The world is opening up again, and people are ready to get back out there. Exploring, adventuring, and beholding new experiences are all on the table for the traveling consumer. As someone who has seen the ups and downs in the tourism economy recently, is your business ready to take on more customers than you have had in the past two years? Here are some proactive tips to get your company operating in the best space to achieve growth and continued success.
Streamline Your Bookings
Often, tour operators and guides start small. In the process of scaling growth, some of the aspects of business can begin to seem like a patchwork quilt. You might offer information on your website, point of sale software at the kiosk, and an inventory spreadsheet in Excel or on paper. It takes a lot of organization to keep all of this information together. Unfortunately, it takes too much of your time to cross-reference the content.
You need to grow your business instead of trying to keep up with antiquated processes. Opt for tour operator software that is tailor-made for your industry. With proprietary software like this, you will have everything you need right at your fingertips. You and your employees can see what tours or activities have open slots in real-time. Gone are the days when you have to call to coordinate your actions.
Encourage Social Media
Everyone likes to post their latest adventure online. With an average eight out of ten Americans on social media, it makes sense to capitalize on your customers’ interests. Place relevant hashtags on your social media accounts and ask people to share your content.
During tours and activities, ask tour guides and employees to offer to take photos of patrons (with their phones or cameras). They will likely post their content immediately or as soon as the tour is over. Have strategically placed hashtags emblazoned across the sides of your vehicles or boats and any other equipment you use. Position a decorated selfie booth near the tour exit and invite your customers to use it.
Here is a video explaining how social media helps businesses.
Offer Swag
People like to represent brands that they have formed a bond with. A devoted consumer will post pictures of themselves wearing an item with their logo of choice on social media. Once their tour is over, make it standard protocol for the tour guide to say thank you for the patronage with stickers or button pins. Many consumers will place their swag stickers on their laptops and the pins on their commuter bags or backpack, thus giving your company more exposure.
Offer a shopping page on your website with merchandise available for purchase . At the point of sale, when they purchase advance tour tickets, have a colorful banner to encourage potential tourists to buy your goods now and have them shipped directly to their location. Explain how this is a win for them as they will not need to worry about packing extra luggage or going over the weight limit with airlines.
Get ready to innovate and restart your business. Stay up-to-date on ways to increase your customer base. Work smarter; not harder, and have fun along the way.
