Tourism marketing has changed rapidly. What once relied on a handful of channels and a relatively linear path to purchase has evolved into a complex, multi-touch, multi-platform journey. For destinations, attractions, and operators, the challenge isn’t just visibility anymore. It’s capturability.
Today’s tourism pipeline requires both short-term conversion efficiency and long-term demand generation to work in tandem. One without the other leaves revenue and opportunity on the table.
From awareness to action: A new buyer reality
Modern travelers no longer move neatly from inspiration to booking. Instead, they zigzag. They scroll Instagram or TikTok, compare prices across multiple websites, read reviews, pause planning altogether, then re-enter the journey through retargeted ads, referrals from friends, or digital visitor guides, if they return at all.
This scattered journey means tourism organizations must embrace a multi-channel, multi-touch pipeline that recognizes longer buying cycles and phased purchasing habits. The expectation is no longer “tell me once.” It’s “be there every time I’m ready to listen.”
Capturability: The revenue multiplier hiding in plain sight
Capturability is a measure of how easy it is to “capture” a potential customer who has already decided to convert. In many cases, the biggest threat to revenue is friction, not lack of demand.
Common capturability offenders include:
- Websites that aren’t mobile-optimized
- Slow load times
- Confusing navigation
- Inaccessible or non-assistive design
- No clear digital-to-human conversion options
The data is precise. If a website takes more than three seconds to load, roughly 40% of users abandon it. Slow load times are cited as the number-one cause of booking abandonment by travel brands. Meanwhile, 82% of travelers say booking entirely online is essential, and loyalty to traditional travel agencies continues to decline.
The golden rule of sales applies here: Make it easy for people to give you money.
Long-term demand: Winning hearts before wallets
While capturability drives near-term revenue, long-term pipeline health depends on demand generation. Travelers want to be inspired long before they’re ready to convert. That means meeting audiences where they already are (Instagram, TikTok, Reddit) by delivering content that feels authentic, personalized, and abundant.
Short-form video, travel blogs, virtual tours, and especially user-generated content all play a critical role—customization matters. One-size-fits-all content almost always produces one-size-fits-none results.
Connect with Red Sage
At Red Sage Communications, we believe the future of tourism growth belongs to organizations willing to rethink how demand is created, how interest is nurtured, and how conversion is captured. The pipeline is there. The question is: how easy are you making it to fill?
Contact: Michelle Stark, Red Sage Communications
