Five things travel marketers get wrong

Capturing the attention of travelers in a crowded and rapidly changing travel marketplace is no easy feat. Online travel competition is fierce, from travel giants to startups, with over 700 B2C travel companies entering the market over the past five years. Changing search algorithms, new entrants and the introduction of technologies like generative artificial intelligence mean the online landscape is constantly shifting.  

When travel marketers identify a tactic that works, it’s no surprise that many hold on for dear life. But clinging to outdated strategies can result in missed opportunities to connect with travelers and lost sales. What worked five years or even five weeks ago can suddenly become ineffective – and some common mistakes are putting travel brands at risk. Read on to learn about five key things travel marketers are getting wrong – and how to correct them. 

Mistake #1: Focusing on vanity metrics over bookings  

Impressions, clicks and traffic are useful metrics. But marketers who are laser focused on increasing engagement and visitation can sometimes lose sight of the bottom line. Instead of viewing these supporting metrics in a vacuum, marketers should have a clear understanding of return on investment (ROI) for every strategy they employ.  

Bookings should be the lens through which every other metric is viewed. An increase in clicks is great – but understanding how that increase impacts bookings is essential. Establishing a clear link to revenue is what makes it possible to compare the performance of each marketing effort. Only when all stakeholders are focused on the same outcome – bookings – is it possible to optimize resource allocation and choose the marketing tactics that yield results.  

To achieve this goal, key stakeholders should review revenue monthly, with all supporting metrics closely linked to revenue and booking performance. 

Mistake #2: Failing to map marketing campaigns to the stage of traveler intent  

In some ways, marketing travel is like marketing any other product or service: promote your brand, attract customers, make sales. Simple, right? But while some marketing strategies take a one-sized-fits all approach, traveler needs are far from uniform. Marketers may focus on factors like trip purpose (e.g., leisure versus business), budget (economy versus luxury), and travel party (e.g., a romantic getaway for two versus a family vacation). But traveler intent is an equally important factor that is often overlooked.  

Travelers may have very different needs depending on where they are in the travel planning process. Connecting with travelers means understanding traveler intent phases – from inspiration to booking to reflection. Marketing campaigns should target specific phases of the traveler journey, with traveler intent guiding search engine optimization (SEO), content and paid media decisions.  

The digital experience should move travelers down the funnel, promoting brand discovery and conversion throughout the traveler journey.  

Mistake #3: Being too reliant on a single marketing or distribution channel  

Brands that make this mistake may appear to be thriving. Maybe you’ve tapped into a simple marketing and distribution strategy that consistently delivers bookings. Your Google Ads might be killing it, month after month. Or perhaps you’ve developed some rock solid B2B partnerships that keep the business flowing. But if your brand is too reliant on any single marketing or distribution channel, your business is not secure. In fact, your revenue stream could disappear overnight.  

If any single marketing or distribution channel is responsible for more than 35% of bookings, you’ve got a problem. A simple algorithm change can wreak havoc on organic traffic, or a well-funded new entrant could quickly squeeze out a competitor’s Google ads success. While it can be difficult to look beyond a strategy that is yielding revenue – for now – travel marketers should make channel diversification a priority.  

TripAdvisor, for example, has built a strong brand over more than two decades. However, the company’s metasearch business, now called Brand TripAdvisor, has been challenged by fierce competition from Alphabet and others, including Booking.com, Expedia and Trivago. While TripAdvisor is developing new strategies in response, the company in its 1Q24 earnings call indicated poor organic search performance reduced revenue, as TripAdvisor’s SEO rankings declined following an update to the travel search engine results page (SERP). These results illustrate the perils of over-reliance on any individual channel. Building a more diverse strategy and strengthening other channels could reduce the risk that a single underperforming channel will significantly impact revenue.  

Distribution strategy should include both paid and organic marketing as well as both direct and indirect (intermediary) channels. Building a successful travel brand for the long-term means reducing channel dependence and implementing an integrated strategy that leverages multiple channels (e.g., using paid marketing to retarget organic traffic) to drive bookings in a sustainable way.  

Mistake #4: Not leveraging your data to make decisions  

Online travel companies have access to an unprecedented amount of data. But having the data and using it effectively are two different things. Many companies fail to leverage their data when making marketing decisions, often resulting in wasted money and lost bookings.  

When marketing strategy is not guided by data, it is impossible to make smart decisions about where to invest resources or to evaluate ROI. Instead of going with their gut, marketers should devise a content strategy that is data-driven. Conversion data should be visible and easily accessible in Google Analytics or another reporting program, and campaign managers should consistently feed accurate and complete conversion data back into ad platforms – something a surprising number of large travel brands don’t do. Identifying and utilizing data is the key to optimizing performance. 

Mistake #5: Getting stuck in an outdated strategy  

If you have a tried-and-true marketing strategy that stays within budget and consistently hits the booking target, it can be hard to justify trying something new. Sacrificing short-term results for gains that may or may not materialize can feel like a risky proposition. But the real risk lies in clinging to a static approach.  

If your tried-and-true strategy relies on Google ads, one competitor with an influx of private equity or venture capital funding could unexpectedly erode your unit economics. If you haven’t been actively testing new approaches, your company will be left scrambling to make up the lost bookings. Even barring a catastrophic event, sticking with the status quo likely means leaving bookings on the table. The only way to know if there is more effective strategy than the one you are using now is to test.  

Even when business owners and marketing teams are laser focused on hitting booking targets, fear of the unknown often prevents them from trying something new. For example, if a company has a monthly target of 2,000 bookings with a $100,000 marketing budget, previous sales data may show the goal can be achieved via a Google ads Performance Max campaign. The pressure to stick to a tried-and-true method can be intense. But setting aside just 10% of the marketing budget to try something new, such as a Dynamic Search Ad campaign, can reap big rewards. A 6x return on ad spend could become a 10x return – and exploring a range of strategies can ultimately reduce risk and identify new opportunities.  

Instead of getting mired in outdated thinking, travel marketers should adopt a nimble approach to strategic planning and always be testing. Marketing teams should review channel performance monthly and ensure that tactics are in service to an overarching strategy. And that strategy should be evaluated regularly to ensure it includes best practices. For example, organic search marketing actions should be taken with sufficient lead time to evaluate impact.

If these common travel marketing pitfalls resonate, it’s time to take a closer look at your company’s approach to marketing.