1. Digital Marketing
Pre- and Post-COVID
17.02.2021
Дигиталният маркетинг в туризма
преди и след Covid-19
Max Starkov

2. MAX STARKOV
Hello. Nice to meet you!
Digital Marketing & Hospitality Tech Strategist
Adjunct Professor, Hospitality Technology, NYU University, New York

4. Experts
150 I n - H o u s e
h o s p i t a l i t y
i n d u s t r y f o c u s e d
e x p e r t s
COST
4.5%
Av e r a g e D i r e c t
D i s t r i b u t i o n C o s t
40 years in a single slide
COST
4.5%
Av e r a g e D i r e c t
D i s t r i b u t i o n C o s t
NYC
D i r e c t o r : B G N TO
P r e s + C E O
B a l k a n H o l i d a y s U S A
B a l k a n t o u r i s t U S A
A E V, S of i a Tr a v e l
2001-2020
NYC+Global
NextGuest
F o u n d e r, C E O,
D i r e c t o r
H o t e l D i g i t a l Te c h
C R M Te c h
D i g i t a l M a r k e t i n g
S of i a U : B S a n d M S
i n To u r i s m St u d i e s
F o r d h a m U : M B A
E - C o m m e r c e
Bulgaria
S u n n y B e a c h : 4
s e a s o n s ,
Pa m p o r o v o : 1 s e a s o n
K T : I n t ’ l E v e n t s
V TO B a l k a n t o u r i s t
1999-2001
NYC+SV
WhaleMedia
Tech
F o u n d e r + C E O
H o t e l C R S a n d
W B E Te c h
1996-1999
NYC
TravelBreak.com
F o u n d e r + C E O
O n l i n e Tr a v e l
M a r ke t p l a c e
Education
NYU School of Hospitality: Adjunct Professor 20 semesters since

5. Food for
Thought
Mobile Subscribers: 5.7 billion in 2023
(71% of global population vs 66% now)
• 10% of those will use 5G – average
speed 13x faster (575 Mbps by 2023)
• Mobile apps: over 300 billion
downloads by 2023.
(Cisco Internet Report)
Today:
• Less than 20% of independent hotels
have mobile-first websites

6. What Changed in Tourism Even
Before COVID-19?

7. What
Changed?
Everything!
• Digital Way of Life
• Customer Journey
• Distribution
• Technology
• Marketing
• Product

9. Digital 6:41
TV 3:31
Radio 1:21
Print 0:20
eMarketer
2020: Time spent with major media
(hours per day)

10. 250,000
Digital Micro-Moments per year.
Source: Google Research
Consumers experience

11. Digital Marketing
Spend
Worldwide

12. Food for Thought
The COVID-19 Pandemic and Digital Adoption
McKinsey and Company:
• 10 months of COVID-19 pandemic accelerated global digital
transformation by 7 years
• 75% of first-time users of digital channels indicated they would continue
to log onto digital channels post-pandemic

13. What Happened to Traditional
Distribution

14. Did you
know?
Package Holidays in Europe in
2019:
Only 10.1% of travelers traveled on a
package holiday in 2019.
90% booked directly with travel
suppliers (Airlines, hotels, car rental)
or via the OTAs.

15. Holiday Bookings
in Germany
• Only 36% via tour operators
• 64 % via online or direct with
suppliers

16. TUI AG
• Let go 23,000 employees in 2020.
• Put 50% of its charter aircraft for
sale.
• Today TUI’s bookings for Summer
2021 are 44% below 2019 level
• Expected to significantly shrink its
operations in the years to come.

17. Low-Cost
Airlines
vs.
Charter
Flights
In 2019:
• Low-cost airlines in Europe had 33.1
percent of the total seat capacity in
the region.
• Ryanair is the biggest airline group
in Europe, with a fleet of 470
aircraft, transporting 152.4 million
passengers in 2019.
• TUI has a fleet of 56 aircraft and
carried 11.8 million passengers in
2019. 50% of aircraft are for sale.

18. OTAs Dominate Hotel Distribution

19. 20.9%
OTAs
Hotel Websites
OTAs Dominate Independent Hotel Online Distribution
in Europe
79.1%
D-EDGE, 2018
Major Hotel Chains: brand.com generates 2x more reservations than the OTAs
75% of booked roomnights come from the Direct Channel

20. 65.0%
OTAs
Brand.com
Major Hotel Chains: Online Distribution
35.0%
D-EDGE, 2018
Marriott, Hilton: brand.com generates 2x more reservations than the OTAs
75% of booked roomnights come from the Direct Channel

21. Food for
Thought
Where is TIU?

22. Food for
Thought
Where is TIU?

23. Why Digital Marketing?

24. Main Objective of
Digital Marketing
ENGAGE - ACQUIRE –
RETAIN
“FISH WHERE THE FISH
ARE”

25. Core Digital Marketing Initiatives
S E A R C H E N G I N E
M A R K E T I N G
( S E M )
S E A R C H E N G I N E
O P T I M I Z AT I O N
( S E O )
O N L I N E M E D I A
A D V E R T I S I N G
E M A I L
M A R K E T I N G
S M A R T D ATA
M A R K E T I N G
M E TA S E A R C H
M A R K E T I N G
S O C I A L
M E D I A
M U LT I C H A N N E L
C A M PA I G N S
C O N T E N T
M A R K E T I N G

26. Food for
Thought
Hotels spend < 2%
Must spend 6%-8%

27. Digital Technology

29. Food for
Thought
Instant Messaging: More than 3.9 billion users
in 2019 (WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger,
WeChat, etc.)
• 64% of people would choose to message vs
use the phone or send an email
• 53% of people more likely to shop with a
business if they can message directly.
(Nielsen)
Today:
• Less than 5% of hotels are instant messaging-enabled
• Emerging vendors: Zingle, Whistle, Alice, TrustYou,
Monscierge, etc.

30. The Digital Customer Journey

31. The Digital Customer Journey
The Five Stages of the Digital Customer
Journey
• Dreaming Phase
• Planning Phase
• Booking Phase
• Experiencing Phase
• Sharing Phase

32. Today’s Digital Customer Journey
Hoteliers must have presence in all 5 phases!

33. Pre-COVID Average Accommodations Purchase Cycle
CLICKS
Source: Google Research
36 days &
45 touchpoints
Source: Google, 2019
The average accommodation purchase across several
devices and types of websites.

34. The Customer Journey
dictates how hoteliers do
hotel marketing
Digital marketing consists of three distinct, but interconnected and
interdependent categories:
• A. Guest Engagement Marketing (Dreaming & Planning Phases)
• B. Guest Acquisition Marketing (Booking Phase)
• C. Guest Retention Marketing (Experiencing & Sharing Phases)
Hotel marketers must “play” in all three categories:
Not in one or two, but in all three categories.

35. Marketing Formats:
• Brand Marketing
• Content marketing - media
• Content marketing - hotel website
• Hotel Blog
• PR
• Social Media
• Influencer marketing
A. GUEST ENGAGEMENT MARKETING
Result?
Connect & engage with travelers in the Dreaming + Planning Phases,
steer them in the right direction: Booking Phase

36. Marketing Formats:
§ Hotel website marketing
§ SEO and SEM/Paid Search
§ Display advertising
§ Programmatic, Lookalike Audiences,
Data Marketing, Travel Ad Networks
§ Retargeting - GDN
§ Social Media (FB Travel Ads)
§ Metasearch (GHA)
§ Email marketing
§ Omni-marketing campaigns
B. GUEST ACQUISITION MARKETING
Result?
Build upon customer engagement in the Dreaming + Planning Phases and
“close the deal” by acquiring the guest in the Booking Phase

37. Marketing Formats:
• CRM program
• Guest data management (RFM)
• Pre-stay marketing
• In-Stay Marketing
• Post-Stay Marketing:
• Marketing automation
• Drip marketing initiatives
• Guest recognition marketing
• Loyalty marketing initiatives
C. GUEST RETENTION MARKETING
Result?
Build upon successful engagements in the previous phases, hoteliers can win
guest loyalty in the Experiencing and Sharing Phases.

38. Post-COVID

40. Eurocontrol
Traffic
Forecast
Bulgaria: Overdependent on inbound
foreign travel arriving by air:
• Charter flights
• Low-Cost Airlines
• Scheduled major carriers
Eurocontrol:
• Scenario 1: Rebound in 2024
• Scenario 1+2: Rebound after 2026.

41. Foreign
Inbound Travel
and
Vaccination
Rates
Follow the Vaccination Rates in the main foreign feeder
markets:
Vaccination Doses Time to Achieve
Administered per 100 citizens: 75% Herd Immunity
---------------------------------------- --------------------------
EU: 4.75 2.6 years
UK: 22.59 5 months
Germany: 4.77 2.6 years
Poland: 5.45 2.2 years
Finland: 4.95 2.5 years
Russia: 1.50 16 years
Bulgaria: 1.07 10 years
Turkey: 4.55 1.87 years
Romania: 5.59 2.1 years
Serbia: 10.33 7 months
Greece: 4.91 2.23 years
Israel: 69.32 10 days

42. What Does It All Mean?

43. 2021
Urban
Destinations
Customers:
• Focus on domestic travel
• Create products for Bulgarian travelers
• Launch a loyalty program for Bulgarian travelers
• Leisure travel via low-cost airlines
• Inbound travel from neighboring countries
• Chartered buses
• Own automobiles
• Business travel via national carriers
Distribution:
Primary Channels:
• Direct channel via hotel website
• Domestic Travel Agencies
• Low Cost and Scheduled Airlines
Secondary Channels:
• Chartered Bus Tour Operators
• OTAs: Booking, Expedia
• Airbnb: increased focus on boutique and luxury
hotels
• Bedbanks like HotelBeds
• Business Travel: HRS

44. 2021
Beach &
Mountain
Destinations
Customers:
• Focus on domestic travel
• Create products for Bulgarian travelers
• Launch a loyalty program for Bulgarian travelers
• Low-cost and scheduled airlines
• Inbound travel from neighboring countries:
• Charter buses
• Own automobiles
• Charter flight customers
Distribution:
Primary Channels:
• Direct channel via hotel website
• Domestic Travel Agencies
• Low-Cost and Scheduled Airlines
• OTAs: Booking, Expedia
Secondary Channels
• Foreign Tour Operators
• Foreign Air and Bus Charter Tour Operators
• Airbnb: focus on boutique and luxury hotels
• Bedbanks like HotelBeds

45. Great News:
Wizz Air
2021 Flight Program to Bulgaria:
Flights from Sofia, Varna, Burgas to 23 destinations
in 2021
Ex. Burgas:
17 flights/week June – September 2021
14 weeks x 17 flights x 150 passengers = 35,700
tourists.
How many air charter tour operators will bring
35,000 charter tourists to Burgas in 2021?

46. Wizz Air:
Questions
How many hoteliers in Bulgaria:
• Have met personally with their regional rep
from Wizz Air?
• Have reached out to the airline to offer special
preferred hotel rates for Wizz Air passengers?
• Have offered an incentive of Euro 35 per
passenger with minimum hotel stay of 1 week
or more?
• Have offered joint advertising campaigns in
the new feeder markets: Kiev, Poznan,
Dortmund, Eindhoven, Turku, etc.?

47. Promotion
Ideas
Domestic Travel:
• Fam trips for travel agents from key feeder markets
• Loyalty program: Stay 10 nights, get 1 free
• Instant Rewards (Hotel Website)
• Package: Stay X nights get one free
• Family Travel Packages
• Girls Getaways; Boys Getaways
• Couples and romantic retreats
• Gasoline Vouchers: reimbursement for people
traveling with their own cars
• Free amenity: parking, breakfast, Wi-Fi, spa treatment,
beach umbrella, bottle of wine, etc.
Foreign Travelers:
• Incentivize charter bus operators, low-cost airlines,
seasonal airlines, etc.:
• Ex. Euro 35 per tourist that stays min 7 nights)
• Gasoline Vouchers: for foreigners coming with their
own automobiles
• 24- and 72-hour sales promotions on the OTAs
• Special rates for Booking’s Genius Program and
Expedia’s Reward Program members.

48. Travel
Agencies
The Role of the Travel Agency post-COVID:
Travel Agencies Around the World:
UK 7,500 retail TAs in 2000 < 3,500 today
USA 30,000 retail TAs in 2,000 < 7,500 today
The era of generalist travel agencies is over.
Only specialist travel agencies will survive.
Specialists in:
• Cruise travel
• Business Travel
• Specific destinations
• Beach Holidays
• Ski Holidays
• Special interest tours
• Destination weddings
• Incentive travel
• Etc.

49. Food for Thought: Google
• Google controls dominant
search market share (11/20):
• USA: 87.69%
• Europe: 93.09%
• Asia: 91.94%

50. Google: Integrated Advertising Ecosystem
Google Hotel Ads
YouTube Video Ads
Chrome
Google App
YouTube Gmail Ads
Gmail
Android
Google Display Network
Google Ads
Google My
Business

51. Google’s Contributions to Hospitality
Google directly contributes to over 55% of online hotel roomnights at urban
hotels:
• via organic referrals (SEO, AMPs, Schema, GMB, content marketing, etc.)
and
• via paid/performance marketing referrals (SEM, GDN, GHA, etc.)
• This does not include OTA roomnights, the bulk of which come as a result of
the OTA performance marketing on Google to the tune of $11 billion a year.

52. Google “Owns” The
Customer
Google has positioned itself at and is making money (CPC, CPA,
CPS) from each of the five phases of the Digital Customer
Journey: Dreaming, Planning, Booking, Experiencing and Sharing
Phases.
• Google now "owns" the customer in the Dreaming and
Planning Phases via GA, GHA, GDN, YouTube, Gmail Ads, etc.,
and
• Directly influences conversions in the Booking Phase via GA
and GHA, as well as
• Increasingly controls customer engagements in the
Experiencing (on-property) and Sharing (post-stay) Phases via
Google My Business, Local Experiences, Google Reviews, etc.

53. Questions?

54. Thank you!
Max Starkov
maxstarkov@gmail.com