Travel Influencer MarketingHow Grassroots Marketing with Influencers is Becoming the Most Effective Method to Build
Interest In Your Destination or Tourism Product
Al ChenCo-Founder, Cooperatize
@bigal123
What You’ll Learn Today1. Digital Influencers2. Why Influencer Marketing?3. Identifying the Right Influencers4. Questions to Ask5. Always-On Strategy6. Why Influencers Matter For Your
Destination or Tourism Product
The Good ‘Ol Days
New Kids On The Block
Traditional vs. Digital
Source: l2thinktank.com
What Are Digital Influencers?• Independent & creative
• Trustworthy• Tech savvy
Source: l2thinktank.com
Why Influencer Marketing?
Marketers no longer control the consumer journey.(Unless you are Coke or GEICO)
Social Media Channels? Nope.Better Ads & Content? Nope.
Stuff Consumer Wants to Hear Coming From Influencers They
Trust.
By The Numbers
90%% of
Americans who ignore digital ads
0.04%Click-
Through Rate on
display ads
40%Wasted ad dollars on websites
viewed by millennials using ad
block
It’s Not Working.
Chocolate World
Identifying Influencers#chocolate
The “Right” InfluencerAustralian Family Who Loves to Travel
You Can’t Have It AllAt our focus group on online
dating in Manhattan, Derek got on OkCupid and let us watch as he went through his options. These were women whom OkCupid had selected as potential matches for him based on his profile and the site’s algorithm. The first woman he clicked on was very beautiful, with a witty profile page, a good job and lots of shared interests, including a love of sports. After
looking the page over for a minute or so, Derek said, “Well, she
looks O.K. I’m just gonna keep looking for a while.”
The “Perfect” Influencer
Deal Breakers:Category/Topical
DemographicLifestage
Distribution ChannelsCost
Nice to Haves:Engagement
Aesthetic/DesignPrevious Experience
FrequencyPersonal Relationship
Questions to AskTo Your Team:
1) What is the business objective?2) What existing marketing strategy or
content can I leverage?3) Do it myself or hire a company?
To Your Influencer:4) What topics would excite your audience?5) What distribution channels will you use?6) What type of results should I expect?
Bigger Is Not Always Better
The smaller the community, the greater the influence and more likely the audience has the ability to buy.
Always-On Strategy• Travelers are asking questions in their own
buying cycles• As they form opinions, your destination
needs to be a part of that conversation naturally
Reuse, Recycle, Repurpose
Generate Demand By The Traveler• 80% of tourism boards
consider adventure travel its own sector
• Consumers shifting away from material possessions to experiences
• Safe and affordable• Social media gives
travelers a taste before they go