Travel Incentives in Promotional Marketing

Holidays remain one of the most popular incentives when it comes to promotional marketing. Incentive Today looks at how the best promotions link travel prizes into a brand's values and messages, whether it is a simple reward of vouchers or an exotic bespoke holiday package. The feature will analyse whether consumers are becoming sceptical or uninterested in travel promotions because of the conditions attached to travel arrangements as well as the increasing availability of budget flights.

1) How the best promotions link travel prizes into a brand's values and messages.

When running a consumer promotion it is essential that the brands values are reflected in the prize on offer, as it acts as an opportunity to reinforce the brands identity and the compliments the message it is trying to communicate to it’s audience. This is one of the reasons why bespoke solutions are so successful, each brand has it’s own identity and characteristics which can only be truly reflected when a product is built specifically for that brand, trying to put round square pegs through round holes just doesn’t make any sense.

How can you have any continuity in a brands message / identity during a promotion, when the prize on offer is plucked off the shelf and undoubtedly being used by other brands – where is the differentiation ?

2) Are consumers becoming sceptical or uninterested in travel promotions because of the conditions attached to travel arrangements as well as the increasing availability of budget flights ?

Human nature dictates that we are all a little cynical or sceptical at times especially when a perfect stranger tells you that you’ve won a holiday out of the blue no strings attached. In addition to which people don’t always remember entering competitions especially if it was months previously, hence it’s easy for alarm bells of timeshares and salesmen to start ringing out causing an initial scepticism.

This is just one of the many reasons why dealing with an expert in prize promotions is so necessary. Having organised hundreds of various holidays for consumers / prize-winners ranging from weekend breaks to private islands and VIP celebrity lifestyle experiences we are in the ideal position to allay an initial fears they might have and ensure that the promotion runs smoothly.

When debating the issue of travel restrictions, it is important that there is a distinction made between the prize promotions market, which Unmissable specialises in and the free flights / voucher market. With regard to prize promotions, it is not uncommon that terms and conditions will have some exclusion dates, which will usually cover Christmas, New Year and Bank Holidays, the problem arises when restriction dates start covering the summer period, an issue which is magnified if organising family holidays. With the government and schools clamping down on parents taking their children out of school during term time, it is imperative that travel restrictions on holiday prizes compliment the lifestyle of the target audience. We would advise clients to spend less money on the holiday rather than to reduce their costs by adding draconian restriction dates. In addition to which we would advise a generous redemption period to ensure that prize-winners have a reasonable time in which to book their holiday. On the whole these types of prizes don’t suffer from any negative feedback as there is a high degree of flexibility with the holiday.

The area of potential scepticism in the market surrounds the ‘free flights’ or discounted flight / hotel offers, where there is a necessity for restrictions which directly impact on the holiday experience. For example:

• Free Flights – In this instance the recipient is restricted to maybe one of 3 hotels between certain dates, in addition to which they will invariably be on a dinner, bed & breakfast rate thereby restricting where they can have their meals.

Whilst initialling sounding extremely attractive these types of offers have so many restrictions as to dictate the majority of the winner’s holiday to them. Consumers are becoming increasingly savvy to these types of offers and suppliers need to react to this to ensure that the products they provide remain of interest to their potential customers.

The development of low cost airlines has meant that the propensity to travel has increased dramatically in recent years so consumers who once saw a weekend break to Reykjavik as a ‘once in a lifetime trip’ are now looking for something with a far greater aspirational value. The world is becoming more accessible for a greater proportion of the population therefore trying to impress by destination alone is no longer enough, the pull has to be what they actually experience when they get to that destination, whether that is the hotel they are staying in, a restaurant or an activity. Consumers are no longer impressed by regurgitated off the shelf products to be found on high streets across the country and companies are gaining far more success (ROI) by offering imaginative and unique prizes, which because they are bespoke, can complement their specific brand. The development of low cost airlines and internet hotel booking systems will undoubtedly have an impact on the travel voucher market as consumers can benefit from choosing exactly what they want and thereby tailor make their own holidays online, at a price which negates the need to take advantage of a £150 travel voucher. This doesn’t apply to the prize promotions market as the types of experiences provided can only be accessed via a specialist supplier such as Unmissable.

Travel will always be a hugely motivating tool for consumer promotions - as it remains such an emotive force - you only have to look at the market to see how many brands are using different forms of travel prizes from vouchers to ‘money can’t buy’ experiences to promote their products. The question is not are consumers becoming uninterested in travel promotions per se, but what types of travel promotions provide greater exposure and ROI for the brands ? The continued rise in experience led holiday prizes would suggest that consumers are becoming more motivated by holidays that communicate with their aspirations.

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For further information, please contact:
Jane Lowen, The Press Office, 01580 764721
jtlowen@aol.com