Many might consider email marketing to be a thing of the past, but it is still going strong. Using email marketing has shown to be a highly effective marketing tool that many marketers still stand by. There are many benefits to using email marketing and it will require little risk on the part of your business.
It’s Cost-Effective
As a business, you know that marketing can be expensive and you want to have a positive return on investment (ROI). This means finding strategies that will cost little but provide large rewards. Email marketing is an excellent example of this. There are very few costs you will need to consider. Your main focus will be on creating the content for your email campaigns. You will see a very high ROI as email campaigns encourage people to click through to your website and learn more. Overall, email marketing is cost-effective and will help you find more business.
With many marketing strategies, you are never truly sure if your content reaches your target audience. With email marketing, you almost guarantee that your content will be received. In most cases, people opt to subscribe to an email list. This means that they are open to receive your content. Nearly 9 out of 10 emails sent by travel businesses successfully make it into the inbox of their intended recipients. So, you know that a majority of your content is getting through and that your target audience is viewing it.
Consumers are more likely to engage with a business when content is directed at them specifically rather than a large general audience. You can use email marketing to create more personalized content that will engage your audience. There are many levels of personalization you can use. A simple way to start is to include the individual’s name in the email. Personalization can also be used to address specific groups. For example, you might market differently to returning customers and first-time customers.
Using email marketing as a strategy is a great way to reach people, grow your business, and see a positive return on investment. Some perceive it to be outdated, but it is still growing. A majority of people check their emails daily and email marketing is an easy way to reach them. By partnering with a digital marketing agency for email marketing, your tourism business can grow its engaged audience, increase ROI, and get more bookings. If you have any questions, comments, or want to schedule a call with the Adventure & Activity Marketing Pros, send us an email at hey@aamp.agency
E-mail marketing is a perfect avenue for building relationships with past and new customers! It’s also a great way to increase your search engine presence, grow your brand, and of course – drive traffic to your website! However, make a few simple mistakes, and the email list you’re trying so hard to build will be in a world of hurt. When sending out email marketing newsletters or offers, here are 10 email marketing mistakes to avoid!
1) Using a @NoReply In Your Email Address
If you want your email list to not trust you, go ahead and use @donotreply or @noreply in your email address. By doing so, you will also cause a decrease in your open rates and your email will end up directly in spam folders. If you want to increase your brand awareness & conversions, try using an email address sent from an individual! This shows that your company is open to communication, and it will increase your open rate since more consumers are more willing to open an email from an email such as emily@awesometours.com!
2) Your Subject Line Sucks
Your subject line is one of the most important components in email marketing – it’s what determines whether a consumer opens your email or ignores it! Your subject line & preview text should shortly explain what your email is about, while also tempting them to read it. Depending on the purpose of your email, have a little fun with it! Try something catchy or throw in an emoji, but also spend some time A/B testing your subject lines to see what your audience responds to the most.
3) Don’t Send Terrible Content
Make sure that the goods of your email are actually, well, good! Many marketers make the mistake of using email newsletters solely for sending our deals and promotions. Content from a tour and activity operator should also be providing tourism-related advice, information, and even strive to create a sense of community. While it’s a good idea to sell yourself and your services, keep in mind that consumers want resourceful content that benefits them. Check out this email from the Marina Del Ray Visitors Bureau for an idea of what providing useful content looks like!
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4) Review & Test Your Email
At AAMP Agency, we’re BEGGING you – DO NOT send an email to your list without properly reviewing & testing your email first! It is absolutely critical that you see for yourself how the email appears on different platforms, and that everything should be functioning as it should be. Ensure that all links go to the right places, that the email is optimized for mobile, images aren’t broken, and that you don’t have any typos!
5) Keeping People From Unsubscribing
Not being able to unsubscribe from something is one of the most annoying things a consumer can encounter. If you hide or even refuse to place an unsubscribe link in your email, prepare yourself for complaints, and also potentially being kicked from your marketing platform for violating email regulations. Not such a good look for your tour or activity! To avoid this, ensure that your email has a clearly identified button or link that allows a person to unsubscribe from your email list.
6) Consistency Is Key
Set up a schedule and stick with it! When you first begin, it’s ok to set up A/B testing to find out what days and times yield the highest open rates and engagement. However, once you’ve got your schedule down, stick to it, and follow through! Your email should always be sent on the same day and time so that your loyal readers know when to expect it. While you may be excited and ready to jump into the world of email marketing, we caution you to not send emails too frequently. Depending on the content and service you provide, we suggest weekly or bi-weekly emails.
7) Correct Your Mistakes
In the event that an email goes out with a wonky subject line, or it doesn’t have any images, it’s best to address it. Send a follow-up email to apologizing for the mistake! Sometimes, the mistake can be so minor such as a minor typo, so it might only be worth it to address anyone who responds to the email pointing it out.
8) Email Marketing Platforms
As previously mentioned, your tour or activity should be using an email marketing platform such as Mailchimp or Constant Contact. By utilizing a platform, your tourism business will appear professional, but also have access to your analytics. Platforms like Mailchimp allow your business to track open rates, locations, demographics, and more.
9) Ignoring Reports
Your email marketing platform will include a reporting function, which will provide you with invaluable insight into what your subscribers respond to and the performance of your newsletters. Some reports will include how many times it was clicked & what links were clicked, showing your business what kind of content your subscribers tend to lean towards.
10) Promote Your Newsletter
How can anyone sign-up to receive your newsletter if they have no clue that it even exists? There are hundreds of ways to promote your newsletter and grow your email list. You can implement a chatbot on your Facebook and website, add an email capture form on your site, promote it on your social media profiles, and so much more! Get creative with it!
Email newsletters are often considered a critical part of marketing strategy, and for good reason. According to the Modern Marketing Blog, email drives 1,350% more traffic than social media! As a tour or activity operator, emails help capture leads and convert your website visitors into customers. If you don’t have a clue where to start or simply don’t want to deal with the hassle of digital marketing, it’s time you contact the adventure & activity marketing pros at AAMP Agency. We’ve got the knowledge & experience, and we’re ready to help grow your tourism business. Contact us today!
Email marketing is not a dying marketing tactic, if anything it has continuously grown because of the ability to create automated campaigns, personalized emails, and much more. If done right, using emails in your destination marketing campaigns can drive up conversions and bring in a healthy return of investment. Here are our 7 guidelines and tips for email marketing in the tourism industry!
1. Start Building Your List
Growing your email list can be one of the toughest challenges you will face, but by growing your list organically instead of buying random emails you will have stronger open rates.
• Create a pop up for the home page of your website prompting visitors to sign up for your email newsletters.
• Offer a reward or create a contest online or in your business to incentivize consumers to sign up for your email list.
• During the checkout process, include an option that allows customers to opt into joining the list. Make sure to appeal to them by offering deals, VIP access, etc.
2. Always Include the Following
When creating emails, make sure that every email includes the following. Without it, your emails can be reported or marked as spam, never making its’ way to the glorious inbox slot every company is fighting for.
• An unsubscribe button
• HTML view option
• Disclaimer
• Some form of contact information such as an appointment or customer service email and number.
3. Figure Out Your Content
If you’re not providing great content, your email list will dwindle and emails marked as spam. Remember that consumers these days do not want a hard sell and products slammed in front of their face! Promote your experiences as well as provide relatable and interesting content. Here are a couple ideas:
• Blog Posts
• Travel Guides
• Recommendations for destinations and attractions (bonus points if you’re able to personalize it to the viewer)
• Polls & Quizzes
• Social media campaigns, such as promoting a special hashtag for Instagram
4. Timing Is Everything
Once you have your email system set up, remember that your send times are everything! Start sending out emails, and take a long, hard look at your open rates. Test out different days and times for sending out promotional emails, and try to pin point the best times to catch your audience.
5. Test… Test… Testing
In Email marketing, analytics will become your best friend. A/B testing is extremely important because it can help you determine what your audience responds to, when they open emails, and what drives the highest conversions. Spend time testing out subject lines, content, when you send emails, and the amount of emails you send out a week.
6. Personalization and Automation
According to a study done by Statista, the open rate for a personalized message was 18.8%, and a non-personalized message had an open rate of 13.3%. Depending on the system you are using for your email campaigns, you might have the ability to personalize and automate emails. For example, if a consumer adds a hotel reservation to their cart but doesn’t complete checking out, your system can be set up so they receive an automatic email the next day reminding them to finish their reservation. Another great idea is that if a customer has booked or viewed a tour, you can send them a personalized email recommending other products, destinations, and attractions that they might like.
7. Send Out Offers
While most of your email marketing campaigns should focus on marketing your content without a hard sell, it is also a good platform for sending out offers such as a limited time deal on a tour or a prompt to join a rewards program. If you do decide on sending out offers, make sure to create a sense of urgency in either the subject line or email body itself. See the below email from Expedia for an example!
The world of email marketing is ever changing, and quite the challenge to tackle on. However, if done right it will prove to be one of the best return on investments for your tourism business! If you have any questions or don’t want to take on email marketing by yourself, send us a message and we’ll be happy to help!
