Fill Up Empty Seats for Your Tours, Use the Right Agents and Real-Time Availability

If you are not filling 100% of your capacity, then you don’t have enough distribution partners. By partnering with agents and enticing them to resell your tours and activities for a favorable commission rate, you can send out all of your tours at capacity. Full tours generate maximum profits for you, so it’s pivotal that you find a way to improve your distribution network. Here’s 3 things you need to know in order to fill up more seats.

Utilize Online Travel Agencies (OTAs)

Large travel sites such as Expedia, Viator and GetYourGuide dominate the market, in a sense. They have endless marketing resources and are likely to beat out your tour company website in any search engine results. Instead of trying to compete against the large OTAs, you should work with them. List your products on OTA websites and allow OTAs to sell your products for a commission. They have access to a much larger audience than you do, and their reach extends to all corners of the globe. This is an ideal way to improve your brand presence online and generate last-minute bookings for your tours.

Work with Local Hotels

The concierges who work at local hotels are known for their expertise when it comes to recommending tour companies, restaurants and other activities in the area. In order to create a successful partnership with the hotels in your area, you need to offer them a channel manager that features live availability. If they can’t see exactly what is available at any time of the day, they won’t be booking your tours for their guests. With real-time availability, they can book your tours at any time of day. Soon, they will come to find that your company is reliable and is a convenient option for them to recommend to their guests. In addition, they earn a commission when they book your tours and activities, so it’s a mutually-beneficial partnership.

Advertise on Category Websites

If your tours and activities are directed at a niche audience, be sure to advertise in the places where your potential customers will find you. For example, if you run a diving school that offers adventure tours and activities, you should be placing ads online where they can be most effective. You can partner with diving blogs and diving gear shops in order to advertise your tours. In addition, you can partner with these entities in order to allow their site visitors to book your tours directly from their websites. The shop owners and bloggers will be willing to help you out, especially considering the fact that they can earn a commission for each booking they generate. By creating these partnerships, you not only extend your reach within your niche industry, but you are able to uncover distribution channels that lead to motivated, interested customers.

To find out more information about connecting with agents and maximizing your bookings, download our distribution ebook today.