Social media.
SEO.
Mobile.
These are just a few of the new marketing methods out there today. There is opportunity with some of the new marketing methods that can get your travel business new customers, but sometimes we forget that old school methods work great.
The tricky thing with new marketing is that there is little evidence that they work especially in the long-term. It’s risky to invest your money into something that might work.
But if you look at some tried and true methods for getting new customers you are likely to find some low-risk, high-reward ways to get new customers.
Here are a few long time favorite marketing efforts to get you new customers.
1. Referral Efforts
One of your customers has a great experience with your company. They go home and tell their family and friends about their trip. They say:
If you ever go there you HAVE to visit them!
That’s the big time for a travel business. It’s going to happen if you do a good job, but you can do things to help people to refer you.
Give visitors something unique to share. Add a unique aspect to your experience if you don’t have one.
For example, Midwest Airlines used to offer fresh baked cookies near the end of every flight. That’s something people talk about.
Sarah and I stayed at cabin in Alaska, but it wasn’t just a cabin. It was a yurt. That’s something to talk about.
You can also give your guests something that they can give to people they know. Maybe offer a going away basket. It doesn’t have to be much. Maybe a shirt with a few brochures or little fliers or business cards. Maybe you can add a little package of cookies; something people can hand out to friends and family when they mention you.
2. Public Relations With Niche Media
Here in Wisconsin we have a surprising number of local TV shows that cover all kinds of things across the state for the travel industry. One show is called Discover Wisconsin. They do features all the time and there are other shows like them.
Do all you can to build relationships with TV shows, local newspapers throughout your area and even national niche magazines that fit the experience you offer.
They want stories. They won’t “promote” you in the sense you might think. They want to sell viewers and readers on the concept of what’s in it for them. So focus on travelers and what they’re looking for: experiences, good eats, nice people, etc.
Build a unique story for your business that you can tell the media and that they can tell their audience. That’s how you’ll get covered more.
3. Direct Mail
People still like getting mail as long as it’s not bills. And with more of us getting email today there is actually sometimes a little more chance of standing out in the physical mailbox.
Direct mail can be expensive, but if you niche it down to exactly the people you want to target it can be worthwhile over the long run.
Look at your past customers. See where they come from. Find out their demographics. Then talk to local chamber of commerce organizations and see if they have lists to sell for local neighborhoods. Maybe you’ll find that a good number of customers come from a certain city and they all have the same type of job. They probably live in the same neighborhoods in that city.
See if you can find a list for those people. Create a mailer promoting your travel business and why they would love coming to visit. Then send it to them every month.
Bonus: Email Marketing
Is email marketing old school yet?
I think email has been around for nearly 20 years now and that’s a pretty long time. If I had to add one more item to this list I would add email marketing.
Set the basic signup form on your website. You can use a tool like MailChimp. It’s FREE to use until you reach a certain number of subscribers.
Mail out a monthly newsletter. Add all your current customers. Add past customers. Ask everybody that visits to add themselves to the list. Share updates and photos in each newsletter.
Over time you can manage the list to weed out the ones that aren’t opening emails so you don’t have to pay for those subscribers.
Final Thoughts
It’s okay to try all the new marketing methods out there, but don’t overlook some of the old school ways to get new customers into your travel business. These are methods that have worked for years, even decades.
Give them a try this year to boost your travel business!
