Digital Marketing Strategy for Tourism

The Buyer’s Journey

After considering your audience, you then also need to consider their journey.

There are different stages in the buying process and we should be very aware of these when planning a strategy. This is so we can take these opportune moments to provide key information that travelers need at each stage. Not only does this perform well with prospects - but also search engines.

Dreaming

During the initial phase, prospective travelers are open to all possibilities. They haven’t made a firm decision about where to go and what to do, and they’re looking for ideas.

This is your opportunity to inspire them. You can do this by writing a list of key search terms that the person may Google, or hashtags that they may follow on social media.

Planning

At this stage, travelers have pinned down a destination - but they’re still flexible about dates, hotels and activities.

This poses an opportunity to become a core part of their plan. Tell them what you offer, what your USP is and make this a focal point of your marketing message.

Booking

Dates, flight times, and accommodation preferences are all confirmed. It’s time for travelers to make reservations! Is this readily available for them to do? Ensure your contact information and customer reviews are clearly visible across all marketing mediums.

Experiencing

Travelers are on their trip and sharing their adventures online. At this stage, they may still be searching for ad-hoc activities and experiences while in-destination. This is where consistency is key. You should always be online when your customer is. Plus, if you succeed in appealing to them, make your business easy to find and tag, as this will contribute to boosting further awareness.

You can create cornerstone pieces of content to house on your website at all times, and repurpose on social media in a timely manner.

For example: you can write a blog about one of your destinations, advising people which times of year are best to visit, highlighting how easy the booking process is, and offer the chance to purchase tickets flexibly. Then you can share this on social media when peak time is creeping up.