Up, Up and Away
The current economy is a bumpy trail for many travel marketers. But Backroads is finding a clear path thanks to postcard mailings using personal URLs and other digital enhancements.
The high-end adventure travel company — which markets trips typically costing between $2,500 and $4,500 — first tried the tactic last winter with a 30,000-piece campaign that netted conversion and response rates exceeding 12%, twice what they typically generate, says Massimo Prioreschi, vice president of sales and marketing, Backroads.
The Berkeley, CA-based company dropped another 100,000-piece mailing last month, at a time when many consumers are abandoning ambitious leisure travel plans in favor of staycations.
Backroads maintains a database of more than one million past customers, both families and solo travelers. The initial postcard mailing last March featured photographs of destinations to which customers had previously traveled, in hopes of striking a familiar chord with recipients.
“We have 150 itineraries in 35 countries, and some of them are the most beautiful places in the world, like Tuscany and Yellowstone Park,” says Prioreschi. “Basically, we were trying to elicit a bit of an emotional response from them based on their experiences.
“If they can remember what they’ve done in the past and we can rekindle those memories, then they have a greater chance of traveling with us again,” says Prioreschi. “The variable print portion and the PURLs are important for that.”
MEMORY TRIGGER One side of the 5-1/2-inch by 10-1/2-inch postcard was a stock image of a previous destination. On top of the postcard was a headline that stated the recipient’s family trip and year. Below that, the copy said it was “Time for another memorable family trip. Find yours here,” with the personalized URL printed below that.
The other side of the postcard featured three other suggested travel destinations based on recipients’ past choices.
“If your last trip was Tuscany, your next trip might be the Loire valley,” he says.
For prospects — people on the database who had not previously traveled to those specific locations advertised in the mailings — Backroads used a different creative approach, says Prioreschi.
“We were a little bit playful with that, so we said, ‘Which would you rather choose, a vacation or a playcation?’” says Prioreschi.
One side of the card showed a black-and-white photograph of a 10-year-old boy standing in a wading pool wearing a snorkel, mask and flippers, while the other side showed a color photo of people having a fun time on the Dalmatian Coast in Croatia and jumping off a ship.
Nimblefish helped Backroads develop this campaign.
Ordinarily, Backroads relies on mailing about 150,000 catalogs each September and a few other direct mail efforts throughout the year. These didn’t perform nearly as well as the postcards, says Prioreschi.
“Normally we just mail our catalogs to these folks,” he says. “We also do specific pieces on specific destinations, but they’re not personalized or interactive with PURLs.”
Prioreschi says Backroads is likely to continue using these customized, digitized mailings, but is not likely to increase the frequency of its mailing schedule.
“This is something we think you won’t do more than once a year, because it’s kind of a one-shot deal,” he says, noting that more mailings would definitely make the offers less and less relevant to recipients.
