The best marketing tool available to tourism businesses is
positive word-of-mouth. Exceed your customers' expectations and
they'll go home raving about it to their friends and family,
they'll talk about their experience with fellow travellers, and
they'll be more likely to recommend your product or service.
The Internet has made word-of-mouth even more powerful, with
ranking websites and social networking enabling consumers to share
opinions, make recommendations and seek advice.
The opportunities for savvy operators to take advantage of
word-of-mouth both on and offline are enormous. But remember the
reverse also applies. Delivering poor service, a poor experience or
poor value for money can also cause word to spread - but not in a
good way! Delivering consistently excellent service will help
ensure you avoid that situation.
The Internet has made word-of-mouth even more
powerful."
Socially savvy
The Internet has increased the reach of word-of-mouth by giving
every consumer the power to publish their thoughts, feelings and
experiences online.
Many travellers now base their travel decisions around customer
ratings they read online. Websites such as www.tripadvisor.com, www.rankers.co.nz and www.hostelworld.com all allow travellers to
rate and review tourism businesses. Operators should keep an eye on
these websites and others, and be aware of what is being said about
them online.
Travellers are also using social media and blogs to update
friends and family from the road: posting photos, videos and
comments about their experiences. These updates can act as personal
'recommendations' in real-time to an individual's entire network -
anywhere from half a dozen to a thousand or more people. Some of
the websites travellers of all ages are using include www.wayn.com, www.facebook.com, www.twitter.com,
www.bebo.com, www.myspace.com
and others.
Often there's no way to control what is said about your
organisation online. The best strategy is to aim to please all of
your visitors. Ensure the quality of the products and services you
deliver are up to scratch and meet the expectations of your
visitors. Make it easy for customers to contact you and make
bookings, and ensure that, if things do go wrong or your customers
aren't satisfied, you and your staff handle the situation
professionally and with the needs of your customers in mind.
Use Google Alerts, www.search.twitter.com and www.socialmention.com to monitor what is being
said about your business online.
Find
out more about how Tourism New Zealand is using social media
and the Internet to market New Zealand.
Did you know?
Good word of mouth is also the foundation of good public
relations (PR). Find out more about working with the
media to grow your tourism business.