Peak season may be great for the bottom line, but this all-consuming period also puts businesses at risk. Being busy demands all your resources, leaving you with little time to implement new strategies, build meaningful relationships with potential customers, and attract loyal customers.The relatively quieter preseason is the perfect time for you to focus on growth strategies. That way when busy season hits, you can focus on what truly matters: offering unmatched experiences for your customers. These five strategies will help you grow your customer base before the frenzy.

1. Build Relationships With Potential Customers

Nurturing leads will put your brand top of mind before the season even starts. These potential customers that you already have a relationship with — those who've booked experiences with you before or are subscribed to your newsletter — are key to the upcoming season. Keep in regular communication with them through weekly or monthly newsletters featuring your services and experiences to pique interest. Or, build your credibility in the market by sharing how-to articles and tips. Customers with whom you communicate on a regular basis are much more likely to respond to your services than cold leads. Forrester Research found that companies that excel at lead nurturing generate 50% more purchase-ready customers at 33% lower cost. To aid you in this process, an online booking system will give you access to a database of all your previous customers and their contact information.

2. Offer Early-Bird Specials

A great way to generate new customers is by offering early-bird specials. This ensures that your spots fill up before your competitors start promoting heavily in the busy season. By using an online booking system, you can create promo codes for your activities and set early bird pricing before to drive the bottom line. Customers who are planning ahead can view your real-time availability and easily apply their promo code to an activity on their preferred date and time. If you don't want to discount your experiences, you can instead offer other incentives to reward customers who book early - a free T-shirt, included equipment rentals, or lunch and drinks on the house

3. Generate Excitement With a Preseason Event

It's a struggle to keep any business booming year round, but especially so for seasonal companies. Generating excitement ahead of the busy season helps you fill up your tours and activities. To do so, host a preseason event to market your business and generate excitement. For example, Winefest holds a popular event called Des Moines Wine Festival each year. To attract customers ahead of the Wine Festival, Winefest hosts a couple of preseason events to get customers talking about what's to come. “The preseason events have been incredibly helpful spreading the buzz and excitement about Winefest," says Natasha Sayles, executive director of Winefest Des Moines. “We've had great success with our Wine Flights and Iron Somm — they help with our overall mission of promoting the wine and food industry in Des Moines. Our summer festival is the core of that.

4. Don't Forget About Previous Customers

Don't lose touch with your current customer base while out chasing new leads. A study by SumAll revealed that 25% to 40% of total revenues from stable businesses came from returning customers. So it's important to build loyalty with former customers — invite them to preseason events, offer incentives to book early, or give them a discount to thank them for any referrals they made in the past. Repeat business doesn't just increase near-term sales — it also increases the likelihood of your business building advocates. Customer advocates will help you drive business in the preseason through word-of-mouth marketing

5. Generate New Customers by Asking for Referrals

Word-of-mouth marketing is still one of the most effective ways to generate new leads for your business. Most customers (90%, according to Nielson) trust the recommendations of people they know. The key to making sure customers talk about your service: ask for referrals. A successful referral program is all about timing. If you ask your customers for referrals too late, they're unlikely to refer; if they do, their recommendation will be lackluster. Ask customers on the spot or in a follow up email (sent within a week) to refer a friend to your business. You can even customize and schedule those follow-up emails with Peek Pro. Once you have contact information for referrals in your database, build relationships with them by sending regular emails.

Most of your customers expect to be able to book online these days, and the thought of adding online payment options to your website may seem overwhelming. But streamlining the process for your customers can create more revenue and let you focus on other things - and it can be one of the best things you do for your business. It's also a lot easier than you may think.See Also: The Advantages and Disadvantages of Online Booking SystemsConsumers are more confident with buying online and they enjoy the convenience of booking from their computers and mobile devices. If you're not offering online booking options to your potential customers, you could be missing out on a lot of potential sales.

If you're not offering online booking options to your potential customers, you could be missing out on a lot of potential sales.

Top 7 Concerns and What to Do About Them

Here are some common concerns activity rental business owners have about accepting bookings online, along with the benefits of pushing past the roadblocks and taking action.

• What I want to offer online is too complex. Simplify your offerings. Too many choices leads to indecision in consumers, so providing too many products could be working against you. Whether you're building a new site or starting fresh, use this as an opportunity to simplify and package your tours and activities for more profit. While changes require some upfront work, keep your eye on the long-term benefits. Tools that allow customers to book online can help manage your business more efficiently, which can lead to more business opportunities and revenue.
• I've always done things by hand – it's what I'm used to. Doing things by hand can give you a false sense of control. If everything is mostly stored inside your head, that means you're the only one who can "do it right." This makes hiring painful and training difficult because there are no repeatable processes or systems in place to ensure consistency. If you're planning on selling the business one day, remember that it's not a business unless it runs when you're not there. Who would buy the business if you are the entire business?
• I have an online contact form so that counts – right? An online form is a step in the right direction, but if you're accepting payments and bookings online, it can help with managing time, providing a consistent customer experience, and automating processes to help you be more productive in less time with less staff.
• We rely on a lot of walk-ins and phone calls for business, so doing business online isn't really necessary. Opening your rental activity business for online bookings doesn't mean you're going to neglect walk-ins and phone reservations. But it does mean that these customers will have the option to book online and free up more of your time. The right online tools can also allow you to schedule calls and walk-ins with less confusion and more accurate visibility. You can also scoop up additional customers who prefer to transact online and not over the phone.
• I'm worried about the costs. The right activity rental booking and management platform can pay for itself many times over by allowing you to generate more business and minimize mistakes. It may cost more upfront, but it could save - and generate - more revenue in the long run.
• I'm worried about the credit card processing fees. Transaction processing fees are a very low percentage overall, but they can add up if you're not careful. If you haven't reviewed your prices lately, it might be a good time to consider adjusting for the costs of doing business online. Accepting credit cards has additional costs, but the benefits of a faster cash flow and a quicker booking process for your customers usually outweigh the fees.
• Our competition doesn't do it, so we don't need to bother. This is all the more reason for you to accept online booking and payments. If your competition isn't doing it and you are, that means you'll have all the online buyers, and they’ll only have traditional methods to rely on. Take it as an opportunity to beat the competition.

Picking the Right Online Booking SystemThere are three key ingredients to a successful system for your business.

• Make sure the platform you choose is industry-specific. Generic solutions usually have to be customized and can have large gaps in functionality that’s specific to your industry. This missing functionality can force you to change the way you do business and negatively impact the customer experience.
• Pick a technology partner that has lots of know-how. This will help you grow and avoid costly mistakes because your technology partner will have the experience from many different implementations and can provide lessons already learned - with the software and in your business.
• Choose a solution that addresses many challenges. The software you choose shouldn't just accept bookings online. It should also make your job easier by communicating with clients more efficiently, managing your activity schedule, and tracking analytics that will help you see where your customers are coming from. This way you'll learn what’s working and what isn't.

Doing business online is a lot easier than you think these days, and well worth the trouble. You can benefit greatly from investing in technology and new processes that increase your revenue and customer base. But even if you don’t completely overhaul your website, you should strongly consider implementing booking and payment options online.

Examine the industry's current and future growth, and see how your company stacks up.There's a shift in how Americans are spending their money. Mostly spurred by the proliferation of the Millennial generation, they're now prioritizing experiences rather than material items — saving up their money to go new places and take part in new activities. A large beneficiary of this changing mindset: the recreational rentals industry, whose growth is currently outpacing the average annual growth of other retail and service industries. The industry is made up primarily of businesses renting equipment for people to experience recreational activities, including kayaks, mountain bikes, skis, surfboards, scooters, Segways and even luxury cars.But coming hand-in-hand with the increasing number of people trying these activities is heightened competition, along with additional administrative tasks. While the industry has long relied on traditional pen and paper to take reservations, track equipment and update calendars, with a growing customer base and booming industry, it's time for rental business owners to consider how they can improve efficiency, streamline their services and ultimately set their businesses apart utilizing new technologies.

In this post you'll discover:

• How much the recreational rentals industry has grown, and what experts forecast for its future.
• What that growth looks like on a per firm basis, and whether your business is keeping pace with the industry or falling behind.
• How your firm's annual revenue and operating expenses compare with industry averages.
• How technology can improve your business processes and give you a competitive edge.

An Industry on the Upswing

By and large, Americans are becoming more interested in travel and trying new things. At the forefront of this movement are Millennials, who are almost twice as likely as non-Millennials to travel for a hobby, according to research by the Boston Consulting Group. This generation also travels “more for personal interest, food and wine, entertainment, outdoor activity and shopping than non-Millennial leisure travelers," BCG reports. But this push for new experiences spans generations. The average age of the leisure traveler (those not traveling for business) is 47, and mature travelers — those older than 55 — comprise 36% of the leisure travel population, according to the U.S. Travel Association.For this large swath of the population searching for new activities, the recreational rental business plays a key role in making these experiences come to life. And whether they're renting kayaks, sailboats or skis, their collective revenues have been growing. The industry surpassed $1 billion in revenue in 2014, with those revenues increasing by 5.7% annually.. That growth has outpaced the 3.3% annual revenue growth of the broader retail services industry, and placed recreational rentals in the top 40% of all retail industries.The increased popularity of renting combined with the continued interest in experiences bodes well for the industry's near future. Kentley Insights forecasts that the recreational rental industry revenue will grow by 4.9% per year for the next five years.

Boating and Watersports Take Off

While the industry as a whole has benefited from the uptick in rentals, there's one segment of the industry that's exploding in popularity: boating and watersports. In 2013 alone, more than 88 million people — or 37% of the population — participated in some form of recreational boating. That's near an all-time high.Additionally, the public now views marinas as recreation destinations, instead of simply places where people store their boats. And marinas have responded in kind — nearly one-third of marinas now offer boat rentals and 18% provide water-toy rentals, according to research conducted by the Association of Marina Industries.The desire to be on the water has also boosted interest in stand up paddleboards, and opened a new rental market in the process. Stand up paddling was the top fastest growing recreational sport in 2014, according to the Outdoor Foundation's most recent Outdoor Recreation Participation Report. The sport grew by 38% compared to the previous year, with more than 2.7 million participants — many of whom were likely renting their boards from a local shop. That's nearly triple the number of people who tried the sport a mere five years ago.

Is Your Business Keeping Pace?

The recreational rental industry is undoubtedly on the uptick. But knowing whether your business is keeping up with current and projected industry growth can help you determine whether the status quo is sufficient for business growth — or if you need to make changes to remain competitive.

The average revenue per recreational rentals firm was $500,000 last year

According to the Kentley research, the average annual revenue per recreational rentals firm was $500,000 last year. The firms surveyed experienced an annual revenue growth rate of 2.9% over the past three years.But while most businesses were seeing their revenue rise, whether they were actually profitable is a different story. Just 51% of recreational rental firms are in the black, with their average net income representing about 10% of their revenue. The picture may be better for the marinas, according to a survey by the Association of Marina Industries and Dock Age magazine. Of the more than 250 marinas surveyed, 69% reported that they expected to be profitable.For the rental industry overall, operating expenses have grown by 4.8% per year — notably outpacing revenue. Operating costs per firm averaged about $387,000 annually in 2015.So what do rental companies spend their money on? Depreciation and amortization charges for equipment tops the list, followed closely by employee payroll. Combined, those two cost centers account for 70% of total average expenses. Property costs accounts for 6.2% of expenses and IT accounts for just 1.1%.For most rental companies, great employees can make or break the business — which is often reflected in their pay. In 2014, the average employee earned nearly $30,000 annually, with an annual increase of 3.8% over the past three years. That wage puts the recreational rentals in the top 20% of service industries when it comes to employee earnings.One thing that may explain why only about half the firms are profitable: their focus on growth. Companies are putting their revenue toward providing new services or opening new locations. For instance, in 2014 the number of firms grew by 2.8%. Forecasts for the next five years reveal that growth, on average, should remain just under 3% annually. Additionally, the number of rental establishments — which includes multiple locations owned by the same company — also grew by 3%. This figure should continue to increase by 2.3% annually over the next five years.

Technology Offers a Competitive Edge

Today, rental businesses faces ever-increasing competition as existing firms expand and new ones enter the market. And with only half these firms earning profits and operating expenses continuing to rise, many business owners are likely asking how they can get to cash-flow positive faster. Investing in online booking technology may be part of the answer.Online booking has taken the travel and tourism industry by storm over the past few years. For example, global traveling booking has grown at 4.3% annually since 2011, while online bookings have increased by an average of 10% each year, according to research by Phocuswright. And though bookings via desktop still dominate, mobile bookings are quickly gaining ground, accounting for 11% of all U.S. online travel bookings last year.So if you're not yet offering online booking, you're likely missing out on a significant number of quality customers who prefer using the Internet to arrange their equipment rentals. Indeed, many rental business operators report that online booking software not only helps their business grow, but also streamlines their operations.

The benefits of moving your booking online include:

• The ability to maximize your reservations. When you rely on staff to make reservations over the phone, you're limited to bookings only when your employees are available to answer the call or handle a walk-in customer. Online reservation systems allow customers to make reservations around the clock. Additionally, if one of them cancels, another customer can immediately fill that spot — ensuring that your equipment isn't sitting unused because of a no-show.
• An opportunity to maintain or reduce payroll expenses. For most firms, one of the biggest cost centers is payroll. An online reservation management system can help you maintain or reduce the staff you have working reservations, even as you grow, by allowing your customers to reserve online instead of over the phone.
• Improved inventory management. For many merchants, keeping track of what's rented and what is available is a challenge. Online management tools allow you to track all your inventory in one place so there is a single source resource for that information.
• Faster payments. With online booking software, customers typically prepay for their rentals. You don't have to wait for payment, and you have greater insight into your business' pending revenue. That way you can activate deals to fill gaps or reduce staff to cut expenses.
• Easier up-sells. Give your revenue an effortless boost by offering up-sells and add-ons to your rentals — such as dry sacks and wetsuits for a kayaking trip or meal packages for long excursions — as your customers are making their reservations online. Customers will get a fuller picture of your offerings and be able to take advantage of any current deals or packages. And the power of so-called ancillary revenue to boost business in rentals and other related travel is impressive: In the airline and cruise industries, for instance, it can account for 30% or more of a company's revenue.
• Improved time management. Online reservations allow you to check your business' booking and availability in real-time, from any device or location. It enables rental businesses to better allocate their staff, and devote employee time to improving the customer experience instead of manning phones and penciling in reservations.
• Actionable data. Last, but certainly not least, online booking software systems allow you to analyze your business and determine where you're making the most money and where you're losing revenue. With this valuable information, you can eliminate hidden costs — such as maintaining equipment that's rarely rented — and focus on the areas of your business that are most likely to drive growth.

Not all online booking technology is created equal, though. Peek Pro not only provides an award-winning software platform, training and 24/7 customer support, but our tools also help you increase revenue in myriad ways. Peek Pro is the most robust online booking system available for rental firms, with many features specifically built for Rentals. This includes an easy-to-use calendar and dashboard for viewing and managing bookings, equipment availability and more.The rental industry is undoubtedly poised for growth. By staying aware of the trends, and taking advantage of online booking systems and new technology, you can ensure that your rental business follows suit.

Repeat customers don't just help keep your calendar filled, they also help your bottom line: 70 percent of companies report that it's much cheaper to retain a customer than it is to acquire a new one, according to econsultancy's Cross-channel Marketing Report. So it's easy to see why "relationship marketing" — activities that help you stay connected to existing customers and help you maintain a positive relationship — is more important than ever.Here are 10 ways tour and activity operators can get more repeat customers throughout the year.

1. Deliver Exceptional Customer Service

You want every customer to have an unforgettable experience and talk positively about your company. Research from NewVoiceMedia reveals 93 percent of customers will take action following inadequate service, and 34 percent would go as far as taking revenge by posting a review online. Take the time to train staff to handle all types of customer issues or guest complaints effectively so that you aren't working extra hard to do some damage control after a customer is upset or disgruntled. This might be something as offering a complimentary upgrade if the guest had problems booking their reservation.To prevent customers becoming disgruntled during the booking process, put yourself in the customer's shoes as you walk through the booking process. Make sure they have everything they need to confirm a booking — a reservation confirmation and "thank you" email leading up to their trip can open up the lines of communication and help a guest feel like they are being taken care of. If you offer online booking options, make sure the checkout process is as seamless as possible so that you don't lose guests because of technical issues.

2. Offer Referral Bonuses

Encourage guests to be loyal customers by offering a discount for referring a friend. You can either extend a discount on a reservation for bringing a friend on the next visit, or ask guests to share who referred them to your business and send a handwritten "thank you" card or email to the referring guest with an exclusive discount or complimentary upgrade offer for their next visit. Upgrade offers might include an extended kayaking rental, for example, or an invitation to a class or workshop after a foodie tour. Make sure guests know that they can earn a referral bonus before they leave for the day and follow up with an email reminder to prompt them to share their experience with friends, coworkers, and acquaintances. Guests who know they are going to get a gift or upgrade in return for referring you may be eager to re-book.

3. Host Private Parties and Exclusive Events

Even though many visitors will be one-time guests just trying out a new experience or activity because they were in the area, others may be locals or interested in coming back each season. Consider hosting a private party or other exclusive events for loyal customers. Locals, especially, may be interested in socializing with other like-minded travel and adventure enthusiasts or taking part in a group outing led by one of your lead guides. These types of events build rapport and may create a sense of community around your business.

4. Extend Exclusive Offers for Returning Guests

Segment your customers for a separate email list so you can send them an exclusive offer as a loyal guest

Maintaining digital records can help you identify which customers are most loyal and what their favorite activities are. Using an online booking software program, such as Peek Pro allows you keep track of all customers in your database with details about their past purchases and number of visits throughout the year. Segment your customers for a separate email list so you can send them an exclusive offer as a loyal guest — not just those who refer a friend or bring someone along. You could offer a 10 to 25 percent discount on their next booking for a certain time period to fill up empty spaces in your calendar. Or, you could create a special seasonal package or offer to encourage them to book on their next visit.

5. Connect with Guests on Social Media

Maintaining an active presence on social media sites and making the effort to reach out to fans and followers, in the form of contests or by promoting a return guest discount, can encourage non-traveling guests to keep in touch with your company.Make sure to share or retweet posts by guests that mention your company or photos of your activity — this not only generates goodwill between you and your customer but also allows you to subtly market and promote your business to both your fans and followers — and the guest's fans and followers. For example, Doolin Ferry, which offers cruises to The Aran Islands and Cliffs of Moher, shared a guest's photo on Instagram and thanked them for the photo and visit within the comments. This is a great way to acknowledge a guest publicly and promote the company. Pro tip: Tag or mention the guest's username or social media handle to get their attention.

6. Send Postcards in the Mail

Allocating some of your marketing efforts, such as sending postcards, to existing guests can keep you top of mind with previous guests.According to the Direct Marketing Association, more than 52 percent of customers report that they will read a postcard in the mail and more than 23 percent ill respond to the postcard if it is relevant to them. If you are putting together your marketing budget for the year, consider sending postcards to existing customers as a way to lure them back for another visit. You could attach a coupon or promo code to the postcard to prompt a booking or simply send a postcard about some of the latest tours and activities of the season.

7. Send Emails throughout the Year

Nurturing existing customers via email can be a very effective way to generate repeat customers. According to research by Gigaom, 56 percent of marketers found email marketing to be the most effective for customer retention in 2014. If you're using an online booking software program that automatically captures the guest's email address and contact information for its database, you can set up customized email blasts specifically for returning guests that invite them back for another tour or activity, share information about new packages, or to issue a discount code or coupon for their next visit. The goal is to keep the guest interested in all of your offerings so they think of you first when making their travel plans.

8. Offer Customization Options

No matter how unique your tour or activity experience may be, you want guests to walk away with the intention of coming back again soon. Customizing the guest experience can make you stand apart from the competition and keep guests interested in trying something new next time.The experts at Fusion, a team dedicated to optimizing customer experiences, point out that customers want to buy more but will refrain to do so when it's inconvenient — your job is to present an offer that appeals to your guest and is also easy to take advantage of. Give guests the option to customize their experiences at every opportunity, whether that's by providing the option to purchase add-ons at checkout or upgrade to a premium experience.You can set up this level of customization by using an online booking software program, such as Peek Pro. Peek Pro allows you to create add-ons for different tours and activities which get displayed to people as they move through the check out. You could also create custom packages for guests that may be celebrating a special event, such as a birthday or an anniversary during their visit.

9. Keep an Eye on the Competition

Whether your company specializes in boat tours and excursions or you offer ghost tours, keep tabs on what your competition is offering and their pricing strategy. Staying up-to-date on your competitors can help you stay one step ahead of the game when creating special packages and offerings for the upcoming season. Even if you are in a position where you can't offer exactly what they offer, you can take steps to emphasize the value you provide and focus on creating personalized experiences for all your guests.For example, you could personalize your marketing efforts by sharing testimonials and reviews from recent guests. You could share a few words from the captain or owner in the form of a short video, or put together a gallery of behind-the-scenes footage from one of your tours to share on social media sites. This sets you apart from the competition and can pique the interest of former customers who are planning their next trip.

10. Send a Thank You Card by Mail

Even though it's easy to connect with guests via social media and email in the digital age, stand apart from other businesses with an old-fashioned approach — sending a "thank you" card via snail mail. Saying thank you is a simple way to show your appreciation for the guest and you don't eve have to extend an offer or promote anything at this stage. The Leaky Bathtub points out that handwritten cards have maximum impact. The goal is to show you care and sincerely thank the guest for their visit. It's a personal touch that many travelers will appreciate and most importantly, will remember you for.From offering a referral bonus to connecting with guests on social media, there are several ways to generate more repeat customers for your tours and activities business. Use these tip and strategies to keep your booking calendar full season after season.

Traveler demands are evolving. Instead of spending a week lounging by the pool at a generic hotel, travelers increasingly want to experience their destination and the unique activities, food, people, and culture it has to offer.As the holidays are quickly approaching, there is no better time to discuss this trend, and how tour and activity operators can capitalize on it leading up to the season of gift giving.The desire for experiential purchases is growing. More and more, consumers prefer these over material purchases. In fact, 145 million Americans, or 62% of the U.S. adult population, would forgo physical presents for the gift of a trip, according to a spending and saving study from American Express. And on the flip side, another recent American Express survey found that 72 percent of adults would rather spend money on experiences than things.The demand for experiential travel rages onIt's all connected—the evolution of consumer preferences and the desire for deeper connections and experiences when they travel.The travel industry is seeing the trend develop. In a recent report from Skift on the growth of experiential travel, it's noted that the United States Tour Operator Association (USTOA) is seeing proof that today's travelers want more immersive experiences. In that same Skift report, it's also noted that a recent poll of American Express travel counselors showed that 34% said their clients are now “specifically looking to immerse themselves in the destinations they visit and to travel like a local."Travelers are looking for authenticity, and something more meaningful. They want cooking classes inside a local family's kitchen, private surf lessons on a secluded beach with an instructor who has spent their life riding those waves, an off-the-beaten-path tour of a unique neighborhood not found in their guidebooks. Through travel, they are seeking emotional connections with destinations and the people and cultures that inhabit them.

Through travel, they are seeking emotional connections with destinations and the people and cultures that inhabit them.

Travelers want these immersive experiences because making connections is increasingly what leads to a happier travel experience overall. According to a recent “Road to Happiness Study" looking at the connection between travel and happiness, one of the four key ingredients in having a happy travel experience is making a local connection. Another 78% of travelers said that on their best trips, they had either had a knowledgeable friend in the destination or a local guide.As it becomes more apparent through research and statistics that experiences like this result in a more enduring happiness, the demand for achieving this through travel grows. As the season of giving draws near, now is the time for tour and activity operators to make sure they're positioning themselves to capitalize on these trends and attract experience-seekers.Here are some tips to consider.

Evaluate your experiential offerings

Take a look at what you currently offer, and consider what may appeal to today's consumers who want more immersive experiences. Do you offer homestays, access to less-frequented locales, experiences in local villages, or behind-the-scenes jaunts to neighborhood shops or attractions? Do you employ local guides who are fiercely passionate about your niche? What sorts of truly unique opportunities do you provide for your customers?Experiential offerings should include opportunities for personalization and immersion. Instead of just sitting on the sidelines, travelers want the chance to jump in there and participate. Instead of just taking a ride in a gondola in Venice, they may rather take a lesson and learn how to operate one themselves.Think about how you can incorporate more localized, authentic, and unexpected elements into whatever it is you offer, providing opportunities for learning, growth, and stepping outside of comfort zones.

Market effectively to experience-seeking travelers

When you know what you offer that will speak to these travelers, you then need to promote those things in the places and ways that best speak to them.As the Millennial generation grows up, they will be leading the charge for experiential travel, and they engage in new and diverse ways. They are technologically savvy, and they want content, inspiration, and recommendations.A recent travel trends report from American Express notes that interest in authentic cultural experiences is at least in part being driven by social media in particular. The vast availability of images and content throughout social media showing other travelers experiencing desirable destinations and taking part in activities inspires people to get out there and plan their own travel experiences. And in general, increasing numbers of travelers are relying more than ever on digital inputs to make all sorts of travel decisions, according to a Google travel study.Tour and activity operators need to use digital channels like social media, blogs, email, and beyond to share information and inspire. Think about creating content that is compelling, readily available, and actionable, as well as emphasizing what you know is important to experience-seeking travelers – exploration, discovery, and authenticity.It's extremely important to make investments in digital promotion, technology, and tools that will help you draw these customers in and give them the experience they're looking for to convert.Strive to create a connection with consumers by building their anticipation before their experience, and then cultivating their fond memories afterwards. These feelings are often what make an experience more enjoyable and help to leave a more lasting impression—all extremely valuable for travel businesses.

Get creative with social media

Social media envy is real, and it's driving consumerism in new ways. But it's not enough to just be on social media and share some pretty photos every now and then. For the experience-seeking traveler, you need to get creative.Experiment with different types of posts and content and see what best results in your audience growing, and getting them to engage. As Expedia looked into travel advertising tends for 2015, they found that social and video would see the largest growth. Play around with video as a form of content to share throughout your social media channels in different ways.On top of that, you could experiment with content ranging from promotions, exclusive deals, or contests that promote your business and get people talking about it, content centered on light-hearted stories, travel tips, powerful and inspirational images, storytelling, and even showcasing and re-purposing user-generated content. Firsthand recommendations and influencer marketing via social media can have a huge impact, showing what you offer through the eyes of someone was has experienced it for themselves.But the most important thing to remember about social media is that it's all about engagement and cultivating a conversation. A recent survey of Twitter users found that 40% have engaged with a travel brand on Twitter, 28% of those users received a response, and of those, 73% felt more positively about the brand afterward. This is a huge opportunity for tour and activity operators to make sure you're encouraging engagement, responding authentically and constructively to interaction, and developing a positive relationship with this demographic.

Remind your audience that travel experiences make the perfect gifts

Put two and two together for consumers, and lead them to do what you already know many of them want to do.Get creative here and use content, email marketing, social media campaigns, promotions, and contests to prod them in the direction of purchasing experiences as gifts for the holidays this year. You can even use some of the statistics from this post as proof. They may know what they like and want to buy, but show them why their loved ones will love receiving experiential gifts as well.

Don't expect them to think of it on their own. Give them a little nudge, and keep reminding them.

The demand is there. People crave experiences, and the experiential travel market is hot. Evaluate and tweak your offerings if necessary, and then get creative in promoting them effectively this holiday season and beyond.

What a kick off to the summer season! With Memorial Day weekend fast approaching, Peek Pro wanted to make sure you were fully equipped to enter your peak season with all the tools necessary to make this your biggest year yet!That's why we brought together five industry experts for an online event to arm you with some useful tips from three awesome workshops.Check out the information below to find links to recordings and anything else you may have missed!

Session 1: How to Effectively Use Facebook Ads (on Any Budget) 

Chris Torres - Director, Tourism Marketing Agency

Our good friend Chris Torres gave a super tactical workshop showing you how to create an implement an effective Facebook ads strategy, including tips on what kind of ads to use, how to target effectively, how much to spend and what content really helps engage potential customers. This is stuff you can apply TODAY to start seeing results - not one to miss!Click here to watch the recording!

Session 2: Get More Customers, Scale Operations and Drive Profits in your Tour or Activity

Josh Oakes - Founder, The Sunshine Tribe & Kelsey Tonner - Founder, Be a Better Guide Project

Industry titans Josh Oakes and Kelsey Tonner are not short on experience. Having previously ran tours and worked as a guide respectively, their insights are super helpful to any tour operator not sure where to take their business next. In this session, they take us through a wealth of tips on how to effectively scale your operations, expand your reach and get back to doing the things you do best.Click here to watch the recording!

Session 3: What Gets People to Buy? 

Drew Renner - Former Operator and Tourism Business Coach & Samantha Hardcastle - Founder, Amore Social

This pair are a force to be reckoned with. Drew is a former tour operator and has used his vast experience to help other operators to get where they need to be with their business. Samantha is a social media marketing champion and encourages operators to share their story as a way to engage and attract customers. In this session, they go through some of the ways to stand out from the crowd and attract the customers that YOU want.Click here to watch the recording!