Travel Takeaway Tuesday Part III

National Travel and Tourism Week (#NTTW) is one of the most anticipated weeks of the year for the travel industry. We’re celebrating differently this year by focusing on the spirit of travel, but we know that there are better days on the horizon. 

While you may not be able to encourage prospective visitors and guests this week to book their summer 2020 vacations, there are many ways to still engage with them and get excited about the future. 

The team at Connect Travel has been providing helpful insights in their latest webinars with travel industry experts.

Here are our latest takeaways: 

Re-Think Your #NTTW

Many DMOs plan for National Travel and Tourism Week well in advance. We must continue to keep the #SpiritofTravel alive. Engage with your audience through social media this week, and share inspirational content on social media. Don’t forget to use the hashtags, #NTTW and #SpiritofTravel, in your content. Industry experts recommend making videos with messages like “We Miss You,” and creating ideas for travel to your drive market. 

Prepare for Air Travel Demand to Remain Low

We’re starting to hear more about the future of air travel. Currently, experts predict that domestic air travel will pick up again in July and August. There is no clear expectations on when international travel will resume at this time, but it doesn’t seem like it will be soon. Airports are preparing for customer safety with an increase in cleanliness measures and procedures as well.

Tap Into Your Toolbox

In the past few weeks, the industry has adjusted to communicate with travelers at home. As it doesn’t seem like that will change anytime soon, make sure to evaluate all your marketing tools and maximize them. Are you using all of your email lists to your advantage? Do you have a tool to sort through and request user-generated content? These are some questions you may want to use to assess your tools. 

Re-invent Your Future Metrics

2020 end-of-year metrics will look very different this year. In the past, success metrics were defined as “heads in beds,” or occupancy rates. If you are not already, you should focus your metric tracking to online statistics. These include website visitors, open rates on emails, and social media engagement. 

We are hopeful that National Travel and Tourism Week will resume next year in a vastly different environment. In the meantime, it’s important to stay in touch virtually with your travelers. 

By Bethany, Social Media & Public Relations Strategist | May 5, 2020