, Cervera and Pérez-Cabañero, adopts a more holistic approach in their investigation trying to examine tourists’ service experiences across seven north and south Mediterranean city destinations. Their motivation derives from the need to consider the quality of the service experience in a holistic and comprehensive way. The authors use a standardized survey questionnaire, deployed across seven Mediterranean cities to collect their data. With the use of exploratory descriptive statistical analysis they conclude that tourists perceive northern Mediterranean destinations differently from destinations in the southern Mediterranean. Tourists report high tourist involvement in northern destinations, whereas, in the south, tourists’ emphasize on destinations’ hedonistic features.

Mason and Moretti, in their study “Antecedents and moderators of golf tourists’ behavioural intentions: an empirical study in a Mediterranean destination”, follow on the same path albeit adopting a more focused approach. In particular, the authors consider tourists engaging in golfing activity during their vacations. Their objective is to differentiate golf tourist markets according to perceived quality, satisfaction and behavioural intentions. They argue that quality perceptions are a strong indication of heterogeneity among golf tourists. Hence, quality indicators could be a useful tool for marketing managers to segment the tourism market more effectively, and subsequently becoming more competitive. The last paper “The importance of social media on holiday visitors’ choices – the case of Athens, Greece”, by Kavoura and Stavrianeas, deployed a survey questionnaire to a sample of 301 respondents at the Athens International Airport. The authors’ focus is upon destination image and how different groups of visitors (differentiated based on their nationality and gender) perceive the importance of social media as sources of information for tourism purposes. Their empirical findings maintain that Facebook seems to be one of the primary sources of information regarding tourist destinations in the Mediterranean. Other popular sources of tourist information were official web sites/blogs and photo sharing sites.

Overall, the collection of papers in this Special Issue presents an original set of detailed case studies that highlight various aspects of the evolving paradigm in tourism marketing. One aspect that emerges all too prominently is that of the experience economy. In particular, all six of the papers feature some aspects of the experience economy, either directly or otherwise, indicating in this way its significance and a turning point in the marketing field. The examination of the experience economy through the various case studies ranges from the visitor, to the destination (e.g. how does a destination improves visitors’ experiences), to the particular services offered.

All six papers in this Special Issue have, one way or the other, identified the strong competitive forces permeating the tourism industry in and across the Mediterranean sub-region and propose various methods and approaches for tourism destinations to overcome these forces. Another interesting fact that emerges from the collective consideration of the papers appearing on this Special Issue is that quality, and various aspects of it, play an overwhelming role in the operations of the tourism industry. Thus, the papers included in this Special Issue cover dimensions of quality ranging from information provision, to hospitality offerings, to authentic quality experiences and to perceived notions of quality. It is particularly heartening that all papers and their respective authors assign such a central role on quality notions, paving in this way tourism managers’, practitioners’ and policy makers’ way towards more elaborate and experiential-based tourism offerings (Morrison, 2013).

Clearly, the field will continue to need multiple and varied cases akin to those presented in this issue. This collection adds useful and pertinent examples in pursuit of exploring and elaborating the field. Completing this editorial, we would like to mention that without the interesting papers and the assistance of Professor Dimitrios Vrontis and the Editorial Office of EMJB , this Special Issue would not be easy at all. We also like to thank all the authors and the reviewers for their contribution and valuable work; they have considerably facilitated our task.

Professor Marios Sotiriadis - Department of Transport Economics, Logistics and Tourism, University of South Africa, Pretoria, South Africa

Dr Alexandros Apostolakis - Technological Educational Institute of Crete, Heraklion, Greece

McCabe, S. (Ed.) (2014), The Routledge Handbook of Tourism Marketing , Routledge, London

Middleton, V.T.C., Fyall, A., Morgan, M. and Ranchhod, A. (2009), Marketing in Travel and Tourism , 4th ed., Butterworth-Heinemann, Oxford

Morrison, A.M. (2013), Marketing and Managing Tourism Destinations , Routledge, New York, NY

Sotiriadis, M. (2012), “Tourism destination marketing: approaches improving effectiveness and efficiency”, Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Technology , Vol. 3 No. 2, pp. 107-120

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Category: Travel

Date: February 6, 2024

The Role of Social Media in Travel Marketing: Best Practices and Case Studies

Back in 2016, then Marriott’s chief global marketing officer, Karin Timpone spoke to CNBC about their social media travel marketing service and incorporation of geo-fencing technology. 

If someone posts a photo from one of its properties, her team will reach out and contact the front desk to let them know. The hotel will often then reach out to the customers and offer complimentary upgrades — something to show that Marriott values their presence. 

Earlier, a music video for “I’ll Show You” featuring Justin Bieber at the Fjadrárgljúfur canyon in Iceland. A few years later, tourism to this once-quiet town nearly doubled. The video on YouTube has over 500 million views since 2015. 

Given the general rise in income levels and jobs going remote, people find more time to take frequent travel breaks, showcasing the need for effective digital marketing services to tap into the growing travel market

And social media has only accentuated this trend , 

• By hosting engaging travel content and motivating reviews
• By increasing travel FOMO (Fear-Of-Missing-Out)
• By minimizing unpleasant surprises at the destination

Given the scope of social media in travel marketing services , this blog discusses best practices followed by interesting case studies for inspiration. 

The Power of Social Media in Travel Marketing

• Expedia’s 2023 Traveler Value Index noted almost 35% of travelers turn to social media for holiday inspiration. 
• Furthermore, 75% of respondents chose a specific destination inspired by social media as per Amex’s 2023 Global Travel Trends Report .
• Travel Live Streaming is becoming increasingly popular on social media, with 60% of travelers saying they have watched a live stream of a travel experience. 
• 74% of travelers use social media while traveling, while 92% of consumers trust word of mouth and UGC more than other forms of advertising, thus making UGC on social media crucial for any travel marketing campaign. 

Best Practices for Successful Social Media Travel Marketing

Top 5 things travelers use social media to research – Destinations, Hotels, Activities, Attractions, and Restaurants. Let’s list out travel marketing best practices to get the most attention from social media users. 

Choosing the Right Platforms

Creating engaging content, building a consistent brand presence, utilizing paid advertising, monitoring and analytics.

Identify the social media platforms that align with your target audience. 

Popular Vacation Inspiration Social Platform

Demographics

Millennials, GenZ

Highly visual

Boomers, Millennials

Moderately visual

TripAdvisor

Millennials

User Generated Content

Extremely visual

Boomers, Millennials, GenZ

Detailed & Informative

B2B travel marketing

Take a que from social media strategy of Marriott Hotels . Their Instagram account features stunning photos of their hotels, while their Twitter account is more focused on sharing news and updates.

Invest in high-quality, visually appealing content, including photos and videos. Use storytelling techniques to capture the essence of your travel experiences.

Encourage user-generated content (UGC) by running contests or using branded hashtags. UGC refers to any content that is created and shared by users or consumers of a product, service, or brand rather than by the company or organization itself. 

Travel marketers can leverage UGC in the following way: 

• Display UGC on their social channels to engage other users as it signals authenticity.
• Monitoring UGC can become your informal market research to upgrade your services in-time. 
• UGC also helps build employer brand which results in team retention.

Furthermore, you may leverage the new YouTube app feature that lists video recommendations according to thumbnail color. As a travel marketer, you can explore more such strategies to increase views on YouTube here .  

Highlight safety measures and sustainable practices in your travel marketing, as these have become critical concerns for travelers post-pandemic.

Take inspiration from our previous blog where we have discussed Innovative Travel Marketing Campaigns From Around The World . 

In a bid to blindly replicate brand marketing successes on social media, many end up creating “self-congratulating” content.

Recreating trendy content give a false impression to the marketing team about better reach. The truth beholds, unless original thought is put to market product/service, the social media marketing will lead to poor brand awareness, let alone lead generation. 

Consistency is Key. Develop a content calendar to maintain a consistent posting schedule. Consistency helps keep your audience engaged and informed.

Share travel stories, itineraries, and personal experiences. Storytelling creates a deeper connection with your audience. Use live streaming feature to promote your brand often. Learn more tips on travel live streaming here . 

You can use hashtag strategy to expand your content’s reach. Create a branded hashtag for your campaigns and encourage followers to use it.

However, we feel social media hashtags are overused. Hashtags are annoying and they hijack conversations. Moreover, users may relate social media posts with many hashtags as spam.

Here is an interesting blog by Hannah Macready where she discusses the best use of hashtags for your social media campaigns in 2024 and beyond. 

Partner with social media influencers who align with your brand and target audience. Influencers can provide authentic recommendations and reach new followers. 

Look for long-term association with the right content creator on social media for consistent engagement of new and existing users. Influencer marketing tools like Ylytics , HypeAuditor , and others can help you find the right social media influencers. 

How Travel Marketers Want People to Search on Google?

Enter a search query -> Your brand website ad appears -> Book your services

But How Do People Actually Search?

Enter a search query -> Google analyzes and displays results per keyword -> Visitor clicks -> Interrupted by WhatsApp chat -> Sleeps.

… a week later…

Notices a display ad from your brand -> Visits the landing page -> Bookmarks it -> Checks out the brand profile on Instagram -> Share it with spouse -> Logs out

… 2 days later in the office…

Visits your site -> Confirm their bookings.

Use paid advertising options on platforms like Facebook and Instagram to target specific demographics and promote your travel offerings. Consider retargeting ads to re-engage users who have shown interest in your travel products or services.

Use geo-targeting to reach users in specific locations, especially if you’re promoting local or regional travel experiences.

Also, read>> Facebook Ad formats

Also, read>> YouTube Ad formats

Also, read>> Instagram Ad formats

Use analytics tools provided by social media platforms to track the performance of your posts and campaigns. Adjust your strategies based on data insights, focusing on what works best for your audience.

Continuously monitor social media trends and adapt your strategy to incorporate new features and technologies. Keep an eye on emerging platforms that may provide new opportunities for travel marketing.

It is important to develop a crisis management plan to address any negative incidents or crises that may arise on social media. Swift and appropriate responses are crucial.

Further, experiment with different types of content, posting times, and ad creatives to determine what resonates best with your audience. 

Latest Trends in Social Media Travel Marketing

• Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) for immersive advertisements and travel previews.
• Live streaming for real-time travel experience.
• Showcasing eco-friendly destination and promoting responsible tourism.
• AI-powered chatbots and recommendation engines.
• Social commerce and booking directly on social media platforms.

VietJet Air is not afraid to experiment with new formats and strategies. For example, they recently launched an augmented reality (AR) campaign that allowed users to virtually experience their flights.

You can connect with us for more AI-related marketing solutions . 

Case Studies: Success Stories in Social Media Travel Marketing

Let’s explore a few success stories in social media travel marketing through case studies. The selected case studies highlight how effective social media strategies can help travel brands engage their audience, encourage user-generated content, and create memorable and impactful marketing campaigns. 

• Airbnb – #LiveThere Campaign
• Icelolly – Facebook Marketing Automation
• Royal Caribbean International – Targeted Ad Campaigns
• Expedia – #ThrowMeBack Campaign

Each campaign leveraged the power of storytelling, user participation, and visual content to connect with travelers and promote unique travel experiences.

1. Airbnb – #LiveThere Campaign:

Airbnb wanted to differentiate itself from traditional hotels and emphasize the idea of “living like a local” when traveling.

Social Media Strategies Implemented

• Launched a series of visually stunning Instagram and Facebook posts showcasing unique properties and travel experiences.
• Encouraged hosts and guests to share their stories, photos, and videos using the hashtag #LiveThere.
• Collaborated with travel influencers and celebrities to create authentic content.

Results and Outcomes

• The #LiveThere campaign garnered over 3.5 million Instagram mentions.
• Airbnb’s Instagram following grew by over 300% in a year.
• The campaign effectively communicated the brand’s message of unique and authentic travel experiences.

It may have worked for Airbnb back in 2017 but will be work for your travel business in 2024 and beyond? No one can be sure but you can surely take some inspirations out of it and improvize over it.  

2. Icelolly – Facebook Marketing Automation:

Icelolly experienced a temporary decrease in conversion rates across their social media platforms. As a response, they incorporated the Facebook extension into their Engagement Cloud.

• Implemented an omnichannel strategy to unify data from a single social media platform with the website. 
• Delivered tailored ad notifications through social media feeds to individuals who have subscribed to destination price alerts.
• Conversion rate was generated by 17% through Facebook
• Retargeting ads was increased up by 3%
• Open rate was generated by 35%
• CTR was increased by 201%
• Conversion was increased by 45%

3. Royal Caribbean International – Targeted Ad Campaigns: 

Royal Caribbean International, a global cruise line, sought to increase engagement and conversions through its social media marketing efforts.

• The cruise line implemented marketing automation tools to segment its social media audience based on factors like travel preferences and past interactions.
• They used automated chatbots to respond to common inquiries and facilitate booking processes on social platforms. 
• They launched targeted ad campaigns on Facebook and Instagram, retargeting users who had shown interest in specific cruise itineraries.
• Significantly improved response times and engagement on social media platforms.
• Enhanced conversion rates, with more users booking cruises directly through social media channels.
• Increased brand loyalty as travelers received personalized recommendations and timely responses to inquiries.

4. Expedia – #ThrowMeBack Campaign:

Expedia aimed to inspire travelers to relive their favorite travel memories.

• Encouraged users to share their old travel photos with the hashtag #ThrowMeBack, along with a caption explaining the memory.
• Curated and featured some of the best user-submitted photos on Expedia’s social media accounts.
• Over 15,000 users participated in the #ThrowMeBack campaign, sharing their travel memories.
• The campaign generated increased engagement and user interaction on Expedia’s social media platforms.
• It created a sense of nostalgia and encouraged travelers to book new trips to create more memories.

Challenges and Pitfalls in Social Media Travel Marketing

Social media travel marketing offers significant opportunities, but it also comes with various challenges and potential pitfalls that marketers should be aware of, like 

• Platform Algorithm Changes: Social media platforms frequently update their algorithms, affecting organic reach and engagement. Marketers need to adapt strategies to stay visible to their audience.
• Privacy and Data Protection: Stricter privacy regulations (e.g., GDPR) require marketers to handle user data responsibly. Mismanagement can lead to legal issues and reputational damage.
• Ad Saturation: Social media users may become overwhelmed with advertising, leading to ad fatigue. Marketers must strike a balance between promotion and providing value to the audience.
• Language and Cultural Sensitivity: Misinterpretations or insensitivity to local languages and cultures can lead to backlash. Marketers must research and tailor content appropriately for different regions.
• Changing Travel Behavior: Travel behaviors and preferences change over time, influenced by various factors like technology, health concerns, and economic conditions. Marketers need to stay updated and adapt accordingly.
• Over-Tourism Concerns: Social media can contribute to over-tourism by popularizing specific destinations or attractions, leading to overcrowding and environmental issues. Travel marketers must promote responsible tourism.

Hike Up Your Marketing Efforts with ColorWhistle

If your goal is to motivate shoppers, fans, and advocates through genuine content that has a track record of success, we are here to provide assistance. 

ColorWhistle’s expert travel-focused designing and marketing assistance can boost your social media efforts. Further, our experienced digital marketing service team can elevate user experiences on multiple touchpoints. You can write to us or call us at +1 (210) 787 3600 anytime to enquire more. 

Kindly leave your comments down below if you found the information in this blog useful and wish to learn more

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About the Author - Manav Gupta

Manav Gupta is a full-time CopyWriter at ColorWhistle, where he works to benefit both professionals & enthusiasts in the field of Digital Marketing, Branding & Web Development by creating engaging content. Prior to joining ColorWhistle, Manav was responsible for managing & executing content projects ranging from sales collateral to web content, ad copy to letters, business proposals to sales plans, and training manuals. A graduate of a reputed university, Manav holds an honors degree in Engineering. When not hard at work creating meaningful content, he enjoys perfecting his knowledge of music, playing cricket, and volunteering to build a carbon-neutral society.

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Zeynep Tufekci

You Don’t Need to Freak Out About Boeing Planes (but Boeing Sure Does)

By Zeynep Tufekci

Opinion Columnist

“Ah, it’s a Boeing Max,” I exclaimed to my travel companions after we boarded our plane a few weeks ago. I looked to see if we were seated next to a hidden door plug panel like the one that blew out on Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 in January. We weren’t, but joining a trend on social media , we cracked a few jokes at Boeing’s expense: “Maybe they can charge extra, saying it’s potentially an even bigger window seat.”

The F.B.I. recently informed the passengers on that ill-fated Alaska Airlines flight that they might have been crime victims . The agency hasn’t explained why, but Boeing has told the Senate that it cannot find documentation of exactly how the door plug was removed and reinstalled, even though the company acknowledged it is supposed to have kept such records. Facing all this, the company announced last week that it was replacing its chief executive . But the bad news wasn’t over: On Thursday a New York Times investigation reported a disturbing pattern of sloppy safety procedures and dangerous cost cutting. One expert who had spent more than a decade at Boeing told The Times, “The theme is shortcuts everywhere — not doing the job right.”

Is it any wonder that some travelers are trying to avoid Boeing planes? Kayak, the travel booking site, noticed an uptick in the number of people trying to weed them out ; it recently made that search filter more prominent and even added an option to specifically avoid certain models.

Boeing’s problems, great as they are, are just one reason that consumers might be wary of taking flight. United Airlines now also faces scrutiny for a series of safety incidents, although many experts say the issues there do not appear to be systemic. The biggest danger of all may be understaffing in air traffic control and overstuffed runways , which lead to far too many near misses.

Personally, I am not worried about flying, and other than cracking some ill-advised jokes, I have not changed my behavior. That’s why I hadn’t bothered to check whether I’d be flying on a Boeing Max or any type of Boeing plane until after I boarded.

The trajectory of Boeing as a corporation, however, is another matter. It’s going to take a lot more than a shuffle at the top to fix that company’s problems. But the fact that Boeing managed to cut as many corners as it did is testament to the layers and layers of checks, redundancies and training that have been built into the aviation industry. Aviation safety is so robust because we made it so.

Two seemingly contradictory things are both true: U.S. commercial passenger airlines have gone an astonishing 15 years without a single death from a crash. And there is a huge safety crisis in commercial aviation that we urgently need to fix.

Commercial aviation is a complex system involving many dynamics — technology, engineering, corporate culture, regulation, weather, human factors, politics and more.

It’s extremely hard to predict what will emerge from so many different things interacting all at once — an example of the so-called butterfly effect, in which a tiny insect flapping its wings leads to major weather events on the other side of the world. And though testing every part of the system on its own is necessary, it’s insufficient, since it’s the interaction of many moving parts that creates those hard-to-foresee problems. Solving equations won’t be enough to manage it all because such systems defy easy calculations.

We do, however, have methods to manage complex and safety-critical systems, and if done right, they can work very well.

Perhaps the most important measure is redundancy, the layering of precautions. Since even a minor failure could set off a catastrophic chain of events, it’s important to shore up everything. That’s why many plane parts have duplicates or backups and much of planes’ production and maintenance is subject to inspections by multiple people.

Redundancy, however, while great for safety, is expensive.

The first Boeing 737 Max crash occurred in Indonesia in 2018 . Everyone on board was killed. The next was in 2019 in Ethiopia. There were no survivors of that flight, either. After that, the planes — which had been flying globally for more than a year — were grounded by the F.A.A. (About 387 of them had been delivered at that time, and 400 or so more were in production.)

The public later learned Boeing had added a new software system to the planes to help keep them stable. Because the system made the planes behave more like older Boeing models that pilots were already familiar with, the company got permission from the F.A.A. to avoid retraining pilots on the new planes (a cost savings for the airlines that bought them) or even telling pilots about it.

Those two flights proved the danger of that approach. The new system relied on a single sensor, even though the planes were equipped with two. When that sensor failed, pilots lacked the information to diagnose the problem and avoid disaster. Boeing’s actions were a violation of those core tenets of aviation of building in redundancy and understanding how complicated interactions can create problems that no one predicted.

Given the impossibility of testing for every outcome, keeping complex systems safe also depends on another crucial signal: near misses. If something goes wrong but disaster is averted, the correct response should not be a “whew” and back to normal. It should be caution and investigation.

The Times investigation shows how alarmingly different Boeing’s approach was.

The Boeing plane that crashed in Indonesia experienced the exact same problem with the new stabilization system the day before. But on that flight there happened to be a third pilot, riding off duty in the back of the cockpit . When things went haywire, he was able to suggest the correct sequence of actions and saved the day. Had Boeing updated pilots about the system, would the passengers on the airplane’s next flight have landed safely? We’ll never know.

That third pilot — in that case, present purely by luck — was an example of how redundancy can save lives. So is a co-pilot. Planes fly on autopilot all the time and can even land on their own. Still, regulations require a second person in the cockpit for many types of passenger flights not just to handle things in the extremely rare event that the primary pilot gets sick or dies midflight but also to help manage emergencies and equipment failures . It’s the same reason that planes have more engines, more tires and more ways to extend the landing gear than they need for any individual flight, just in case one of those things fails, as has happened many times.

An extra layer of safety helped avert the Alaska Airlines blowout from turning into a catastrophe: Because the incident occurred so soon after takeoff, all the passengers were still required to wear their seatbelts.

Pilots even do walk-arounds of their planes just before takeoff to conduct final visual inspections. Commercial aviation works because of the principle of trust nothing and check everything.

It’s hard to escape the conclusion that those at the company who took all those shortcuts figured the system, with all its redundancies, would save them. But that’s a gamble. Eventually, two or three or four rare mishaps will align.

A Boeing representative told me that the company was taking responsibility and working to improve quality. But we need to see action, not promises.

So why should anyone still fly on Boeing’s planes? Or fly at all? Because the statistics still show that commercial aviation is miraculously safe, far more so than all the alternative ways of traveling.

While I don’t check for who manufactured the planes I fly on, I do keep my seatbelt on even when the captain says I don’t have to. Other than that, I’m as comfortable as possible while flying. I know that on balance, air travel is a well-regulated system staffed by highly trained crews with layers and layers of safety precautions and a dedication to learning from accidents. Let’s keep it that way.

The Times is committed to publishing a diversity of letters to the editor. We’d like to hear what you think about this or any of our articles. Here are some tips . And here’s our email: [email protected] .

Follow the New York Times Opinion section on Facebook , Instagram , TikTok , WhatsApp , X and Threads .

An earlier version of this article misidentified the agency that informed passengers of Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 that they might have been crime victims. It is the F.B.I., not the Federal Aviation Administration.

How we handle corrections

Zeynep Tufekci  ( @zeynep ) is a professor of sociology and public affairs at Princeton University, the author of “Twitter and Tear Gas: The Power and Fragility of Networked Protest” and a New York Times Opinion columnist. @ zeynep • Facebook

Summer travel could be extra chaotic as United pilots take unpaid leave and Boeing issues pile up

• United Airlines has asked its pilots to take unpaid leave this summer and possibly into the fall.
• Across airlines, summer fliers may see disrupted flight schedules and pricier tickets.
• In June, 2.5 million passengers went through US security checkpoints.

In an early blow to summer travel, United Airlines has asked its pilots to take an unpaid leave next month, citing delayed aircraft deliveries from Boeing.

In a statement to CNBC , United confirmed the "voluntary, unpaid time off."

In a note sent to pilots on Friday, the United chapter of the Air Line Pilots Association wrote that the union expects the airline to extend the unpaid leave offer into this summer "and potentially into the fall."

United employed 13,831 pilots in 2022, per the company's most recent data .

The union note on Friday said flight forecasts have been "significantly reduced" due to changes to United's Boeing 787 and 737 deliveries and that the airline expects the issues to impact other fleets.

This summer was scheduled to be United's busiest in a decade. In January, the company said it would add over 100 daily departures from American hubs and announced its largest trans-Atlantic schedule.

Related stories

The specific changes to United's summer flight lineup were not immediately available. The company did not respond to a request for comment from Business Insider sent outside normal business hours.

Boeing's troubles could hurt other airlines' passengers this summer. Fliers may see rescheduled flights as airlines pull planes out of service and revamp schedules to account for new plane delays. Prices may go up, too: the CEO of Ryanair, which only flies Boeing 737s, said last month that ticket prices may rise 10% because the company won't have all the planes it ordered on time.

Summer is one of the busiest periods for American carriers. June 2023 saw an average of 2.56 million passengers per day passing through Transportation Security Administration checkpoints, making it the busiest month at US airports since July 2019.

Boeing's ills hit airlines across the world

United and other airlines, including Southwest Airlines and Ryanair, are scrambling to work with reduced deliveries from Boeing, as the US plane manufacturer focuses on fixing safety lapses after the January 5 flight Alaska Airlines door blowout accident . Boeing's 737 planes are most commonly used on domestic routes.

"It's a simple matter of supply and demand," aviation analyst Richard Aboulafia told BI last month . "With new aircraft production heavily constrained, especially at Boeing, and a limited number of older aircraft that can be kept longer in service, and continued very strong demand, prices are likely to increase."

Scott Kirby, the CEO of United, has been vocal about his frustrations with Boeing and in January said he is looking to change the planes the company orders in the future. New planes could alleviate United's problems in future years, but they would not be delivered in time for this summer's travel rush.

The Boeing plane delay comes amid turmoil for United's operations. Last week, the US Federal Aviation Administration said it was increasing scrutiny of United to ensure the airline's compliance with safety regulations . The oversight follows a series of safety incidents in the last month alone, including an overflowing toilet on a flight from Frankfurt, a missing external panel in a plane that landed in Oregon, and a tire lost after takeoff on a flight from San Francisco to Japan.

Last month, over 1,000 flights were delayed or cancelled — from a combination of weather, technology issues, and airspace constraints — disrupting spring break travel plans around the US.

Watch: Thousands of bags pile up at US airports after flight cancellations

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Watch CBS News

How to travel around the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse in Baltimore: A look at the traffic impact and alternate routes

By Rohan Mattu

Updated on: April 1, 2024 / 8:13 AM EDT / CBS Baltimore

BALTIMORE -- The collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore early on the morning of March 26  led to a major traffic impact for the region and cut off a major artery into and out of the port city. 

Drivers are told to prepare for extra commuting time until further notice.

Alternate routes after Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse

Maryland transit authorities quickly put detours in place for those traveling through Dundalk or the Curtis Bay/Hawkins Point side of the bridge. The estimated 31,000 who travel the bridge every day will need to find a new route for the foreseeable future. 

The outer loop I-695 closure shifted to exit 1/Quarantine Road (past the Curtis Creek Drawbridge) to allow for enhanced local traffic access. 

The inner loop of I-695 remains closed at MD 157 (Peninsula Expressway). Additionally, the ramp from MD 157 to the inner loop of I-695 will be closed. 

Alternate routes are I-95 (Fort McHenry Tunnel) or I-895 (Baltimore Harbor Tunnel) for north/south routes. 

Commercial vehicles carrying materials that are prohibited in the tunnel crossings, including recreation vehicles carrying propane, should plan on using I-695 (Baltimore Beltway) between Essex and Glen Burnie. This will add significant driving time.    

Where is the Francis Scott Key Bridge? 

The Key Bridge crosses the Patapsco River, a key waterway that along with the Port of Baltimore serves as a hub for East Coast shipping. 

The bridge is the outermost of three toll crossings of Baltimore's Harbor and the final link in Interstate 695, known in the region as the Baltimore Beltway, which links Baltimore and Washington, D.C. 

The bridge was built after the Baltimore Harbor Tunnel reached capacity and experienced heavy congestion almost daily, according to the MDTA. 

Tractor-trailer inspections

Tractor-trailers that now have clearance to use the tunnels will need to be checked for hazardous materials, which are not permitted in tunnels, and that could further hold up traffic. 

The MDTA says vehicles carrying bottled propane gas over 10 pounds per container (maximum of 10 containers), bulk gasoline, explosives, significant amounts of radioactive materials, and other hazardous materials are prohibited from using the Fort McHenry Tunnel (I-95) or the Baltimore Harbor Tunnel (I-895).  

Any vehicles transporting hazardous materials should use the western section of I-695 around the tunnels, officials said. 

• Francis Scott Key Bridge
• Bridge Collapse
• Patapsco River

Rohan Mattu is a digital producer at CBS News Baltimore. Rohan graduated from Towson University in 2020 with a degree in journalism and previously wrote for WDVM-TV in Hagerstown. He maintains WJZ's website and social media, which includes breaking news in everything from politics to sports.

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