What is Social Media Marketing?
From organic content to paid social campaigns – how travel businesses use social platforms to build audiences and drive bookings.
Paid social allows travel brands to reach precisely targeted audiences on platforms like Meta (Facebook and Instagram), TikTok and Pinterest. Unlike paid search, where you’re targeting active intent, paid social lets you reach people based on who they are – their interests, demographics, travel behaviours and life events.
For travel, this is powerful. You can target audiences who have recently been researching specific destinations, who fit the profile of your typical customer, or who have previously visited your site or engaged with your content. Paid social is particularly effective for building awareness of new products and destinations, promoting seasonal offers, and retargeting visitors who haven’t yet booked. With the right creative – visually compelling imagery and video that captures the experience of your product – the returns can be significant.
Organic social is where many travel brands naturally shine. Destinations, experiences and travel moments generate shareable, visually rich content that performs well across platforms. A consistent organic presence builds a community of engaged followers who are genuinely interested in what you offer – and that audience has real commercial value when nurtured over time.
Effective organic social for travel means more than just posting photos. It involves understanding which content formats work on each platform, engaging with comments and questions, responding to traveller feedback, and using your social channels to build the kind of trust and personality that makes people choose you over a faceless competitor. A travel brand with an authentic, engaging social presence creates advocates – customers who share their experiences and recommend you to others.
Social listening gives travel brands visibility into what their audience is actually saying and thinking – beyond the content they post themselves. It involves tracking conversations about destinations, competitors, travel trends and your own brand across platforms, providing insight that informs both your content and your commercial strategy.
For travel brands, this can reveal emerging destination trends before they go mainstream, surface common objections or concerns that your content or sales process should address, and flag any reputation issues early. Understanding what travellers are talking about right now helps you create content and campaigns that feel current and relevant – rather than broadcasting messages that miss the mark.
Different platforms serve different purposes in the travel marketing mix, and the right choice depends on your audience, product and objectives:
Summon works with travel businesses on paid social strategy and campaign management across Facebook, Instagram and other platforms. Get in touch to find out how we can help grow your audience and drive bookings through social.
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