The most wonderful time of the year is nearly upon us — especially if you own or lead a hospitality business and want to attract travelers during the holiday season.
But with everything else as busy as Santa’s workshop in December, how can you make sure your holiday travel marketing stands out?
According to a survey by AAA, more than 115 million Americans traveled over the 2023 Christmas and New Year’s holidays alone (Thanksgiving and other major travel dates notwithstanding).
And it’s not just about visiting family. While many Americans prefer to stay home during the holidays, about 6% of travelers took some much-needed R&R in 2023.
If you own or lead any kind of hospitality business, the holiday season offers an incredible opportunity to boost your bookings, fill vacancies, and build lasting brand loyalty. But to capitalize on this, you’ll need a robust marketing strategy that resonates well with the modern traveler.
In this guide, we’ll explore some innovative strategies that are sure to transform your marketing efforts and ensure that you’re on the nice list this season.
Utilizing Hyper-Targeted Programmatic Advertising
As a marketer, one of the best things you can do is to take advantage of programmatic advertising. This leverages data-driven insights to target potential travelers based on their online behavior, demographics, and past travel interests. It involves real-time bidding and precise ad placements that are tailored to specific audience segments.
The beauty of programmatic advertising is that it ensures your ads are seen by those most likely to book holiday travel, maximizing your return on investment and minimizing wasted ad spend. Just imagine targeting a family looking for a cozy winter cabin right as they begin planning their getaway — programmatic advertising makes this possible.
To get started with programmatic advertising, collaborate with a platform like Google Display Network. Use your audience data to build targeted campaigns, then continually optimize based on your performance metrics. For example, if you notice that 25-34 year olds engage more with your ads, you should allocate more of your budget toward that demographic. Even better, given the digital advertising targeting that exists today, you can target these individuals as they are actively ‘in-market’ for travel or vacationing.
Embracing Cross-Channel Campaigns for Maximum Reach
A cross-channel campaign spans multiple mediums, such as social media, search engines, email marketing, and display ads. This guarantees consistent messaging and a strong brand presence across all platforms where potential travelers are engaging.
Remember, travelers will engage with content across various channels, switching between different devices and platforms. Leveraging a cross-channel approach will help ensure your marketing message reaches your customers wherever they are, increasing the likelihood of conversions.
Use tools like HubSpot to manage and sync your campaigns. For example, you can run a Facebook ad promoting your holiday deals, create a landing page for visitors to provide information, and then follow up with an email campaign to those who clicked but did not book.
Capitalizing on Mobile Advertising
Make sure you prioritize mobile-friendly ad formats and placements, such as in-app and mobile search ads. With more travelers planning and booking trips on their smartphones, mobile advertising is a non-negotiable.
Your website and booking platform must both be mobile-optimized. You can use mobile ad formats like Google’s Mobile App Promotion Ads or Facebook’s Mobile News Feed Ads.
As far as strategies go, try running a mobile ad campaign offering a discount for bookings made via the app, which will encourage users to book on the go. Pro Tip: Try to only use in-app promotions for upper funnel awareness driving or remarketing tactics. This traffic is often very cost-effective and great at reinforcing brand messages.
Implementing Retargeting Campaigns to Capture Late Bookers
The early bird gets the worm — but the savvy marketer gets the late booker.
Ensure you’re touching base with your potential guests across the entire timeline, using retargeting ads to re-engage users who have visited your website or shown interest in holiday travel deals. Retargeting will remind your visitors of your offerings and encourage them to complete their bookings.
