Six Affordable B2B Marketing Strategies for Tour Operators

Tour operators looking for affordable B2B marketing strategies—get in line. Reaching the rest of the travel trade as well as consumers is a constant battle as businesses worldwide clamor for attention.

While trade shows and other investments may be too steep for some budgets, it’s good to know that there are affordable options. Here, all in one place, are the most cost-effective and most affordable B2B marketing strategies that tour operators must consider to reach the travel advisors and consumers they need.

1. Form Strategic Content Partnerships

Travel trade marketing conjures up images of trade magazines and other traditional outlets—but content has evolved. A lot. It’s time to form partnerships with local influencers, bloggers, or tourism boards to create engaging content that showcases the unique experiences offered by your tour packages. 

Through these partnerships, tour operators can tap into the existing audiences already built by these new partners, increasing visibility and brand awareness. For tour operators that cater to specific niches like multi-generational  travelers or LGBTQ+ travelers, this strategy is particularly effective in connecting with travel advisors and their clients.

2. Build Exclusive Agent Webinars and Training

An affordable B2B marketing tactic that’s increasingly popular, webinars and online training sessions are an easy solution to connecting with the travel advisors you want on your side. Offer exclusive chances to educate them about tour offerings and selling packages through you to create awareness and fidelity. Partner with tourism boards on these training to highlight insights into the destinations alongside your own packages and recommendations for agents.

It’s also the opportunity to provide valuable insights into what your business can provide, including any timely concerns or recent additions to offerings that they wouldn’t discover through a cursory online search.

3. Tailor Consortia and Association Promotions

Travel trade professionals respond well to customized marketing approaches, and travel consortia are no exception. Without investing too much money, a tour operator can market to large groups of travel advisors through exclusive promotions and packages for travel consortia.

Incentivize advisors to choose your company and packages over competitors as you build relationships with select consortia. Be sure to highlight the perks of partnerships with you, including commission structures and marketing support that will give you an edge over other package providers.

If it’s too expensive to tap into a consortium, tour operators can consider working with a destination who is already in a group like Virtuoso. Collaborate on a familiarization trip and get your tour operator’s name in front of eager sellers without accessing the consortium directly. There are also many associations that offer more affordable opportunities to engage with large groups of advisors in the same way, depending on your budget.

4. Target Businesses via Social Media Campaigns

Any affordable marketing strategy must include a presence on social media. Specifically, tour operators need to use platforms like LinkedIn to run targeted B2B marketing campaigns to showcase how you create and provide the experiences that travel advisors seek for their clients. Social media campaigns need to be part of the conversion funnel to generate awareness.

Social media provides endless possibilities to curate content, including success stories, client testimonials, and behind-the-scenes content that strengthens trust and relationships between a tour operator and potential partners. Consider adding a platform to any social media campaign allowing advisors to customize their itineraries with their own names easily.

Cost can vary significantly, but the beauty of social media is that you can benefit from it with little financial investment upfront.

5. Highlight Offerings via Email Marketing

In addition to social media, a deceptively simple email marketing campaign can work wonders for tour operators seeking affordable B2B marketing strategies. A targeted marketing strategy provides recipients—travel advisors, potential clients, etc.—with everything they need to sell your packages, from visuals and selling points to links to other promotions and marketing strategies listed in this post.

Keep your mailing list up to date and find the right cadence to send out newsletters, promotional emails, and offers that will keep you top of mind across the travel trade.

6. Create a Digital Resource Hub

While all of these tactics are effective, it’s also wise for tour operators to have one repository where travel advisors can go to find what they need without having to comb through old social media posts. Adding a digital resource hub to your company’s website is the solution.

Building a dedicated hub for travel trade professionals ensures that they will have the information, high quality images, video content, and other assets needed to sell your experiences to clients. Just ensure the hub is user-friendly, regularly updated, and accessible. 

Strong working relationships between tour operators and travel advisors don’t have to come at a high cost. Get in touch with Vanessa Gonzalez-Hernandez at vanessa.gonzalez-hernandez@aboutdci.com to learn how DCI can help you create affordable B2B marketing strategies for your business.