Times have changed; there are proven ways for tour operators to stay active & profitable all year no matter what the season is.Smart businesses already know & use these tactics.

1. Prepared by
SMAT Marketing Limited
PLOT 209, MAWANDA RD
+256751221765, +256788160575
www.smatmarketing.net

2. World Tourism statistics say the low season in East
Africa is October to May; defined as a time when tourist
receipts are low & business activity is slow.
In the past, as a tour operator, you faced the challenge
of generating a year's revenue in a few months. Thanks
to fruitful market research, today there are ways to keep
the cash flowing all year 'round even after the so-called
key season has passed.
Different tourists have different needs all year. Tour
operators should stop considering themselves a
seasonal business & begin to think creatively, test new
ideas -- even if they are beyond what you are used to.

3. Only about 30% of tour operators in Uganda
have CLEAR marketing strategies—many use
guess work & the majority simply copy others!
Your business’ marketing strategy is meant to
help you survive any season. A good strategy
also helps you fight negative press about your
destination & equips you with campaign ideas
that give you meaningful growth no matter the
season.

4. 2015
FRESH mindset,
NEW methods!
No one cares about your flyers anymore…

5. The rise of the Internet has created new rules in
tourism marketing.
Tourists today simply share opinions, reviews &
thoughts constantly via the Internet on niche
communities, review sites, chats, blogs, wikis &
emails. It’s these interactions that determine
where they go & which company they choose.

6.  Tourists find you-FASTER: If you’re not ranked on
Google, most tourists searching for East African tours
won’t know OR CARE that you exist!
 Easy, faster communication. Location is not an issue
anymore, neither is time. Web-based software makes it
possible to have all your customer data in one place, so
you have a better idea of who you’re talking to and what
to say to them.
 It’s the LEAST EXPENSIVE marketing & Advertising tool. It
requires less than half the cost of traditional methods
e.g. $5 a day (UGX-15,000) on facebook exposes you to
OVER 10,000 people. How many sales guys with flyers &
branded t-shirts can you facilitate with UGX-15,000?

7. YOUR WEBSITE:
Today, your website is more important to your business
than a flyer. A website travels the world without your
help, sings your name 24/7 & is your modern office
without monthly rent.
The RIGHT website:
Simple & Interactive
Mobile-friendly
Optimized for social media
Well-written high quality content
Testimonials
Clear calls to action.

8. SOCIAL MEDIA
Beyond Facebook & Twitter there are OVER 485
active social media sites—yes! A whole world of
other sites you’ve never heard about.
The good news is you need to be SUPER ACTIVE
on ONLY 3 to get results. A sample good
combination is Facebook, Twitter & YouTUBE

9. EMAIL
 The first sign of a professional is the email
service they use. GMAIL, YAHOO, HOTMAIL,
MSN are all free i.e. every TOM, DICK &
HARRY uses them.
 A personalized email is more serious &
professional e.g. phil@philtours.com is more
serious than philtours@yahoo.com because
it’s branded & traceable.

10.  The tools above must play in unison e.g. if
your strategy for August to October is to sell
2 itineraries to western Uganda, 70% of your
blog posts in this period must talk about
western Uganda. 70% of your tweets,
facebook updates &recommendations on yelp
must be on western Uganda & your email
marketing campaign MUST focus on western
Uganda.

11. How to use these tools
to
keep your business
alive in the low season

12. Gather & publicize stories, testimonials &
recommendations about your business. This
will build your profile; put you on top of
travelers’ minds & push steady traffic to your
website.
Ask customers to post pictures & videos from
their experience with your business. The more
raw and interesting content you can get from
your customers, the better your marketing
campaigns will be.

13. What if your customers
aren’t willing?
OR
you don’t have clients
yet?

14. Do you ever wonder why there are so many
written reviews, articles & ratings about some
places & companies?
Well, it’s a service called “reputation
management.” Of course some dirty businesses
abuse it & use exaggerated fake reviews but
purge software eventually identifies & punishes
these brands.

15. Online reputation management is a systematic P.R
practice that helps amplify a brand’s good qualities &
minimize negativity by actively tracking & engaging
enthusiasts & resolving complaints.
77% of all reviews & ratings on TripAdvisor are written
by professional agencies.
Destinations like Dubai, Paris, New York, Sao Paolo,
Mombasa, Johannesburg e.t.c. use this service—some
local businesses in Uganda use the service too but for
purposes of confidentiality, NO NAMES!
…that’s how they keep pulling tourists!!!

16. Use your blog to illustrate your passion &
excitement about what you do. Use it to inspire
people to want to “give it a go.” A blog doesn’t only
mean long text articles, include photos, videos,
polls e.t.c. Just make sure it is ALL BRANDED
CONTENT
How often should you blog?
If you have a dedicated blogger, 5 posts a week is
enough. However, the frequency depends on your
marketing objectives based on your strategy.

17. Identify & sell “season-less” offers for example;
build loyalty with the domestic market during
off season. Remember they’re there all year
round and can give you tons of repeat business
and word of mouth.
Some more ideas:
Off season discounts
Honeymoons
Birthday month specials
Family discounts

18.  Make it a habit to run campaigns rather than
blindly posting generic updates on social media
to no effect. Remember! Your time & resources
are limited so don’t waste them on activities that
don’t put money in your pocket.
 Campaigns can range from 3 weeks to 1 month,
3 months even a year depending on what your
strategy seeks to achieve
 Campaigns aren’t just adverts, they are engaging
social media activities that boost your
community, awareness & sometimes even sales.

19.  The ROTARY CANCER RUN happens every year in
August. As a tour operator, you partner with the
Rotary Clubs of Uganda & agree to make a donation
of 1 dollar for every participant to a local boat cruise
or cross-country road-trip designed by you.
 To maximize profit, you set minimums for example
100 participants will trigger the donation.
STATISTICS
 If each participant pays $50 then 100 people means
$5000 dollars in gross revenue for you & $100
donation to charity which leaves $4900 in your
pocket in just 1 month

20. 1. Rotary needs the donation so it will help you
promote the campaign; remember there are
thousands of rotary members—that means
thousands of word-of-mouth promoters for
you
2. You contribute to charity. It’s good for your
soul & your brand image
3. If you execute well, you will be top of mind
every year in August!

21. The rotary cancer run this year is on 30th August.
Feel free to implement this campaign but remember
to thoroughly analyse the details e.g.
what name will you give it to inspire participation?
What choice of activity will actually move people?
How will you promote it to maximize sales in the
shortest time possible?

22.  CLEAN UP YOUR IMAGE:
website, social media, email
 GET PEOPLE TALKING:
reviews, ratings, email campaigns, aggressive
social media interaction
 SELL NON-SEASONAL OFFERS:
domestic tours, specialized discounts

23.  Success principles always remain the same;
you decide what you want & believe that you
can have it then take the NECESSARY risks
and actions to make it happen. All the tactics
& ideas presented here will guarantee your
success if you set-up & execute them
correctly.

24.  We are communication allies who use
technology & creative excellence to help
businesses develop & implement cost-
effective ideas to shape their identity,
improve customer relations, boost awareness
& drive sales.
 Our philosophy is POTENT PRESENCE i.e. all
our strategies & actions are designed to bring
growth & development for us and our clients.

25.  New Product/Brand Development
 Marketing Strategy
 Web design & Hosting
 Graphics Design
 Online Advertising: Planning & Buying
 Social Media Management
 Online Reputation Management

26. Plot 209, Mawanda Road, Kamwokya
+256751221765, +256788160575
service@smatmarketing.net
www.smatmarketing.net
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