Top 5 Ways to Use Social Media for Your Travel Agency

The world at your fingertips

When it comes to offering “likable” content on social media, travel agents honestly have it really, really easy. You are knowledgeable about an appealing product that people are actively researching online. Your industry is constantly changing, providing you with fresh, travel-related content your followers want to see.

Imagine if you were in the business of selling home air filters (no offense if you also sell air filters). What would you share? “Here’s a fun picture of an air filter! And here’s another air filter, but this one allergy-reducing!” Many industries are pretty limited in what they can do with their social media platforms. If you’re in the travel business, you have the whole world to work with! You can talk about current events, beautiful destinations, travel tips, trip planning, food, culture…you name it!

5 Ways to Use Social Media for Your Travel Agency

But with so many topics to choose from, how do you narrow it down and create a focused social strategy? Your first step is to define your goals. Why are you using social media and what are you trying to accomplish? If you’re just shooting in the dark, you might expect a lot of energy with little return for your effort. So how can you effectively use Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram to build your business?

Here are a few easy ways you can use social media for your travel agency:

1. Communicating updates

Using your social media accounts to communicate updates is one of the first and easiest ways to get your platforms off the ground. Whether you’re offering a promotional deal or alerting clients about a travel advisory, it’s a quick way to get the word out! There are a few caveats you should keep in mind with this one.

• Don’t rely on social media alone.
  Not all of your clients are following your Facebook page. When communicating critical alerts to your travelers, it’s important that you use social media as a supplemental form of communication to alerts you’ve already shared on your website or through email.
• Don’t limit your page to updates.
  Look back at your Facebook or Twitter history. Is your content limited to weather advisories and alerts about your office’s holiday hours? Yawn! Make sure the majority of your content is applicable to clients who aren’t currently traveling or you will start to lose followers.

2. Driving traffic to your website

Your social media platforms should ultimately serve to drive followers to your website. That is where the real business begins. Before you even begin to work on your social media strategy, make sure you have a great website for your traffic to land on. If your website is hard to navigate, or not mobile-friendly, you will lose your audience within seconds. Once you’ve made the necessary updates, add your link to your “about” or “bio” section on all of your platforms. You can also drive traffic to your website by keeping a consistent blog and sharing your blog posts on your social pages.

3. Getting feedback

You can create fun, engaging content while getting great feedback on your clients’ travel needs and goals. Try polls, short surveys, or comment to win contests to boost your engagement. Stuck on what to ask? Here are a few ideas:

• What is one travel experience you wish you could relive?
• Where would you go if you could go anywhere?
• What’s the most unusual thing you’ve eaten while abroad?
• What’s one thing you can’t travel without?
• Would you rather splurge on food, entertainment, or your hotel while traveling?

4. Sharing clients’ travel experiences

If you do your social media well, it’s a great tool to draw new clients to your social pages and eventually to your website. Sharing photos from your current clients’ travel experiences is an easy way to do this! It works like a testimonial, showcasing your customer’s satisfaction with a trip that you helped plan and book. As a bonus, your clients will be excited to re-share photos of themselves you post from your page. Just be sure to ask permission before sharing anything!

5. Inspiring wanderlust

This is the fun part. And the internet is practically begging you for this content. Assume your followers are stuck in line at the DMV, staring out the window on a cold, wet day, or browsing their phone trying to fall asleep at night. What’s the one thing we all want to see? Travel inspiration!

We want to see glistening, white sand beaches, exotic spices markets, and foreign skylines at sunset. Human beings have a natural drive to see and do things they never have before. Tap into that innate, insatiable “longing to go,” and then make sure your followers know you can help them get there!

Not sure how to create travel-related content your followers will actually enjoy? Check out these ideas!