As a tour and activity operator, utilizing an online booking solution is mission-critical to running your business smoothly. With more than 57% of travelers booking online, you could be missing out on easy revenue and customer growth. However, picking an online booking software that not only works for your business, but also partners with you to help your business grow, is not always as easy as it sounds.

To help you in your decision, we’ve created this simple online booking software checklist:

1. How stable is the company?

Ensuring the company has the strength and capital to be your long-term partner is critical in your decision. Find out who has invested in the company and how much capital has been raised. See if their investors are key influencers in the industry, backed with years of expertise and relationships that can help your business. Ask whether they are profitable, and if they have the cash to invest in growing their team and product.TIP: If the investors have made an ongoing investment in the company to support its continued growth, that’s a strong signal the company has what it takes to be a long-term partner for you.

2. How experienced is the management team and board?

Evaluate the backgrounds of the leadership team and board of directors. Make sure they have the experience needed to help your business succeed.TIP: Look at the LinkedIn profiles of the company’s leadership team. When the founders have invested years into the company, it’s an indication they’re in it for the long haul. Plus, if members of the leadership team have strong career paths at successful companies, these are the types of people who can likely help your business grow and succeed.

3. Is the company investing in continually improving its product and services?

Ask about their level of investment in product development, along with examples of important products the company has released recently. When companies continually add product updates and features, this is a strong signal: Not only are they investing in their product, they’re listening and responding to their customers’ needs.

4. Who is on their team? Is the company growing?

Ask how many employees they have in product and engineering. Also, inquire about the ratio of salespeople to product and engineers. When a company's employee base is product- and engineer-focused, it validates that they are investing in the product.

5. What do their employees say about working there?

Take a look at the company’s culture: Many companies share a behind-the-scenes view on their social media channels.

Now that you have evaluated the company’s stability and experience, it’s time to dig into the product itself:

6. Is the online booking software easy to use?

If a product is difficult or non-intuitive for your employees and customers to navigate, it will never work for your business. That’s why ease of use is top on many businesses’ priority list when selecting a new online booking solution.TIP: Think about how your business runs its day-to-day operations. Look for a system that has a centralized, easy-to-use calendar to keep your business organized. Also, keep in mind how easy it is to onboard new staff.

7. Is the product customizable to fit the needs of your business?

Tours and activities come in all forms. Look for a system that can be customized according to your business’ needs. For example, if you are a bicycle rental company, can the system handle multiple bike rental times and equipment add-ons, such as helmets?

Look for a system that can be customized to your business' needs

8. How will the booking functionality help increase your sales?

Today’s customers book their activities in a variety of ways. For example, some like to pre-book far in advance, while others might book via their mobile phone while traveling. If your system won’t let them book how, when, and where they want to, you are at risk of losing the sale.TIP: Look for software that allows bookings online via your website, your social media channels, and even through a mobile app.

9. How strong is the company’s mobile offering?

Look for a system that has both iOS and Android mobile apps that let you and your staff manage all bookings, reservations and communications via smartphone. Most companies only offer a mobile-responsive or mobile-friendly design, which aren’t optimized for running your business on the go.

10. Does the online booking solution offer customer support and account management?

Just because an online booking system is, well, online, doesn’t mean it has to be online only.TIP: Look for a solution that has a dedicated customer support and account management team to partner with your business in order to help you succeed.

11. Does the business provide additional support with marketing and selling your tours and activities?

Look for an online booking solution that can be your marketing partner. For example, Peek has an OTA marketplace, peek.com to help increase your bookings.

12. How does the software handle customer and staff communication?

Communication is key, but it can take hours to do. By picking a system that automates most communication, you can spend less time in the office and more time doing what you love.TIP: Look for a system that sends emails to your customers both pre- and post-activity. This allows you to identify any additional information needed, confirm the customer’s purchase and ask them for reviews.Don’t forget about guide communication. Look for an online booking software that can help you manage your staff by texting and/or emailing them as needed.

13. What price is right for your business?

Everyone cares about cost, and striking the right balance of affordability and quality is important. You’ll want a system that fits your budget and provides the right functionality—both now, and as your business expands.

14. What are the total costs?

Read the details and do the math on the fees, including all-in credit card fees and monthly fees. Evaluate savings from lower credit card fees, and compare vs. other fees that may be included. Many companies will say they are “free”, but in fact, they pass on the higher fees to your customers instead. Others may have limitations on the number of bookings per month that you can process. Gain a clear understanding of these pricing policies.

15. How should you compare the credit card fees?

Examine the credit card fees in detail. Many banks will charge 2.5-3.5% per transaction. Even if you use Square, they will charge 2.75%. Alternatively, using an online booking software that acts as your processor can drastically reduce credit card fees by as low as 1.99%.

Evaluating online booking solutions? See how Peek Pro can help streamline business operations and grow bookings.

Remember when you were a kid, and your parents always told you to use "the magic words"? You know, please and thank you? Well, as it just so happens, the same rule applies well for businesses too, especially in emails.That's based on statistics from Remarkety, which show that "Thank You" emails can produce repeat customers. So if you're not following up with your customer after their visit, you may be missing out on a golden opportunity to sell a tour or package, or have the customer refer you to a friend.Here are some tips to keep in mind when writing that magic "Thank You" email:

Add Some Value

In addition to simply saying "thank you" to a customer for their patronage, use the follow-up email to take the relationship one step further by adding some extra incentives or a call-to-action. These can include:

Discount for a Future Booking.

Offer a discount on a future tour or activity, or give them an offer code they can redeem any time for a future booking. Setting a time-frame can be helpful during slower seasons when you want to generate more bookings to fill open slots quickly.

Refer a Friend Request.

Make the assumption that the customer enjoyed the experience and would be happy to refer a friend. Give them a prompt by offering a referral bonus for sending customers your way. You can ask customers who referred them during the booking process so you can send the referring customer a gift or token of your appreciation, such as a special offer, discount on a booking, or a souvenir.

Request for a Review or Testimonial.

Make it easy for the customer to write a review on your Google business page by linking to the page directly within the email. You could also recommend other sites you are listed on to encourage the customer to follow the link and post a review.See Also: 7 Simple Ways to Ask Customers for Reviews Without Annoying Them

Craft a Compelling Subject Line

Statistics show that 35% of email recipients open an email based on the subject line alone. This means you need to be as creative as possible with your subject lines or risk being deleted — or worse, being marked as spam, since 69% of email recipients report email as spam based only on the subject line.When you're sending a thank you email to a customer, you want to make sure the message is clear and includes a mention of a discount or other freebie you are sharing in the email — the incentive to click and read. Digital Marketer reports the top performing subject lines are centered on self-interest (what the recipient will get for opening an email, such as a free gift or a discount); curiosity (teasing the recipient to have them wonder what's inside); or an offer (details about a giveaway, free gift, or any other freebie).

Be as creative as possible when writing subject lines to increase your email open rates

Close Out Strong

Be personal and bold to close the email with the company owner's name and a digital signature. Anything you can do to personalize the message will help the recipient remember your email, and possibly, follow the directions you have provided. Including a photo of your venue or embedding a YouTube video can also make your email stand apart from the rest.

Add Additional Links

Make sure to link to your website and include URLs of any social media profiles. This opens up multiple avenues for your email recipient to contact you and engage with your company. It's a simple but effective way to generate new fans and followers across social media.

The Bottom Line

It's important to follow up and thank customers by email, as it can lead to increased future bookings. With so much business at stake, it's important to have a well-thought-out thank you email, especially one that either provides an incentive or a firm call-to-action.

Having an immaculately designed website is all well and good. But if no one knows your business exists, it's sort of like planting a tree in a forest—you'll be quickly drowned out by your surroundings. So what's the secret to standing tall and getting noticed in the forest that is the Internet? social media.

• 46% of web users turn to social media when making a purchase.
• 8 out of 10 small businesses use social media to drive business growth.

Tour and activity operators who are sharing photos, videos, and updates across today's widely-used social networks and taking the time to nurture their online presence could capture the lion's share of online attention.Here are some of the most impactful ways to create a strong social media presence for your tour or activities company.

Be Creative with Facebook Updates

Facebook is one of the simplest social media platforms for small business owners. But the key to building a successful Facebook page is to provide content that increases engagement with your brand. You want Facebook users to leave a comment, share the post, or click through to your website to complete a booking. A lot of that has to do with timing. According to Hubspot, the best time to post on Facebook is on weekends between noon and 1 p.m., on Wednesdays between 3p.m. and 4 p.m., and on Thursdays and Fridays between 1 p.m. and 4 p.m.Find out the best times to post on your business's Facebook page by looking at its insights, on the "Posts" tab.It also matters what you post. Instead of just sharing news or updates in text form, get creative with your Facebook marketing strategy by incorporating short videos as status updates, sharing albums of recent events and activities at your location, and by posting high-quality images regularly. The experts at Convince & Convert reveal that multiple photo posts increased click by 1,290% in a Facebook case study and using photo albums to share these photos—not just uploading single photos—increased reach by 5.1 times.For example, take a look at what 9/11 Tribute Center is doing. They have a very high user engagement on their page thanks to frequent video updates, user tags using relevant hashtags, and a variety of interesting photos—including albums.

Stay Active on Instagram

You might as well not use Instagram if you're posting dull, blurry images. But you don't have to be a professional photographer to make the most of this photo-centric platform: Make filters your best friend. Buffer reveals the Mayfair filter brings in the most interactions.For a real life example, check out @TheRideNYC on Instagram. They share a variety of images and videos that really showcases the experience of being on THE RIDE. They even re-gram photos and videos from their customersBut it's not enough to simply post photos every now and again. Drive engagement by using hashtags of relevant keywords — #travel, #[your city], #travelideas, #vacation, etc. — so that Instagram users who are not following you can find you when searching for these types of photos using Instagram's search feature.

Drive engagement on Instagram by using hashtags of relevant keywords

Update Information on Local Listings Sites

Several online listings and local review sites give business owners permission to update their public listings with a detailed description about the business, business hours, contact info, a website link, and even photos. Do an online keyword search for your business to see what shows up and what local listing pages look like.You can 'claim' your page with Google My Business to provide a description and other details you want to share with a prospective customer who stumbles across your listing during an online search. The Signpost Local Marketing Blog points out 35% of consumers use Google as their first choice for online business searches, so claiming your business page is an easy way to increase your online visibility. Make sure to include all cities you serve, a working link to your website or a booking page, and high-quality photos so that potential customers can identify you.Check out Wild Thyme Cooking for a real like example. They have updated their Google My Business to include a variety of photos, from site location details to their customers having fun cooking up a storm.

The Bottom Line

Maintaining an active social media presence offers many benefits to tour and activity operators in a world of ever-increasing internet usage. Use these tips to share, like and tweet your way towards a strong online presence.

During the time between a customer's booking and their onsite arrival, tour operators have a unique opportunity to curate an experience that really wows their guests. Though some travelers are more spontaneous than others, most enjoy having at least a short list of activities they absolutely must do at their destination. In any case, they could always use your help navigating the city and packing for their journey.Here are some simple ways you can enhance your guests' vacation experience long before they arrive.

1. Help guests build their itinerary

As we've suggested before, “Take the time to ask guests about their travel planning and offer to help them plan the rest of their trip with local recommendations." One way to do this is to provide a "destination cheat sheet' for download on your website or send guests a PDF via email as a complimentary service to help them get to know the area.With your recommendations, be sure to group activities that are located in the same areas. Add estimates for how long visitors should spend on each destination and note opening and closing times for those amusements. This helps travelers avoid wasting precious time revisiting a neighborhood only to see one or two things they missed on an earlier visit.

2. Prepare travelers for the adventure

Caught up in the excitement of their upcoming trip, guests may forget to prepare their travel documents, get necessary vaccinations, or pack essential items. To save travelers from an embarrassing encounter at the border, tour operators can share information visitors from other countries will need to know prior to travel.Email guests packing tips. For instance, if you're located in a mountainous region, advise guests to bring sturdy hiking boots, especially if you offer outdoor excursions. During the rainy season, recommend packing waterproof or water-resistant shoes. Remind travelers about what not to bring as well.Finally, share a few fun language lessons. For guests who speak the same language, provide a list of common slang non-locals might not be familiar with.

Tour operators can share information that visitors from other countries will need to know prior to travel

3. Invite visitors to eat like a local

On Facebook and Instagram, it can feel as though travelers spend more time documenting their meals than their journey. Indeed, one of the most exciting things about travel is experiencing local culture through its cuisine.Of course, many first-time visitors may not know what to eat or where to eat it. That said, tour operators can offer their best recommendations for specific dishes to try and restaurants to visit.

The Bottom Line

By simply sharing extra information (and providing concierge-like services), tour operators demonstrate their commitment to an exceptional customer experience. In return, guests will reciprocate with positive reviews and referrals to help you grow your business and bookings.

Things don't always go to plan. There will always be times when a customer has a family emergency, a scheduling conflict, or simply changes their itinerary. So when the unexpected happens, you need to make sure your customers are aware of their rights, and any fees associated with a cancellation. On top of that, you need to make sure you protect yourself, giving enough time to fill that now vacant spot, along with collecting enough of the booking fee to ensure you don't lose out financially.That's why it's so important to implement a simple, clear cancellation policy for your campground. To help you construct the best possible policy, here are a few tips and examples to follow.

1. Determine your cancellation fees.

Airlines and hotels do this to not only cover the costs associated with a cancellation but to also discourage customers from cancelling before their trip. Whether you decide to refund the entire amount of the reservation or provide a partial refund to a customer who cancels within a certain timeframe, you should impose some type of cancellation fee to handle the request. This fee would cover administrative time to process the request, credit card or debit card transaction fees, and any other costs associated with cancelling a booking.

2. Draft your cancellation policy.

Your cancellation policy doesn't have to be complicated, but it does need to contain key details about how much the customer owes you to proceed with the cancellation, what type of time window they have to cancel without any fees, and what their options are for proceeding with the cancellation process.When drafting your cancellation policy, be sure to include the following key details:

• Time window that you will honor a cancellation
• Time windows for various fees charged for a cancellation
• Whether reservations are non-refundable at the time of booking
• Security deposit policy
• Acceptable ways to cancel — over the phone, via email, or through an online booking program

For example:

Georgia State Parks details both its cancellation and transfer policy, and its policy about security deposits on its website. If you specialise in extended stays, you may consider requesting a security deposit and determining whether that deposit can be partially refunded based on when the cancellation takes place:Cancellation/Transfer Policy: Cancellations/Transfers must be made at least 30 days prior to scheduled arrival date. A $10 handling fee per reservation is charged for cancellations. Reservations made within 30 days of arrival are non-refundable and non-transferable. Reservations can be changed one time, at no charge, provided a 30-day notice is given.

3. Post your cancellation policy in several visible locations.

In addition to outlining your cancellation policy in great detail on your website, have customers agree to the cancellation policy at the time of booking. This can reduce liability on your part when a customer decides to cancel and has to pay a fee. You can include a small blurb of the cancellation policy in your terms and conditions section, or simply have it listed somewhere on your booking page so that customers can view it when they check out.

Have customers agree to your cancellation policy at the time of booking

4. Train staff to handle cancellations appropriately.

When a customer calls to cancel their reservation over the phone, make sure your staff is prepared to handle the situation with professionalism and explain exactly how much the customer will be charged for initiating the cancellation.Be sure to have staff members follow up with the customer to see if they would like to re-book for another day and time, or when they plan to travel again so that a staff member can follow up with the customer again to confirm the booking later. The goal, if possible, is to retain the customer.If you accept cancellations via email, make sure you have a dedicated staff member to handle all online communications so you can process the cancellation and open up the reservation to another customer in a timely manner. This might require setting up a separate email account specifically for cancellation requests and having a staff member monitor this account multiple times a day to handle all incoming messages appropriately.

5. Revise your cancellation policy as needed.

You may need to revise your cancellation policy when you add more reservation options at your campsite and need to elaborate on policies for different types of reservations (e.g. group bookings, long-term stays, etc.). Make sure to update and revise your campground cancellation policy frequently so that your customers are well aware of their rights to a refund (or forfeiture of a deposit), and you are fully disclosing your policy upfront.Developing and implementing a cancellation can improve customer service and even deter customers from cancelling at the last minute—thereby increasing the risk you lose another potential booking. Use these tips to develop and impose an effective cancellation policy for your campground reservations.

Staying up to date on tourism trends can help you learn a lot about how consumers think. What types of experiences pique their interest? How are they booking their plans? Where are they headed? All of these considerations are helpful in knowing how to appeal to your customer—even if your business caters to locals, not travelers. So whether you're promoting wine tasting tours, nature excursions, or guided city tours, here are five tourism trends you can't ignore.

1. Desire to Spend More on Experiences, Not Things

Experts at Cornell University have been studying the connection between money and happiness for decades. Their conclusion: people are happier when they spend money on experiences, not things. Capitalize on this by promoting the experiential benefits of your tours and activities. You offer once-in-a-lifetime experiences, so highlight this through testimonials from loyal customers, picking out reviews that describe the customer's unique experience and what they enjoyed most about it. Or, get creative. Literally compare apples to oranges by showing the consumer what they might be missing should they spend money elsewhere. For example, be clever with something like, "A week's worth of Starbucks would pay for this tour."Another great way to entice customers: vivid photography. As in most aspects of life, emotions rule in purchasing decisions. And, imagery is a key to that. According to KISSmetrics, consumers will connect better to your company if you use imagery that shows emotion. Want them to feel happy and want to participate? Display photos of real people enjoying your service—be it smiling while hiking on your tour or clinking glasses on a brewery tour—and watch your conversions soar.

2. Affinity for Staycations

Local isn't just a fad in the food and craft beer scene—more and more people are now searching close to home for travel-related activities. To make sure you're showing up in these local searches, optimize your website. Include your area of operation in the keywords of each page. It also helps to link to any relevant local pages. Were you included in a local newspaper write up? Link to it on your page.Read more about the rise of staycations here on our blog.Speaking of which, local papers, magazines, and blogs are great ways to catch the eye of local consumers. Reach out to local press, inviting them to experience your tour or activity first-hand. An editorial can go a long way to gaining trust from local consumers. Other ways to garner local bookings: running a state resident special or offering a discount to local residents if they show a valid driver's license; running ads in the local newspaper's 'things to do' section; running radio ads during peak listening hours; or even a short television commercial on local TV stations.

Local papers, magazines, and blogs are great ways to advertise to local consumers

3. The Need to Be Social

Results of a study from Amadeus North America reveals that the next generation of travelers are more adventurous and social. They're searching for experiences they can share with friends—so anything tour operators and merchants can do to make this process easier will help to better serve this market. Customers want to share their experience—so give them the tools to do so. Make it easy on yourself, and have the customers do the work for you. Create a hashtag—and send it out in confirmation and follow up emails—that customers can use after the experience to share photos or videos via social media. Or, run promote loyalty programs, as well as discounts for any referrals to entice customers to share with friends and family.

4. Increased Demand for Wellness Travel

Wellness tourism is a rapidly growing, $494 billion industry, according to the Well-Being Travel Symposium. But, wellness travel isn't just about spa getaways. It's about getting back to nature. According to a recent survey, 58 percent of respondents ranked outdoor activities as being most important for a wellness vacation. And, according to the IB Times, people booking wellness vacations are also looking for unique experiences—ones that will have them interacting with local cultures, educate them on local foods, or provide them some physical activity.Activity and tour companies are in a unique position to tap into this growing segment. You already have what the consumers are looking for—outdoor activities that give them local flavor. Now, make yourself known to them. Reach out to the local tourism board to have your business listed on their website and in brochures. Get yourself on local concierges' radar so they can recommend your experience to guests. On your own site, highlight the aspects of your business that may appeal to this demographic. Post vivid images of the outdoor activities you provide. Do you offer outdoor bike tours? Post photos of smiling customers basking in the sunshine atop their bikes. Offering cooking classes? Be sure to mix in local cuisine, along with descriptions of local purveyors and farms you source ingredients from.

5. Rise of Mobile Bookings

About 27 percent of all digital travel transactions in the United States take place on a mobile device, according to data from Criteo. Whether you're selling tours, classes, or activities, customers want to be able to shop and secure their purchase with a few taps and screen swipes. Make use of this growing market of tech-savvy travelers with a mobile-friendly website and branded applications that make the research and booking process simple and efficient. Make sure your website—especially the checkout process—is mobile-friendly. Use mobile-optimized online booking software, such as Peek Pro, which makes it easy for customers to book directly through a merchant's website and complete the checkout process seamlessly.From the increased demand of experiences over things to the rise of mobile bookings, trends in travel trickle down to tour and activity operators. The more local merchants pay attention to these trends, the better equipped they'll be to tap into many different segments of the market.