Keeping up with the trends and knowing your customers is crucial for any business. To know your customer is to understand their habits and needs.
How do modern travelers book trips in 2024? What are the most critical elements in determining which tour operator to choose? What matters to modern travelers in the process?
With the travel world evolving, many things have changed in the travel industry. Some new trends have emerged, and travelers’ focus and needs have significantly changed. This transformation has been in the works for quite a while now, and tour operators and destination management companies aren’t left with much choice – they must meet the new demand for digitally transforming their businesses.
Here are the top 4 things modern travelers are looking for when booking a trip.
Master the Art of Online Presence!
The first thing modern travelers will do is conduct thorough online research on the desired destination. Every tour operator or DMC’s goal is for the customer to find them immediately. And that isn’t possible if a company doesn’t have a strong online presence, primarily web-based.
Nowadays, modern travelers visit many websites before making a reservation, so it’s critical to ensure your website is unique, relevant, and quickly establishes credibility. With printed catalogs slowly becoming a part of the past, the website is the most common touchpoint any tour operator has with their target customers. It gives your company more credibility, builds your brand, gives you a web-based platform to address your travelers directly, and continuously brings new customers.
According to the Trends Global Survey, 80% of global travelers surveyed feel it’s important to be able to book their trips entirely online, with 86% of Millennials and 83% of Gen Z’s leading the charge. We’re talking about really high numbers! Therefore, the web has for sure replaced physical catalogs and even your offices.
Of course, it is important not only to have a presence but also to make it a good one.
Photos, Descriptions, and Video Content – It’s Essential to Stand Out!
Having a user-friendly, clear, and visually attractive web is crucial. Destinations should be clearly listed together with some itineraries to inspire future modern travelers. Three of the most impactful deal breakers for most travelers are bland and unappealing hotel rooms, non-aesthetic food photos, and boring content presentations. There should be short descriptions and authentic photos from trips that will catch the eye.
An example of good practice by one of our clients, Hidden Iceland
More and more travelers are turning to YouTube when planning a trip. Therefore, another great thing is having video content showcasing the destinations and travelers enjoying the journey with your team.
A really cool segment is a 360° tour of a hotel, resort, or even a part of the destination. Aerial videos became very accessible and more affordable with drones – and the videos they make are of fantastic quality. Instead of filming over-produced promo films, capture authentic content – travelers will appreciate it. Be playful and use your imagination – with the modern technology we have on hand, options are numerous!
Introduce your guides and make them relatable. When travelers are scrolling through your website for the first time, meeting the team that may be accompanying them on their trip instills more trust.
Let your staff share their hobbies, favorite destinations, locations, and insights. They are the ones who know the most about each destination; they can share some insights that will attract potential travelers to choose a specific trip. This will also give that personal touch to the otherwise digital experience—and travelers love that!
DMC Amazing Africa is proud to present its team to travelers
Oh, and don’t forget. Travel has shifted to mobile. The new generations of travelers expect to have all the information in the palms of their hands.
In the past years, there has been a significant spike in the number of online bookings done on mobile phones. So, optimizing a website for mobile phones is a must in this day and age.
Shaping Sustainable Wanderlust: Travelers Are Opting for Sustainable Travel Products!
In a recent Booking.com survey, over half (53%) of travelers seek accommodations that blend comfort with innovative sustainability features, and 65% want green spaces and plants in their stays.
At the same time, 67% of Gen Z’s surveyed by the Pew Research Center reported expressing a need for climate action, compared to 61% of millennials, 53% of Gen X, and 50% of baby boomers. Ecotourism is thus expected to soar in popularity in the coming years, and sustainable products are the new good-to-have.
Many travelers today increasingly prioritize sustainability in their choices, including the sustainable products they use, but also the food they eat.
“Travel can be a force for good, and travelers themselves are proving to be today’s changemakers, adopting more sustainable travel habits and seeking responsible experiences.”
Glenn Fogel, CEO of Booking.com
While not all travelers may prioritize sustainability equally, there is a growing demand for sustainable products within the travel industry. As awareness continues to increase and consumers become more informed about their choices’ environmental and social impact, the demand for sustainable travel options will likely continue growing.
Here are a few tips on how travel companies can be green(er). Go check it out!
Why is a Dynamic Social Media Presence Non-Negotiable?
Like any other industry in the world, the travel industry cannot survive without being present on social media. Social media platforms are essential for communicating directly with travelers, acquiring new customers, promoting your offer, and, last but not least, advancing Google search results.
Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok are the best options for tours and travel businesses. Each offers different formats and targets different demographics.
Facebook is the social media giant. According to Statista, Facebook has more than 3 billion monthly active users. It offers posting photos and videos with short descriptions, and you can also do live streaming.
Since the audience is vast, you can use all it provides to communicate directly with your travelers. Many nowadays use Facebook as a source of information. Post all information and news here, and travelers will appreciate it. Leave the comments section open for any questions your customers might have.
People enjoy reading reviews. Previous customers can rate your agency and post a short review on Facebook, which is a fantastic feature. That way, prospective travelers can read about other people’s experiences traveling with your agency.
Unsurprisingly, YouTube follows strongly – some travelers love watching vlogs because they get real and detailed feedback. Videos are entertaining, educational, and engaging. What better way to imagine yourself in a destination than with a video? Establish your presence there; travelers seek authentic, entertaining, educational, and informative content.
Instagram is one of the most preferred social media channels for Millennials, but not only. Selling products and showcasing offers on Instagram has become a common thing. Modern travelers tend to turn to travel Instagram profiles in search of inspiration.
With its specific framework, Instagram is ideal for tour operators and DMCs. It focuses on beautiful pictures, short videos, and keyword descriptions, while its search relies on hashtags. #travel links to more than 700 million posts. Instagram is here to inspire travelers to explore new destinations.
Your target customers will enjoy watching a live stream from a destination. People are much more responsive there than on Facebook. Travelers are likely to contact you directly if they require any information. Don’t hesitate to ask your travelers to tag the guides or your travel agency in their photos – there is no better promotion than that!
Last but not least, we have come to a platform that has been going strong for the last couple of years. Whereas Instagram targets millennials, TikTok users belong to GenZ and are between 16 and 24 years old.
It is a video-first platform mainly focusing on creating challenges and portraying various hacks and memes. Its content has the potential to go viral within hours of posting. Travelers will turn to TikTok for fun challenges, new recipes from all over the world, insights for different destinations, and travel tips and tricks. Also, Phocuswright research found that 35% of travelers ages 18 to 34 use TikTok to help decide what activities to partake in while traveling.
One example is the term #DestinationDupe, which has taken over social media platforms, especially TikTok. It is a trend that offers reasonably priced substitutes for the world’s most popular travel destinations, urging visitors to choose the less-traveled route. It encourages people to look into unusual possibilities that offer one-of-a-kind experiences and hidden riches, as well as lesser-known jewels, while reducing mass tourism in popular destinations.
Another is set-jetting, a trend in which travelers decide to book a trip to a place they’ve seen in movies or streamed shows.
To sum up, you just have to be creative, aim to inspire rather than sell, and remember — consistency is key!
Blog – a Perfect Way To Showcase Your Tours!
It may seem time-consuming, but having an active blog is a great way to attract new travelers. Having one person designated to write for the blog is great, but that is not crucial. Your guides can write or, even better, your travelers.
Ask a traveler to do a guest section — what better promotion than having first-hand experience written by someone who only recently visited the destination? They can include some beautiful pictures or videos and give the highlights of the journey.
Update your blog regularly, and don’t forget to include direct links to your tours and packages.
It is a perfect place to showcase your offer in a slightly different form. Write travel guides for various destinations. Feel free to include authentic content, share tips and insights, portray local customs, include interviews with locals or your guides, etc. The options are endless and are bound to attract new travelers to book with you.
Example of a blog page by our client, Expat Explore
As mentioned, every traveler starts their research online. When using Google, it is in every tour operator’s best interest to appear in search results. To ensure you are among the first, continuously update your website’s content, mainly your blog.
As the team at Hubspot put it, “SEO writing is the process of writing content to rank on the first page of search engines like Google. This involves researching keywords, writing high-quality content that matches user intent, and optimizing your headers for easy page crawling.”
It is a great marketing technique bound to attract more travelers to your website; just give it some time and don’t give up. Read more on the importance of having a travel blog!
