Studies have shown that companies that invest in marketing during downturns are far more likely to perform well when the economy recovers. But not all marketing strategies need a big budget.
It seemscounterintuitive, butnow isthe best time to invest in marketing. With many travel companiescutting back on their advertising budget,thecost-per-click for most key words has never been lower.For most travel companies, thispresentsan excellent opportunity to re-position a brand, introduce a new product, convey an image of corporate stability during challenging times, and increase share of voice.
Studies haveshown that companies that invest in marketing during downturns are far more likely to perform well when the economy recovers.But not all marketing strategies need a big budget. Here are fiveways torethink your marketingandreachtoday’stravelers:
1. Understand traveler behavior and your market
Like any marketing campaign, travel brands will want to start by understanding travelerbehavior and wants. How have leisure travelers’mindset towardplanning and purchasing travel changed since COVID-19? That’s the main question askedin a recentAmadeus paper,Destination X: What’s Next ,which surveyed more than 8,500 travelers from around the world.News from this survey is overwhelmingly positive: three quarters of travelers said they want to travel within 3 months of travel restrictions being lifted; 70% will have the same travel budget or more for their next trip; and half of the global travelers surveyed want to travel for 14 days or more.
In the case of airlines, theycan anticipate traveler demand with tools likeVolantio’sSmartAlerts, whichusesAmadeus Instant Search as abarometer for future travel demand. This allowsairlinestoanalyze data around flight alerts – such as the volume of travelers setting up these alerts, the routes for which they’re setting them up, and how many are completing a booking.This information can be used as awindow into how travelers are engaging with an airline’s offer and where they want to fly. With such an unpredictable travel landscape,actionable insights of this scaleareanadvantage.
Another tool isPredictHQ,whichhasbuilt new models to gauge the recovery rate for events.PredictHQis embedded in theAmadeusAltéa events dashboard to give airlines a complete and reliable view of events across the world. Live monitoring updates change daily so airlines can immediately understand potential demand fluctuations for a given city and adapt their offer accordingly. With smaller, domestic events expected to pick up before major ones, airlines don’t miss an opportunity as the industry recovers.
2. Build new customer segments
Travel brands can build customer segments using a wide range of information.Data points could includepurchase and engagement activity, look-to-book ratio, and conversion score;survey feedback;traveling purpose, travel companion; and seasonal data.Theycan use acombination of market data, marketing analytics, and feedback from current travelers to review and revisetravelerpersonas. These refined personas canthen be used todevelop targeted, relevant campaigns that maximize available advertising spend withCustomer Relationship Management (CRM) software.
3. The no-budget marketing plan
Armed with newdata abouttravelerpreferences, travel marketers canusedifferent touchpoints to speak specifically totheirtarget audience– without breaking the bank.
For example,all travel companies likehotels and airlines can update their description in the GDS, to clarify cancellation or rebooking policies andto highlightany COVID-19 amenities, services orhygienepractices that may appeal to guestsand passengers.
Updating website contentto reflect new travel policies, location restrictions andsanitation policiescan make a difference in the decision-making process.
Automated emails can beused toupdate travelers before, during,and after their trip.
Asocial media calendarcan help companies manage and maintain quality and consistent content for their social media channels.G Adventures,a Toronto, Canada-based tour company,doesa great job of building brand awareness and engaging withits audience.On its Instagram,G Adventureshasasteady stream of educational and inspirational posts, and even coined a new initiative called “Retravel”.
4. Stay top of mind with advertising
Researchershave found that brands can speed up their recovery post-recession by building brand value and awareness during the recession.Now is agreat time to developtargeted ad campaigns to reach high value travelers.The current trend we areseeing is that small businesses are not advertising;therefore, the cost-per-click decreases.
But there is more than one place to advertise. For example,hotels can work with TravelClick , an Amadeus company that providescloud-based and data-driven solutions,to shift marketing spendto targetpeople who arecurrently shopping fortravel. In addition,Amadeus Selling Platform Connect is a resource toreach travelersviatheiritinerary documents.Airlines, airports, car rental companies, cruiselinesand rail operatorsexperienced aclick-through-rate 10 times higher than usualusing this service. In an average year,bannerads in AmadeusSelling Platform Connectachieve over 7.2 billion impressions across 190 markets,and over 57 million traveler itineraries are sent with a 100% open rate.
Now more than ever, travel companies need to optimize ad investment and get the most bang for their buck.WithAmadeus’ new partnership withXandr , AT&T’s advanced advertising company, Amadeus advertising solutions will be even more targeted than before.Xandrcanread and interpret travel context, which means travelcompaniescan target specific traveler segments and destinations via Amadeus’ global network of travel agencies.
5. Develop an omni-channel approach
Imagine a travelerbrowsingtheirmobile phonewhentheysee an ad for a touror excursion.Suddenly, a well-timeddiscount promoted on a website encourages them topurchase.Sometimes a prompt is just whata traveler needsto finally book. A marketing strategy that targets all customer touchpoints combined with well-placedads–thosethatreallyconnect and engage with the audience–cando wonders in converting prospectsintoactual customers.
Atrueomnichannel strategy helpsbrandsanticipatecustomer needs and providesconsistent information that travelersseek as theyadapt to the new normal.
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