Are you a travel agency looking for a more effective way to reach your audience and inspire them to book their next adventure? Look no further than SMS marketing. With a 98% open rate, SMS messages are an incredibly powerful tool to drive bookings and inspire wanderlust in your audience.
In this article, we'll explore how travel agencies can implement an SMS marketing strategy to encourage bookings, build relationships with customers, and ultimately, grow their business.
Why SMS Marketing for Travel Agencies?
Traditional forms of marketing such as television ads, billboards, and print advertisements can be costly and ineffective. Even email marketing campaigns can be easily ignored or relegated to the spam folder, leaving your message unheard.
SMS marketing, on the other hand, requires minimal investment and has surprisingly high open and response rates. According to a recent study, respondents claimed they would rather receive a text message from a business they frequent than any other form of communication.
Additionally, most people have their mobile device on hand almost constantly, giving SMS messages a much higher chance of actually being read than other forms of marketing.
How to Build and Grow your SMS Subscriber List
Step 1: Encourage sign-ups on your website. Make your sign-up process obvious and straightforward for visitors to your website.
Step 2: Promote your SMS list on social media. Publish posts that encourage your followers to sign up to receive special offers, holiday packages, and travel inspiration via SMS.
Step 3: Promote SMS sign-ups in-store. Display prominent signs in key areas of your travel agency or at the point of sale that encourage customers to text in to receive travel tips and promotions.
Step 4: Incentivize subscribing: Offer access to exclusive discounts, priority bookings, or free guidebooks for customers who sign up for your SMS list.
SMS Marketing Strategies for Travel Agencies
Strategy #1: Pre-Travel Inspiration
Send tailored SMS messages that inspire your audience to plan their next trip, share travel tips, and highlight your agency's unique selling points. Make it personal.
For example, you could send a photo of a glorious sunset with a message saying: "Are you looking for your own private slice of beach? Doesn't that picture look heavenly? Stop by the agency today! We're waiting to help you create the perfect getaway."
Strategy #2: Post-Travel Engagements
Keep your customers engaged with your agency by sending out messages of gratitude for their business and reinforcing loyalty. This is an excellent opportunity to ask for customer feedback and improve booking experiences for future clients.
For example: "Thanks for choosing our agency for your recent trip! We'd appreciate it if you could complete a quick survey by replying within the next 24 hours. Your feedback can help us make every trip a great experience."
Strategy #3: Up-selling to current customers
A great way to maximize revenue per customer that messages marketing makes available is through upselling. For travel agents, this involves showing your current traveler base options for from additional flight packages and leisure activities that complement their trip.
For Example: "Great deals on Las Vegas shows and water activities: Upgrade your travels to make your trip an even more memorable experience!"
Strategy #4: Crisis Recovery
Lastly, if a natural disaster or political turmoil occurs that affects your customers’ travel plans, reassure them of their safety and that you’ll work to rebook their trip.
For example: -Things have been thrown off a bit, but we’re working hard to make your trip perfect. Just sit tight, and please let us know how we can accommodate you"
Conclusion
The benefits of SMS Marketing for travel agencies is very clear; helping inspire their customers to stir a little wanderlust (when they are less likely to travel and more likely to want to) and allowing them new and simple ways to book trips. Again, most people have their mobile phones on hand almost always contributing to SMS text messages having a higher chance of actually being read than other forms of marketing. Travel agencies that are considering joining the industry or simply update current marketing strategies will absolutely benefit and see results given the competitive prices of SMS marketing tactics. By doing so, businesses may rest well letting SMS instill that level of confidence its fast growth implies.
