Where would you turn if you needed more heads in beds or butts in seats?
- To your pied pipers
- To your sales staff
- To social advertising
- All the above
As a busy travel and tourism pro, you’d probably choose No. 4—all the above. You can work with your staff and current followers to attract new clients and keep strong relationships, and you’ll definitely want to include social media in the mix.
Social ads are the way of the world when it comes to skyrocketing the number of people you reach online. Here are some social ad hacks used by pros in our industry:
No. 1. Custom connections
Wouldn’t you like to reach out to people who have already taken a first step as potential new clients of yours by liking, sharing or commenting on your social posts? You can, and here are examples of individuals you can reach as a “custom audience” through Facebook:
- People who have interacted with your recent Facebook Event
- Anyone who has reacted to or interacted with your business page
- Someone who viewed your video
To create an audience of only those viewers, follow the targeting tips explained here: .
No. 2. Consider this
You can also target people who have expressed a desire to travel. Facebook has recently rolled out a new advertising avenue called “Trip Consideration,” which is an amazing way to target users who are in the early stages of considering a trip. You’ll need to have the Facebook pixel installed.
No. 3. Generate more leads
If you and your staff struggle with keeping your sales funnel full of potential new clients, you’re in luck. Lead generation ads on Facebook are a smart tactic, giving you the opportunity to collect new emails from people who are drawn to your ad by a lead magnet, a downloadable giveaway on your website.
The key to your success is providing a relevant, must-have item (). Think about providing:
- Destination guides
- Packing tips
- Restaurant guides
- Top 10 lists
The goal is to create something so meaningful that people will give up their email address to get it instantly!
No. 4. Nurture your loyalists
Do you ever wish you could create a post that reaches only your existing clients? It would allow you to provide a special offer, launch an exciting new tour or product, or extend an upgrade to established clients.
You can do it by creating an Excel spreadsheet of your client’s email addresses, then heading over to Facebook Ads Manager and setting up a Custom Audience.
Here’s the navigation:
- Click on the hamburger icon at the top left of your screen, then select “Audiences.”
- Select “Create Audience,” then “Custom Audience,” and then “Customer File.”
- Follow the prompts to upload your client list.
Add more finesse with these tips and examples: .
Voila! Facebook matches up the email addresses from your list to form a new audience for your advertising. It’s an easy way to supplement your email campaigns and give you another opportunity to be top of mind with your clients.
Tip: Format your spreadsheet as a .csv file. Make sure you have only one column with only email addresses and remove any column headers.
Keeping heads in beds and butts in seats is easier to do when you and your team employ a solid social ad campaign. Which of these strategies will you add to your next campaign?
Catherine Heeg, an international speaker and trainer, focuses on social media marketing strategies for the tourism and hospitality industry. Connect with her socially and at cmsspeaking.com.
Top photo ©bakhtiarzein/Adobe Stock
