The travel and tourism industry has been growing exponentially for years now, with figures in 2019 showing that the industry accounted for $8.9 trillion (USD) worldwide, which is 10.3% of global GDP.

2020 was obviously an unprecedented time of change and as the world locked down, travel was the last thing on anyone’s mind, hence the industry suffered. Nonetheless, travel and tourism will recover and will continue to grow exponentially in the future, albeit with more regulations.

But, the regulations actually shouldn’t worry you too much. What you should be focusing on is whether your business will continue to grow with the growth of this industry. If you have a strong, forward-thinking digital marketing strategy that ticks all of the boxes, then yes, your business will grow. Otherwise, your business simply isn’t going to evolve.

In this article, we’re going to explain how digital marketing (or the lack of it) can make or break a business in the travel and tourism industry, as well as give you some insider tips on digital marketing in this industry.

Essential Reasons To Use Digital Marketing In The Travel and Tourism Industry

All of the points below show how essential digital marketing is in the travel and tourism industry. Without digital marketing, a business in this industry will never have the ability to expand or flourish - it will only fail. To ensure your business keeps growing, you need to be at the forefront of marketing, and traditional types of word of mouth marketing are out simply because we’re in the digital age now.

So, it’s vital that you update your outdated marketing strategy and use digital marketing to make your business because otherwise, a lack of digital marketing will break it.

Increase Reach With A Website and Social Channels

Your business shouldn’t have to rely on a limited audience from word of mouth marketing, so it’s important to have a website and social media channels set up to increase reach. By being online, you make your business more accessible to a wider range and a bigger number of people, ultimately resulting in more customers.

Research has shown that 73% of millennials check a business’s social media before booking (in the case of hotels) and 33% would be deterred from booking if the business didn’t have social media. Therefore, it’s not an option to have social media, it’s a necessity.

Create ‘FOMO’ To Increase Bookings

When it comes to running a business in the travel and tourism industry, it’s really important that you make people feel like they just HAVE to come to your business or use your business, because otherwise, they’re missing out. So, use social media to your advantage and create FOMO (fear of missing out) by sharing breathtaking visuals and exciting content that will drive more people to become customers.

Review Management Is Essential To Attract New Customers

Research has shown that 81% of people read reviews before booking a hotel, and even when it comes to business, not specifically a hotel, 93% of people say that online reviews definitely influenced their purchases. So, obviously, having review management as part of your digital marketing strategy is incredibly important, and even more so in the travel and tourism industry, because people could be placing their once-a-year holiday in your business’s hands.

Being Tagged By Customers & Using UGC Boosts Reach

One study polling 1,000 millennials found that 76% of them have shared an image of a hotel (including bar, pool, restaurant, bedroom) that they have stayed in. This means that allowing and encouraging people to tag your business is vital if you’re going to increase your reach through user-generated content (UGC), seeing as 83% of people more likely to book somewhere after seeing images of the place from someone they are connected with on social media. So, make sure your business is tagged.

Paid Ads Can Reach Thousands of People Worldwide

In the past, the only way you might have been able to promote your travel and tourism business was in the newspaper or by word of mouth, typically restricting your audience to the local area. Now, with technological advancement worldwide, you can display advertisements all over the world using the internet with online paid ads such as Google Ads and Facebook Ads. You’re no longer limited with your advertising, instead, there is no limit to how many people you can reach.

Time To Create A Powerful Digital Marketing Strategy

Now you’re aware of how vital it is for businesses in the food and beverage industry to have a presence online, and a digital marketing strategy, you should be raring to go and get started on yours.