Ever since Facebook was launched in 2004, travel companies have used it as a way of promoting their brand. In the past, airlines lowered ticket prices, hotels offered room upgrades and even car rental companies lowered prices for consumers who booked their trip using popular social media website. However, a recent report has recently revealed that Facebook isn't as popular as it once was when it comes to making travel reservations.
L2 Think Tank, an organization that provides consumers with information related to the digital world, reported that 76 percent of the brands that once let people book their vacation or business trip on Facebook in 2012 has fallen to 52 percent this year. The company that conducted the study also concluded that consumer traffic from Facebook has also dropped 3 percent so far in 2013.
One of the reasons for these possible drops is because businesses in the travel industry have become increasingly focused on building a brand that doesn't use in-your-face sale attempts. A conversational tone and softer sell has proved to be more effective.
''The success of a booking app comes down to the company and how they engage their customers on Facebook,'' Facebook's Head of Travel Lee McCabe told travel news website Skift. ''If the travel brand is focused first on connecting with, engaging and influencing interested users on Facebook, then success is likely. If companies bypass those key basics and jump straight to app integration, then success is unlikely.''
If you work in the travel or hospitality industries and are interested in finding out how you can use a soft sell to boost your business, then consider contacting a brand that specializes in local online marketing. These agencies can help you move away from Facebook and assist in creating mobile travel apps that will allow people to make flight and hotel reservations directly from their phone.