POV: Operators’ Digital Marketing Gap

Tour, activity and attraction operators have a social media problem. Not the “spending too much time on social media” kind of problem. Rather, operators may be spending their time and resources on the wrong social media channels. 

According to the latest Arival data, the digital marketing channels operators are focusing most of their efforts on are no longer the same channels travelers — younger travelers in particular — are using to discover, research, and plan their trips and experiences. 

The findings come from two separate research studies: The 2024 U.S. Experiences Traveler, based on a survey of 1,000 U.S. travelers, and The Global Operator Landscape (3rd Ed.), based on a survey of over 7,000 operators worldwide. 

For the latest Arival report, Getting Direct: The State of Digital Marketing, we compared data from these two studies to see if the marketing efforts of operators align with the consumers they are trying to reach — and discovered a significant gap.

The Operator-Traveler Marketing Gap

According to this latest Arival report, operators are focusing most of their social media marketing efforts on Instagram and Facebook, while younger travelers are showing a preference for short-form social video app TikTok, with YouTube close behind. 

While Google is still the most commonly used search channel among younger travelers, it is in a statistical tie with TikTok. This short-form social video channel is already challenging Google for the top spot, as industry leaders discussed during the hot topics session at Arival 360 | San Diego. 

Yet operators ranked TikTok and YouTube among their least effective — and least used — marketing channels. Why is that?

One of the challenges with social video is it can be more difficult to connect marketing efforts on these channels with traditional success metrics like clicks, website visits and bookings, especially when compared to the very measurable ad spend tracking methods Google offers. 

However, not knowing how to measure something is not a good enough reason not to use it, especially if it’s as integral to the discovery and planning phase of travel as the survey data shows. It is a good reason to rethink how to measure the impact of social media marketing efforts — as an example, travel influencer Ravi Roth offers some insights on measuring engagement here.

For operators, this data should be a wake-up call to reevaluate your marketing strategy, particularly if you want to reach younger travelers. Learn more about TikTok and Instagram strategies, and get some tips on mastering video content in travel. As the time-honored marketing adage goes, don’t push people to where you want to be; meet them where they are.

And where are they? Louder for the people in the back… on TikTok!

Learn More with Arival Research

Learn more about digital marketing and experience operators in the latest report from Arival’s Global Operator Landscape (3rd Ed.) study. Exclusively available to Insider Pro Access members, access the in-depth report on The State of Digital Marketing here.

Get the full Arival experience by joining us at an upcoming Arival event, and hear the latest research insights and tips on digital marketing for the experiences sector directly from tours, activities and attractions industry leaders and experts. 

Header photo: Pexels / Cottonbro Studio