With travel restrictions in place, borders opening and closing and travellers more cautious than ever about going for a holiday, it’s time for hotels to adapt!
In fact, the current climate in the tourism industry presents an ideal opportunity for you to hone your efforts on a more focused travel market that, up until now, you may have been neglecting: those who live within driving distance of your property.
Driving distance holidays are convenient, budget-friendly and simple to plan. And for many travellers who are currently pent up, craving an escape or hoping to make up for a holiday that’s been cancelled or postponed due to the pandemic, this niche audience could be choosing to book at your hotel or resort should you have the right marketing strategies in place.
From us at eTourism, here are 3 marketing methods you should be utilising right now.
SEO Blogging
Blogging keeps your website alive and trending on the search engines, and allows you to feed your audience with updates, promotions and, in general, everything your hotel or resort has to offer.
If your website doesn’t feature a well-managed SEO blog, you’re missing out on the capacity to increase your customer reach while, at the same time, effectively targeting an intended audience!
Use marketing blogs to inform local and regional customers how you’re operating, how you’re adapting with the current climate and what your hotel, location and has to offer their staycation if they book with you. After all, if customers don’t know what’s happening, or aren’t given the reassurance they need via some form of update, they’ll book with a hotel or resort that is providing these.
Marketed Offers and Promos
Sometimes a little incentive is all it takes to turn a browsing customer into a guest, and that’s where special offers and promos come in as an effective strategy for generating an online buzz and driving more bookings made directly through your site.
Now that you’re able to focus on a smaller locational market, target this current demographic with an exclusive special offer they can’t refuse - whether it’s freebies and perks, an overall booking discount or perhaps an extra night free if guests book a certain duration.
With an offer decided, launch it alongside an eye-catching promo code to be advertised on your website and social media platforms. And if you’ve taken the time to build an email marketing database, even better - target those within driving distance (up to 10 hours max) by sending out a few personalised emails!
Paid Social Media Ads
Paid social media advertising is another, if not the best, method for reaching a specific online market. With social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram boasting billions of users each month, social media ads are straightforward, fast and effective in their ability to target users based on their personal details and active interests.
Targeted ads can be tailored to your budget, with intuitive user-friendly filters that will push your ads to the travel demographic of your choice. Starting with location - anything from local to nationwide - you can continue to fine-tune your ad marketing using age group, relationship status, language, occupation, personal interests and many more.
Overall, blogging, email marketing and social media advertising are powerful tools at your disposal right now, but if it all sounds a little overwhelming, it’s what we offer as a complete digital marketing service here at eTourism.
Is your hotel targeting specific travellers using the best marketing strategies? Let us know in the comments below!
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