- Branding personifies one’s tourism business. It gives a business, or event a voice, look, personality, and values — which makes you more relatable to travelers. Ultimately, a well-defined brand helps you appeal to the right audience, as well as leave a lasting impression. This hub will show stakeholders how to create a brand identity or tweak their current one. This hub will show stakeholders what they need to know about positioning and differentiating their business or non- profit venture— which includes: 1) The importance of a tourism branding strategy 2) How to create a memorable travel brand 3) 15 Travel branding ideas
- examples of great travel and tour brand strategies (Travel Branding.)
- Keeping the brand consistent
- For example, airbnb’s overall brand positions itself as more than just an accommodation option. The brand appeals to the “culturally curious” by promising them a more authentic travel experience. Furthermore, the company enforces this brand image across all of its platforms. The service itself gives people a chance to stay with locals in their homes. Every additional feature the company offers, such as guidebooks and tours, is also led by locals. On Instagram, the company shares photos of unique properties and always ties them back to the host. The brand consistently promotes the company’s overarching philosophy that interacting with the people who live in a place leads to authentic travel experiences. Operators in the tourism industry should also ensure their brand image is equally represented across their online marketing platforms. While building a website, remember that the brand you’re selling online should match the feel and voice seen on other platforms, such as your social media accounts. Every customer interaction is a chance to introduce them to your company values and what makes your brand special.
- Create a powerful logo that stands out and is unique to the goal of your organization/business
- Aesthetics play a key role in branding. You want customers not only to remember your name but also to recognize your logo. An effective logo helps make your tour company easy to spot both on and offline. It’s a way for guests to instantly recognize your company no matter what platform they’re on.
- Use your brand to engage users through storytelling
- Instead of just identifying a photo’s location, be more intentional about featuring the photographer’s first-hand experience or a traveler reminiscing on that moment in the captions. It’s a strategy that makes your brand feel more personable. The captions show that there are real people behind the photos, making it easier for people to connect with them. You can also share user-generated content and guest’s firsthand experiences in your captions or even share behind-the-scenes aspects of running a local tour business. The more personable your brand is, the easier it is for your guests to relate to it.
- Be cognizant of user experience when building your brand and marketing it on different platforms
- Take the hassle out of the tourist experience as it pertains to your organization and/or business. Streamline the information and resources you plan to include to make your content accessible and easy to use. Think about the process of booking tours on your website or finding places to visit or events to go to and whether that matches your brand identity. Is it seamless? Is it intuitive? Is it easy for guests to communicate with you? How is the process impacting your brand identity? After answering these questions, you can start brainstorming ways to optimize your site to drive more bookings.
- When creating a well-defined brand, make sure that it is rooted in your core message/purpose
- Much of a brand’s identity can be credited to its company culture. Focus your brand messaging on your business’s/organization’s core values—i.e employees and customers always come first. Strive to reinforce the core of your brand with every interaction–whether that be with stakeholders, employees, or customers. This emphasizes that your brand delivers.
- Especially regarding the african american tourism industry—-appeal to your niche consumer base
- Your brand should directly target the audience you know will primarily use your services: the african american tourist. Promote this brand identity on social media with content specifically curated to your main consumer base. Your brand can create engaging travel content on their websites and social accounts to appeal to their target audience. Rather than creating a brand that appeals to just anyone, you can focus on a content plan that specifically speaks to your ideal guest.You should also consider what channels your target audience is using to reach you. If your niche is millennial adventure travelers, they’re more than likely booking travel on their phones. In that case, it’s especially important that your website be optimized for mobile.
- Keeping the brand consistent
- examples of great travel and tour brand strategies (Travel Branding.)
