In the context of online bookings, the answer is an astounding “not necessarily”. In most cases, there’s a bit more to it than the ol' build it and they will come philosophy. Savvy tour operators who reap the true benefits of online bookings are typically taking a few extra measures to ensure that they’re getting the most out of their system.

The good news is that it doesn’t take much extra effort to supercharge  (or at least nudge) your online booking engine. Here are five quick, simple, no brainer, DIY tips that are bound to increase online bookings.

Voice mail Totally simple and highly effective. Add a sentence to your voice mail saying that online bookings are available through your website. You’ll be amazed at how many after hours opportunities you’ve been missing!

In-Call For the customer who calls to inquire but isn’t ready to pull the trigger, make sure to mention that online booking is available 24/7. Better yet, offer to text a link to your mobile optimized online booking page. Click here to read more about Mobilegeddon!

In-Email Get a lot of email inquiries? Don’t miss out on the opportunity to provide a direct link to book the tour in question online. Make it unbearably easy for your customers to commit!

Social There’s more to social media than posting pics, conditions reports, and day to day updates. There are a number of ways to pin, embed, share, and leverage your tours and booking system via social media.

SEO, SEM, and Web Design One thing’s for sure here- you won’t get online bookings without traffic to your site. Devise a plan to increase traffic (not just any traffic- potential customer traffic!) to your site. Furthermore, make sure your site is simple, clear, professional, mobile optimized, and easy to navigate.

MORE...Check out our recent video interview where we define SEO/SEM and Web Design as it relates specifically to tour and activity providers:/online-marketing-video-