In this article, Tour Operator Alan Rust shares his major takeaways from the virtual FoodTreX conference.
- Travelers are now interested in family traditions, customs and recipes. Historic cooking techniques and local celebrations are some examples of growing interests in North America. I need to think through how we can include local traditions in our tour content as well as how to share that in blogs or social shares.
- We know that travelers will be driving and discovering locations closer to home probably through much of 2021. There was discussion that locals may not want to pay the same tour price that visitors pay using their vacation funds. The idea I liked was to create a new unique tour for local residents that is at a lower price without discounting a standard tour experience. The special tour content may introduce guests to places that aren’t widely known, introduce a local chef/celebrity or include a visit to a place that isn’t easily accessed. Our company had sales to locals with our theme tours but I think there are other ideas we can offer to make tours customized for our local guests.
- The big takeaway is that Pinterest is more valuable than Instagram. I have noticed that we don’t get many actual leads from Instagram so I created Pinterest for our brands a couple weeks ago. You can view one of our brands @NebraskaTourCompany. There are some very exciting reasons why we should shift effort to this visual platform:
- Pinterest Pins are searchable on Google while Instagram posts are not which means you can use image descriptions for SEO.
- You can add external links on Pinterest. I have added tour and blog post images to Pinterest Boards with direct links to our site.
- Pinterest users actively search to buy products and services.
- Viewers can easily share posts or Pins with their friends and followers which isn’t easy to do on Instagram.
- Pinterest viewers have proven to be more brand loyal.
Connect with me on LinkedIn @AlanRRust and share your FoodTreX takeaways or ideas that this list inspires for your business future.
“I realized I had captured a few interesting topics that I hadn’t thought a lot about and will use them as action points in the coming months.“
Alan Rust, America Tour company