June 28, 2021
We know that words can’t describe how amazing it feels to begin welcoming guests back. To actually see their smiling faces and hear the sounds of joy ringing throughout your destination. For some, the recent travel boom has led to completely booked-up tours for months on end. But if you’re in the other boat, or you’re planning for long-term success, keep reading! These ideas and concepts will help you create a standout tour that people rave about.
Pump up the personality. The truth is that travelers are shopping around and comparing your tour with other activities and similar offerings. Personality is often the strongest aspect that magnetizes them to your experience over the other. Your tour personality is expressed online in the words, colors, fonts, shapes, symbols, and imagery you use. Your online experience in this sense, is giving travelers a little taste of what is to come!
When thinking about how you want your personality to shine, consider the fact that 89% of global travelers are now ‘always, ‘often’ or ‘somewhat’ influenced by how well a product or service fits their needs and personality (according to GlobalData). So, ask yourself: how do our guests see themselves personality-wise? What traits, characteristics, values, and strengths make up the personality of our ideal traveler? And are you doing a good job reflecting those in your online and offline experiences? The more a traveler can see themselves fitting in, the more likely they’ll book.
Become word-of-mouth-worthy. Instagram has shown us that people will travel far and wide to access something remarkable. But social media has also created a strong sense of ‘been there, done that’ for travelers always seeking their next big thrill. So how can tours keep up?
People are drawn to (and often pay more for) exclusivity and originality. But constantly innovating can be a challenge! The good news is you only have to be slightly more enticing than the other experiences around you. It’s not about implementing a big, over-the-top reinvention. Oftentimes the smallest of thoughtful details make the biggest difference. Tune into your passions and the nuances of your culture that travelers are most curious about. How can you bring more of that into your experience in a unique, tangible (touch, taste, smell, hear, see) way? Find ways to engage the senses in unexpected ways, and you’ll get people talking in no time!
Take travelers on a thrilling adventure. There are activities & experiences… and then there are adventures! Adventures have a clear journey with a beginning, middle, and end. They are full of surprises, twists and turns. They are layered, dynamic, and typically have an intentional outcome. Adventures are stories come to life! And since we live in a world obsessed with being transported by stories and storytelling, this is an important part of leveling up.
Your job is to lead travelers on journeys toward desirable end destinations. Their end destination = their happily ever after. Has the visitor accomplished something? Attained a new skill? Had a change of perspective? Learned something about themselves or the world? Bonded deeper with loved ones? Looking at your experience this way will help increase its value and even help you create a more compelling marketing story.
Make your mission front & center! ‘Purpose-driven travel’ was a headline we saw time and time again over the last year as trend casters predicted what would be in store post-pandemic. Why this, why now? Being stuck at home gave the world a lot of time to reflect on the impact of their travels and envision what they wanted those trips to mean for themselves and the world. Consider the fact that consumers are 4-6x more likely to purchase, protect and champion purpose-driven brands (according to Zeno Group) and 77% of consumers feel a stronger emotional connection to purpose-driven brands (according to Cone/Porter Novelli).
Now more than ever, your purpose needs to be front and center. The French call this the raison d'être (reason for being) and it needs to be crystal clear to travelers in your marketing and throughout your experience. To begin reflecting on this, ask yourself: “why did I feel the need to create this experience in the first place?” People will be extra responsive to your mission and purpose when it aligns with their own (as touched on in the point above) so don’t be afraid to fuel that fire. After all, if you’ve been dimming your flame, how do you expect people to find you?
Finally, have fun and get creative with it. Many people have referred to the post-pandemic period as a ‘renaissance’ – a period of explosive growth and social revival with a resurgence of creativity. It’s a time for scrapping what wasn’t working, and making room for fresh, imaginative ideas.
If you’re burned out and you can’t show up for your business with high spirits, you are closing your tour (and yourself!) off to growth and potential. If you’re not having fun in your business, people can sense that and will be put off. You must revive yourself before you revive your business! When you do this, you open yourself up to more creativity and fun, desirable experiences for your guests.
When the bookings start flooding in for your new & improved experience, make sure you have a smooth and seamless online platform for them to make their reservations. That’s where Junglebee comes in! Schedule a 30-minute discovery call with our team or read more about our tour booking software and features.
Need support developing a magnetizing, purpose-driven personality for your tour? Access The Storied Experience’s library of courses and online trainings.
