In the previous blog, we elaborated on the SWOT analysis of Booking.com. In this article, we’ll discuss the marketing strategy of Booking Com – a Dutch online travel agency for lodging reservations & other travel products.

The main aim is to gain a clear understanding of the marketing strategies of Booking.com and how it became a  company having a website that has over 28 million listings.

Booking.com has many strategies which help them to develop their marketing strategies and if you are interested in learning such strategies then check out the IIDE Free Masterclasses on Digital Marketing which offers an understanding of digital marketing and much more, taught by the CEO and founder of IIDE Karan Shah with his team members.

To know more about Booking.com in a detailed way like how it deals with its consistent growth and amazing performance let us go through the marketing strategy of Booking Com, but before jumping into the Marketing Strategy Booking.com let’s know more about Booking.com.

 

Marketing Strategy of Booking Com

Booking.com is the world-famous OTA(Online Travel Agency) and has been one of the most well-known travel and tourism industry players for a couple of decades. Now let’s analyse their marketing strategies.

Segmentation, Targeting, and Positioning

The establishment of a Booking.com marketing strategy demands the identification of market segments in order to fully understand customers’ individual buying patterns. Customers’ demands, expectations, and purchasing habits are diverse and are influenced by a variety of factors, such as various countries, regions, age, gender, ethnicity, cities, etc.

Their target customer is really “anyone with a travel intent.” However, many studies published over decades conclude that younger people feel more of an urge to travel compared to older people. Millennials travel the most, followed by Generation Z.

Booking.com made its position in the market by being highly successful at Go To Market strategies for its products and having a high level of customer satisfaction.

Marketing Campaigns

#AmericaIsForEveryone

One of Corina’s favourite campaigns is the one that Booking.com did last year for the United States and is called #AmericaIsForEveryone.

This campaign generated a lot of positive results and it resonated with Americans. The main reason for its success is the strong message about its association with 10 properties having vibrant cultures around the world.

#BackToTravel

Booking.com’s most recent social media campaign, #BackToTravel, was another successful addition to its marketing plan. Booking.com realised at the start of 2021 that travel was returning, albeit at a slower pace in some nations and faster in others. 

So they created co-content together with influencers, launched this hashtag, and started talking about the joy of travelling again, the pleasure of getting your suitcase back from the closet. It was again a successful campaign.

#BookingHero

Finally, the #BookingHero social media campaign, which began in 2018, aims to bring people together.

Booking.com invited guests to nominate their #BookingHero: someone working at their accommodation who went above and beyond to make their trip unforgettable. The brand gathered a collection of lovely anecdotes, which were then turned into videos, which were primarily shared on their YouTube channel.

Social Media Marketing

Booking.com is on every major social media network, including Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, and YouTube. Booking.com has over 17 million brand followers, has 1.3 million brand interactions, and has gained 550k followers in the last year. With over 15 million followers and 768K likes on Facebook, this is Booking.com’s most popular social media outlet.

They provide travelling material that inspires users and motivates them to use their services using a mix of photographs, videos, carousels, and, on rare occasions, IGTVs. They mainly use it for promotional and informative purposes.

SEO Strategies

As per SEO ranking, it is said that the number of keywords – below 500 is bad, above 1000 is good, and 10,000+ is amazing. As we can see, https://www.booking.com/ has a total of 18,399,173 organic keywords, which is regarded as excellent. As a result, Booking.com’s digital marketing is remarkable.

With a monthly traffic of around 120.6 million, booking.com is undoubtedly a pioneer. Booking.com is one of the leaders in the travel industry, thanks to its excellent SEO and marketing techniques.

Influencer marketing

The goal of Booking.com is to increase accessibility to international travel for everyone. Booking.com is attempting to link millions of tourists with unique experiences by investing in technology that helps remove friction from travel. Thus, they approach various influencers and encourage them to highlight the essence of travel. These influencers included Rohit Saraf, Sanaya Irani, Ridhima Kapoor Sahani, and travel influencers Shramona Poddar and Ankita Rai, of whom a few have over one million followers.

Ecommerce Strategies

Booking.com places a significant emphasis on boosting traffic through paid search, which is understandable given that so many consumers start their research and bookings with Google. It generates traffic using keywords and phrases that already indicate intent, i.e., these customers are planning trips and are likely to book.

They also make good use of organic search, with SEO specialists working on the website’s content and design to ensure that it attracts a large number of visitors, with a focus on the most significant keywords. Booking.com provides a strong user experience since it has a clear layout for swiftly conducting various searches and is visually appealing, with photographs of accommodations presented throughout. It is, in fact, a complete search engine in and of itself.

Mobile Apps

Booking accommodations, flights, and rental cars can be done through free mobile apps. It is compatible with Android, iPhone, and iPad smartphones and tablets. It has a user-friendly interface just like its website.

Content Marketing Strategies

Booking.com is also focusing on other areas to boost brand recognition and loyalty. They’ve been working hard over the past few years to increase brand awareness among customers through content, social media channels, and television advertising. They offer regular articles on their website to pique the curiosity of individuals planning their next vacation and to provide important information and advice to those who are close to making a purchase.

This ends the elaborative marketing strategy of Booking Com. Let us conclude our learning below from the marketing strategy of Booking Com.

Conclusion – What’s Unique in Booking.com’s Marketing?

Booking.com’s marketing strategy focuses on the value the brand provides to its customers, which includes storytelling in addition to cost, hotel selection, and easy-to-use products. The tourism sector is fiercely competitive, especially in the digital space, with global giants like Airbnb and Expedia. Booking.com, on the other hand, became a strong player with a good social media presence thanks to well-thought-out plans and social media ads that hit the right notes. This is the perfect example of how, regardless of industry, if a brand stays true to its beliefs, connects with its communities on a regular basis, and attempts to add value to them, it will be rewarded with high engagement metrics.

Thus digital marketing is a great step taken by them which gives them a global sector for their products and services, if you want to learn about digital marketing, check our Online Digital Marketing Course if you want to learn more and improve your marketing skills. Alternatively, you can enrol in one of our free online masterclasses led by IIDE’s CEO, Karan Shah, to gain insight into the field of digital marketing. 

We hope this blog on the marketing strategy of Booking Com has given you a good insight into the company’s marketing strategies.

If you like such in-depth analysis of companies just like the marketing strategy of Booking Com check out our IIDE Knowledge portal for more fascinating case studies.

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