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Successful Content Marketing for Tourism Businesses?

by NoeyGoes
4 replies
Hello Warriors.... long time lurker here, first time starting a thread though.

I've been hired to drive traffic to a new site for a tour boat company on Kauai in Hawaii. They offer daily trips to the scenic Na Pali Coast.

The company has been around for over 20 years but lately a lot of competitors have popped up after the state relaxed their permitting requirements to make some extra $$.

Now they are getting squashed by some big investment dollars from the mainland. this is a native-hawaiian family owned business and they can't compete with some of the rich people who have moved to the island recently...

So they wisely are investing in creating a good site to get tourists here. My main job is to get a blog together for relevant things to do on the island, creating a bit of a tourist guide to help with organic searches, eventually getting their market to the site and hopefully ending in booking.

If anyone has any experience in this sector, I'd love a bit of help. My skills are mostly in content and article writing. But I'd love to see this site be successful.

Any help would be appreciated....

here's a draft of the site, it's in the middle of getting built so please don't criticize the theme or formatting as it's all getting changed around.

Makana Charters — Na Pali Coast Catamaran Tours.

that's only a temporary domain as well.

Anyway I'd really appreciate any advice from people who have sailed these waters before... pardon the pun.

Thanks Warriors.
#businesses #content #marketing #successful #tourism
  • Profile picture of the author JohnMcCabe
    That photo in your header brings back memories. But I saw the Na Pali coast from the seventh deck of a cruise ship. I'd love to go back for a more intimate look.

    More than one person I spoke with on that trip said that visiting Hawaii was like going to a foreign country without leaving the USA. That might give you a good approach. Besides the basics you cover on your site, you can explore the history and mythology of the islands, from Maui pulling them from the ocean floor and roping the sun to slow it's trip across the sky so the fish could dry to King Kamehaha and Captain Cook. Explore the music of the islands, from Uncle Don Ho's show to slack key guitar.

    If the tours are narrated by natives, stress that. Don't just offer them a scenic boat ride. Offer them an experience the big-buck haoles from the mainland can't. The prices are good, the coast is gorgeous. Now you have to bring them to you.

    Aloha, brah...
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  • Profile picture of the author Borja Obeso
    Fist off all I want to say that you or whoever is in charge of the site is doing a good job with the design, tourism is all about big pictures and clean design, I own a tourism company myself (Listrip) no link to avoid penalties here. And I have done quiet some research about Hawaii since I talk a lot about surfing there on Listrip. I think it's a great move by this family to go online with their business, about time...
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  • Profile picture of the author Steve B
    There are lots of ways to attack this project.

    I think I would begin by making a thorough list of all the assets the family-owned company has and all the advantages they offer over their competitors. In the end, you will want to play up the positives and not try to compete on the negatives.

    "they can't compete with some of the rich people who have moved to the island recently"

    In order to compete for market share I would focus on finding the things that this native Hawaiian family can offer that others can't or won't. In essence, carve out a niche that is unique and become the very best at what you do.

    Ordinary travel and tour companies are everywhere - they are often clones of one another. Offer island tours that are different, unique, one-of-a-kind. Go to places others don't go. Guide trips that off-islanders would not normally get to see. Dig into the culture of the people and get creative about this unique tour that no one else is offering.

    I know this is going beyond what you might think you can do (build and promote a web site) . . . but here's the reality . . .

    To compete with big bucks when you have nothing special to offer is business suicide. No amount of marketing effort is going to turn a mediocre company into a thriving one.

    It sounds to me as though your Hawaiian friends are going to have to make some core changes to what they are doing if they are "getting squashed" as you say.

    Answer this: what has a better chance of success?

    a) A small family-run business with an average product, a great web site and lots of marketing, or

    b) A large business with the financial resources to squash its small competitors like (a) above, a great web site and lots of marketing, or

    c) A small family-run business that has no competitors, a fantastic product that everyone's talking about, a great web site, and lots of marketing.

    The answer is (b) and (c) as there is plenty of room for them to co-exist.

    Just my thoughts. Good luck to you.

    Steve
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    Steve Browne, online business strategies, tips, guidance, and resources
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    • Profile picture of the author NoeyGoes
      Thanks for the encouragement guys. I guess part of the problem is that it's hard to educate people right off the bat on why our company would be better. People know that when visiting Kauai they should "do the napali coast" but I don't think realize that there are big differences in the companies.

      So i'm trying to push the native angle - incorporating a tribal-style dolphin into the logo, giving the tours Hawaiian names, etc. But without the advertising budget of some of the larger companies, it's hard to get the word out.

      IMO just getting revenue off tour bookings is selling the site a bit short, but one thing at a time I guess, and if the site can get bookings then the owners will be happy.

      I guess my question is, do you guys think that the best strategy is to focus on the blog and organic traffic from tourists searching for things to do on the island? I'm writing posts on everything from other tourist spots to the best place to get coffee on the island. The hope is obviously to get people trusting the content and making the connection between local knowledge and being the best tour boat company out there.

      Or should I try to focus more on advertising...? Has anyone had experience with this approach for a tour company?

      thanks for all the suggestions thus far, definitely noted.
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