Do this. Get direct bookings (5 steps)

Meet Tom.

Tom is our imaginary friend from the past. He likes:

• Saturday night Rum 'n Cokes

• Flying Spirit Airlines (It gets you there. What more do you need?)

• Coupon shopping

But, that's irrelevant.

Tom is sick of the OTAs and kneeling to their every demand.

After months of watching the OTAs:

• Eat up his profit

• Penalize him for a BS review

He's decided to put on his big boy pants (jean overalls he got for 40% off at Old Navy) and begin working on his direct booking strategy.

Today, I'm going to share his marketing plan. I'll admit, it's a darn good plan.

Tom's plan:

1. Get attention

2. Create a lead generator

3. Send emails

4. Run Meta Ads

5. Work with Influencers

Let's get started.

1) Get attention

This is simple.

First, Tom is going to take some video and create post-able content. There are two shots he wants to get:

• Standalone videos of the property.

• People experiencing the stay.

Over the next 30 days, Tom will post 15 times on Instagram. At the end of the month, he will make more posts similar to his top 5 and keep posting.

So long as more people see his content each month compared to the last, he's happy :)

2) Create a lead generator

A small number of people who visit Tom's website from social media will book. Maybe 1%.

The best way to sell guests overtime is email.

So, Tom is going to offer $50 off in exchange for an email address on his website.

This is an important step.

3) Send emails

Email marketing is the most transactional marketing channel to exist.

Plain and simple.

99% of people who give you their email want to hear from you. That means they have the intent to book with you at some point.

Over a months time, Tom will send two emails talking about:

• Best dates to book

• Things to do

• Upcoming deals or promotions

The emails will be painted with photos because Tom knows those are what caught someones attention in the first place.

After bookings start rolling in from emails, Tom will send 3 per month.

Then, 1x per week.

Because if you're making money, why not send more?

4) Run ads

Now the machine is built. Guests are:

• Following Tom on social

• Asking questions in the comments

• Signing up for the lead generator

• Booking direct through email

All Tom needs now is more:

• People to follow him

• Then become a lead

• And finally book

Nothing new has to be built. The machine is clearly working since bookings are coming in.

He just needs more people to go through the machine.

The best way to do this is ads. How ads work is simple:

• Take the content that performs well

• Pay Meta to show it to more people

That's it.

Some ads rules to keep in mind for later:

• Always target between 2 and 10 million people

• Spend at least $20/day

• Don't use more than 3-5 ads at a time

• If ads aren't working, improve your videos

• If you're going to spend money on getting bookings from ads, don't stop spending until you've spent 3x the value of a booking

5) Work with Influencers

Now, Tom is going to throw gasoline on this fire.

Partnering with the right influencer can make your month with one post.

Be sure to partner with one in your niche.

Example: If you're targeting couples near Atlanta, work with a couple from Atlanta.

Influencer collaborations are another form of advertising. You're paying to be shown to their existing audience.

And guess what that audience does next:

• Follow Tom on social

• Ask questions in the comments

• Sign up for the lead generator

• Book direct through email

The art of marketing:

1. Build a machine that sells

2. Drive more people into that machine

3. Repeat step 2

That's all for today. I'll see you in the next article.

P.S. Exactly one year ago my car broke down in Colorado. I was stranded there for a week. It was one of the best unplanned vacations of my life. I recommend it for everyone.

Before you go

I spend about 10 hours writing this newsletter each week. The rest of my time is spent running Lodge Social.

Our marketing team will help you get more guests to like, share and book.

Work with me and my team here.

ANNOUNCEMENT: Right now we’re offering $1,000 off. Ends August 25th (Monday).

Links you might like:

I think these are relevant to today’s article.

1. Lead generators to choose from (The Lodge Social)

2. How great Instagram ads are made (The Lodge Social)

3. The 1st marketing mistake rental operators make (The Lodge Social)

4. The direct booking playbook behind 80%+ direct bookings (The Unique Stays Guy)