How to Get Clients for Travel Agency Owners – Episode 28

Estimated Reading Time: 11 minutes

Need clients? 

Don’t we all 🙂

Here’s what I’ve learned after over ten years in this industry- understanding how to get clients for travel agency businesses isn’t just about posting on social media.

It’s about having a complete visibility strategy that puts you in front of the right people, in the right places, and at the right time.

Full transparency- a couple of years ago, I did an audit on my social media and realized something pretty shocking. 

I wasn’t even posting anything related to what I actually did in my travel agency.

People didn’t know my business, what my business was about, or how I helped people.

And if they don’t know what you do, they can’t hire you or refer you to others who need your services.

The first step is making sure people actually understand what you offer.

So let me share the three-pillar approach that’s actually been working for me.

This isn’t about doing all the things or being everywhere at once.

It’s about being strategic with your time and energy to create a sustainable business that brings in clients consistently.

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How to Get Clients for Travel Agency Owners (and Why it Requires More Than Social Media)

When you think of content marketing, you probably automatically go into social media mode.

And yes, social media is a part of a visibility strategy, but social media is not the only thing.

I think social media is very important, especially in our digital world.

It gives us an escape, particularly if we’re looking at reels.

Social media does have its important aspects, but it’s part of a complete visibility strategy.

What I mean is- how are you getting out there so people are even aware of your social media account?

You need multiple touchpoints, especially in 2025 and beyond.

Not everybody’s going to be following you everywhere, but the more that you are out there, the more chances your ideal client has to find you.

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Pillar One: Strategic Networking (Yes, Even If You’re an Introvert)

I can’t talk about visibility without talking about one of my favorite topics, networking.

Another transparency moment–I didn’t really even start off my business with networking.

Gasp!

I thought networking was incredibly sleazy, where everybody was just out for themselves.

That is not what networking really is…at least if you’re in the right groups.

This could be because networking has changed or more likely, I’ve just put myself in networking circles that aren’t like that.

The circles I’m in now are very giving and very generous.

Once you run into those types of circles of people who are similar, you’re able to get that mindset within you, too.

The One Event That Changed Everything

My goal back at the end of 2019 was to get out there in my local community more because what I had been doing in my business was not getting me the results I wanted.

My goal was to obviously start that in 2020, and we all know what happened back then.

the only networking event that I was able to attend in 2020 has opened so many incredible doors for me.

Just that one event helped me get to know other amazing business owners who now understand what I do in my travel business, so they can advocate for me if they know anybody who needs my services in the future.

Don’t hold yourself back thinking it’s just one thing. That one opportunity can open so many doors for you.

My Not-So-Coffee Chat Strategy

I attend different networking events virtually. 

At the original time of recording (2021), I was still being mindful about health safety, and nowadays, it’s just so much more convenient for me, especially meeting online connections.

When I really vibe and gel with somebody, I get their contact information, so I can connect with them later.

I’ll send them an email or LinkedIn message and shoot them a link to what I call a “not so coffee chat”.

During this time, we just get to know each other and what each one of us does in business, and how we can help and support the other person, so they can also have a successful business.

And I do this within the travel industry, but also outside of it.

I try to really connect with either people that I connect with their content or people that I know are in the circle of my ideal client.

In my travel business, that’s educators, coaches, trainers, corporate execs, and people with large HR knowledge.

Those are the people who are putting on the travel events that I specialize in producing.

It’s not just networking to get yourself out there.

It’s networking to be strategic.

You have to build strategic partnerships to get your brand out there.

This is really where the magic happens when figuring out how to get clients for travel agency businesses. Because these connections aren’t just about immediate sales. They’re about building a network of people who understand what you do and can advocate for you when the right opportunity comes up. That one networking connection could lead to your next client or introduce you to someone planning a group trip..

Pillar Two: Consistent Content Marketing Across Multiple Channels

This is where travel agency marketing ideas really come to life.

But let me start by saying, I’m not doing all the things.

One, because I can’t.

Two, because I want to make sure that I actually do the things.

If I intend to do everything, it’s just not going to get done.

We don’t have enough time in the day, in the week, or even the month.

The Power of Repurposing Content

I produce a weekly podcast and I send a weekly email to my clients (I’ve been doing this consistently for about three years now). That weekly email article gets repurposed into my blog post on my website and gets repurposed into a LinkedIn article, which is where I know my ideal audience is hanging out.

People might think, “Oh my gosh, that is so much. Do I have to create different articles for each platform?”

No, you don’t.

Just repurpose it, and AI makes it soooo much easier nowadays, too. 

My go-to AI platforms for content repurposing include Castmagic affiliate link and Claude. 

In my opinion, Claude just writes so much more human and natural compared to ChatGPT.

And honestly, I was hesitant about repurposing in the beginning because I kept thinking, “They’re going to see the same thing everywhere.”

But the truth is not everybody’s going to be following you everywhere, and even then, those pesky algorithms aren’t going to show them all the content we post.

Think of it like the Olympics.

The U.S. doesn’t just send one American swimmer to compete.

They send multiple swimmers to increase their odds of getting one of those medal places.

Wouldn’t you want to increase your odds of somebody being able to consume your content?

Maybe they are on your email list, but they’re buried in emails and they’d rather scroll LinkedIn today.

Give them different methods of interacting with you.

Social Media Marketing Plan for Travel Agency Success

When I resigned from my full-time job in May 2021, I knew I had to put out content on social media.

I really love being on Instagram because that’s where my ideal client is.

I love the photos, the reels, joining in on different lives.

I just love the platform overall.

I’ve created different themes of content that I put out every week, and I make sure to post new content every couple of days.

My social media plan is still something I’m honing in on now.

When I did some research on what content pillars really were, I realized I was kind of doing that already.

I focus a lot on cruises and retreat planning.

And I do try and put a lot of my personal self out there because people like interacting with real people.

The Post That Changed My Perspective

I used to do social media posts for some of my personal chef friends.

At the time, they hadn’t done a post about themselves in a very long time.

Someone had told them, “Well, I know you guys are just home chefs”, and they couldn’t have been more wrong.

You see, they were/are Walt Disney World Resort-trained chefs.

The wife of the team actually went to culinary school, as well.

Part of putting yourself out there is not only for people to get to know you, but to also be able to dispel misconceptions about you or what you do.

So, we put out a post featuring them with their photo, of course, and it was one of the most successful posts.

I don’t know about you, but my most successful posts are when I post pictures of myself.

People just want to get to know who you are. 

I thought if I was just providing value and educating, that would be the content people really thrived off of.

But the content that people really rave about is seeing and getting to know me.

Finding Your Content Sweet Spot

For me, I mix up my content with cruise or retreat planning tips, and then I try to be silly and entertaining because people really appreciate that social aspect on social media.

People also want to see the realness in you.

Then I start to think about all the other things people in the travel industry do really well, and I wonder if I should do that, too.

Those are the moments when I remember- keep your blinders on, Rita.

You need to keep investing in the avenues that you’re working on right now, and not get sidetracked by more shiny objects.

When I see Pinterest and Clubhouse, I think those would be really great content avenues to break into.

But again, I want to create a sustainable business and I cannot do all the things, so those get cut, at least for now.

Understanding how to get clients for travel agency businesses through content marketing really means consistency over perfection. You don’t need to be on every platform, especially if you can’t be consistent with them. You DO need to show up regularly where your ideal clients actually are. That’s what builds trust and keeps you top of mind when they’re ready to book their next vacation.

The Video Strategy

While I’ve been doing really great with my reels game (I recorded a lot of content on my recent river cruise FAM), I want to do more and better.

Video is like the top thing that everybody’s talking about now.

It’s another avenue for people to get to know you and your personality.

At one point, I had wanted to do weekly live sessions, but it just didn’t work out for me.

And that’s okay because nothing is set in stone in this business.

You can erase it, restart again, or you can even pivot.

Vanessa Lau, one of the big content people I follow, started a podcast, then stopped it because she noticed her other avenues were suffering.

She decided to start it back up again, and the same thing happened, so she officially ended her podcast.

Jordan Gill also recently put a pause on her podcast.

I think we need to have these really great examples to know that it’s okay.

It’s okay if something’s not working or if you find something else is working even better.

It’s okay to stop and focus on where our customers are and where we really love to produce content.

Content Calendar Strategy

Part of this content strategy is having a content calendar.

I currently have a calendar for my weekly articles, so I know every week what I’m going to be producing.

The next step for me is creating a monthly content plan for social media.

There are some strategies I’ve seen going around on Instagram that I want to try, and once I do that, I’ll share with you.

Pillar Three: Getting in Front of Other People’s Audiences

This is one of the most powerful ways to promote your travel agency and generate leads.

You have to balance out the active marketing with the passive marketing.

Attending Strategic Events

I’ve been attending different educational events like workshops, conferences, or hour-long webinars.

One, to get the education for myself.

Two, to be around people who I know are my ideal client or who can open the door to my ideal client.

That’s one way to get in front of other people’s audiences.

Strategic Social Media Engagement

I’ve been really mindful about how I use social media tools, as well.

When I was on my river cruise, I posted a reel a day on my business page and pictures on my personal page for Instagram.

I did that strategically because I wanted to increase my reach on my business page and get people in my personal circle excited about traveling again.

Coming home, I realized social media is not just for you to be entertained.

I have different accounts for different purposes.

If I want to do mindless scrolling, I use my personal account.

But my business account, I really use to strategically build relationships.

I use this strategy for both LinkedIn and Instagram.

I’m liking other people’s posts, and those posts that really speak to me, I’m making sure I’m putting thoughtful comments on.

Putting my voice out there helps people understand what my viewpoint is or offers words of encouragement.

Comments are definitely better than likes.

Likes are good in the sense of bringing awareness of, “Who’s this Rita who liked my stuff?”.

The extra step is putting that comment.

On LinkedIn especially, I really try to be mindful.

Last night I was getting into a lot of HR, employee retention, and employee engagement topics.

LinkedIn LOVES when you add to the conversation.

For example, someone was talking about how you need to engage with your employees to have a better atmosphere.

The comment I added was: “Yes, employee engagement is super simple, however, it takes effort. So if employee engagement is not important to you, people are not going to take the effort into doing it, no matter how simple it is.”

It’s not only the content creator who’s going to see that point, but anybody who likes or comments will also see that point.

You’re getting yourself more visible to new audiences, which is going to help with your overall business awareness.

Podcast Guest Appearances

This summer, I’ve been a guest for different podcasts, and that’s been not only a great visibility tactic, but also amazing for connecting with leaders of communities.

I’ve also found a lot of amazing business friends or mentors because they were guests on podcasts that I listen to regularly.

The aim behind this tactic is that I get in front of more people to promote who I am and the different services I provide, so more people are aware that my business exists. That’s what I was finding was most difficult with just social media posting. It didn’t matter how many posts I was putting out there. Posts are passive, whereas getting in front of other people’s audiences and actually meeting new people is an active strategy.

The Quality Over Quantity Approach

We focus a lot on followers for social media when it really needs to be about strategic followers.

I just purged a lot of people from my followers list on the Strategic Travel Entrepreneur Instagram page.

I need to do that for my RitaVentures page too.

The more people you pluck out means there are more people who are better aligned with the content you’re putting out there.

I’ve been able to grow from all the tactics I’ve been utilizing on Instagram by about 50 followers or more.

Now I need to start trimming because I was getting lots of random bots following me, and when you look at the data, they’re never going to convert to a client.

I’ve word-vomited a lot on my current visibility strategy, and it’s always evolving.

Remember, it wasn’t until I found this entrepreneurship path that all of this was kind of illuminated for me.

I’ve been in the travel business for eleven years now (at the original time of recording).

It’s a process and a lot of experimentation.

Start with the audit.

See what’s valuable in your content.

Do the work to know what exactly your business is and who you want to serve.

You also have to know who your client is in terms of where they hang out at, whether that’s virtually or in person.

And keep working at it.

Do what feels great to you and do what fires you up because you will eventually get in a flow.

Everybody has to get started at step one, and we’re all doing the best we can to build the travel business of our dreams.

The three pillars I’m focusing on are networking strategically, creating consistent content across multiple channels, and getting in front of other people’s audiences.

That’s my visibility strategy and it’s working.

What are you currently doing?

What are the marketing tactics that are working for you right now?

Remember, followers don’t mean clients.

But if I’m following you, I’m interested in you, and down the line, I might like to use your services.

Just because they aren’t converting right now doesn’t mean they won’t down the line.

So keep showing up.

Keep putting yourself out there.

Keep being you.

That’s how you improve your travel business and create something sustainable that actually brings in the clients you want to work with.

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