The Power of Out-of-Home Travel Marketing

Out-of-home advertising has evolved significantly in recent years. Traditional methods, such as billboards and transit ads, remain effective but are now complemented by lifestyle and experiential channels. These newer methods allow brands to engage with consumers in their everyday lives.

“It really is thinking about where the consumer is throughout their daily routine, understanding who your audience is and utilizing specific media formats within their everyday life, where it just seems like a very nonchalant way to put your brand in front of them.” – Frederick Strebeck, DOTL Episode 393, Elevating Travel Marketing through Out-of-Home Advertising

Here are some examples of new OOH methods that can integrate your brand into the daily routines of your target audience in creative and non-intrusive ways:

• Digital signage at convenience stores
• Gas pump ads
• Branded coffee sleeves at their local coffee shop

Planning Your Travel Marketing Campaign

Planning and strategy is critical to any successful marketing campaign, including OOH. Strebeck highlights the importance of taking the time to understand the goals and then strategize how to achieve them through the right mix of OOH channels. This process begins with listening carefully to understand the client’s vision and how it can be brought to life.

“When I say we listen to our clients, it is to listen to understand, not listen to simply respond in return. And what we take, learn, and utilize is through our expertise to build something extremely creative for them.” – Frederick Strebeck, DOTL Episode 393, Elevating Travel Marketing through Out-of-Home Advertising

Collaborative Travel Marketing

To stand out in a crowded marketplace, campaigns should be multi-layered and build strategies upon each other. Collaboration is a perfect way for marketing organizations and agencies to combine their expertise. As they work together, they can achieve a level of success that would not be possible on their own.

Case Study: A Creative Collaboration with Visit Seattle

A perfect example of creative OOH advertising in action is the “I Know A Place” campaign for Visit Seattle. EMC Outdoor worked closely with a full-service agency to develop a unique approach that went beyond traditional billboards. Instead of relying solely on signage, they introduced a branded treat truck that brought a taste of Seattle to key feeder cities like Dallas, Minneapolis, and Sacramento.

This mobile campaign featured Seattle Pops, a local ice cream shop. The treat truck was strategically placed at local events and parks, creating a memorable experience for potential tourists. The campaign gained significant attention, even landing a spot on “Good Morning Sacramento,” which showcased the truck in action.

This collaboration exemplifies how coopetition can lead to successful outcomes. By working together with their agency partner, they were able to amplify the message in a more creative and impactful way.

“When we think of coopetition, we could have definitely tried to work with Visit Seattle on our own and show them this idea that we had. But we wanted to work in collaboration with our agency partner, to make sure that it was an amplified piece to the overall campaign that they were running.” – Frederick Strebeck, DOTL Episode 393, Elevating Travel Marketing through Out-of-Home Advertising

The Changing Landscape of OOH Advertising

Adapting OOH to a Hybrid World Post-Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic presented unique challenges for the OOH industry, particularly as public spaces saw less foot traffic. However, EMC Outdoor adapted by leveraging digital integration. They shifted focus to areas with increased traffic, such as grocery stores and local walking routes. This approach allowed them to maintain visibility and relevance during a time of uncertainty.

We collaborated with our clients to create messages that resonated with the times, focusing on community support, health, safety. This approach not only kept our clients’ brands visible, but also fostered a sense of connection and solidarity with the public in a time that it was extremely necessary. – Frederick Strebeck, DOTL Episode 393, Elevating Travel Marketing through Out-of-Home Advertising

As we emerge from the pandemic, the hybrid lifestyle—where work and life increasingly blend—has become the norm. OOH advertising has proven to be an essential player in marketing campaigns. It provides a non-intrusive and contextually relevant way to reach audiences both at home and on the go.

Strebeck explains that out-of-home has really taken on the role of supporting other media channels as a secondary amplification that helps get your message across to your audience in a meaningful way.

The Future of OOH: Embracing Artificial Intelligence

Looking ahead, EMC Outdoor is excited about the potential of artificial intelligence (AI) as a game-changer to enhance their business practices. The agency is actively exploring AI tools to speed up the creative process, from ideation to the development of mockups and renderings. By incorporating AI, they aim to stay ahead of the curve and deliver more efficient and effective solutions for their clients.

Make a Lasting Impression with OOH Advertising

Out-of-home advertising continues to be a powerful tool for travel marketing. Tourism brands are looking to connect with their audience in creative and impactful ways. By understanding the different OOH channels, focusing on thorough planning and strategy, and embracing new technologies like AI, brands can elevate their travel marketing campaigns and stand out in a competitive landscape.

As Freddie Striebeck and the team at EMC Outdoor demonstrate, the key to success lies in innovation, collaboration, and a deep understanding of the audience. Whether through traditional billboards, experiential campaigns, or digital integrations, OOH advertising offers endless possibilities for brands to make a lasting impression.

The post Innovative Out-of-Home Strategies for Travel Marketing appeared first on Travel Alliance Partnership.

A Storytelling Guide

I’ve seen other travel guides following this trend. We experienced the shift first in 2018, as our team worked on a new guide for the Haunted History Trail of New York State. In its fifth year as an official tourism trail, the Haunted History Trail faced challenges as visitors tried to figure out how to follow the trail. Do they hit every stop in order? Follow a region? Pick a single stop or two? Hours and location offerings changed based on seasonality- another challenge to contend with. Past guides were trying to be everything to everyone. While they managed to offer relevant information, we were simultaneously falling short on telling the story.

And that was the key right there – storytelling. This trail was a series of listings, a collection of stops – but the guide didn’t support the story that New York is a full-on haunted destination. When a visitor travels to Hawaii, they are immersed in a culture of pineapples, Mai Tais, leis, and an alphabet consisting of mostly vowels. Storytelling would allow us to build a picture in the visitor’s mind and better immerse visitors in the stories of the trail.

As visitors become inundated with content, they don’t want to be sold to. They are looking to instead learn, discover, and immerse themselves in a new narrative. Visitors guides are a destination’s opportunity to write their story, their way. To seek out the most compelling new angles that make consumers want to visit and to give people the inside scoop. To be able to tell the stories you wish the media was writing.

When to Use Listings

Not every guide calls for an in-depth approach, so don’t ditch the listing style completely. There is still a time and a place for that type of content – and space for that in the market.

Listings are a great tool for a mini guide or niche offering. Take the Finger Lakes “50 Top Attractions” Guide. A roundup of the 9,000 square mile destination could easily take up 40 or 50 pages of space – far too much content for a visitor to dive into. But with a narrowed focus and a catchy title, this type of guide hits all of the highlights for a visitor already planning a trip to the region.

Consider Content Versus Need

In the end, content needs to be about the visitor. We moved away from a listing style for the Haunted History Trail guide, but were careful not to lose the factual information that made the guide a true resource. While working with a travel magazine style, we still geo-plotted each location on an inside cover map, and listed every location with their contact info in a rear index.

In 2019, we revamped a brochure produced by our client Travel Alliance Partners (TAP). TAP’s North American tour operators specialize in specific areas of geographical expertise and work together to develop tour packages with the highest quality, best value and biggest variety. Destinations that are members of TAP’s Guild program are featured in the “Dream Destinations” magazine.

Previous versions had categories organized by geography alone, and ranged from full destinations to individual attractions and hotels. The paid investment level drew focus for content instead of the consumer experience, negatively affecting the flow of the magazine and likely confusing the reader. Members submitted content individually without voice or style guides, which resulted in inconsistent messaging.

Focusing on Experience

For the 2019 TAP Dream Destinations magazine, we threw out the template and considered the consumer as the primary driver for this guide. We looked at each destination critically and we would turn to storytelling by focusing on the experiences. We created experience-driven categories – craft beverage, outdoor adventure, food, scenery, sports, etc. Each member selected their top 3 categories core to their destination for inclusion. Our team created a layout easily understood and enticing to potential visitors. The table of contents shared how visitors can browse by topic or location. Listing page numbers help them quickly find the content that best fit their interests.

In collaboration with our designer, we worked out a design that would be visually impactful and easily digestible for readers. Photos appeared at the forefront of each section and we organized the copy into a Top 5 listing (or more in popular categories) with a short intro per section. Section titles run vertically up the page for quick reference. Articles ended with a one sentence call-to-action, encouraging readers to visit the website to learn more or book a tour. We reviewed and edited every piece extensively to ensure similar voice, style and tone. A two-page spread at the end shared a logo and website for each member featured within the guide.

The End

The end game is to drive visitors to your destination, yes. But the key is to first compel them to learn your story, explore deeper, and provide a resource that can be used through the entire travel experience. Consider your content and your story, and your next guide will do just that.

The post Storytelling Content is Key in Tourism Marketing appeared first on Travel Alliance Partnership.

An integrated plan is always more powerful than siloed tactics, and below are steps that you can – and should – take right now to set your destination, tourism business or attraction up for success. We recommend a holistic approach to your strategic marketing plan. Your plan should consider how to engage with your visitor at each step of the customer journey. From dreaming to planning to booking and visiting.

Our team uses a framework of Paid, Earned, Shared and Owned tactics, also known as the PESO model that was developed by Gini Dietrich. This framework ensures each touchpoint and channel work together to provide a unified, strategic message.

Paid Tactics

The digital world is what’s been keeping us all connected throughout the pandemic. So it makes sense to lean into digital as a way to communicate with your target audiences. Start thinking of a paid approach to get eyes on your content and get in front of your consumers again.

Paid media tactics that you can be executing now:

Social Media Advertising. This a cost-effective way to reach your target audience. Creating ads on Facebook or Instagram is a great place to start. Advertisers are able to compete in these digital spaces for very little investment and reach a wide variety of audiences. This is also a great place to understand customer sentiment, with quick results and often direct feedback on your products and services.

Retargeting ads. These ads work well in tandem with social media advertising, to bring repeat visitors back to your site. They have the potential to increase ROI by reaching customers at a later stage in the buyer journey and increasing the number of touchpoints your message has on a single individual.

Earned Tactics

The PR world remains active, constantly seeking out new stories and angles in the travel and tourism industry. Recent popular stories include insider insights, at-home or virtual experiences, positive community stories and feature pieces on extraordinary people and acts of kindness.

Earned media tactics that you can be executing now include:

Pitching and Proactive PR Outreach. Seek out the stories in your community and industry that will resonate now and in the next several months. Consider framing destination stories in a new light – for example, how an online experience with a history museum could double as a homeschool history lesson or the positive effects that outdoor activity has on mental well-being. Now is also a great time to conduct research on new media and outlets you want to target. Create a wish list of your top 50-100 key publications.

Reactive PR Outreach. Take the time to set up ongoing ways to monitor media trends and a process for responding to appropriate leads and opportunities. Look into subscribing to HARO (Help a Reporter Out) if you haven’t already or set up Google Alerts for trending topics you may want to keep an eye on.

Seek New Information. Set up interview-style calls with tourism partners to learn what is happening in the community. This information could benefit your outreach efforts. It could help you build a greater understanding of local businesses and their staff or foster stronger connections with potential partners down the road.

Shared Tactics

Social Media is a great way to stay engaged with your audiences and keep your destination or attraction top-of-mind, even in a time when you may not be open. Use your shared channels to focus on building a community, engaging with potential customers and establishing a more personal connection. Consider what you can give your followers in the current moment without tying it to a direct ask. Instead, encourage discovery, learning and relief from mental strain or boredom.

Shared recovery marketing tactics you can execute now are:

Re-activate your current channels. If you haven’t been posting on social media, now is the time to jump back in and re-engage with your online audiences. This can be as simple as sharing a beautiful image or video with a caption or asking a question to get your followers talking again.

Consider starting new channels. Maybe you’ve been considering jumping on Instagram or starting a destination Pinterest account. If so, this is a great time to research that channel, ensure it is a fit for your brand, consider a strategy for gaining followers, and begin to gather the assets you will need to populate the channel for the next 4-6 months.

Refine your brand voice, tone, and messaging. If you were focusing on a heavy sales message or pushing for direct conversions prior to the pandemic, it might be time to refine your online messaging. Sales can and should still be on your mind when you engage with followers but may need to take a backseat in favor of other, more passive messages and a more conversational tone. Consider first what you can give, before asking for direct action.

Owned Recovery Marketing Tactics

By far the easiest action to implement immediately is to take control of and rework your owned content. Unlike paid or shared tactics that can disappear, fade away over time or be changed by platform regulations, owned content is never lost and can always be accessed by you. You may have taken great care in the past to develop the copy, messaging, graphics and to craft stories exactly the way you want them to be told. But your audiences will need more from you now and upon reopening. This is the time to consider what those new streams of content are and to start preparing them.

Owned tactics that you can be working on now:

Website. Refresh content on your main pages, providing a fresh take or updated copy on current offerings. Some of this content may have changed since the pandemic and will remain changed this year. For example, annual events may no longer take place or have now turned into a virtual experience instead. Consider what changes should be made to keep your site current and remain a resource for your audience.

New Online Tools. Also, consider what new online tools would be of use on your website and support your digital efforts. If your strategy includes paid advertising, consider adding pixels, online forms and measures to track and capture visitors to your site.

Blogs and Email Newsletters. Detail out an editorial calendar of new and creative topics that would resonate with your audiences. Maybe you’re starting these channels up for the first time or think it’s time to refresh your voice and content. Retool as needed to fit your strategy and brush up on best practices, so content is easily shareable on social media. It may also be the perfect time to clean up or segment out your email lists. That way you are sure to deliver the right kind of content to the right subscribers.

Audio & Visual. Consider adding video or a podcast to your mix. Access to recording tools are readily available and the consumption of video content has continued to increase – even pre-pandemic. If you haven’t been creating regular visual or audio content, consider now how to make it fit within your current brand.

Ready – set – go! We’d love to hear how you’re inspired to take action. Even better – what recovery marketing tactics you’re using to pivot and be active right now.

The post Prepare for Reopening Now with these Recovery Marketing Tactics appeared first on Travel Alliance Partnership.

When it comes to destination marketing, most tourism organizations are working with limited budgets, small staff size and big goals. In order to reach, engage and encourage large audiences to visit your destination, you have to be strategic with your marketing plan and spend. That means choosing marketing tactics that provide the biggest bang for your buck.

Public Relations

Public relations is a relatively cost-friendly way to reach large audiences. Time is spent creating relationships with media, writing and distributing press release and pitching stories to publications. The result is earned media – publicity gained through promotional efforts rather than paid.

Hosting Media and Influencers

In response to your efforts, you may have the opportunity to host media members, bloggers or influencers. Depending on the agreement, this would require your destination to cover the hosting costs – a combination of accommodations, meals, activities and travel expenses. In return for hosting, your destination will receive coverage in a publication, blog or on social media.

Public relations is smart investment for your budget for a couple of reasons.

1. Instead of paying for an advertising, you are getting a blurb or article detailing your destination, telling your story and explaining your experiences. This narrative helps the reader picture themselves in your destination, which is more impactful (and memorable) than a print advertisement.
2. In many instances, an article printed in a publication, posted on a website or shared on social media has a longer “shelf life” than a traditional advertisement. That means it has the opportunity to be seen by a larger audience.

If you’re curious to learn more about influencer marketing, check out our new eBook!

Email Marketing

Email marketing is a fast and low-cost way to market your destination to a list of engaged subscribers. It directly promotes an event, attraction or trail, etc. (Not to be confused with content marketing, see below.) Emails put your destination in front of your audience. They keep your subscribers up to date on new things taking place and encourage them to visit. (Or purchase a ticket, download a brochure, etc.)

Select an email marketing service to manage subscribers, create templates and schedule email campaigns. There a variety of email marketing services to choose from, many of which that come with a free subscription for basic service.

Choose subject lines that are both informative and entertaining. Those will grab subscribers’ attention and encourage them to open your email. Track open rates to see what works best with your audience. Keep your content brief and to the point. Provide enough details to interest readers and then include a call to action to direct them elsewhere.

Facebook Advertising

Facebook Ads are a great way to reach a large, targeted audience. The Audiences tab in Ads Manager allows you to create and save audiences based on specific demographics, locations and interests. You can also upload a custom list (think: email subscribers, website visitors, brochure requests) and target those individuals. Or use that list to find other people with similar characteristics across the country. Is your head already spinning? Learn how to get started with Facebook Ads.

Let’s be honest, Facebook will take as much money as you are willing to give. Be prepared to test a few campaigns to understand the best objectives, audiences and budgets for your goals. Once those pieces are in place, your dollars will work hard to give you results.

Content Marketing

Content marketing is a way to create and share content or materials that are beneficial or educational in nature, rather than promotional. Examples include videos, blog posts, social media posts, magazines and newsletters that provide value to the reader. These pieces share helpful information that the reader is looking for and interested in. In return, the reader becomes loyal to the brand.

Think about your key assets. What is your destination known for? Which questions do visitors ask most often? What are visitors most interested in? Start with the answers. Destinations known for outdoor activities – hiking, biking, kayaking – can produce a series of videos or blogs that answer common questions. Highlight what to wear or pack, the difficulty of the various trails and what flora or fauna one would see along the way.

When it comes to content marketing, it’s very important to stay away from promotional or sales-y speak. Quality content is what will keep readers coming back (even looking forward to your content!) and keep your brand on their minds.

Partnerships

Lastly, partnerships are a great way to combine budgets and efforts to collaborate on an initiative. We call this co-opetition, when perceived competitors collaborate on something to create bigger results than what either could achieve on their own.

Partnering with other organizations help stretch your dollars. This could mean joining a larger co-op program, creating your own initiative with a nearby destination or bringing similar stops together to form a trail. By tapping into everyone’s strengths, the individual lift and spend is smaller across the board. This makes the end goal easier to reach.

The post Marketing Tactics for Small Budgets and Big Reach appeared first on Travel Alliance Partnership.

Tactical marketing is marketing execution. As I mentioned before, it’s posting on social media, sending out newsletters and communicating with your consumers. Strategic marketing is marketing with a plan, tying it to business goals and executing the tactics in a way that aligns with the plan. You can have tactical marketing without strategy (although I don’t recommend it!) but you can’t have strategic marketing without tactics.

So how does one go about adding strategy to existing tactical marketing?

Since you’re already marketing on your social media and other owned channels (website, newsletter, etc.), keep going! We’re going to add strategy to the mix, which may change what you’re posting and how you’re saying it. There’s no harm in maintaining your current tactics while you develop a strategy.

Define Your Objectives

The objective is a business goal you want to reach through marketing. What are your top business goals? How can marketing support them? Maybe you want to drive more traffic to your website, bring more people to your storefront, or sell more packages or products through an online store. These objectives will work toward increasing business in an obtainable way.

Develop Your Strategy

Strategy is how you are going to achieve the objectives. It helps you focus on the big picture before going into the day-to-day tactics. If a goal is to build brand awareness in a community, then a strategy may be to gain coverage with local media. If a goal is to drive more traffic to a website, your strategy may be to promote website content. Strategic marketing also means defining a target audience, positioning and evaluating your resources.

Tactics

Yes, you already have tactics in place. How can you adapt them to your strategy? If we’re looking to increase website traffic, and promote content, tactically you have a lot of options. You can come up with a content marketing plan to create fresh, shareable content. You can also evaluate your current channels. How often do you include links to your own website on social media? Newsletters? Are people clicking when you do?

This is also a good time to evaluate your tactics in relation to your new strategy. Do all of your channels make sense? Should you consider adding a social media channel?

Now that you have a strategy in place, you can continue to build on it. Revisit your strategy at least once a year, or more often depending on what you’re doing. Pull statistics for your tactics and use that to evaluate growth toward your objectives. Add on and adapt your strategy as you grow and as your business goals change.

The post Adding Strategy to Tactical Marketing appeared first on Travel Alliance Partnership.