Wouldn't you agree that the travel and hospitality industries are competitive markets? When I started in the travel industry 18 years ago marketing was easy. Now we have the internet and booking travel is literally a click away for everyone. Anyone can search and book an excursion complete with airfare, hotel accommodations, tours, food and transfers while sitting on the couch drinking their morning coffee. So how do we get them to pay attention to our travel business, whether it's a hotel, cruise line or travel agency? And since most travelers don't scroll passed the first page of a Google search, how do we rank higher in search engines so that we're found in the first place?
Content Marketing baby! The most important elements of marketing your hospitality and travel business today can be wrapped up in those three words.
So how do you do it?
Write blogs - Not only are blog articles the best way to get search engines attention but well written blog articles will also convert those looking travelers into bookings. When you write blog articles that are inspiring and chocked full of destination spotlights, travel tips and trends then you're instantly cast into the world of "being the expert." And who doesn't want to use the expert? Ordinary people do this all the time. Can you say "reality tv"? No other time in history could an ordinary person become a celebrity overnight simply by writing blog articles about their travel experiences. People buy from people! And when you personalize your travel business the travelers pay attention.
Send emails - Once you have at least 4 blog articles written and posted then send links via email to your leads and past clients. Check out this example from Shermans Travel. You'll notice that every link in their email newsletter is to a blog article on their website.
Then at the bottom of each blog article is a call to action encouraging travelers to book that experience.
But that's not all! They also utilize social media and post links back to their blog articles from Facebook.
If you're running a hospitality or tourism company then do yourself a favor and follow these marketing techniques. If you don't have time to fuss with it all, don't worry. We'll do it for you. Click here for details on how we will set you up as the expert so that you turn lookings into bookings.
Here's to your success in selling travel always!
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