It’s been a great summer for our tourism clients; the sun shone and brought with it a great deal of bookings. Thousands and thousands of people flocked to the region in order to enjoy our great beaches, food, drink and hospitality, but now that the school summer holidays are fast becoming a distant memory, what is it that you should be doing right now and over the course of the next month?
Here’s some quick tips to make sure those winter month bookings look as strong as you want them to be…

Utilise email marketing – it really does work!

We find that many tourism businesses across Devon and Cornwall still aren’t making the most of email marketing. For every £1 spent on email in the UK a staggering £30 of revenue is generated and we know from our own experience it’s one of the most cost effective ways of filling weeks and getting bookings all year round.
When you’re sending promotional emails make sure that:
1. You’re not being reactive – sending because you’re worried about how bookings are looking is too late.
2. Make sure you’re sending on a regular basis – at least once a month.
3. Ensure that the content within your emails is targeted at your audience – as an example, if you’re focused on families, what is there for them to do in the winter months and where are the best places to go?
4. Try sending in advance of a weekend for better results and opens

Make the most of the weekends

The majority of our clients will get enquiries and bookings from Sunday evening through to Tuesday. The reason for this is that the weekend provides prospective guests and customers with an ideal opportunity to research and make decisions. With that in mind, Facebook advertising and other communication is particularly effective from Friday through to Monday. If you’re not currently making the most of this period then ensure you’ve got plenty of content going on while your guests have the time to take it all in. Sunday evening is a winner for every tourism business.

Make sure your content is targeted

Conversion is always higher when you can really peak someone’s interest. How do you do that? By making sure your content is as relevant to them as possible. Looking for pre-schoolers? Tell them what there is for under fours in the area and how you cater for them. Romantic breaks? What’s going to get the pulses racing of young couples and what is it that makes your venue the perfect place?
The more relevant the content to your target market – the better the results.

Give people a deadline to make a decision

This time of year is usually dominated by promotions – we’ve definitely received a lot of offers over the past month or so. If you’re offering discounts, then always give your prospective guests a time frame in which to book. It encourages them to make the decision and also gives you great social media content as you countdown to the deadline and create urgency.

Refresh those photos

When was the last time you updated your photos? If it’s been more than two years then have a look at what needs refreshing across your website. Nobody wants to see photos from years and years ago…

Make the most of galleries on social media

It’s a competitive market so anything you can do to increase the amount of time someone spends on your social media post vs someone else’s. Adding plenty of photos (more than four and less than 10) will prompt people to click on them and cycle through. The result? More engagement, more time spent on your post, more chance of a booking.
Avoid too many though – it could get boring and they’re better split into several posts! Remember everyone responds differently to certain images!

If you’re using PPC advertising, make sure it’s as accurate as possible

If you’re using PPC advertising, then the best conversion rates are always received when you target your key phrases. So if you’re on a limited budget ditch the generic terms such as “holiday cottage Devon” and go with a tighter set of key phrases… if you’re dog friendly add that onto your search term so it becomes “dog friendly holiday cottage Devon”. By becoming more specific you become more relevant and as we’ve already said, that generates more bookings and a better return.

How old is your website?

If it’s more than four years old, it could well be time for a refresh or a replacement. If you’re currently considering getting a new site then you need to be acting soon in order to get it completed for the January bonanza bookings.

Grow that Instagram profile

On Instagram? Two quick tips…. First one is to use Instagram stories and always tag your story steps with a location – it’ll increase your reach. Second is to cycle your hashtags. What do I mean? Don’t always use the same ten on everything; it’s like fishing in one place all day and expecting the fish to come to you. Think about what your potential guest is searching for and head on over with the fishing rod!

Take stock of where you stand

If you’re not really sure where you should be going or how you get to the next step with your tourism business then give us a call. We’ve worked with no fewer than 40 award winners of the past five years and have built a proven record in helping them increase bookings and increase visibility.
If you’ve got a question, then give us a call on 01566 232323 or email hello@mihidigital.co.uk