Email Marketing Tips for Travel Business Owners?
Nowadays, email marketing is one of the most efficient ways to reach an audience. Why? Firstly, it contemplates the highest return on investment (ROI) rate among other marketing channels. Secondly, this method is flexible enough and can develop relations with customers, boost sales, and promote your product.
Suppose you have read an article on email marketing software in the travel industry. Now, you know that, with it, marketers create transactional and promotional letters, welcome customers with specific emails and design offers. Yes, there are plenty of benefits for the travel industry, especially if using the right automation.
Yet, a successful email campaign is not always about using the right tools. It also refers to the email list, subject lines and body of the emails. If you want your travel email marketing campaign to be effective, you should know how to do it right in terms of deliverability, open rates, and engagement.
In this post, you will know some travel email marketing tips that can bring you more conversions.
Email Marketing for Travel Company: What Matters
The success of travel agency email marketing depends on numerous factors. Except for things like deliverability and engagement, the marketer of a travel agency should consider the goal of the campaign, the customer journey, and the buying persona.
In this regard, the message of your email campaign can be an answer to different questions. Are your customers just dreaming about a holiday? Are they already planning the places to visit or start booking the experiences? Of course, it derives from the service your agency offers.
However, the reflection of the objective of the customer is a way to get engagement, thus, develop relationships and affect profits. It is similar to prospecting new customers within B2B marketing or attracting investors via LinkedIn.
How can it be applied in lead generation for travel agents then? Content on travelling within the specific email can lead to the website and encourage buying services or products of the particular brand.
At the same time, think about the post-trip stages, referring to sharing experiences after the trip. For a travel agency, it is the best time to ask for a referral or feedback. That way, the customer strengthens the connection with a brand while the business gets new clients or valuable insights..
So, yes, any travel email marketing campaign helps to achieve customers' goals and reflects their needs. In this regard, choosing a prospecting technique is crucial, but one should not forget about the basics of email marketing for travel companies; deliverability, engagement and open rates.
Deliverability Tips: Making Sure That Email Gets in the Box
It matters whether the email gets in the box of the recipient or not. If you have a designed email list, but half of the contacts are not valid, your campaign on travel suggestions is destined for failure. Thus, you have to make sure that you either collect the verified emails or check the validity of the contacts interested in adventures. Another thing to consider is the strategy to get emails. So, what are the options?
Apply a lead magnet
Using a lead magnet or opt-in email is one of the primary techniques used in travel email marketing. What is a lead magnet, then? It is something you offer to the travellers in exchange for their contact details. That way, you can enlarge your travel agency email list.
You can provide tips on travelling, trip guides on specific regions, or specific planners. Besides, the lead magnet can refer to reports or giveaways. In particular, a travel agent can give some trip-related goods or services, including a pillow, tent or additional experience, for free( an email). Moreover, just to make sure the customer gives you the correct address, send them a confirmation letter after it.
Think of list improvement
Before each campaign, you may want to know for sure that your travel agency email list is good enough. In this regard, you can use several techniques.
The first one is the verification of the emails you have via the tool. For instance, you are targeting the HR or Happiness Managers to propose some corporate or business trips. Finding their emails on the Web or social media is one step. (That's how travel lead generation works!)
And, the second step is verification. In this regard, one can use an email verifier to check the validity of emails and prevent hard bouncing.
Another method involves using a Gmail account and inserting each email address into the "To" category to check it. In the case of a small batch of emails, it can work. However, doing it manually for thousands of them can be a very tedious and time-consuming process.
Avoid spam boxes
How to prevent your travel agency email marketing campaign from going into vain due to spam rules? The best way is to follow them. In this regard, do not do unethical or illicit actions, like buying email lists.
Besides, keep your domain rating high and your email body clear. In this regard, do not use exclamation points, CAPS, or spammy words, especially in subject lines. Lastly, make sure your email has a link that will allow the recipient to unsubscribe.
Open Rate Tips: Introducing Travel Agent Email to Client
For travel lead generation, the email must attract attention. If your offer matches the customer's needs, the chances are that they will open them. Yet, you have to give them a hint of what is inside.
Subject Lines: The mastery of attraction
The most critical factor for opening rates is the subject lines. If the letter is not in the spam box, such a line is the first thing the travel seekers see. Thus, a marketer should make it clear and appealing. How to do so? By reflecting on their wants and being creative.
However, it is better to make it catchy and relevant to the stage of the customer's journey. The following subject line: Hey, Micheal, check your perfect holiday destinations for June. Why can it work? There is a personalized message, a clear offer, and specific info that can reflect previous experience. Notably, the proposals and newsletters are more likely to be opened, according to Campaign Monitor.
Engagement Tips: The Finish Line
Lastly, the engagement with the content of the letter ensures that the customer goes to the website. As soon as they are there, they can complete the purchase and bring you conversions. So, yes, this part is about giving the customer value to solve their issue and satisfy their need.
Visual design and a pleasant look
The look of the email defines whether your customer will continue reading it. Thus, you can pick the photos corresponding to the body of the email and incorporate them into the template. Some of the email software has advanced drag-and-drop features for the template creation process. They can be accommodating if you lack some design skills.
Adding a video can as well be beneficial. Yet, it depends on the audience, as the younger audience is more likely to interact with it.
Segmentation: Different Need and Relevance
Notably, you cannot make all the emails look the same for all of the recipients. Why? They have different goals, while a general email would be too shallow and give no value to the customer.
A solution is to provide similar emails to other groups of customers. That's why marketers segment their audience by type of travel people seek, trip destinations, audience’s income, age, demographics.
If you have not figured it out, check what blogs they are engaging with, what lead magnets they are interested in. Moreover, use particular forms or A/B tests. That will give you a clearer vision. Once you know what they want, you can create the appropriate subject line.
Moreover, for the letter to be personalized, you should do more research. You may check your customer's previous experience, like dates of their trips or previous purchases, and take it as a ground for the next message designation.
Personalization: An appeal to the customer
Many marketers underline that this aspect increases the chances for clicking on the new email and proceeding with an offer presented inside. For instance, 36% of travellers are to pay more for a personalized experience.
It is a reason to offer it and keep this line within your email signature. For instance, the EasyJet brand celebrates the customers' achievements and summarises how their relationship developed with a client in a personal email.
Again, it is about reflection and creating additional bonds. It adds value and shows that a customer is essential. Here, one can use website analytics and direct customers to the blog websites that can teach them.
Thus, do not ignore the personalization techniques in subject lines, introduction and call to action when approaching the traveller.
Social proof: Increasing the trust
What can affect the customer's decision to proceed with the offer? The trust. It can be achieved with the social proof incorporated into the letter. You can think of reviews and testimonials. Yet, it can be not easy to insert into the email.
Instead, you can create a video with the experiences of your previous customers or develop a specific hashtag in social media and insert it in the letter. If it is interactive and is connected to emotions, it is likely to affect the conversion in the end.
Mobile optimization: Making it comfortable
Finally, the lead generation for travel agents can depend on the device the traveller is using. Surprisingly, 85% of travellers utilize their smartphones when they are abroad. Almost two-thirds use it for finding tickets, booking places, or looking for experiences.
It is proof that users use mobile phones to make purchases and find information due to convenience. That's a reason to work on the optimization of the email letters you send. This improvement is likely to add to the customer experience that for sure brings a long-term effect and helps to achieve the overall satisfaction of the customers.
Summing Up
The travel industry has changed, while the agencies have to adapt and utilize more digital solutions. Notably, travel email marketing is one of them, offering great opportunities.
The email campaigns applied with automation software and personalization can bring good results for travel lead generation. However, efficient travel agency email marketing should also consider the aspects referring to deliverability and engagement. The reason is that they ensure the conversion and development of relationships.
