How to Use Social Media For Travel Planning Research, Not Just Marketing
Like it or not, social media is a part of the modern world...in more ways than one. If you have a business, you're most likely on not one, but several, established sharing platforms. And if you're not, colleagues probably think you're crazy. 😝
Because posting on social media has become one of the most popular ways to market your business — due to the fact that it's free, easy and quick. Not to mention that there are millions of people (potentially ideal clients) already using it every single day.
Up until this point, we've generally looked at social media as a marketing platform. Somewhere to share your message, search for clients and build your brand by establishing authority. Maybe you post daily or weekly, hard selling or soft selling, doing outreach or running campaigns — it's your tool to use how it best suits your business.
But recently, we asked our community to share their favorite research tools, and we were surprised when three different advisors said…
Instagram.
— as their favorite research tool. Nope, this is not a joke.
(Pssttt… if you're not part of our community yet, join us here).
As professional travel advisors, we pride ourselves in due diligence, researching anything and everything from multiple angles to ensure we understand the whole picture. And using Instagram as part of this process hadn't dawned on us yet.
Because let's be honest — most of the world has a love-hate relationship with social media. Yes you can learn, be inspired and connect with other people, but you can also waste endless amounts of time, run into scams or fake information, and get caught up in the comparison game.
So while the world battles with their internal dialoguedailogue about social media, we loved their positive twist on how this tool can actually up your travel research game. We connected with three advisors — Meredith Donaldson from World Citizen Travel, Jenna Swan from Embark Beyond and Julie Patterson from Wonderfully Planned — and realized there was a lot more to learn about using social media as a research tool.
So we interviewed them on the Masters In Travel podcast, where we dive into how they use Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and more to research for upcoming personal and client trips to level up their services. Catch the full episode here.
Below we've shared a few juicy tidbits from our conversation about just one social media platform.
7 Ways You Can Use Instagram As A Research Tool
1.Follow Other Travel Advisors
Now this might seem like a given, but there's a big difference between following a travel advisor and following someone who likes to travel. Following a fellow advisor allows you to see how they run their business, the places they send their clients to, and perhaps even glean someone insider information on their processes, tips, tricks and learned experiences.
2. Follow (Or Save) Interesting Travel Accounts
We're talking tourism boards, travel bloggers, destination handles, you name it. Because you know that all it takes is one amazing photo to create intrigue. But instead of following every single account you find (and potentially forgetting about it later), decide if it's something you want to look at every day. If it is, great! Give them a follow. But if it's not, consider saving it to a collection so that, for example, the next time you're planning a trip to Ireland, you can browse the saved folder.
3. Use The Search Bar
One of the biggest shifts we've noticed on Instagram over the past few years is that you can now treat the platform like a search engine. Simply type what you're looking for in the search bar, and Instagram will curate a list of posts, accounts, hashtags and more for you. So you can use this feature to broadly research for inspiration, or get real specific and narrow down your options. Check out this example Instagram post to see what we mean!
Related Content: How to market and promote the destinations you want to sell most
4. Use The Map Tool
If you don't use this Instagram feature already, prepare for your mind to be BLOWN. Let's say you're considering a hotel in Italy, and you want to do things around that hotel during the day. Find a post that has the hotel location tagged, and then click on it to access Instagram's map. Now zoom out a bit to see photos that other people have posted and tagged in the surrounding area, helping you find nearby restaurants, activities and sights so you're not bouncing all over town.
5. Use Instagram As A Website Substitute
Some suppliers unfortunately have terrible websites, whether they slapped it up over night or haven't updated it in what feels like a decade. That's why checking out their Instagram is a helpful method — not only to see their updated photos, but those that customers tag them in. This allows you to see if the appearance they've posted online matches the experience customers have, so you can create proper expectations for yourself and your clients.
6. Look For Hidden Gems
If you like delving into the social media depths, this is your golden ticket to keep doing so. Because of course there are thousands of photos of the Eiffel Tower, but what about the cute bakery tucked away on a side street two blocks east? Browsing Instagram with an open mind will allow you to find less well-known places so you can create unique experiences without the crowds or big price tags.
7. Always, Always Read The Comments
Because this is where the magic happens. Just like looking for tagged customer photos on a supplier's Instagram page, the comment section allows you to see what people are actually saying. Do they agree or disagree? Are they excited or indifferent? What questions or comments do other people have? Understanding these will allow you to create a better experience when you or your clients visit the same place.
And these are truly just the tip of the travel advisor iceberg when it comes to using social media as a research tool.
Catch the full podcast episode here where we dive into how these advisors also use other social media platforms, share best tips to optimize your time on the platforms, as well as what they DON'T use social media for (because while it may be a tool, it's not the only tool).
While browsing social media platforms is a great way to gather information, find inspiration and learn about new places, these ideas still need to be vetted elsewhere. Don't take what you see and immediately recommend it to a client. It's your job as a travel advisor to dig deeper, research further and consider all the information before making an informed decision.
Let social media be one additional tool your already rockstar process utilizes to support and build your business.
