Written by: Vladimir Mitić, Blueprint performance digital agency
Find out how to increase direct sales by communicating directly with customers, as everything we mention has been tested and verified, and can significantly impact your annual revenue.
The focus of this article is on digital channels through which we communicate directly with customers.
Although digital channels are not cheap, we must emphasize that it has never been cheaper to communicate directly with customers than it is today. With a multitude of options, it is actually most important to plan and create a strategy and prioritize channels in such a way that you start with the channels that can potentially bring you the highest returns.
Planning, Calendar, and Goals
We know that various changes in the market are possible, but we are not saying that you need to plan 100 percent accurately down to the smallest detail, but rather that you should set and plan all communication for the next year.
Answer the questions:
1. Who is our customer?
Answer the question of what offers and activities you will have to attract customers. Will you have the same communication for couples, parents with children, or travelers with pets? Each customer has their own needs that they want to satisfy.
2. When do we open?
This directly affects the decision of when you start with specific marketing activities.
These two fundamental questions will help you plan ahead and create all creative and communication messages directed towards your customers.
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Create an Editorial annual calendar that includes all important dates and plan campaigns by setting goals:
Goals must be SMART – Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Timebound. An example of a SMART goal: increasing direct Easter sales from Germany by 20 percent (even better would be from 250,000 HRK to 300,000 HRK).
Once you do this for the entire year, you have everything you need to start creating and implementing. You have year-round communication planned.
And of course, there will be changes and unplanned situations, but this way you are certainly better prepared than when you work day by day.
Great, you have a plan, now let’s move on to the numbers!
The biggest advantage of digital channels is that they are measurable. And all you need are 3 metrics (numbers):
- Number of Sessions (Sessions)
- Conversion Rate (Conversion Rate)
- Average Order Value (Average Order Value)
If you do not have insight into these three numbers, urgently set up tracking and analytics and start measuring them.
Number of Sessions x Conversion Rate x Average Order Value = Total Revenue
If you achieved last year:
10,000 Sessions x 1 percent Conversion Rate x 2,500 HRK Average Order Value = 250,000 Total Revenue
By increasing any of these three metrics by 20 percent, you should achieve a 20 percent higher revenue.
Sessions can be paid for, or earned organically through SEO activities, etc.
We can increase the conversion rate through the conversion rate optimization process or we can communicate discounts since we know that discounts raise the conversion rate.
You can raise the average order value by increasing prices, better arrangements, and packages. You would be surprised how many other factors besides price affect sales.
You need to decide where you want to invest to achieve the goal of a 20 percent increase in sales. Will you invest and pay for traffic through paid media? Do you want to achieve higher traffic through your own channels?
You can invest time and money in new articles and SEO optimization. Remember, for SEO to yield results, it takes at least 6 months. This is also one of the reasons why we advocate annual planning. If you do not plan, forget about SEO, it is not an option for you.
Use fresh and interesting content to answer travelers’ questions, and keep your website updated with local events.
You may decide to invest in conversion rate optimization?
And finally, can you set higher prices and more expensive packages? But with price increases, we often find that the conversion rate drops.
You won’t know until you try!
After that, set a budget and define 3 communication foundations of the campaign:
- Define the main message/theme
- Define the USPs (Unique Selling Points)
- Define the offer and products and services
And finally, the last step is to define the communication channels.
At Blueprint, we divide them into PAID, OWNED, and EARNED:
Paid Media (PAID)
- Google Search
- Google Display, YouTube, etc.
- Facebook Paid
- PR
- Influencers
- …
Owned Media (OWNED)
- Your own websites
- Landing pages
- Your own social media pages and their organic traffic
- Email
- …
Earned Media (EARNED)
- Affiliate networks
- Influencers working on commission from sales
- OTA channels like Booking.com, TripAdvisor, etc.
- …
Each of the mentioned media and channels affects sessions and conversion rates and can be viewed as a separate profit center, but also as a cumulative effort of communication. This simply needs to be tested and find the most profitable mix in a given part of the year.
Sales and Marketing Activities
There are so many ways to market and sell your property that, if done correctly, reservations should never be a problem.
In tourism, marketing depends on how you make travelers aware of your property, and your sales tactic will be the way you get them to book a stay at your property.
Your marketing should mainly focus on:
- Brand expansion
- Adopting a unique message
- Establishing contact with your key target markets
- Being active on social media
- Utilizing email marketing strategy
- SEO optimization
Things that are essential today and can help increase sales include:
- Video
- Visual ads
- Well-crafted communication message
- Reviews
- User-generated content (sparked by great experiences)
- Rich offers with added value
Selling your capacities should be based on creating anticipation among travelers. They must believe that staying with you would be a missed opportunity!
In creativity, there is no right or wrong idea until you see the results. Becoming creative means you have to experiment and try new things. Think about how you can think outside the box and spark desire in potential guests.
You have great freedom in sales, and that can be exciting. You can tell every potential guest how great your property is and how much fun they will have enjoying your hospitality.
Promotions are great because in the digital environment you can be very flexible and targeted with what you offer, and often it will attract the attention of travelers searching online.
Focus on what guests can expect, such as seasonal, thematic, or event-based promotions.
Seasonal Promotions
Most destinations experience a low season, where tourism is not as active as in other parts of the year. However, with the right offers, your property does not have to suffer through empty rooms and hallways. Try to include discounts with attractive promotions and remind travelers how beautiful your destination is and how much they can see when it is less crowded.
Thematic Promotions
You can offer promotions around honeymoons or anniversaries if you are in a romantic setting, adventurous offers if you are not in larger cities, or premium relaxation experiences if you are a coastal hotel. Attracting different lifestyles is always a good idea.
Event-Based Promotions
Leverage events in your area and incorporate them into your promotions. Ride the wave! People will explore those events, which is your ideal opportunity to increase traffic to your website.
With a reservation, you can offer discounted tickets, tailor the experience according to the events, create special prices, and much more.
The possibilities are endless, and we certainly haven’t listed them all; you just need to start and begin planning because with a good plan, implementation is much more efficient!
