2017 was a good year for the hospitality and airline industry, particularly in East Africa with the area seeing increased traffic from both leisure and business travelers. So, how do you guarantee continued sales in 2018?
We’ve prepared a few marketing tips to help you position your business and reach your target audience.
Video Content
More and more social media and networking sites are focusing on video content. It is important to note however, not any old video content will do. Here is where research will come in because you must find out what resonates with your target audience. Travel is for many, still an aspirational idea. Well produced videos that show off your brand as luxurious but still attainable are likely to see you attract more interest from your would be customers.
Influencers & Micro Influencing
Identify influencers within your target audiences. These are people who have a reputable share of voice within these audiences as people listen to them or look to them for guidance. Don’t just look at the number of followers these influencers have, but consider whether they understand your brand or can relate to it. You are better off working with multiple micro-influencers who can leverage your business as opposed to investing in one big influencer who is being courted by various other companies. Find an influencer who believes in your brand and is relatable.
Use of Chatbots
Chatbots allow people to interact with you either on social media or on your website. Ideally, they help users with commonly asked queries by providing automated replies. This is done by programming appropriate responses and providing self help prompts to any users who interact with you. While chatbots do not completely replace human support, they do complement it, especially during hours when staff is unavailable. For hotels and airlines, this allows you to operate 24 hours a day, as customers are guaranteed a response to any query, regardless of the time. Find out more about chatbots and how some companies have implemented their use here.
Focus of Customer Experience (CX)
Customer Experience is not just about having top notch customer support, it’s about ensuring that customers’ entire experience with you is satisfactory. Focusing on your Customer’s Experience means making sure that the systems put in place work for the customer from start to finish. As an airline, this includes the booking, check-in, on boarding, flight and luggage collection. For hotels, this involves booking and everything to do with your clients stay. At any point where your customer interact with you, where you have a touch point, you must strive for excellence. This involves going into the entire process and understanding the customer journey in-depth. Find out more about Customer Experience and how to implement higher standards here.
