Marketing experts share how to promote your travel startup without burning through a pile of cash

There is no denying the fact that travel is hard to sell. Selling something intangible takes a lot of effort and usually there is a long way from inspiration to conversion. This is exactly why it is important to leave an impression that lasts and with the changing content consumption patterns, video is emerging to be a popular medium on social platforms.

Aashish Chopra, Head-Content Marketing at ixigo

During the recently concluded Travel Marketing Summit by TiE Delhi, social media marketing was the central topic. However, young startups often don’t have the budgets to spend on making high quality videos or getting onboard a creative agency to do so. Pradeep Chopra, CEO, Digital Vidya, Navneet Kaushal, CEO, PageTraffic and Aashish Chopra, Head-Content Marketing at ixigo engaged in a discussion on what are some of the best ways to get noticed without spending big. Here is what they had to share:

Think mobile

While there would still be a significant number of people who are booking on desktop, the inspiration to travel comes on mobile. New internet users in smaller cities usually have low end devices. Facebook and WhatsApp are their entry point to the internet world and you should explore the possibility of connecting with your customers there.

Navneet Kaushal, CEO, PageTraffic

It is also important to tailor your content to mobile devices. Brands still make the mistake of using smaller fonts that aren’t legible. Even for videos, marketers should be looking at square format as portrait video is a trend catching up momentum.

Dig into the options

During the early days, it is often better to target a small number of customers than a bigger set of customers who might not be the perfect fit. With the massive volume of consumer data they have, social media platforms and search engines offer very precise targeting options which you should leverage. The right customers will speak for your brand and people trust something coming from their friends more than they would trust an ad. Even beyond the ads, work hard to over-deliver on your promise to build this set of loyal customers who will be your advocates.

Pradeep Chopra, CEO, Digital Vidya

Distribution is the key

While creating the content, account for how you will distribute it. Think of why someone would want to share it and try to induce elements that would drive shares. Keep your audience in mind and build distribution channels accordingly. If you videos are being shared on Facebook, engage with communities there and give them more of your content over time.

Experiment

Don’t take the beaten path. To stand out, you will have to experiment with a dozen things, look at the data, iterate and then run a new set of experiments to see what works. Taking the usual route would never help you go viral, experimenting with new things just might. Look at other markets to see what works and try to create content that connects through emotion or humour

Find the right people

Instead of spending on the costliest of resources, look around for the resources at your disposal and make things work. Set up the team with people who have the passion to do big things, put trust in young talent and you might achieve great results at a fraction of the cost.

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