11 marketing practices used by successful tour operators
Posted: Tue Dec 03, 2024 9:28 am
Successful tourism businesses, especially those that are owners or operators, spend time working on their own business and not just taking care of their clients/guests. They take time to:
Develop and review their marketing plan . They know where they are going and how they will get there, and then they make it happen and adjust their goals as needed.
Build and manage a team (or external contractors) to deliver your vision and an amazing product.
Build a personal relationship with influencers (see point 10).
Systematize operational tasks (use of automation tools).
2. Know your ideal customers
They focus only on attracting the most profitable ideal customers.
They don't try to be all things to all people.
Can describe exactly who the Ideal Customer is (or are)
They can tell you what they are interested in, how tourism experiences retail email list meet their needs, what they value, where they spend their time online and offline, what their values are, what their challenges are.
They use their ideal customers as a lens for their product development, guiding the rest of their marketing decisions.
They develop their product based on the current and future needs of their ideal customers.
3. Not competing on price
The most successful tourism companies are often more expensive than their competitors in their product category.
They can charge more because their tourism expertise is exactly what their ideal clients are looking for (or didn't know they were looking for!) and exceeds their clients' expectations.
They achieve premium pricing by clearly communicating what value they can offer their ideal customers, what kind of experience they can expect, and what makes them unique from all other competitors.
They show this to customers through happy testimonials, great photos, and clear, consistent branding.
4. Focus on direct booking customers
They know that their biggest profits come from customers who book direct, not those who book through a third-party distributor.
They focus on building an email database, sharing relevant content on social media, email, and investing in a visually inspiring, SEO and mobile-friendly online booking website.
They ONLY work with travel distribution partners such as wholesalers, inbound and online travel agents if they have a large quantity of units to sell in their business and/or are aligned with how their ideal customers prefer to purchase their travel experiences.
Develop and review their marketing plan . They know where they are going and how they will get there, and then they make it happen and adjust their goals as needed.
Build and manage a team (or external contractors) to deliver your vision and an amazing product.
Build a personal relationship with influencers (see point 10).
Systematize operational tasks (use of automation tools).
2. Know your ideal customers
They focus only on attracting the most profitable ideal customers.
They don't try to be all things to all people.
Can describe exactly who the Ideal Customer is (or are)
They can tell you what they are interested in, how tourism experiences retail email list meet their needs, what they value, where they spend their time online and offline, what their values are, what their challenges are.
They use their ideal customers as a lens for their product development, guiding the rest of their marketing decisions.
They develop their product based on the current and future needs of their ideal customers.
3. Not competing on price
The most successful tourism companies are often more expensive than their competitors in their product category.
They can charge more because their tourism expertise is exactly what their ideal clients are looking for (or didn't know they were looking for!) and exceeds their clients' expectations.
They achieve premium pricing by clearly communicating what value they can offer their ideal customers, what kind of experience they can expect, and what makes them unique from all other competitors.
They show this to customers through happy testimonials, great photos, and clear, consistent branding.
4. Focus on direct booking customers
They know that their biggest profits come from customers who book direct, not those who book through a third-party distributor.
They focus on building an email database, sharing relevant content on social media, email, and investing in a visually inspiring, SEO and mobile-friendly online booking website.
They ONLY work with travel distribution partners such as wholesalers, inbound and online travel agents if they have a large quantity of units to sell in their business and/or are aligned with how their ideal customers prefer to purchase their travel experiences.