Five Roadblocks to Increasing Bookings and Growing Your Experience Offerings

Is more traffic really the answer? Five reports reveal other obstacles that could be getting in the way of your success

Reading Time: 5 minutes 30 seconds

More exposure. More traffic. More ad-spend. For some at the beginning stages of their business with a viable experience offering, it makes sense to put some money into growing awareness. But most established businesses have thousands of website and Google listing visitors every month. So what’s the answer for them?

Convincing those thousands of people that your experience, activity, tour or attraction is the right one for them – that is where the real challenge lies. And it’s not just about having really compelling copy and amazing photos (although that does help immensely, as you’ll see in a bit).

Before you throw more money at advertising, influencers, and promotions this year, let’s explore some of the key reasons the bookings aren’t coming in as consistently as you may like. These are the roadblocks to success that threaten to constantly get in your way as you grow. Don’t let them!

1. You’re focused on filling potholes and not on creating defining moments

Research shows that we spend 80% of our time looking for and trying to fix problems and just 20% of our time trying to make good things better. What if we reversed those numbers? What if you spent less time trying to put out fires and more time on making your experience irresistible?

Focusing on making OK or good experiences better can lead to 9x higher revenue returns, according to the same study by Forrester. That means for every $1 of return realized by filling potholes, business could gain $9 return by building and refining defining, remarkable moments.

This priority shift in itself can spell the difference between a mediocre year and a banner year. No ad-spend required. Not to mention, how good would it feel to stop reacting to every single complaint and start pouring your energy into creating an experience with impact?

2. You’re not meeting the (deeper) needs of travelers

47% of people surveyed say they didn’t make a booking online when they intended to because it didn’t meet their needs, according to a study by Google and Bain & Co. That means nearly HALF of people who really want to book something are walking away disappointed because experience hosts are missing what really matters.

In the same study, customers in the U.S. who booked because a raw need was met were willing to pay up to 15% more for their bookings. These needs are more than just the tangible functional features of your experience. It’s not the free wifi or the free branded water bottle that people are booking for.

Don’t lose half your web and listing visitors because you’re focusing on the wrong needs. Start thinking about the needs of travelers beyond the functional. What are the emotional and life changing elements of your experience that you can focus your marketing efforts on?

ATTEND AN ARIVAL EVENT

Join us at an upcoming Arival event to connect, learn, & grow your tours, activities, & attractions business

See all events

3. Your experience is lacking in meaning and cultural connection

Travelers want their experience providers to have an active role in making their trip more meaningful. In fact, 87% of travelers surveyed by Siteminder would appreciate it if their host enabled them to learn more about the culture and history of the destination — and that’s just for accommodations, imagine how they feel about tours and activities themselves! 

This statistic points to a very real desire for cultural connection. And yet, many experiences continue to just skim the surface of a place. It’s a small percentage of operators that are creating opportunities for the traveler to be truly immersed into the authentic, local way of life. In many destinations there is still a strong divide between the tourist and the local.

Keep your travelers safe but break the bubble that separates them from the world they’ve traveled so far to experience. No one wants to feel like an outside spectator when they travel, so start thinking of ways to create more culturally interactive and meaningful moments for your guests.

4. Your wellbeing initiatives are lackluster, misaligned, or non-existent

In a recent study by American Express, 76% of survey respondents agree that they want to spend more on travel to improve their wellbeing, 68% are likely to base their next vacation around improving their mental wellbeing, and 55% say they would be willing to pay extra for wellness activities on future vacations.

And yet, most experiences I see fall into one of two buckets: they are either (1) still focused purely on the entertainment value of an experience or (2) going to the extreme ends of wellness that only resonate with a small percent of people.

Finding the right place on the wellbeing spectrum is key for creating an experience that appeals to the millions of people who are looking to flourish with the help of travel. If you aren’t positioning your experience with some sort of wellbeing angle, you’re going to be missing out on a large segment of travelers who are really prioritizing it!

ATTEND AN ARIVAL EVENT

Join us at an upcoming Arival event to connect, learn, & grow your tours, activities, & attractions business

See all events

5. You’re failing to communicate the value of your experience

Now we get into the place most marketing companies start – improving your communication and bookability. One of Arival’s latest reports, The 2023 Experiences Traveler, shares some of the most important factors in improving your bookability, the #1 being: tour descriptions. 

Creating a truly compelling activity description will feel very difficult if you ignore all the insights shared above. Because you can only embellish your description so much – it all comes down to the experience you are creating. The more magical your experience, the more magical your marketing!

Emphasizing the defining moments, the meaningful cultural stories, and the wellbeing value of your experience within the descriptions of your tours, activities or attractions will help you sell your experiences with ease in 2023. But if you already have a solid description, good photos, you’re getting thousands of views every month, you have online booking capabilities, and you’re still not getting booked up — the problem likely lies in one of the obstacles above.

Go Deeper and Remove Your Roadblocks to Growth

What else can you do to remove roadblocks to increasing bookings and growing your company? Knowledge is power: learn more about why travelers choose one experience over another

Also, join us in Arival 360 | Berlin for three days of industry learning, peer-to-peer connections and leading insights from thought leaders, so you walk away with practical strategies that position your business for success in an always changing landscape.

Become an Insider Pro Access member today and get access to the full library of Arival research, plus many other benefits such as free consulting sessions, special discounts and 20% off in-person events, starting from $179 per year.

This article originally appeared on The Storied Experience

GET ON THE LIST!

Sign up to receive insights tailored for the in-destination industry as well as updates on Arival.

Sign Up

Header photo: Chris Yang / Unsplash

trending

already a member?

Lost your password?

NEED TO REGISTER?

Become an Arival Insider
THE ARIVAL INSIDER PRO ACCESS MEMBERSHIP; YOU GET ALL THIS TO HELP YOU ADVANCE YOUR BUSINESS.

Included in Free Membership

Included in Arival Pro Membership

The Arival on-demand video library archive
Access to the entire library of over 150 video sessions and webinars

Arival.guides
Short, digestible research & trends reports delivering insights into our industry, such as The Tour Operator Outlook for 2021.

Arival.travel articles
Topical articles about marketing, tech, operator business and operator stories in all areas of tours, activities & attractions & experiences

Job board access
Find a job from our regular listings, post a resume to the talent network and learn strategies from the job resources articles

New webinars
Helpful, instructional sessions covering subjects such as Mastering Facebook Ads, Grow Your Business and How To Work With OTAs — topics to help advance your business.

Discounts on all Arival in-person events
20% Discount on all Arival in-person events (save up to $300)* based on business type

Arival ProShield – Insurance program
Access to tailored insurance solutions by Granite Insurance is available exclusively for Arival Insider Pro Access Members. Insider Pro Access Members also have access to a suite of resources from Granite Insurance including templates, forms and other informative documents.

Insiders Pro Access member exclusive webinars
Paid membership-only webinars to deepen your understanding of important industry topics.

Job postings & talent directory
Post jobs & connect with candidates most applicable to your business.

Private roundtables to connect, learn and engage
Small, focused and intimate discussions exclusive to Arival Insider Pro Access members.

Full access to Arival’s library of in-depth reports
Up to date, deep analysis of tourism topics ranging from Self-guided Tours to Sales & Distribution Trends and Outlooks, based on the data that defines the industry.

The latest on-demand videos
Over 350+ on-demand videos featuring hot topics in tours, activities & attractions

Insider discounts in digital marketing, tech, e-learning, and more
Save money on additional tools, services and learnings you need to run your business. Exclusive to paid members.

Membership Overview
ARIVAL CODE OF CONDUCT​
CONFERENCES AND COMMUNITY SPACES​

At Arival, we believe travel can make the world a better place. Our mission is to establish and inspire a diverse community of individuals and companies in the In-destination Industry by providing opportunities to gain insight, share knowledge and build connections. To make it possible for true collaboration, creativity, innovation, and idea exchange to thrive, we are committed to facilitating a welcoming and respectful community for all. This Conference Code of Conduct shares our community expectations and applies to all attendees, employees, exhibitors, speakers, sponsors, volunteers, and other participants at Arival- produced and sponsored events. We empower all participants in our community to actively engage in creating a friendly, inclusive and safe environment for all.

Arival’s core values include the following, and create an expectation for conduct at our events and in online community spaces:

We demonstrate a deep respect for human beings inside and outside our company and for the communities in which they live.
We value integrity and strive to consistently interact with others in ways that are authentic, ethical, and fair.
We are dedicated to transparency, committing to clear, open and honest communication.
We actively pursue and advocate for inclusion, diversity and representation of varying cultural backgrounds, perspectives and ideas

Arival welcomes people from all cultural backgrounds, and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, creed, gender (including pregnancy, perceived pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, or related medical conditions), gender identity, religion (including religious dress and grooming), marital status, domestic partner status, genetic information, age, national origin or ancestry, military or veteran status, sexual orientation, physical or mental disability, or any other basis protected by federal, state, or local laws.

Accordingly, participants must refrain from displaying any demeaning, harassing, aggressive, or intimidating behavior or materials that would interfere with others’ experience and participation in our community.

If you witness or are subjected to inappropriate or disruptive behavior or have any other concerns, notify an Arival staff member as soon as possible.

Inappropriate or disruptive behavior will not be tolerated. Arival reserves the right to refuse entry to or remove any party from any event or community space at any time when participation or behavior create a disruption or hinder the event or enjoyment of the event by other participants. All determinations are at the sole discretion of Arival, and the decision of the Arival team will be final. Severe breaches of this Conference Code of Conduct may result in disqualification from participating in future events. Individuals expelled due to violating this Conference Code of Conduct will not be eligible for a refund or other consolation.

If you have questions regarding this Conference Code of Conduct or its implementation, please contact us at [email protected].