SEO for Travel Industry Marketing

Search engine optimisation (SEO) should be a core component of any travel industry marketing plan. The Internet has changed travel marketing more than any almost any other market category. Each day there are millions of consumers making highly targeted searches for travel, accommodation, hospitality and leisure solutions via the search engines. Search engines are therefore the ultimate direct marketing channel for hotels, airlines, online travel agents and tour operators. Travel SEO is the key online marketing tool to unlock that potential.

Travel SEO in Perspective

With few exceptions, travel SEO is the most valuable tool for gaining access to targeted consumers on the Internet. A high ranking position for a key search term can bring large numbers of high value consumers to your travel website.

Google SEO                Yahoo                Bing SEO

Travel Industry Marketing

Travel marketing has been transformed by search engine marketing. Within the field of travel distribution, the roles of travel principal, tour operator and travel agent are now indistinguishable to the typical consumer. The consumer searches on Google, Yahoo and Bing based on a travel or hospitality need and reviews the results that are presented regardless of the ownership or apparent role within the travel distribution chain.

One option is pay per click advertising. But a complete reliance on PPC means higher costs of customer attraction. Search engine optimisation, even in a basic form, will reduce those costs by diluting the cost of paid search traffic.

A well structured SEO campaign could lead to the vast proportion of customers being acquired via organic search. Travel SEO has therefore become the most critical marketing tool for communicating with the new travel consumer.

Travel Clients

Simply Clicks has worked on a wide range of travel industry SEO, PPC management and search marketing training programmes since 2004. This includes:

  • Completely Croatia - Specialist tour operator for Croatia holidays.
  • Skylord - Specialist in India Visas and travel to Asia.
  • Travelbag - Specialist for flights to Australia and New Zealand.
  • Adventure Base - Catered chalet operator in Chamonix
  • Hotel des Deux Domaines - a French Ski Hotel in La Plagne.
  • The Falstaff - One of the most prominent Canterbury hotels.
  • Le Casacce - A private Tuscan holiday resort in Italy.
  • Starwood Hotels - Italian Luxury hotels.
  • Global Travel - Caribbean holidays.
  • Go Travel - Dubai luxury holidays.
  • Cha-am Villas - A private villa complex in Hua Hin, Thailand.
  • The George in Rye - One of the leading hotels in Rye, Sussex.
  • The Glenlo Abbey Hotel - A prestigious 5 star hotel in Galway, Ireland.
  • The Zetter Hotel - A London boutique hotel in Clerkenwell.
  • The Pass - A specialist Group Travel magazine.
  • Goodwood Travel - Specialists in events such as the Monaco Grand Prix.

Simply Clicks and Travel Marketing

Simply Clicks is led by David Burdon. David has a background in senior level travel industry marketing stretching back to the early 1990s. His travel marketing experience includes Stena Line, where he was responsible for building a retail brand leader in ferry travel and motoring holidays, and Cosmos Holidays, where he created the Somewhere2stay brand. The latter became a £40 million turnover standalone business.

David has spoken on SEO, PPC and social media at several travel industry marketing events. These include Eye4travel, the Travel Technology Initiative (TTI), CIMTIG (the Chartered Institute of Marketing Travel Industry Group), Group Travel Organiser, Smile Hotel Conference, Dublin and the Travel Technology Show. He has appeared twice at the Global Travel Group Conference, in 2011 and 2012, speaking on Travel Agency SEO at the Global Travel Group Conference in Chester in March 2012. A pdf presentation can be found here: Global Travel Presentation.