How is your travel business doing today? If you are looking forward to growth, there are good news for you. In 2017, bookings hit a volume of 1.6 trillion dollars, Deloitte reports. The growth by the end of 2018 is set at 2.5 percent worldwide. By 2025, the global travel industry is set for massive growth and an annual revenue of 11.38 trillion dollars. Investment in the industry will also grow.
Getting a share of this market is all about a proactive approach. In order to attract new clients, you will have to put emphasis on a properly tailored marketing, as well as on the development of the right products/packages to suit the needs of the respective audience.
You have to treat your business like a plant – it needs constant attention and a lot of care in order to grow and flourish. Being personally involved, testing different strategies and assessing the results can all help you find new travel clients. Obviously, some approaches work better than others. Today, we’ll highlight four of those.
Referrals Do Work!
Referrals play a vital role in the corporate world. Acquiring travel clients through people who are already happy with your services can result in long-term business growth.
The numbers don’t lie. Referral marketing leads convert 30 percent better than those acquired through other advertising channels. An astonishing 84 percent of people trust recommendations that they get from the people that they know. People who have been referred are also four times more likely than other clients to refer more customers to your brand.
Travel companies that develop well-planned referral programs excel in terms of new customer acquisition.
Incentives for referrals are ethical because they’ll simply provide a stimulus for satisfied clients to bring you new business. The nature of the incentives is entirely dependent on your budget and the relationships you’ve established with your current clients.
Think of Innovative Marketing
Choosing the right channels to attract new customers will help you make the most of your marketing efforts, even if you choose a cost-efficient possibility like digital advertising.
For some, Facebook will be the right channel. Instagram also provides wonderful opportunities for visual marketing. These, however, aren’t the only possibilities.
A focus on digital channels is the one bound to give you the best possible outcome. To expand your reach and the scope of the campaign, you may also want to consider a few channels that are out of the usual for your marketing mix. Think about who else could be your potential client: people who like fishing, for example, may consider going to some tour with such option; people who are looking for a soulmate or life partner, get acquainted online and may need to travel to each other. And here you can help them. Find their communities, forums – places where they live online and think about how you can reach them there.
Press Releases and Content Updates
To reach new customers, you will have to work towards the establishment of your company’s online reputation.
Online reputation isn’t about advertising. Rather, it focuses on building your expertise and establishing your position as a leader in the particular industry.
If you are seen as a leader and a trend setter in the respective field, brand awareness will increase. Clients are more likely to turn to companies that have an excellent online reputation when in need of a service because of the perceived quality.
Regular press releases and content updates are the most effective way to build your online presence. Focus on new corporate developments, introducing your team and even answering some of the most common questions your prospects have.
A content-based approach is a great choice for acquiring new customers. It helps you grow your online reach via reputation establishment and it also has a positive effect on your search engine optimization efforts.
Participate in Specialized Events
The final suggestion will highlight a traditional marketing approach that still delivers excellent results today.
You don’t have to focus all of your efforts on the online realm to acquire new travel clients.
Specialized industry events give you a chance to meet prospects face-to-face. Personal communication and the connection you can establish this way cannot be replicated in the online environment. This is why you need to pinpoint a few relevant events during the year and make the most of your participation.
Create attractive marketing materials that highlight your strengths, the technologies you use and the special services developed for the needs of clients. The more interactive and visually-pleasing your presentation is, the better results you’re going to get.
Finding new travel customers does not have to be an expensive process. Think about the demographic profile of our current clientele and the way you’d like to build upon it in the future. Understand the needs and preferences of the new audience you will be addressing. If you have a good idea about these characteristics, you’ll find it a lot easier to get these people to convert.
Author Bio:
Kathleen Rawlings is a novice traveler and writer for many online blogs. She has a Bachelor degree in Marketing, but writing is her real passion so she gladly shares her knowledge in advertising in her articles. Kathleen is a very active person and can’t imagine her life without sport.
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