In the past, when brands sought to market a product or service, they would pay a celebrity to endorse it. Now, with the rise of social media, a new kind of celebrity emerged: the social media influencer. This introduces a new concept called influencer marketing.
Why Does The Travel Industry Need Influencers?
We all love to travel. Most travelers read reviews before they make a decision to visit a destination. It can be tricky when little is known about the place one is to visit. This is where influencers come in. An influencer can show the ins and outs of a place and convey what it’s like to experience it.
Many adults consider how picturesque a location is before choosing to go there. Millennials especially now consider what kind of social media content to produce while on vacation. According to UNESCO, approximately half of the world’s population is under 30-years-old. This important to note since this demographic tends to follow influencers on social media platforms.
Considering this new information, the hospitality industry can reap many benefits of learning how to leverage influencer marketing.
How Does Influencer Marketing Work For Tourism?
Influencer marketing works for most industries, and especially for travel and tourism. It gives exposure to places that may otherwise be overlooked.
Influencers are fantastic content creators. Their content can make businesses more relatable and attractive to potential customers. This is great because if the content is well received on influencers’ platforms, the business can use it for advertising — with permission, of course.
Influencers create long-term relationships with consumers. Influencers are a trusted voice for their followers. According to digitalmarketinginstitute.com, 7 in 10 teens believe in social influencers more than celebrities. This means your business is more likely to have long-term and returning customers if you use influencer marketing instead of a celebrity.
Thirdly, influencers keep the travel industry relevant. While people are tired of most old-school marketing approaches, this one sheds new light. Influencers can plant seeds in the minds of their followers. These can seeds sprout genuine interest in your brand.
3 Brands In The Travel And Tourism Industry That Are Crushing It Right Now
Whether you have millions of followers or just a few thousand, you can make the right moves. The Ritz-Carlton has a staggering 91 hotels in 30 beautiful destinations.
Influencers can help show off the standard and beauty of each Ritz-Carlton location. While each influencer may share their distinct adventure with their followers, one common theme remains – elegance and ultimate luxury.
According to influence.co, Ritz-Carlton has worked with notable travel influencers such as Jack Morris @doyoutravel and Travel Awesome @travelawesome. The two accounts combined have about 5 million followers. Not only is the luxury hotel brand gaining more exposure, but they’re attracting a much younger crowd, too.
Because of technology, travelers are much more self sufficient than they used to be. They prefer to be more actively-engaged in the experience of booking travel and sharing with friends and family. This mentality takes away from travel agents that used to be more prevalent for travel booking.
Nonetheless, Avoya Travel-cruises wanted to highlight the importance and value of their travel agents. To do this, they enlisted a hoard of travel influencers. The goal was to show the influceners’ respective audiences what Avoya’s travel agents do and how they can enhance one’s cruise adventure.
This is an important case stdy to note because it shows a travel business using influencers differently. Influencers add a level of reliability and trustworthiness to travel agents to revive the notion of their value.
Avoya also collaborated with Carmen (@carmensluxurytravel). Carmen is a travel blogger with 84k Instagram followers. They published content on Carmen’s social media and blog. By working with a travel influencer who has large social and blog following, Avoya was able to maximize their influencer marketing campaign reach.
Travel Mindset is a hub where influencers and the tourism industry meet. The company encourages influencer marketing and saves businesses the hassle vetting relevant candidates. It also offers Influencer Marketing Strategies to businesses within the travel sector before suggesting influencers.
Travel Mindset has a diverse list of clients, ranging from Fairmont Hotels & Resorts to Airbnb and Virgin Atlantic. There are also campaigns that allow brands to invite vetted influencers somewhere to build awareness for specific causes. With over 1,500 trust influencers, brands can connect with the ones whom are best suited to their needs.
View this post on Instagram
Kickin up my feet at @ritzcarltoncoconutgrove! Are you a beach or pool person? LMK! #rcmemories
In Conclusion
Influencer marketing is an effective strategy to consider in our changing marketing landscape. Influencers have engaged audiences and can give your business a boost that it needs.
Author Bio: Lorenzo Gutierrez is a is a 10+ year digital marketer and is also a Google Certified Partner in Analytics. Lorenzo increases companies revenue through online growth strategies such as PPC management and SEO.