Online Travel Business

Below is an interview I did for Entrepreneur Magazine on how to start an online travel business.

What type of marketing research should an entrepreneur wanting to launch an online travel business do in advance?

The first thing I recommend an online travel business does is to choose one or two popular niche travel markets they want to specialize in, such as France, England, Brazil, Costa Rica, New Zealand, major US Cities, etc. To try and compete directly with large established online travel services is very difficult unless you have incredibly deep pockets. The best way to build a successful online travel business is to be the #1 specialist for very specific travel location. This is known as niche marketing.

Before choosing specific travel locations, you will want to do research to find out what travel destinations are most popular. A great website for researching the world’s top tourist destinations is the World Tourism Organization website found at http://www.unwto.org.


Do you have some quick start-up ideas for someone wanting to launch a travel business?

The first thing to do is to research and choose a niche market. This is the most important thing you can do. Then, become a specialist at that market. For example, let’s say you decide you want to become an authority on vacations to Mexico. You should travel there and learn about the culture and the tourist hotspots. Once you have decided that Mexico is the niche market you want to pursue, then you need to create travel packages. Consumers want one stop shopping and the easier you can make their life by handling all travel arrangements such as booking airline tickets, hotels, car rental, getting tickets for entertainment, etc., the easier you make it for your customers.


Keeping in mind that a majority of the readers will be budget-conscious, what are some internet marketing strategies that you would recommend?

Now that you have chosen the niche market you want to pursue, your next job is to create a website. Your website should be attractive and have a lot of pictures. It should also contain very strong sales text that excites people about the amazing travel packages you offer and why you are the best service in the world to use. The job of a website is to sell, so make your sales pitch as powerful as you possibly can. Make sure to include your contact information on every page (phone and email). Also, list any customer testimonials you have. People want social proof that they can trust you and having testimonials from happy customers is the best way to accomplish that.

The most powerful Internet marketing strategies I recommend are as follows:

1. Setup a Google AdWords pay-per-click advertising campaign (http://adwords.google.com/). This service allows you to bid on specific keywords that people search for so when they search on a specific search term, such as “mexico beach vacations”, which just happens to be searched on over 3,000 times every single day, your website is displayed in the “sponsored links” results in the right hand column of Google. To learn how to create successful Google AdWords advertising campaigns, I highly recommend you purchase the ebook, “The Definitive Guide to Google AdWords” at www.perrymarshall.com. Buying this $49 ebook will be one of the smartest investments you will ever make in building a successful online travel business. Once you have created a successful Google AdWords advertising campaign, you should create a Yahoo pay-per-click advertising campaign by going to http://sem.smallbusiness.yahoo.com/searchenginemarketing/

Then, create an MSN (Bing) pay-per-click advertising campaign by going to http://advertising.microsoft.com/ad-programs

2. Perform search engine optimization on your website so you are listed in the top 10 results on Google, Yahoo, and MSN for your most popular search terms. So, for example, if you specialize in Mexico beach vacations, you would want to have your website listed on the first page of the natural search results when a person searches on “Mexico beach vacations”. As search engine optimization is a complicated and long-term marketing strategy, I highly recommend you hire a search engine optimization firm to perform this service for you, or you study books on how to get top ten search engine rankings. A great website for learning about search engine optimization is http://www.highrankings.com/seo-resources.

3. Write 1-page 600 word articles on traveling to the location you specialize in and post your articles on article distribution websites such as www.ezinearticles.com and www.isnare.com. This will get your articles posted on many websites and help send traffic to your website. It also shows that you are an expert on that specific travel location, and people want to do business with an expert. So, try to write at least two articles each month and post them on those article distribution websites. Please note that when you write these articles, they should not be advertising or promotions for your business in the article itself. Instead, these should be “how to” type articles or general interest articles. For example, an idea for an article could be the top 10 beaches of Mexico, or why Beach XYZ is Mexico’s best family beach. Then, in the about the author section of your article, list your name, your business name, and your website address.

4. Write press releases on exciting news about traveling to the destination you specialize in such as why traveling to Mexico makes a great family vacation or The Secret Beaches of Mexico. Or, if you have done something very special such as making it far easier or safer for people tor travel by using your services, write a press release. When you write a press release, your press release as a new story to excite the media into wanting to contact you and interview you for articles. Think of a press release as a news teaser to grab the interest of reporters. Press releases are a great way to get free publicity and to make yourself viewed as a top expert in your field. One of the best places to post your press releases is www.prweb.com. I recommend posting at least one press release per month. You should also fax your press release to travel magazines. For more information on how to write a great press release, I recommend you go to http://www.publicityhound.com.


How effective do you think offline marketing would be, such as direct mail or print ads?

Offline marketing can be of value if it is done repetitively. However, as it is much more expensive, I recommend that you first do everything you can with Internet marketing before diving into offline marketing.

When you do decide to perform offline marketing, you want to choose a niche market that you know travels and that can afford to travel. You can post small ads in travel magazines and airline magazines and you can send direct mail to the subscribers of those magazines. A great place to get quality lists for direct mail campaigns is Best Mailing Lists at http://www.bestmailing.com .


Any trends or statistics in the travel industry or internet marketing that you would like to comment on?

The Internet has become the #1 place people turn to when researching vacation destinations and purchasing travel packages. As an online travel business, you need to do everything you can to make sure when people are searching for the travel destination you specialize in, your website is found! This is done with Search Engine Optimization, Pay Per Click Advertising Campaigns on Google, Yahoo, and MSN, writing articles (1-2 per month or more), and sending out at least one news-based press release every month.

To Your Success!

Peter Geisheker, CEO
The Geisheker Group marketing firm
(920) 471-1638
"We don't help you compete, we help you dominate!"