Connecting the travel industry with holidaymakers through SMS
As Spring edges ever nearer, both travel agents and holidaymakers are looking to their summer getaway bookings. With ongoing travel restrictions and uncertainty around destinations, many are looking for a break a little closer to home. As a result, UK tourism and agencies are being inundated with enquiries, campsites are booking up and the staycation is more in demand than ever.
To ensure your business can maximise on this opportunity whilst delivering customer-centric service, we’ve highlighted a handful of the top travel SMS use case examples. We want to help you discover how text messaging can streamline your existing processes and reduce the amount of admin time. Our SMS solution is free to use, simple to integrate and what’s more, it only takes a few moments to get up and running.
Booking confirmations and instructions
To give customers some additional peace of mind, a simple booking confirmation with key information that can be referred to whenever needed is just the ticket. Within this message, you can also share your cancellation/ change of date policy should they need to amend the booking.
Managing inbound traffic
Beyond the flurry of booking requests and enquiries, many travel businesses are preparing for a potential influx of messages from people who have had to cancel or move dates because they’re isolating or due to further regulation changes.
With SMS you can get ahead of the issue, remind guests that they shouldn’t travel if they have symptoms and let them know what their options are should they need to postpone. Similarly, by enabling your customers to send in their cancellation request via SMS, you can offer alternative dates or areas to retain the booking.
Keeping customers safe
Top of any traveller’s list this year is going to be making sure their accommodation or destination is COVID safe. Using SMS, you can inform guests of extra cleaning measures in place along with other precautions you’ve taken to ensure their stay is as safe as it can be.
Contact-free service
Mobile messaging is the perfect solution for destinations who strive to offer amazing service whilst respecting the safe distance regulations in place. To better facilitate contactless service, SMS enables you to share access codes and the location of keys before arrival.
Knowledge is power
SMS can also be utilised to share important updates about the area your guests will be travelling to. Letting travellers know where the nearest amenities are, which are open and how best to get there. SMS attachments make it easy to share information like this through PDFs and packs that can be downloaded and referred to throughout their stay.
Automated responses
With automatic replies and two-way messaging features available to our platform users, everyday inbound traffic can become much more manageable. Automatically respond to new enquiries to let them know when they can expect a reply to avoid lost bookings. Similarly, you can direct new leads to your FAQ page to encourage self-service where appropriate.
Two-way messaging
SMS shortcodes and long numbers make it easy to directly respond to your customers in real-time. Create two-way conversations with travellers and guests before, during and after their stay to answer queries or resolve issues. For example, a customer can simply text the keyword FIX to the short code 60777 to alert you to an issue at their accommodation.
Create a waiting list
Holiday hungry travellers can register their interest in a particular date or place using a simple SMS keyword on a short number. These new leads can be added to your waiting list ready to receive cancellation notifications or similar availability options.
Promote some the lesser-known destinations
With staycations looking like a much more certain option for a summer break, many will be looking off the beaten track to avoid the crowds. Promote the availability of some of your undiscovered options via SMS, include links to more information and attach imagery to showcase the property.
These are just a handful of ways that SMS can support your business as we all navigate the new way of working. Using the reach and accessibility of text messaging, your team can combine service with efficiency to provide cost-effective communications.
If you’re ready to start transforming your customer communications with SMS, you can sign up for your account today. As always, if you’d like some more information around a specific platform feature our support team are on hand to help.
