Want Enticing Travel Content That Sells? (Hint: Your Customers Have Already Written It For You!)

travel content

 

You know content marketing is important for your travel business. You’ve made it a priority. You’re blogging and tweeting and instagramming. You and your team have worked incredibly hard to create a website with stunning images and a clever headline that is on-point with your brand.

But how do you know all this content you’re producing will actually engage your audience?

The very first place you should look for messaging is your customers, both current customers and the ideal guests you want. Forget what you want to say, and focus on what your best prospects need to hear. Listening to travelers and truly understanding what they are thinking, feeling and wanting to experience helps them to trust you. When they come to your website or visit your social media pages, they know that they have found exactly what they’re looking for.

Where do you find this information, you ask?

Gold Mines of Travel Content

  • * Customer Surveys & Interviews
  • * Reviews from Travel Sites (like TripAdvisor)
  • * Social Media
  • * Travel Forums
  • * Emails from Customers

Use Their Words

The types of words and phrases you should look for:

  • * The natural and conversational language people use when discussing your destination
  • * Memorable phrases that stand out
  • * Adjectives that are used most often
  • * Descriptions that engage the senses
  • * Specific benefits and amenities they want
  • * What current customers love most about your business
  • * Problems or pain points they mention, and how you can help ease their worries

Now What?

Once you’ve gathered your treasure trove of content, browse through it to find recurring themes. What are the phrases and ideas that travelers tend to repeat over and over? Pick the strongest 3-4 topics, and you’ve got a pretty clear picture of the exact type of message you should be communicating on your website.

For more ideas and articles on how to create compelling travel content that converts to leads and bookings, click here and enter your email address.

Content Marketing Strategy for Travel and Tourism: 9 Best Practices

Content Marketing

 

Creating great travel content and posting it to your social media pages doesn’t necessarily mean that travelers are engaging with it…or even seeing it. That’s why it is so important to have a plan. Travel has almost limitless potential for content, but understanding how and where to share it is a huge factor in how successful it will be.

Think of it like this: If your website is your company’s front door, then your blog and social media channels are your living room. It’s that comfortable spot where stories are told, questions are answered, ideas are shared…and trust is built. So, how do you build that sense of comfort and trust? Here are 9 best practices to get you started.

1. Know Your Ideal Traveler

The whole purpose of content marketing is to create value for your guests by sharing relevant and educational information. If you don’t have a solid understanding of your customer, it’s going to be really difficult to give them the help they’re looking for. What do your typical guests like to do? What are some of their most common requests or frequently asked questions?

2. Start Collecting Ideas

Brainstorm various topics and sub-topics around your destination. If you’re feeling stuck, try mind-mapping by starting with one of your key attractions, and let your mind flow from there. Or check out last week’s post full of fresh ideas to get the creative juices flowing.

3. Create a Conversation

Now take those ideas you came up with in #2 and start a conversation. Just be sure to make it about your customer and their needs, not about you. Leave your sales pitch at the door. Be authentic and above all helpful when providing travelers with the information and inspiration they need for planning their trip.

4. Optimize for SEO

When creating your posts make sure you use relevant keywords that your customers are actively searching for online, e.g., “Florida beaches,” “Colorado mountains,” etc. And don’t forget to optimize your content for searches by including your destination, business name, attractions, activities, tags, hashtags — whatever is appropriate for the social media platform you’re using.

5. Share User Generated Content

Invite your guests to share their pictures and stories on your social media channels. All of a sudden, your customers become your brand ambassadors and engage in word of mouth marketing. Remember that your guests are the heroes of the story. Giving them the power to tell their own stories can lead to massive levels of engagement.

6. Know Which Channels are Best for Different Types of Content

Every social media platform has its own rules and formulas. For example Facebook and Instagram are great for posting and sharing guests’ images. Twitter, on the other hand, is useful for posting timely, up-to-the-minute info for travelers en route. Spending time on all sites, along with some trial and error, will help you figure this out.

7. Develop a Posting Schedule

The number one obstacle to developing a content plan and sticking to it is finding the time. As a hospitality or tourism professional, you’re busy. Determine how often you think you should post, develop an editorial calendar, and then stick to it. Just like you clean a room or check in a guest, posting to social media has to be a priority.

8. Measure It

You don’t know whether or not your content marketing is working if you don’t measure it. Decide on your goals for social media and the metrics you want to measure like reach, post views, traffic to your website, or likes and shares. This will help you use your time and resources wisely and effectively.

9. Don’t Be Afraid to Experiment

Explore various strategies and social media channels. Mix things up until you figure out what works best for your niche, your business, and your customers.

The most powerful aspect of content marketing is how you help your customers. With a little bit of effort and commitment, you can take advantage of the endless possibilities that content marketing has to offer.

Get in touch with Shoofly Copywriting to find out how I can help develop your content marketing strategy and grow your online presence.