The Benefits of Coupon Marketing

Coupon marketing is an advertising tactic that offers customers a financial incentive, either as a percentage discount or a fixed dollar amount, to encourage product purchases. While it has traditionally been associated with magazines or newspapers, today’s coupon marketing has largely gone digital, with online promo codes, vouchers, and mobile app offers gaining significant traction.

How does coupon marketing drive sales and engagement?

Increased sales – Coupons directly lower the cost barrier for potential customers, making them more likely to make a purchase. In a recent GlobeNewswire survey, 38% of respondents said they are even willing to buy something unnecessary if they can take advantage of a promotion! In particular, limited-time discounts make shoppers feel like they’re getting a value-added deal, which can lead to a quicker purchase decision.

Visibility and brand awareness – Publishing discount codes online, especially on a dedicated landing page, can give you more visibility on search engines. In addition, when customers find valuable coupons, they tend to share them with friends and family. This builds brand awareness, which can lead to increased sales and brand recognition.

Customer acquisition – For those on the fence about trying a particular experience or service, a coupon can be the nudge they need. According to recent statistics, 86% of customers feel more comfortable buying from a business they don’t know if they have a discount code.

Brand loyalty – An eye-opening Nielsen study shows that 84% of customers make repeat purchases from brands that offer a loyalty program. Discount codes are an effective way to show your clientele that you value their patronage, and foster a long-term relationship.

Increased ancillary revenue – While a customer may come in for a discounted product or service (a so-called “loss leader”), they often end up purchasing additional items. For example, a traveler may redeem a coupon for one of your tours, but may decide to purchase merchandise or additional experiences once they are engaged.

How to Create Effective Discount Codes

Creating a successful coupon marketing campaign is more than just slashing prices. It requires strategic thinking, an understanding of your target audience, and a keen sense of timing. Here’s a breakdown of how to create discount codes that truly engage and convert:

Set a duration

Short-term offers – As we’ll discuss below, limited-time codes create a sense of urgency that encourages customers to act quickly.

Seasonal or event-based offers – Tying discount codes to holidays, festivals or special events can make your promotions feel timely and relevant. For example, a tour operator might offer a couples discount for Valentine’s Day or a summer early bird special.

Long-term offers – These are ideal for ongoing promotions, such as discounts for seniors, students or locals.

Define the discount type

Fixed amount vs. percentage – A fixed discount (e.g., €10 off) can be more tangible and appealing for lower-priced services, while a percentage (e.g., 20% off) can be enticing for your most expensive tours and activities.

Tiers – Consider offering incremental savings based on spending levels. For example, give a €10 discount on every €100 purchase, which increases to a €25 discount when they spend €200.

Specify the terms and conditions

Minimum purchase requirement – This can encourage higher spending. For example, “Use our discount code to save €20 on purchases over €100.”

Exclusion clauses – Be clear about any exclusions, such as certain dates, products or categories that don’t qualify for the discount.

Restrictions and limitations – Decide if the code can be used multiple times by the same user or if it’s a one-time offer.

Best Practices for an Engaging Coupon Marketing Strategy

As we have seen, discount codes are more than just a means to an end; when used effectively, they can drastically shape consumer behavior, drive purchase decisions, and increase brand awareness. Here are some proven techniques that can supercharge the impact of your marketing strategy:

Leverage urgency & scarcity

You’ve probably heard of FOMO (fear of missing out), an acronym that describes the state of anxiety people enter when they feel they’re not participating in an experience that others are having. FOMO is a powerful purchase driver: according to a Trustpulse study, 60% of shoppers buy something because of it. For this reason, creating discount codes that are only valid for a limited period (perhaps 48 hours) can create a sense of urgency and scarcity that drives consumers to act quickly. An example might be a weekend special on a wine tasting experience or a two-day sale on adventure activities.

Highlight hidden gems

Discount codes can draw attention to the tours and activities that are overshadowed by your best-selling experiences. For example, if a city tour is always in demand, but a quiet nature walk is less so, a promo code can bridge the gap and diversify the customer’s experience.

Reward loyalty

We have already mentioned that a loyalty program can encourage repeat business. In the same vein, another idea might be to offer your customer a discount for their birthday, possibly using a custom code. It’s a token of appreciation that shows you value their patronage, and care about them personally.

How to Structure Your Coupon Marketing Campaigns

Before creating your marketing campaign, there are a few elements you should consider:

Goals – Want to increase sales during the slow season? Or maybe you want to create more buzz around your new experiences? The goals you set will determine what is the best way to promote your discount codes.

Time frame – Define the duration of your campaign, whether it’s a flash sale or a month-long promotion.

KPIs – Set clear key performance indicators (KPIs) that align with your goals. We recommend tracking metrics such as redemption rate, user engagement, and revenue growth.

Build a dedicated landing page

Navigating a website can be an overwhelming experience, especially for first-time visitors who are unfamiliar with your offerings. To communicate the value of your offer in the most effective way, create a dedicated landing page. When designing it, it’s imperative to minimize distractions, use compelling graphics, and maintain consistent branding. Also, don’t forget to:

• Address potential buyers’ fears (for example, by stating your cancellation policy).
• Include your company’s contact information.
• Clearly state the discount code that customers must enter to take advantage of the promotion.
• Include customer testimonials and glowing reviews.
• Use video content, which can increase conversion rates by up to 34%, according to the Aberdeen Group.
• Include a CTA button that stands out and encourages visitors to redeem their discount code.
• Track your performance using tools like Google Analytics and make adjustments as needed to improve conversions.

Effective channels and touchpoints

Now that you have a state-of-the-art landing page, it’s time to let the world know about your promotions. We suggest you try the following marketing channels:

Email marketing

Even in the age of social media and instant messaging apps, email is still a powerful tool. In fact, according to a Hubspot report, the return on investment (ROI) for this marketing channel is $36 for every $1 spent. The best part is that creating a compelling newsletter is not that difficult. The key is to pay attention to these two elements:

• Avoid a one-size-fits-all approach. Segment your email list based on your customers’ past behavior, preferences and demographics.
• A compelling subject line can make all the difference. Use urgency (“24 hours left!”) or exclusivity (“Special offer just for you!”) to pique interest. As a benchmark, Campaign Monitor claims that the average open rate for emails in the travel industry is 20.2%.

Social media networks

Instagram Stories, Facebook posts or TikTok videos can all be effective ways to share discount codes: after all, social media is the primary source of shopping inspiration for nearly a third of customers. The secret to success? Post on the platforms your customers actually use. In addition, try creating polls, quizzes and other forms of content that get your followers actively engaged with your brand. The rule is simple: more interactions = more reach.

Retargeting ads

Not all websites and landing pages convert visitors on the first try. Retargeting allows you to reach back to those who have shown interest, and using a customized promo code is the way to sweeten the deal. It’s an effective strategy, as evidenced by the fact that retargeting ads have a 10x higher click-through rate (CTR) than display ads.

We recommend using platforms such as Meta (i.e. Facebook and Instagram) and Google Ads (Google search engine, Maps, YouTube, etc.) to set up your campaigns. Be sure to segment your audience based on their level of interaction and offer more aggressive discounts to those who may have abandoned a cart.

Common pitfalls and how to avoid them

The appeal of using discount codes is undeniable: when done correctly, they can drive sales and engage customers like never before. However, there are potential pitfalls that tour operators and activity providers need to be aware of. Let’s take a look at some common missteps and how to avoid them:

Discount code oversaturation

Problem: Flooding the market with too many codes can devalue your offerings. If customers are constantly seeing discounts, they may hold off on purchases, waiting for the next deal.

Solution: Make sure there’s a balance between full-price and discounted sales. Seasonal offers or discounts tied to specific events can provide a controlled approach.

Unclear or ambiguous terms and conditions

Problem: If the terms and conditions of a discount code aren’t clear, it can lead to confusion, customer dissatisfaction and potential disputes.

Solution: Always be transparent. Clearly state the terms of the discount on your landing page or website, whether it’s only valid on certain dates, for certain activities, or has a minimum purchase requirement.

Unsustainable offers

Problem: Overly aggressive discounting can hurt profitability. If you’re constantly selling at a deep discount, you may not be able to cover operating costs, which can lead to financial strain.

Solution: Calculate the break-even point for your tours and activities. Understand your costs and set discounts that maintain profitability while providing value to customers.

Tracking and Redemption Challenges

Problem: Without a system to track code redemptions, you can’t measure the effectiveness of a campaign.

Solution: Use a reliable booking and management system like Regiondo that can seamlessly track and manage the redemption of discount codes. Speaking of which…

Using a Booking System to Supercharge Your Discount Code Strategies

Implementing a discount code strategy can be a complex endeavor, involving multiple steps from creation to distribution and redemption. Using a robust booking system like Regiondo can significantly streamline this process, increasing efficiency and effectiveness. Check out the key benefits:

Seamless integration – Regiondo allows you to easily create, manage and track discount codes, ensuring that they are effortlessly integrated into your booking process without technical hitches.

Real-time monitoring – Effortlessly search, filter, enable or disable discount codes from an intuitive dashboard. Understand which codes are driving the most conversions and make timely adjustments and optimizations.

Limit controls – Prevent oversaturation by setting limits on code redemptions. Whether it’s a total number of uses, a specific expiration date, or both, you have complete control over your campaign parameters.

Improved customer experience – A smooth booking process combined with attractive discount offers improves the overall customer experience, leading to positive reviews and word-of-mouth referrals.

Ready-to-use Discount Code Campaigns

Discount code promotions can be as varied as the experiences you offer. Here are some sample campaigns that you can adapt to suit your business:

Seasonal specials

Code: SUMMERFUN20

Concept: Offer a 20% discount on tours or activities booked during the summer season.

Suggested pitch: “Celebrate the warm season! Book your next adventure with us and get 20% off. Use code SUMMERFUN20 at checkout”.

First-timer welcome

Code: FIRSTTRIP10

Concept: Encourage new customers to book by offering a 10% discount on their first purchase.

Suggested pitch: “First time with us? Get 10% off your next adventure. Enter FIRSTTRIP10 at checkout.”

Loyalty rewards

Code: LOYALGUEST15

Concept: Reward repeat customers with a 15% discount on their third booking.

Suggested pitch: “We love seeing you again! As a token of our appreciation, enjoy 15% off your next experience. Use code LOYALGUEST15.”

Flash Sale Fridays

Code: FLASHFRI25

Concept: Offer a 25% discount on all bookings made on a Friday.

Suggested pitch: “Friday just got better! Book any experience today and get 25% off. Act fast, the offer is only valid today with code FLASHFRI25”.

Special occasion offer

Code: BDAYTREAT10

Concept: Birthdays, anniversaries or other special occasions can be celebrated with a 10% discount.

Suggested pitch: “Celebrating a special day? Make it unforgettable with us and enjoy a 10% discount. Enter BDAYTREAT10 at checkout”.

Conclusion

As we have explored in this comprehensive guide, discount codes can help tour and activity providers sell more tickets, build brand loyalty and improve the customer experience. However, effective implementation of coupon marketing requires a well-planned strategy and constant monitoring.

This is where Regiondo comes in, providing industry professionals with the robust, easy-to-use solutions they need to get the most out of their promotional efforts. When you adopt our booking system, you’re not just acquiring a set of tools, you’re investing in a partner who is committed to your success.

If you’re intrigued by the potential of Regiondo and want to explore how it can revolutionize your discount code strategies, why wait? Book a demo with one of our consultants to find out how we can help your business shine.

The post How to leverage discount codes to sell more tours and activities appeared first on Regiondo.

In order to help you capitalize on the full potential of coupons, we are thrilled to announce the release of the improved Discount Codes, an important part of the Regiondo booking system. This updates brings new design and multiple usability improvements, lets you automatically generate discount codes, use quick filters and much more! Let’s take a closer look at the recent improvements to understand how your business can benefit from them.

Discounts aren’t just about reducing prices; they are a powerful tool to drive growth in your business. Beyond increasing conversions, they can raise your average cart value, foster customer loyalty, and improve overall conversion rates. Read our article to learn more about the benefits of discount codes. 

New look and feel

The redesigned Discount Codes section can still be accessed right from the main menu (Dashboard → Coupon Codes). In this section you can create a new discount code, view the list of the existing ones, filter or search for discount codes, and export or import them. Enjoy the look and feel familiar to you from the Booking Management section.

Note: In this update only experience products are supported. Discount codes can’t be applied to bundles, add-ons, and value vouchers. Their values are also ignored when calculating percentage discounts.

Types of codes

In the new Discount Codes, we are introducing two types of discount codes: Simple and Advanced (Buy X Get Y). You are already familiar with the simple discount codes: they are the codes that can be redeemed during checkout. In this update, only simple codes can be used in Regiondo; advanced codes will be available in the next versions – stay tuned!

Automatic code generation

In this update, you can create your own discount codes or generate random ones. Moreover, you can automatically generate up to 1,000 discount codes in bulk to streamline your processes and save time! To do it, click “Autogenerate”, choose the required amount of codes and a general prefix (e.g., WinterDiscount2024”).

Discount rules and validity

In order to create discount codes, you need to configure the settings which might be familiar to you from the previous versions. Here you can set discount rules: use percentage or fixed amount discounts, choose discount per ticket or per cart, arrange limited/unlimited redemptions, and apply discount to all or specific products. Additionally, you can define the redemption period during your customers can redeem the code and the event period during which the discounted activities take place.

Discount codes overview

Overview

In the new version, we made it much easier to navigate and filter the list of your discount codes. In the table, you get a quick overview of the code name, event period, discount type, discount amount, number of redemptions, product validity and discount status. You can create a customized view of the discounts by drag-and-dropping the columns in your preferred order. It’s also easy to activate or deactivate selected discount codes in a few clicks!

Filter your discounts

With this update, we have introduced discount statuses, which can help you clearly see the validity of your discount codes. The discount codes can be Activated, Deactivated, Expired and Redeemed. If you would like to display only one category of discounts (for example, only activated), you can use the quick filters that can be found on the right of the page.

If you would like to use more advanced filters for your discount codes, press “All filters”. Here you can set the discount rules and validity to look for the discounts you need. “Save for the next session” option will help you save your filter configuration, which can be helpful if you are constantly using it to find your codes.

Search for discounts

In this version, we have also improved the discount search: you can quickly search for the discount names or prefixes and see the results right away!

Import and export

In the Discount Codes section, you can easily import your existing discount codes to the system. In order to do it, Press “Import”, download template in the .XLS, .XLSX or .CSV format, fill out the templates with your discount code information and upload them to the system.

If you would like to export your discount codes or the information about the customers redeeming them, press “Export” and download the data in the XLS format.

What’s next?

Stay tuned! In the next versions we are going to introduce Advanced discount codes, which help you promote and sell specific products by using discounts.

The post Unlock the Full Potential of Discount Codes with the Latest Updates appeared first on Regiondo.

Civitatis

Civitatis is the leading OTA in the Spanish-speaking area for activities, day trips, and guided tours. The website hosts over 81.600 activities, which are spread across 3.660 destinations all over the world. According to Similarweb, Civitatis receives an average of 6.6 million visits each month, mainly from Spain and Argentina.

How to become a Civitatis supplier

Civitatis chooses its suppliers according to strict internal guidelines. The criteria involve checking the quality, popularity, and price of each tour and activity. To be eligible for the evaluation process, you must be a professional provider of activities, day trips, guided tours, or transfers. If you fall under one of these categories, you just need to fill out the application form on their official website and wait for the response. If your request is approved, you must confirm the registration by accepting the general collaboration terms.

How to connect Civitatis with Regiondo

If you want to connect your Civitatis account with Regiondo’s channel manager, please follow the steps detailed in our knowledge base.

GetYourGuide

GetYourGuide (GYG) was established in 2009 and lists 60,000 tours and activities spread over more than 150 countries. Based in Berlin, GYG claims it will find highly relevant experiences for each one of its users. Similarweb reports that GYG receives an average of 23.6 million monthly visits, mainly from English-speaking countries. GYG sets a commission rate between 20% and 30%. The exact fee depends on multiple elements like where the supplier is based, the type of activities offered, and the volume of bookings.

How to become a GetYourGuide supplier

To collaborate with GYG, you need to be a professional supplier of tours, attractions, or other destination services. Furthermore, you must also accept mobile vouchers, provide a flexible booking experience and offer recurrent availability. That said, if you want to become a GYG supplier, providing an amazing customer experience is a must. If you satisfy these requirements, you can fill out the application module on GYG’s website. You will need to specify your company info and your social media pages and/or website so they can learn more about your business.

How to connect GetYourGuide with Regiondo

If you want to connect your GetYourGuide account with Regiondo’s channel manager, please follow the steps detailed in our knowledge base.

Headout

Headout is a mobile-first marketplace that helps travelers discover and book tours, activities, events, and local experiences. The company was founded in 2015 and has seen rapid growth over the last few years. Headout is particularly popular in the United Kingdom, India, and the United Arab Emirates, averaging 1.8 million monthly visits.

How to become a Headout supplier

The application process is so simple it can be completed in a few minutes. You just need to reach the Headout Hub website and use a dedicated form to provide a few details about your company and the experiences you offer. After that, your application will be reviewed based on the product offering, reviews, and price competitiveness. If the Headout team thinks you’re a good fit for the platform, you’ll be asked to submit some additional details, and then you can create the first listings straight away!

How to connect Headout with Regiondo

If you want to connect your Headout account with Regiondo’s channel manager, please follow the steps detailed in our knowledge base.

Klook & Tiqets

Klook is a tour and activity OTA with a strong focus on the East Asian market. The company was founded in 2014, and its growth has been boosted by some high-profile investors like Goldman Sachs, Sequoia Capital, and SoftBank. Klook’s name derives from “keep looking,” and that’s exactly its mission: keep looking for the best things to do for all travelers. According to Similarweb, Klook gets over 23.7 million monthly visits, mainly coming from Taiwan, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Malaysia.

On the other hand, Tiqets is one of the most popular OTAs in mainland Europe. In fact, the majority of its 5.8 million monthly visits come from France, Spain, Italy, and Germany. Like Klook, Tiqets was founded in 2014 with the goal of making it easier for travelers to experience the best museums and attractions worldwide.

But why are we talking about Klook and Tiqets in the same paragraph? Well, in September 2022, the two companies have signed a strategic partnership to connect their supply channels. In other words, customers using Klook or Tiqets can seamlessly book experiences offered by either platform. This also means that suppliers working with them can significantly increase their reach with no effort required on their side.

How to become a Klook supplier

Applying to become a Klook supplier is slightly more complex than doing it for one of its competitors. First of all, you need to reach the Klook Merchant Portal and fill out some basic info about your business to create an account. If your application is approved, you’ll have to provide some additional details to complete your company profile.

After that, your account manager will reach out to discuss commercials (including the fees you’ll have to pay). Furthermore, they will give you a content form: fill it out as soon as possible, so the Klook team can start creating your listings. Of course, before publishing them on the website, you’ll have the chance to review them. After you give your final approval, they will finally be set live!

How to become a Tiqets supplier

Luckily, becoming a Tiqets supplier is a more straightforward process: you simply need to apply online from the “Tiqets for venues” portal. The form will require you to provide some basic details about your business, and if you’re given the green light, you will also be asked to provide additional information via email. After that, your request will be reviewed again by the Tiqets team, and if they think your offer fits their catalog well, you will receive access to the Partner Portal. At this point, you just need to create your listings, and you’re ready to go!

How to connect Klook and Tiqets with Regiondo

If you want to connect your Klook and/or Tiqets account with Regiondo’s channel manager, please follow the steps detailed in our knowledge base:

• How to connect to Klook
• How to connect to Tiqets

Musement

Musement, part of the TUI Group, is a Milan-based company. As you can easily imagine, this OTA is extremely popular in Italy and Germany. According to Similarweb, the rest of its 1.3 million monthly visits mainly come from France, Spain, and the United States.

How to become a Musement supplier

Musement prides itself on offering a “stress-free activity management platform,” and the application process perfectly aligns with this statement. Signing up requires less than a minute: on the Musement Business page, you need to click the “Start now” button and fill out a quick form to open your account. If the Musement team approves your application, you’ll have to provide some additional information regarding your company to start creating your listings.

How to connect Musement with Regiondo

If you want to connect your Musement account with Regiondo’s channel manager, please follow the steps detailed in our knowledge base.

Viator

Viator is, without a doubt, the biggest and most famous OTA in the tours and activities industry. Founded in 1995 by Rod Cuthbert, the company was subsequently acquired by TripAdvisor in 2014. Thanks to the acquisition, Viator was able to add considerably more inventory to its listings.

At the moment, it offers over 395,000 bookable experiences across 2,500 destinations worldwide. Viator is wildly popular in the United States, ranking among the 1,000 most visited websites of the year. On average, the OTA gets 35.2 million visits each month.

How to become a Viator supplier

You don’t need to be a large tour operator to join Viator: even family-run businesses and local guides can publish their listings if they have an established online presence. You can send your application for free from the Viator supplier portal.

Once you fill in your business and contact details, a Viator rep will reach out to you via email within 48 hours. They may ask you some clarifying questions; for example, whether or not you have liability insurance.

Please remember that Viator has a standard commission rate of 20%. There are also some incidental charges, like the non-refundable fee suppliers must pay for submitting each new listing.

How to connect Viator with Regiondo

If you want to connect your Viator account with Regiondo’s channel manager, please follow the steps detailed in our knowledge base.

Conclusions

As we have seen, each OTA has its own characteristics and attracts different demographics. For example, Viator is very popular in the United States, while Klook is the platform of choice for East Asian customers. For this reason, working with multiple online travel agencies is the best strategy to increase your sales and visibility. We recommend diversifying your distribution strategy as much as possible: putting all your eggs in one basket could seriously hinder your growth prospects.

However, keep in mind that managing multiple distribution channels – especially when it comes to OTAs – can be challenging. Manually updating your availabilities is a huge time sink, and mistakes can happen. The best way to save time and avoid errors is to use a booking system with an integrated channel manager. These programs allow you to sell your services through multiple channels (including your own website) while automatically synchronizing your availability on each one. They also update your inventory whenever a new booking is made or canceled.

Regiondo’s Channel Manager allows you to distribute your offers through more than 230 online travel agencies and resellers without having to manage each listing individually. This convenient tool will show your availability on all platforms in real time, helping you avoid double bookings. Regiondo also keeps track of how much you sell through each channel, so you know where your offers are performing best. For more information, book a free demo with one of our consultants.

The post How to Join and Connect with the Major OTAs appeared first on Regiondo.

IAAPA Expo Europe

When: 25 – 28 September, 2023
Where: Vienna
Website: https://www.iaapa.org/expos/iaapa-expo-europe

All right, first stop: Vienna! Get ready to join the fun at IAAPA Expo Europe, which will light up the Austrian capital from September 25-28, 2023.

Why you should attend this conference

For anyone in the travel industry, IAAPA Expo Europe is the equivalent of the World Cup. This is where the latest and greatest trends in the industry come together under one roof. Whether you manage an amusement park or a zoo, this is the place to be.

What to expect

When you enter IAAPA Expo Europe, prepare to be amazed. With more than 600 exhibitors showcasing the hottest new offerings in the leisure industry, you’ll be among the first to see what’s trending. And that’s not all: the tradeshow also brings together a star-studded lineup of industry experts who will share knowledge and insights that could be game-changers for your business.

The icing on the cake? This is your chance to network with them. Think about it: exchanging ideas with industry leaders, forming partnerships, and building relationships that could take your company to the next level. That’s the magic of IAAPA Expo Europe.

TTG Travel Experience

When: 11 – 13 October, 2023
Where: Rimini
Website: https://en.ttgexpo.it/

Mark your calendars for the TTG Travel Experience, October 11-13, 2023, in the historic city of Rimini, Italy.

Why you should attend this conference

TTG offers a unique opportunity to meet with other tour and activity suppliers. It’s a chance to cultivate relationships and exchange ideas with key industry figures – something extremely beneficial in a sector built on networking and collaboration.

What to expect

TTG is a breeding ground for innovation, a place where emerging trends are showcased, and a hub where consumer insights are gathered. The event is divided into three distinct areas: Italy, The World and Global Village, each with a unique roster of exhibitors and a wealth of opportunities for tour and activity providers.

The Italy section serves as the main marketplace for Italian tourism worldwide, providing an opportunity to connect with Italy’s top tourism institutions. The World section is an international platform showcasing key global destinations and operators looking to expand their business collaborations. Finally, the Global Village focuses on the offerings of tour operators, transport companies and those involved in the provision of tourism products and services.

At the culmination of the TTG Travel Experience, you’re expected to walk away with potential partnerships, a deeper understanding of emerging trends and actionable consumer behaviors that can help steer the direction of your business.

WTM London

When: 6 – 8 November, 2023
Where: London
Website: https://www.wtm.com/london/en-gb.html

Next on our list of must-attend industry conferences is the WTM. Scheduled for November 6-8, 2023, the conference will take place in the lively city of London.

Why you should attend this conference

Over the years, WTM has grown to become an environment that brings together international leisure travel professionals, serving as a source of inspiration, a platform for education and a venue for business transactions.

What to expect

The conference offers a comprehensive gathering of organizations looking to do business in the B2B travel and tourism sector. From destinations to experiences, transport to accommodation and technology solutions, you will find it all at WTM London.

The event also attracts significant international press coverage. It’s the largest annual gathering of global media for the travel industry, and a great opportunity to learn about what’s new and inspiring in leisure travel.

Fitur 2024

When: 24 – 28 January, 2024
Where: Madrid
Website: https://www.ifema.es/en/fitur

Fast forward to the New Year and mark your calendars for Fitur 2024. Scheduled for January 24-28, 2024, this prestigious event will take place in the beautiful city of Madrid.

Why you should attend this conference

With its focus on both inbound and outbound markets in Latin America, Fitur is the first essential meeting of the year for global tourism professionals. It is a powerful platform for promoting brands, launching new products and understanding the latest industry trends.

What to expect

Fitur is a beacon of opportunity for its participants. The conference offers five intense days of networking and business opportunities, fostering countless connections, initiating projects and catalyzing agreements. Fitur attendees enjoy a high level of decision-making power, making it the ideal place to meet industry leaders and power players. In addition, more than 1,170 media representatives will be attending the event: this alone creates a tangible sense of anticipation and opens up a significant opportunity for widespread press coverage.

But that’s not all – Fitur is also a trendsetter. It addresses industry-wide, advanced topics such as big data, artificial intelligence, smart destinations and start-ups. Its “FiturNext Observatory” serves as a guide to identify future tourism trends and provide guidelines that will benefit both tourists and industry professionals.

Conclusion

We understand that the daily grind of running a business can often take precedence over everything else. However, investing time in attending travel conferences can be the catalyst for significant professional growth. Take advantage of these opportunities and don’t let the uncertainty of new experiences hold you back.

With all that said, it’s time to take action. Visit the websites for these events, familiarize yourself with the details, take advantage of the early bird discounts, and start strategizing. The future of our industry is bright, and these travel shows are your springboards to get there.

The post The Top Travel Conferences to Attend in the Second Half of 2023 appeared first on Regiondo.

What is Civitatis?

Founded in 2008 and headquartered in Madrid, Civitatis is widely recognized as the leading online travel agency for tours, activities and day trips in the Spanish-speaking area, including – among others – Spain, Argentina, Mexico and a large chunk of the United States.

Today, Civitatis hosts more than 81,800 experiences spread across 3,670 destinations, which can be booked around the clock by its 14 million customers. Below you will find some key information about Civitatis provided by Similarweb, a renowned web analytics and market intelligence platform.

• As of July 2023, Civitatis has an average of 6.6 million visits per month.
• People who browse Civitatis tend to be highly engaged: their typical session lasts about 4 minutes and they consult over 4 pages each time.
• Civitatis is incredibly popular in Spain, where it ranks among the 350 most visited websites of the year.
• The OTA also performs well on a global scale, being one of the top 10,000 most visited sites in the world.
• It’s no surprise that Civitatis attracts visitors mainly from Spanish-speaking countries: 45.87% of its traffic comes from Spain, 9.81% from Argentina and 4.23% from Colombia. The portal is also gaining recognition in Brazil (8.40% of total users) and Italy (5%).
• From a demographic perspective, Civitatis is particularly appreciated by people between the ages of 25 and 34 (older Zoomers and younger Millennials). On the other hand, the gender distribution is basically equal.
• Nearly 19% of Civitatis’ traffic is driven by online advertising, demonstrating the company’s strong focus on online marketing.
• Civitatis app for Android has been downloaded over 1 million times and has an average rating of 4.9/5 stars, which means it is very well regarded by its users. The iOS version is equally appreciated with an average rating of 4.8/5 stars.

The advantages of Civitatis

Are you still wondering whether or not to partner with Civitatis? Let’s take a look at the main benefits:

• Civitatis selects its partners with care and attention; in fact, they never publish the same product or activity in a destination with two different suppliers. This means that being featured in their catalog will give you plenty of visibility.
• As the data above shows, they can help you expand your reach in the Spanish-speaking market.
• In addition to Spanish, the Civitatis website is also available in English, French, Italian and Portuguese.
• You won’t have to sign an exclusivity clause or offer special discounts to Civitatis clients.
• 24/7 support and the ability to update your listings in real time.
• No minimum stay, meaning that you can cancel your partnership at any time.

Fees and commissions

Unfortunately, Civitatis doesn’t disclose the commissions it charges for bookings made through its platform, as they are negotiated individually with each partner. The good news is that there are no fixed costs associated with your account: uploading and maintaining your listings is completely free.

Competitive Landscape: Civitatis vs. Viator vs. GetYourGuide

Overall, Civitatis is less popular than GetYourGuide and Viator, its two main competitors. According to Similarweb, these two platforms welcome well over 20 million visitors per month, while Civitatis is stuck at 6.6 million. The situation is completely different when we turn our attention to the Spanish-speaking market. In Spain, Civitatis is by far the most popular OTA, as evidenced by the fact that GYG and Viator do not appear in the list of the country’s 500 most visited sites.

How to become a Civitatis supplier

Still don’t know how to become a Civitatis supplier? Just follow these simple steps:

• Head over to the Civitatis Supplier Platform.
• Click the “Registration Request” button to begin the registration process.
• Fill out the form with the required information. You will need to choose a username and password, provide your company information, and describe the services you want to sell (you may also include a catalog).
• Your application will be reviewed by the Civitatis product team according to their internal guidelines. Some of the criteria they will consider include price, value, and perceived popularity of the tours or activities you offer. Don’t forget that the Spanish OTA only lists one supplier per product in a given destination.
• If your application is approved, you’ll need to provide the Civitatis team with your company’s registration documents, liability insurance, and bank account information.
• The Civitatis team will create your listings based on the information provided during the registration process.
• As mentioned above, there are no fixed costs associated with your account and you can close it at any time.

Optimize your listing on Civitatis

Being listed on Civitatis is just the beginning: to get the most out of your presence on this platform, it’s essential to optimize your offers. For best results, follow these recommendations:

High-quality photos – Use high-resolution, visually appealing images that accurately represent the experiences you offer.

Detailed descriptions – Be as descriptive as possible by highlighting what makes your tours and activities unique and why customers should choose them.

Customer reviews – Encourage customers to leave reviews on your Civitatis listing, as they can increase your credibility and attract more bookings.

Availability – Update your availability regularly so customers can easily book your experiences.

Integration with Regiondo, Europe’s leading booking system

Once you’ve become a Civitatis supplier, managing your listings, bookings and customer relationships is the next big task. However, this process can be streamlined and made more efficient by integrating with a robust booking system like Regiondo.

Centralized management – Having all your bookings from different platforms in one place is a game changer. Regiondo consolidates all your bookings from Civitatis and other channels and provides a unified dashboard where you can easily manage your reservations, track your business performance and have a clear overview of your operations.

Real-time updates – Regiondo integrates with Civitatis to provide real-time availability updates. This means that when a booking is made, the system automatically adjusts the available slots across all platforms, eliminating the risk of double bookings and ensuring a smooth experience for your customers.

Simplified communication – With Regiondo, you can easily communicate with your clients, send automatic confirmations and reminders, and keep track of all their information for better service and relationship management.

Increased efficiency – By automating tasks such as booking confirmations, reminders and availability updates, Regiondo allows you to save time and reduce manual work. This increased efficiency gives you more time to focus on what really matters – creating and delivering exceptional experiences for your customers.

Easy setup and support – Setting up Regiondo and integrating it with Civitatis is easy, and Regiondo’s support team is there to guide you every step of the way. For more information, please visit our knowledge base.

Conclusion

All in all, if you’re trying to break into the Spanish-speaking market, there’s no better ally than Civitatis. The OTA’s global reach, coupled with its robust and easy-to-use platform, offers a golden opportunity for businesses looking to expand their customer base. If you’re already a Regiondo customer, you can easily connect with Civitatis through our Channel Manager. If you’re not familiar with our state-of-the-art booking system and would like to learn more, schedule a free demo with one of our consultants.

The post How to Become a Civitatis Supplier and Get the Most Out of It appeared first on Regiondo.

The three pioneers

If you’re reading this article, chances are you’re already familiar with Regiondo. Based in Munich, we launched in 2011 as a B2C marketplace dedicated to experiential travel. Over the years, we’ve successfully contributed to the digitization of the T&A market in German-speaking countries and established a strong presence that spans from Spain to Greece, which led us to open three international offices in Sibiu, Romania; Nice, France; and Milan, Italy. Today, more than 6,000 tour and activity providers use our booking system to sell tickets online, manage reservations and connect with the major distribution channels. Thanks to the love and support of our customers, we’re proud to be recognized as the European leader in the ResTech industry.

On the other side of the world, Australian-based Rezdy is making waves with its disruptive approach to reservation technology. Its highly acclaimed booking software and channel manager has earned the company significant recognition and a formidable reputation in the Asia-Pacific region.

Completing the trio is Checkfront, a Canadian software provider that has made significant strides in streamlining online bookings for businesses in the leisure industry. Since launching in 2010, Checkfront has grown into an innovative tech powerhouse with a strong foothold in the North American market.

Each of these companies brings to the table not only the regional expertise developed in their respective markets, but also their innovative solutions, resulting in a combination of knowledge and technology that is unprecedented in the T&A landscape.

Why Regiondo, Checkfront and Rezdy are joining forces

The motivation behind the partnership between Regiondo, Checkfront and Rezdy is rooted in the shared ambition of each company to expand its influence on a global scale and drive the digitalization of the tours & activities market worldwide.

Let’s take a quick step back. In 2019, Regiondo became part of Jochen Schweizer mydays Group, the leading player in the experience gifts sector for the DACH area. Over the past few years, our company has experienced exponential growth thanks to a surge in demand across Europe. With two-thirds of our current customers coming from non-German-speaking markets, it became clear that the path towards internationalization was an inevitable yet promising course to follow. This is where Checkfront and Rezdy come into the picture.

“Our goal is to create something greater than what any of our individual businesses could achieve alone,” explains Rezdy CEO Chris Atkin. 

Expanding Regiondo’s operations on a larger scale has several advantages. First, it provides a broader customer base, thereby increasing potential revenue. Second, it encourages the exchange of ideas and best practices across different markets and cultures, which in turn leads to innovation. Finally, it promotes risk diversification – if one market faces a downturn, the others can provide a buffer. 

By joining forces with Checkfront and Rezdy, we are able to pool our resources and know-how to create an entity with a global footprint. Together, we can develop even better solutions for our customers and truly make an impact on the T&A industry. 

However, as Oliver Nützel, CEO of Regiondo, points out, “Jochen Schweizer and mydays will continue to be our valued partners and important distribution channels within the Regiondo Channel Manager, while Regiondo customers will continue to benefit from the additional reach that this cooperation brings”.

The impact on the global T&A industry

The partnership between Regiondo, Checkfront and Rezdy promises to be a transformative event. By teaming up with two of the most dynamic companies in the industry, we’ve reached a critical mass of people and resources that will allow us to make a significant impact on a global scale.

We’re confident that this collaboration will accelerate the digitization of the T&A industry worldwide. Individually, each of these companies has already made significant progress in driving digital adoption in their respective markets. As a united front, we are now uniquely positioned to push this process even further. With our combined strength, capabilities and established user bases, we can develop innovative products that make it even easier to run a tour and activity business.

“We believe our companies complement each other perfectly: we have great people, cutting-edge software, and a genuine passion for the travel industry,” says Jason Morehouse, CEO of Checkfront.

Benefits for our customers

One of the key benefits of the partnership is the pooling of knowledge and resources: in fact, Regiondo, Rezdy and Checkfront all bring a deep understanding of their respective markets. As a result, tour and activity suppliers can expect more robust, globally informed solutions without losing the local relevance they’ve come to appreciate.

In particular, Regiondo will continue to operate as its own brand, leveraging its knowledge of the European market to provide personalized support to each of its partners.

“The success of our customers remains our top priority,” emphasizes Oliver Nützel, CEO of Regiondo. “The current management team, consisting of Yann, Jan and I will continue to drive Regiondo’s growth with full commitment.”

Customers can also look forward to a broader range of tools and features thanks to the combined capabilities of the three technology giants. In addition, our joint partner channel networks will help T&A vendors reach a broader audience and increase their visibility in different geographic markets.

In other words, while this is an exciting phase of development and expansion for Regiondo, Checkfront and Rezdy, the focus on providing world-class customer support at a local level remains unwavering.

Conclusion

The partnership between Regiondo, Checkfront and Rezdy is a major milestone in the history of the T&A industry. The collaboration between these three established players brings together a wealth of knowledge, resources and market expertise, promising a wave of innovation and enhanced service for clients.

The future looks brighter than ever for Regiondo. As we embark on this new chapter, we remain committed to supporting our customers and driving the digital revolution in every corner of the world. To be informed regarding the latest developments of our booking system, don’t forget to subscribe to our newsletter. If you’re interested in learning more about how Regiondo can help your business thrive, request a free demo with one of our consultants.

The post Regiondo, Checkfront, and Rezdy Join Forces to Transform the Restech Landscape appeared first on Regiondo.

Understanding Upselling and Cross-Selling

Upselling is a strategy based on the idea of persuading a customer to buy a higher-priced product than they originally intended. For example, if you run a cooking class, you can upsell by convincing your students to upgrade from a group class to a private one.

To implement an upsell strategy, you need to communicate in the most effective way possible why your “premium” tours and activities are better suited to your guests’ needs and preferences than the less expensive options you offer.

Cross-selling, on the other hand, focuses on suggesting complementary or related products and services that will enhance the customer’s experience or meet additional needs. If you run a sightseeing tour company, this might mean offering participants the opportunity to buy or rent a Polaroid camera to take instant photos.

Benefits of Upselling and Cross-Selling

When it comes to upselling and cross-selling, the key is to give your customers relevant and valuable recommendations about what can really improve their experience. You don’t want to spam them with generic marketing messages promoting your most expensive offers or products – far from it! To be effective, your communications must be tailored to the specific needs of each individual guest. It takes a lot of work to get it right, but it will pay exponential dividends for your business, especially in terms of generating more revenue and maximizing customer satisfaction. Let’s take a closer look at the benefits you’ll reap:

• Increased revenue: Upselling and cross-selling can help you generate more profits by increasing the average transaction value. Offering customers the option to upgrade or purchase additional products allows tour and activity companies to capture additional sales opportunities and maximize profitability.
• Improved customer satisfaction: When done effectively, upselling and cross-selling can boost the overall customer experience. By giving relevant recommendations, you show your customers that you are attentive to their needs and can provide customized solutions that exceed their expectations.
• Increased customer loyalty and retention: In the same vein, offering personalized recommendations is one of the most effective ways to build trust with your customer base, which leads to repeat bookings and higher customer lifetime value.
• Upselling and cross-selling as a value-added service: Let’s not overlook the fact that providing tailored (and hopefully thoughtful) recommendations to your customers is a service in itself. This will help position your company as an authority in your field, giving you an edge over your competitors.

Know your customers for effective upselling and cross-selling

We’ve mentioned this concept before, but it bears repeating for emphasis: your upsell and cross-sell strategies will only work if you’re able to give your customers suggestions that are relevant to their unique interests and needs. This can be quite a challenge, but luckily we’ve got you covered. To start off on the right foot, consider spending some time studying the characteristics of your current customer base. We encourage you to follow these steps:

• If you have a database that securely stores your customers’ personal data, you can segment them by demographic factors such as gender, age, and location. If you don’t do it already, make it mandatory for your customers to fill out a form that asks for this information when they make a reservation or purchase a ticket.
• Another effective approach for segmenting your audience is by their psychographic characteristics, such as their interests and values. To keep it simple, you could even just focus on finding out what their hobbies are. To gather this data, you can start by analyzing the reviews your customers have posted on your Google Business Profile or TripAdvisor listing. If you don’t have a lot of reviews yet, you can also ask your customers for feedback by conducting a quick survey onsite – right after they try your service – or with a follow-up email a few days later.
• Before moving forward, consider monitoring the interactions customers have with your various touchpoints, such as your website, newsletter, social media profiles, etc. This will give you better insight into their preferences, as well as help you understand which are the most effective communication channels to drive your upsell and cross-sell strategies.
• Once you’ve collected all this data and information, it’s time to analyze it! You want to look for repeated patterns and commonalities so that you can identify a set of profiles that represent your target audience (also known as buyer personas). For example, you may notice that your tours are extremely popular with middle-aged men who love photography, or that your wine tastings are a big hit with Chinese tourists.
• Important: Don’t waste time creating too many personas, especially if you’re new to them. For most small businesses, 5 are more than enough.
  • Also, remember that creating your buyer personas is not a one-time effort; to maximize the effectiveness of your marketing campaigns, you should constantly update your customer profiles with the new data you collect.

Bundles and add-ons: The key to upselling and cross-selling in the experience economy

Once you’ve decided how to segment your user base, collected enough data, and created a set of buyer personas, the natural next step is to understand what could take their experience to new heights. Don’t make this process any harder than it needs to be. More often than not, small additions can go a long way. For example, if you find out that your boat tours are popular with people who enjoy social drinking, you could give them the option to purchase a few bottles to savor during their cruise, or upgrade to a premium tour with a bartender on board!

Once you have a clear picture of what perks would really rock your guests’ world, take a close look at your current offerings to identify products and services that naturally complement each other. To add another example to the ones already mentioned, this could be the ability to buy a hat for people who are participating in a city walking tour. At this point, you’re finally ready to create (and start selling) your bundles and add-ons.

Bundles

Selling bundles is a simple, yet highly effective solution for implementing your upsell and cross-sell strategies. As the name implies, bundles are a curated selection of two or more of your offers sold in a single package, usually at a discounted price. For a walking tour based in Rome, a good package deal might include a tour of some of the Eternal City’s best attractions for your guests to enjoy during the day, and a pub crawl to unwind and relax in the evening. Travelers love bundles not only for the discounts they offer, but also because having a curated selection of activities and places to visit makes it more convenient to plan their vacations. They are natively supported by the vast majority of modern booking systems, which are web-based applications that allow you to sell tickets online, manage bookings, and connect with the major distribution channels, OTAs, and resellers.

With Regiondo, the leading booking software for tour operators and activity providers, creating a bundle is a pretty straightforward process. You just have to write a description for the package, decide on a price, set the number of bundles you want to sell, and select the offers you want to include. If you want, you can even allow your customers to gift bundles to their friends and family! The only limitation is that bundles can only be sold from your website and not through the distribution channels you are affiliated with. For more information, please visit Regiondo’s Knowledge Base.

Add-ons

Like bundles, add-ons are a powerful tool for implementing your upsell and cross-sell strategies. Add-ons include any product, service, or merchandise that complements your offerings and has the potential to enhance your customer’s experience. They can be anything from buying a simple T-shirt to remember the day they tried your amazing activities, to renting a limousine to reach the starting point of your tours. The benefits are similar to those of bundles: add-ons increase your average order value (helping you generate more revenue), while giving customers a variety of options to make their vacation even more memorable.

In Regiondo, you can add your add-ons from the “Merchandising” section; all you have to do is write a description of your goods and services, set a price and decide to which of your offers you want to link the add-ons you’ve created. Click here for more details.

Conclusion

As we have discussed throughout this article, upselling and cross-selling are powerful techniques for not only increasing revenue, but also improving the overall customer satisfaction. By understanding your customers, tailoring offers to their preferences, and making relevant recommendations, you can create memorable experiences that exceed their expectations.

However, it’s important to remember that customer preferences and market dynamics can change over time. As a result, it is critical to continually adapt and evolve your upsell and cross-sell strategies to stay ahead of the competition. By doing so, you can maintain a competitive edge and deliver exceptional value to your clients.

To learn more about Regiondo, the leading reservation system in Europe, request a demo with our experts.

The post Upselling and Cross-selling 101 for Experience Providers appeared first on Regiondo.

The Impact of the Summer Olympics on a Destination

The economic impact that the Olympics can have on a destination is almost unfathomable for small business owners. For example, the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, received more than 1.7 million tourists in just two weeks, including 410,000 foreigners, according to a report published by Marca.  Hotel occupancy during the event averaged 94%, and foreign tourists spent an estimated average of €116 per day during their stay in the city. The bar and restaurant industry in some areas of Rio grew by 70%, and attractions such as Rio’s famous Christ the Redeemer statue were visited by 30% of these foreign visitors.

Meanwhile, London welcomed 31 million tourists in 2012, largely due to the Olympics and the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations. Tourism spending during the month of August, when the Games were held, was up 9% on the previous year, with each visitor spending around £1,300 during their stay. This is almost double what tourists usually spend while visiting the capital of the United Kingdom. In other words, during such events, travelers tend to stay longer and spend more than they normally do, which is extremely beneficial for tour operators and activity providers.

Beyond the increase in visitor arrivals and visitor spending, there is another important factor that cannot be put a dollar value on: the so-called “Barcelona effect”. Named after the phenomenal success of the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona, this “effect” refers to the change in the way a destination is perceived on the global stage as a result of hosting the Olympic Games. In the 1980s, Barcelona was seen as a boring, industrial city in northern Spain. After the Games, people learned to appreciate its many beauties and started adding it to their travel bucket lists. Today, Barcelona receives around 32 million visitors a year.

The impact of the Olympic Games on a destination’s economy and tourism is enormous, both in the short and long term. As a small tourism business, it is imperative to take advantage of this increased interest in a destination.

Tips for Leveraging the 2024 Summer Olympics

Many visitors who attend a major international event such as the 2024 Summer Olympics are also interested in experiencing the different attractions and activities that a destination has to offer.  This represents a huge opportunity for small and medium-sized tour and activity providers. We’re confident that if you adopt the right marketing, distribution, and sales strategy, you could have a record year. With the right approach, you’ll reap the benefits for years to come: the more bookings you get during the Olympics, the more reviews you’ll get, which in turn will increase your visibility and lead to even more bookings in the future!

Take advantage of online and mobile bookings

Online and mobile bookings have become the most popular way for most travelers to book tours and activities. If you haven’t already done so, it’s time to optimize the experience for those customers who visit your website from their smartphones. Your main goal is to provide clear, easy-to-navigate content that gives potential guests all the information they need to decide whether or not to book with you. You should also ensure that you include compelling calls to action that guide guests through the booking process.

Finally, make sure your website is responsive, meaning it can be used on both mobile and desktop devices without losing functionality or usability. If possible, test the user experience on a variety of devices to make sure everything is intuitive and works correctly.

Work with OTAs to get more reservations during the 2024 Summer Olympics

Understandably, many tour operators and activity providers prefer to receive bookings directly rather than working with third parties such as OTAs and resellers due to the high commission costs. However, there is a very important benefit to working with OTAs such as GetYourGuide and Viator. They can help you gain international exposure for your business that you wouldn’t otherwise be able to achieve. Most of the major OTAs are translated into multiple languages, and these sites spend a huge amount of money advertising on travel-related keywords. This means you get a huge boost in visibility without wasting your precious budget.

Accept multiple payment methods

When you have people from all over the world visiting your destination, it is important to accept a wide variety of payment methods. While Visa and Mastercard are still the most commonly used, PayPal and eWallets are becoming increasingly popular. For this reason, accepting as many different payment options as possible can help increase your conversion rate.

Offer flexible booking options

We all know that even the best-laid plans can go awry, and one thing the past few years have taught us is the importance of being flexible. During the COVID-19 pandemic, many tourism businesses adopted flexible booking policies. This is something that consumers have come to appreciate and even expect from tour operators and activity providers. Offering more flexible booking options will help to appeal to different types of travelers and can help them feel more confident about making a reservation with your company.

Run targeted advertising campaigns

Targeted advertising campaigns can be executed on search engines such as Google, on OTAs, or on social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram. As the name suggests, these types of campaigns can be targeted to a specific demographic or location: you could even target people who have already arrived at your destination, which is a great way to increase last-minute bookings.

Collaborate with influencers and bloggers interested in the 2024 Summer Olympics

Social media has become one of the most popular ways for travelers to find attractions, restaurants, and activities in a given destination. People all over the world follow Facebook pages and profiles to learn more about the different things they can do while on holiday. As a result, travel influencers and bloggers have become an important marketing “tool” for businesses to leverage when trying to reach new audiences. When choosing an influencer to work with, consider whether their followers match your target audience. As a rule of thumb, it’s usually better to work with someone who has a high level of engagement rather than simply choosing them based on the number of followers they have.

Develop new products

The 2024 Summer Olympics can also be a great opportunity to launch new sports-themed products. Tour operators based in a host city such as Paris can include various sporting venues in their tours, or even bundle tickets to Olympic events with longer, full-day tours.  This could be an easy way to generate additional revenue for your business while offering an all-inclusive option for guests.

Expand your language selection in time for the 2024 Summer Olympics

When it comes to major international events, it is important to offer multiple languages for your tours and activities if you really want to capitalize on the huge increase in demand. Tour operators in Paris are probably already offering tours in English and Spanish and would certainly want to consider adding German and Italian to their repertoire. Offering additional languages will increase your chances of securing these bookings, especially if a visitor feels uncomfortable taking the whole tour in English. This could mean hiring additional guides who are fluent in additional languages on a freelance basis and then listing these languages on your website to see if there is demand.

You could also consider adding additional languages to your website itself. Whilst it is tempting to simply use Google Translate to do this, it is imperative that you employ someone to translate the information. Not only will it look much more professional, but it can also help reduce costly misunderstandings caused by translation issues in the future.

Embrace technology

If you are still using pen and paper to run your business, this could be your chance to automate certain aspects of it. Partnering with an all-in-one booking software like Regiondo allows you to sell tickets online, manage bookings and connect with the world’s leading OTAs. This could end up saving you a lot of time that you would normally spend on administrative tasks. This time could then be spent meeting guests, leading tours, or growing your business.

Conclusion

The Olympic Games represent a huge opportunity for tour operators and activity providers, but to make the most of it, you may need to make some changes. Fortunately, there are companies like Regiondo that can help you! To find out more about how Regiondo can support your business, book your demo today. Our team will be happy to show you how we can streamline your operations through seamless bookings, real-time availability, and powerful reporting tools.

The post How to make the most out of the 2024 Summer Olympics – A complete guide for tour operators and activity providers appeared first on Regiondo.

What is a sustainable business?

In the context of business, sustainability refers to a company’s strategy to reduce the negative environmental impact of its operations in a particular market. For industrial farmers, this might mean reducing the amount of runoff that ends up in rivers. For automakers, it could mean limiting harmful emissions. For tour operators, it could mean reducing waste and optimizing resources.

The travel industry has taken a beating for decades for paying little or no attention to the importance of sustainable growth, and at least some of it is well deserved. While it’s true that some transportation companies and tour operators show little concern for the environment, that doesn’t mean it should be tolerated. In order to leave a beautiful world for our descendants, it is imperative that we adopt environmentally friendly practices in our daily lives and in our businesses.

This means doing everything we can to protect our environment. You can start with simple things like recycling used paper, using energy-efficient light bulbs, and providing reusable water bottles for your customers (and having water jugs where they can refill!). You can even focus on working only with vendors who follow the same principles. If you’re motivated to go the extra mile, you can also implement automated systems to run your business more efficiently. These small steps can really have a big impact if everyone does them.

But sustainable growth is about more than just protecting the environment. A core part of it is adopting policies that have a positive impact on the local community and economy. Some of the things travel companies can do include hiring local guides, donating a portion of their profits to nonprofit organizations, paying employees a living wage (which is even more important if they’re based outside of first-world countries), and providing additional opportunities for training and career advancement.

The benefits of a sustainable growth approach

According to the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), “Tourism can and must play a significant role in delivering sustainable solutions for people, planet, prosperity and peace”. To put it bluntly, tourism activities play a major role in environmental degradation, but that doesn’t mean we can’t do something about it. In fact, we have an obligation to do what we can to provide more environmentally responsible solutions for our society and environment.

Adopting sustainable growth practices may cost a little more in the short term, but in the long run it can bring significant benefits to both you and the community in which you operate. The most obvious perk is that you and your friends and family will live in a better world. Another benefit is that implementing green policies can actually save you money! In fact, investing in sustainable technology can help you reduce energy, administrative, and marketing expenses. According to 33% of respondents to a McKinsey survey, integrating a sustainability strategy into business operations can lead to significant improvements in operational efficiency and cost reduction. This focus on efficiency has the potential to increase operating profits by up to 60%.

As an added bonus, being seen as a sustainable business can also be very valuable from a marketing perspective. If you’re one of the few travel or leisure companies in an area that follows sustainable business principles, you can boast a unique selling point that others don’t have.  On the other hand, if you’re one of the few that doesn’t, you could be losing out on potential customers that have now gone to a competitor.

How can a booking system help you achieve sustainable growth?

If you want to grow your travel business in a sustainable way, you should consider investing in a booking system. Booking systems like Regiondo can help you minimize waste, both in terms of time and resources.

Regiondo is an all-in-one booking system that allows tour operators, activity providers and destinations of all sizes to sell tickets online, distribute offers on the most popular OTAs and resellers, manage bookings, show real-time availability and scan tickets thanks to a dedicated POS solution. Among other things, implementing a reservation system can help businesses reduce their environmental footprint by allowing them to go paperless and digitize their operations. You’ll be able to store your bookings online, accept payments and send digital receipts, communicate with your customers via email and SMS, and add guest contact information directly to an integrated CRM tool.

Resource Management

With a booking system, you can receive and manage your bookings entirely online, which is the most effective way to reduce the amount of paper and ink your business needs. Say goodbye to the need to archive physical copies of your documents as everything is now stored digitally in the cloud. With Regiondo’s Touch POS, customers can even show you the QR codes associated with their reservations from their phones without having to print them out. You can then scan them from your Android or iOS device using a dedicated app.

As the name suggests, Regiondo’s Resource Manager can also make it easier for you to manage and optimize your resources. These resources can be divided into:

• Limited resources that cannot be shared between multiple offers (Example: In the case of offering two different types of Segway tours with only one available guide, when one tour is booked, the other tour option is automatically removed from the booking system because the guide is no longer available for that time slot).
• Limited resources that can be shared between different offers (Example: If you offer both kayak tours and kayak rentals with a fleet of 10 kayaks, the booking system dynamically adjusts the availability of kayaks. When a customer books a tour, the system automatically reduces the number of kayaks available for rent, ensuring that customers can only book from the remaining kayaks in stock. This seamless process optimizes resource allocation and prevents overbooking).
• Unlimited resources (Example: If you offer wine tastings, you can accurately estimate the amount of wine needed for the event by setting the glasses of wine as an “unlimited resource”. This calculation ensures that there will be enough wine available to avoid running out during the tasting experience).

Managing your resources efficiently means that you can not only optimize your revenue per resource, but also reduce the environmental impact of your business. For example, imagine that you have two bus tours departing at the same time on the same route. A booking management system can help you forecast the demand for the tour and decide whether or not to remove one of the bus tours. By combining two low-demand tours into one, you can save on fuel, guide wages, and other related fees, allowing you to maintain a higher profit on the tour than you would have otherwise.

Targeted Marketing

The benefits for tour operators and DMOs go beyond saving valuable resources. In fact, you can also focus your marketing efforts on specific locations. This means that instead of advertising your business to a broad audience, you can target specific markets. the main benefit? It will allow you to sensibly cut your marketing spending.

Employee Satisfaction

Your employees are one of your most important resources. Without them, you don’t have a business. They are the front line of your company and can make or break a guest’s experience. By automating some of the administrative tasks, you can take some of the pressure off your staff and relieve some of their long-standing headaches! This gives them time to focus on what they love to do – interact with customers! This also opens up opportunities for you as a business owner to upskill your employees, leading to higher levels of engagement and loyalty!

Customized Reporting

While data and statistics may not be the favorite pastime of everyone on your team, monitoring sales, site visits, and costs is a very important part of planning for the future. If you can accurately estimate your business needs for specific time periods, you can plan your resources accordingly. This can help reduce the waste associated with running your operations, saving you money and helping the environment at the same time.

Achieve sustainable growth with Regiondo

It is our duty to help protect the beautiful world we live in. Fortunately, technology has allowed us to reduce the amount of resources we need to run a business.  To learn more about how Regiondo can help you adopt more sustainable growth practices, call us to schedule a demo. Our team members will be happy to discuss how we can meet your needs and help your tour and activity business thrive!

The post Using the Regiondo booking system to drive sustainable growth appeared first on Regiondo.

As you probably already know, the 17th edition of the UEFA European Championship, commonly known as the Euro, will be held in Germany in 2024, from June 14 to July 14. This gigantic sporting event will bring millions of visitors from all over the Old Continent, eager to support their national team, enjoy some good football and, even more importantly, get a taste of the local culture and attractions. For tour operators and activity providers, this will be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to increase brand awareness and score record bookings – not only during the 2024 summer season, but for years to come. For this reason, we’ve gathered find plenty of tips and tricks on how to make the most out of Euro 2024. In the next few paragraphs, we’ll tell you more about the schedule and organization of the tournament, provide a few statistics about the economic growth experienced by the tourism industry in previous host countries, and share a number of strategies for attracting visitors before, during and after the event. Without further ado, let’s jump right into it!

About Euro 2024

We’ve already mentioned in the introduction that by “Euro 2024” we’re referring to the 17th edition of the European Championship, a football tournament for European men’s national teams that is organized by the UEFA every four years. This time, the event will return to its usual schedule, as Euro 2020 has been postponed to the following year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The tournament will last exactly one month – from June 14 to July 14, 2024 – and will feature 51 matches. For the second time in its history (and the first since reunification), Germany will be the host country. Below you can find some more interesting facts about Euro 2024:

• As the host country, the German national team automatically qualifies for the tournament.
• A total of 24 teams will participate in the tournament, which will be determined through a series of qualifying rounds.
• The ten cities where the matches will be played are:
  • Berlin (Olympiastadion)
  • Munich (Allianz Arena)
  • Dortmund (Signal Iduna Park)
  • Stuttgart (Mercedes-Benz Arena)
  • Gelsenkirchen (Gelsenkirchen Stadium)
  • Frankfurt (Deutsche Bank Park)
  • Hamburg (Volksparkstadion)
  • Düsseldorf (Merkur Spielarena)
  • Cologne (RheinEnergieStadion)
  • Leipzig (Red Bull Arena)
• The first game of the event, along with the opening ceremony, is scheduled for June 14, 2024 at the Allianz Arena in Munich. The match will pit Germany against an opponent yet to be determined.
• On the other hand, the final will be played at the Olympiastadion in Berlin on July 14.
• The official slogan of the tournament is “United by Football. Vereint im Herzen Europas.” in order to encourage acceptance, inclusion and diversity.

How Euro 2024 will boost tourism in Germany

Travel industry professionals are familiar with the so-called “Barcelona Effect”: by hosting the 1992 Olympic Games, the city of Barcelona – once considered an unattractive industrial site with few architectural highlights – was able to rebrand itself as a must-see destination for all tourists coming to Spain. 30 years later, the capital of Catalonia is still reaping the benefits of the astonishing popularity generated by that edition of the Olympics, ranking among the top 20 most visited cities in the whole world.

The Barcelona Effect is an incredibly rare phenomenon, but on a smaller scale, every sporting event benefits the host country and cities by providing exposure and a higher-than-usual influx of visitors, both in the short and long term.

Below we’ve listed some statistics that clearly show the positive impact of the European Championship on the travel industry of the three previous host countries: Poland and Ukraine in 2012 and France in 2016. After all, there’s no better argument to show you why is so important to make the most out of Euro 2024. In case you’re wondering, we decided to leave out the data related to Euro 2020 because the tournament was spread across 11 different countries, so the impact on their respective economies was pretty minimal.

Euro 2012 – Poland and Ukraine

• According to official statistics, Poland saw a 3.3% increase in the number of tourists during the year, with the four host cities – Warsaw, Gdansk, Wroclaw and Poznan – welcoming around 677,000 foreign visitors during the tournament.
• The average length of stay for visitors was 7.7 days, with an accommodation occupancy rate of 80%.
• In addition to direct tourism revenues, Poland also saw a boost to its image and visibility as a tourist destination, with post-event surveys indicating increased interest in visiting the country.
• Ukraine saw an even greater increase, with around 1.2 million foreign tourists visiting the country during the tournament, an increase of 8.2% on the previous year.
• The average length of stay was 4.6 days.
• The total revenue generated by tourism in Ukraine during Euro 2012 was estimated at around €800 million.

Euro 2016 – France

• The total number of tourists who visited France during Euro 2016 was about 2.5 million, of which 1.5 million were foreign visitors.
• The average length of stay for tourists during the tournament was around 7.9 days and the total number of overnight stays was estimated at 7.8 million.
• The total economic impact of the event was around €1.22 billion, with fan zones generating €300 million, ticketing €230 million and other tourism expenditure €690 million.

How to make the most out of Euro 2024

In this section, we’ll share the most effective strategies to get the most out of Euro 2024. We’ll discuss how to get more visibility by improving your online sales strategies, the best practices for ranking better on Google, the importance of staying in touch with your new customers, and much more!

Increase brand awareness with OTAs

It’s clear from the data above: The Euro will bring an incredible number of foreign tourists to the host country. For this reason, increasing your brand awareness among international audiences should be a top priority. Unless you have a huge marketing budget, that’s easier said than done. Fortunately, you can quickly expand your online presence by working with online travel agencies. OTAs are massive digital storefronts that aggregate the offerings of countless tour operators and activity providers, allowing users to easily compare options at a glance.

The most popular OTAs attract literally millions of visitors each month, guaranteeing their partners plenty of visibility. The only downside is that most of these sites charge a commission, typically 20% to 30% of the price of your tickets, so you need to plan your distribution strategy carefully. Ideally, you will want to use OTAs to gain exposure and capitalize on it through your direct channels.

When deciding which OTA to join, keep in mind that each is popular with a different audience.  In our case, your goal is to attract tourists from the major European countries, where the most popular OTAs are Civitatis, Musement, Viator and GetYourGuide.

You should also keep in mind that most OTAs won’t accept your application unless you have a way to update your availability in real time. You can do this with the help of a reservation system, a specialized software that industry professionals use to sell tickets online, manage reservations and connect with resellers. Regiondo – the leading solution in this field – integrates a powerful Channel Manager that allows you to manage your listings on multiple OTAs at the same time.

Additional resources:

• Blog article: 8 OTA Marketing Strategies to Increase Your Visibility & Sell More
• Guide: How to Join and Connect with the Major OTAs
• Learn more about Regiondo’s Channel Manager

Localize your website and offers in multiple languages

To attract and engage the diverse international audience at Euro 2024, it’s essential to localize your website and listings into multiple languages. By offering content in the languages spoken by your target audience, you increase the likelihood of capturing their interest and ultimately converting them into customers.

Keep in mind that localization goes beyond simple translation. It involves adapting your messages to the cultural preferences and expectations of your new audience, which may require the help of a knowledgeable professional. This is especially true since, for optimal results, this content should be optimized for search engines in each target language. This includes researching relevant keywords, creating localized meta tags, and tweaking your site structure to improve navigation. It may seem like a lot of work, but ranking well on Google will give you a huge boost in visibility and help you make the most out of Euro 2024.

Additional resources:

• With Regiondo’s Website Builder, you can easily create a multilingual website by choosing one of our pre-built templates. It will only take you a few minutes, even if you don’t have any programming experience! Find out more here.
• Regiondo’s Booking System natively supports 11 languages – from German to French – allowing you to offer a seamless booking experience to your international customers. Click here to learn more.

Leverage online and mobile bookings

In today’s digital age, providing a seamless online booking experience is critical to attracting international customers, especially for events like Euro 2024. That’s even more true when it comes to younger consumers, who make up a large demographic of European soccer fans. In fact, an increasing number of travelers appreciate the ease of booking online and receiving immediate confirmation of their purchase, rather than waiting for an email or spending time on the phone. Recent data shows that 83% of Gen-Z and Millennials prefer to interact with tour operators and activity providers that offer online booking options.

Here is a list of best practices for creating a mobile-friendly booking site:

• Responsive layout – Make sure that your website is designed with a responsive layout that automatically adjusts to different screen sizes and resolutions to provide an optimal viewing experience on a variety of devices, such as smart phones, tablets, and desktop computers.
• Touchscreen-friendly design – When designing your website, make sure all buttons, links, and interactive elements are large enough and spaced appropriately for easy tapping on touchscreens. Do not use elements such as hover menus, which can be difficult to navigate on mobile devices.
• Pop-ups – Reduce the use of pop-ups, which can interrupt the user experience and frustrate mobile users.
• Mobile bookings – Streamline the booking process by minimizing the number of steps and required form fields. Use mobile-friendly input methods such as drop-down menus and date pickers to make it easier for users to complete the booking.
• Images and videos – Use high-quality images and videos to showcase your tours and activities, but always verify that they are properly optimized for mobile devices to avoid slow load times.
• Click-to-call buttons – Include click-to-call buttons for your phone number, allowing mobile users to quickly contact your business without having to manually dial the number.

Additional resources:

• Blog article: The benefits of online booking systems – Streamlining operations
• All templates included in Regiondo’s website builder have a responsive design that looks great on both desktop computers and smartphones. Our booking engine is also optimized for mobile devices, including the admin panel. This way, you will not only provide your customers with a superior booking experience, but you will also have the convenience of managing your business while you’re away from the office. Learn more by clicking here.

Offer multiple payment methods

We’ve said it many times, but it’s important to reiterate this concept for emphasis: the European Championship will put the host countries in the spotlight of a broad and international audience. Your potential customers will have different payment preferences depending on their country, age and comfort level with technology. If you’re looking to boost your online bookings, keep in mind that many countries whose national teams are likely to take part in the tournament do not use the euro as their official currency, including Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Denmark, England, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Sweden.

Given these considerations, in you want to make the most out of Euro 2024, offering a variety of payment methods and supporting multiple currencies is critical to maximizing both reservations and onsite sales. Also, make sure to handle transactions through a trusted payment gateway to guarantee the security of your customers’ data.

Additional resources:

• Regiondo’s booking system supports 16 currencies, a wide variety of payment methods such as Paypal and Alipay, and bank-level security thanks to 256-bit encryption. Learn more.

Provide flexible booking options

When it comes to traveling abroad and attending a big event, your clients may be stressed about having to cancel their plans due to unforeseen events. To avoid alienating your audience and make them feel more secure, offer them flexible booking options. In particular, we recommend to:

• Allow them to reschedule their reservation for free or for a nominal fee.
• Also, give them the option to cancel without penalty.
• Whatever your booking and cancellation policy is, be sure to define it clearly and include it in your listings.
• When a customer books one of your experiences, provide them with a copy of your cancellation policy along with their booking confirmation.

Additional resources:

From the Regiondo dashboard, you can define your terms and conditions, privacy policy, cancellation policy and legal information.

Optimize for local search

In the context of international travel, the booking window for experiences is typically short. This means that tourists often purchase tickets for tours and activities just a few days before their vacation begins, or even upon arrival at their destination. This makes it even more important to optimize your website for local search, which means making sure it ranks well on Google for location-specific queries (e.g., “things to do in Berlin”). This will guarantee you more traffic, which should hopefully translate into more bookings and increased revenue.

To help you rank better for local search, here are our top three tips:

• Google My Business – Claim and verify your Google My Business (GMB) listing to increase your visibility in local search results and on Google Maps. Complete all relevant information, including your business name, address, phone number, website, and business hours. Don’t forget to add high-quality, eye-catching photos!
• Keyword research – Identify popular keywords related to your listings and host cities and incorporate them into your site’s content, meta tags, and URLs. This will help Google understand your site’s relevance to specific locations and rank it higher in search results.
• Reviews – Encourage satisfied customers to leave reviews on Google My Business, TripAdvisor, and other relevant platforms. This is extremely important because reviews can have a significant impact on your local search rankings and overall reputation. Remember to respond to all feedback you receive, even negative ones, to demonstrate your commitment to customer satisfaction.

Run targeted advertising campaigns

To increase your brand awareness and connect with international customers, consider running geo-targeted advertising campaigns on platforms like Google Ads, Facebook, and Instagram. As the name implies, geo-targeting allows you to reach specific countries or regions and tailor your ads to the interests (mainly football, in this case) and preferences of your audience. Here are some ideas you can explore to make the most out of Euro 2024:

• Leverage social media platforms – Soccer fans are active on various social networks discussing games, sharing experiences, and connecting with other enthusiasts. You can take advantage of this by running targeted advertising campaigns on platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Thanks to their integrated tools, you can use demographic information, interests, and location data to narrow your audience and effectively reach potential customers.
• Run Google Ads campaigns – Google Ads can help you target potential customers who are searching for tours and activities related to Euro 2024. By using relevant keywords and phrases such as “Euro 2024 tours” or “things to do near [host city name],” you can show your ads to users who are actively searching for experiences during the event. For your paid search campaigns, it’s important to optimize your ad copy and landing pages to ensure quality results and better ad placements.
• Retargeting Campaigns – Retargeting campaigns can be an effective way to re-engage site visitors who have shown interest in your tours and activities but haven’t completed a booking. Retargeting ads are supported by both Google and social network such as Facebook and Instagram, so you can remind potential customers of your offers and encourage them to return to your website.

Engage with online soccer communities

• Identify relevant online forums and social media groups – Start by researching and identifying online football forums and social media groups where football enthusiasts – especially those who will be attending Euro 2024 in person – meet. These platforms may include Reddit, Facebook groups, Twitter communities, and soccer-specific forums. We encourage you to focus on communities with active discussions and high levels of engagement.
• Create a presence and contribute valuable content – Once you’ve identified suitable online soccer communities, establish your presence by creating accounts and actively participating in discussions. You can start by sharing valuable content, such as informative articles, videos, or tips on local attractions, to showcase your expertise and build trust with community members.
• Offer exclusive discounts or promotions – To further engage with these online communities, consider offering exclusive discounts or promotions to their members. The goal of this strategy is to encourage potential customers to choose you over the competition, so be sure to tailor your offers to the specific interests of each community and clearly communicate the terms and conditions of your promotions.

Collaborate with influencers and sports bloggers

• Find the right influencers and bloggers – Research and select influencers and sports bloggers who have a significant following among football fans and are relevant to your target audience. Ideally, you want to look for individuals who have an authentic connection to both football and travel.
• Contact them for collaboration – Once you’ve identified potential influencers and sports bloggers, reach out to them with a proposal for collaboration. To give you a few ideas, you could ask them to create sponsored posts, reviews of your tours and activities, or even co-created content that both parties can share on their platforms.
• Leverage influencer content – After a successful collaboration, use the content created by the influencers and sports bloggers to increase your visibility and reach. In particular, share their posts on your social media channels, feature their content on your website, and use their testimonials to build trust and credibility with potential customers.

Offer multilingual services

• Hire multi-lingual staff – To cater to an international audience during Euro 2024, consider hiring multi-lingual staff (primarily tour guides and/or the staff who will run your experiences) who can effectively communicate with customers from different countries. If your staff can speak the same language as your visitors, you will eliminate potential language barriers that could hinder bookings and customer satisfaction.
• Provide language-specific customer support – In addition to providing multilingual tour guides and staff, it’s critical to provide multilingual customer support, which means having support agents who can communicate with clients in their native language. This makes it easier for customers to ask questions, address concerns, and make bookings, thereby improving their overall experience with your company.
• Promote your multilingual services – Highlight your multilingual services in your marketing materials, website, and social media channels. Attracting a diverse audience is the best way to make the most out of Euro 2024.

Don’t lose touch with your new customers

• Collect customer contact information – At the time of booking or during your tours and activities, be sure to collect contact information from your customers, including email addresses and, if possible, social media profiles. As you can imagine, this will allow you to maintain communication with them after their experience and build long-term relationships. To streamline and automate similar processes, you can use a CRM, which is software that allows you to store and manage customer data.
• Send post-experience follow-ups – After your customers complete their tours or activities, send personalized follow-up messages to thank them for choosing your business and ask for their feedback. There’s no better way to show your customers that you value their opinions and care about their experience.
• Send regular newsletters and updates – Keep your customers informed of your latest offers, promotions and news by sending regular newsletters (at least monthly). Make sure your content is relevant, engaging and tailored to your audience’s interests.

Additional resources

• Regiondo’s booking system boasts a state-of-the-art CRM you can use to track your sales, get real-time booking data, manage and respond to your customers. – Find out more.
• Implement a referral program – Empower your new customers to refer friends and family to your business by implementing a referral program. You can offer incentives such as discounts, freebies, or exclusive access to special events for successful referrals. In our experience, this is the cheapest and most effective strategy for attracting new customers through word-of-mouth.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Euro 2024 offers tour operators and activity providers a unique opportunity to increase sales and attract an international audience. By implementing strategies such as optimizing digital marketing efforts, working with influencers and offering multilingual services, you can effectively cater to the diverse needs of football fans and stand out from the competition. Seize this opportunity to grow your business, create memorable experiences for your customers, and build a strong foundation for future success in the competitive tourism industry.

To learn more about Regiondo, the leading reservation software for tour operators and activity suppliers, you can schedule a free demo with one of our consultants.

The post How to make the most out of Euro 2024 – A complete guide for tour and activity providers appeared first on Regiondo.

What are S.M.A.R.T. Goals?

Before trying a new business strategy, you need to clearly define the goals you want to achieve, which can be more complex than you think. For this reason, we suggest you to adopt the “S.M.A.R.T.” framework, which is an acronym that stands for:

Specific

Setting a broad goal like “I want to sell more tickets” can be detrimental to your business because it makes it difficult for you and your staff to focus your efforts in a constructive way. You need to be as specific as possible, and the best way to do that is by asking yourself a few questions:

• What is the end result of this project?
• Who will be involved in the project? Can this be done internally, or will I need to hire outside contractors?
• What resources can I use to accomplish this goal? What is my budget?
• What are the best distribution/sales/marketing channels I should consider using?

Measurable

Simply put, a goal is “measurable” if it has a number attached to it so you can easily track your progress. Monitoring these numbers (the tour operator KPIs we’ll talk about in the following sections) not only helps you stay focused and motivated, but it also allows you to see if you need to make adjustments to your original strategy before it’s too late.

Achievable

You will never reach your goals if they are not realistic, even if you follow all the other principles of the S.M.A.R.T. framework. A goal is actually achievable only if you’re confident you have enough resources (in terms of manpower, money, and knowledge) to accomplish it in a given time frame.

Relevant

Even if you work for or own a large company, you still need to remember that the resources at your disposal are limited, so you can’t afford to waste them on projects that don’t contribute to your bottom line in some way. In other words, when defining a new goal, ask yourself if reaching it will effectively have a positive impact on your business.

Time-bound

To really focus your energy on achieving a goal, you need to set a start and end date for your projects. Having a deadline will help motivate you and, more importantly, allow you to set the right priorities for your business.

Using these criteria, here are some examples of possible S.M.A.R.T. goals for a tour or activity company:

• Grow your email subscriber list by 25% in the next two months.
• Increase your social media followers by 40% in the next six months.
• Generate 15% more qualified leads from online advertising in the next three months.
• Increase website conversions by 10% in the next four months.
• Increase average booking value by 5% in the next two months.
• Improve online review scores on TripAdvisor by 0.5 points in the next six months.
• Increase click-through rate (CTR) on email marketing campaigns by 7% in the next three months.

The importance of tracking KPIs for tour operators

As we’ve seen, one of the most important aspects of the S.M.A.R.T. framework is that you must constantly track your results so that you know your progress and can adjust your strategies as needed. The best way to do this is to define a set of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), which, as the name suggests, are quantifiable metrics of your company’s performance. If you’re wondering what the most meaningful KPIs are for tour operators and activity providers, read on!

KPIs for Tour Operators: Booking Volume

Booking volume refers to the total number of bookings made for tours and activities in a given period. This is a critical metric for tour operators as it directly relates to revenue generation and reflects the overall demand for their services. For instance, a steady increase in bookings suggests that an operator’s marketing efforts, tour offerings and customer service are resonating with its target audience and driving growth.

In addition, monitoring bookings helps travel companies identify seasonal trends and fluctuations, allowing them to adjust their strategies accordingly. When it comes to reservations, having a clear understanding of patterns and fluctuations allows operators to optimize resources, such as staffing and inventory management, so that they can efficiently meet customer demand.

KPIs for Tour Operators: Occupancy Rate

Occupancy – a metric traditionally used in the hotel industry – can be calculated by dividing the number of tickets you’ve sold for your tours and activities by the total amount of seats available. This KPI for tour operators tells you how effectively you’re using your resources and whether you’re maximizing your revenue opportunities.

If you’re not happy with your occupancy rate, consider the following strategies:

• Dynamic pricing: Implement dynamic pricing strategies based on demand, time of day or seasonality to incentivize off-season bookings.
• Offer last-minute deals: Encourage last-minute bookings by offering discounted rates for low-demand tours close to their scheduled start dates. This can help fill the remaining seats and improve overall occupancy.
• Adjust tour frequency: If certain tours have consistently low occupancy rates, consider reducing their frequency or eliminating them altogether. This will allow you to focus on promoting more popular tours with higher occupancy rates.

KPIs for Tour Operators: Average Booking Value

Average Booking Value (ABV) is the average amount of revenue generated per booking and it can be calculated by dividing total revenue by the number of reservations in a given period. ABV provides valuable insight into the effectiveness of your pricing strategies, and if it’s too low, it means you’re probably leaving money on the table.
The best way to increase your average booking value is via up-selling and cross-selling strategies: in other words, offer your customers the opportunity to upgrade their experience or add additional services such as transportation, meals, or equipment rental during the booking process. Alternatively, you can bundle tours or activities at a discounted rate to encourage customers to book multiple experiences at once.

KPIs for Tour Operators: Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC)

Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) is the total cost of acquiring a new customer and is calculated by dividing the total marketing and sales expenses by the number of new customers acquired in a given time period. As you can imagine, monitoring CAC allows companies to gauge the effectiveness of their marketing and sales efforts. Unlike the tour operator KPIs listes in the previous paragraphs, you want to keep your CAC as low as possible. One cheap and easy strategy to reduce acquisition costs is to encourage satisfied customers to refer friends and family to your tours and activities. You can offer people discounts or free add-ons on their next booking to entice them to join your referral program.

KPIs for Tour Operators: Online Reviews and Ratings

Online reviews and ratings play a crucial role in the decision-making process of potential customers looking for tours and activities. As marketers know, they take advantage of a cognitive bias known as “social proof”: when people are undecided, they tend to copy the actions and beliefs of others around them. Regularly evaluating customer feedback through reviews is also essential because it provides critical insight into the aspects of your business that need improvement, as well as the areas in which you already excel. To build your online reputation, other than encouraging happy guests to share their experiences on TripAdvisor and similar sites, don’t forget to respond to both positive and negative reviews. Thank customers for their feedback, acknowledge any problems they may have experienced, and offer solutions to rectify the situation if necessary.

KPIs for Tour Operators: Website Traffic and Conversion Rate

Website traffic is the number of visitors who come to your website, while the conversion rate is the percentage of those visitors who complete a desired action, such as booking a tour or filling out a form to request more information. Traffic is a good indicator of the performance of your marketing efforts: the higher it is, the more prospects you’re driving to your site. On the other hand, the conversion rate shows if your target audience is effectively responding to your offer and/or if there are problems with your booking process.
For travel and activity providers, the most effective way to increase traffic and conversions is to implement a booking system. With Regiondo – the leading software in this category – visitors to your website can make a reservation with just a few clicks, eliminating any friction in the booking process. In addition, Regiondo’s robust analytics tools make it easy to track the tour operator KPIs mentioned in this article.

KPIs for Tour Operators: Customer Lifetime Value (CLV)

Customer Lifetime Value (CLV) is a metric that represents the total net profit a company can expect to earn from a customer over the course of their relationship. It takes into account factors such as average purchase value, purchase frequency and average customer lifespan. CLV is essential for tour operators because it provides a picture of the long-term financial viability of their business and helps guide marketing, pricing and customer service strategies.
As with the other tour operators KPIs, there is no magic formula for increasing CLV: the only thing you can do is focus on giving your clients the best experience possible, so they’re more likely to book additional tours or activities and recommend your services to others. You could also consider implementing a loyalty program by offering rewards, exclusive offers and discounts to returning customers: it’s a great way to encourage repeat business and foster a long-term relationship.

Conclusion

In summary, consistently tracking and analysing KPIs is paramount to the success of any tour operator or activity provider. KPIs provide valuable insight into various aspects of your business, allowing you to make informed decisions and implement effective strategies. By monitoring your progress against your S.M.A.R.T. goals, you can identify areas for improvement, optimize resources and ultimately drive growth and profitability.

If you’re looking for comprehensive reservation software that can help your organization track KPIs and optimize processes, consider scheduling a call with the Regiondo team. Our industry-leading software offers seamless online booking, real-time availability, and powerful reporting tools to help your company grow. Book your demo today and discover how we can help you unlock the full potential of your business.

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