Download pdf - How To Sell Travel By Creating 'Word Pictures

HOW TO SELL TRAVEL

With

COPYWRITING

THAT

PAINTS A PICTURE

Written by

Dustin Walker Copywriter & Marketer

who specializes in the travel industry

@dustinjaywalker

Presentation designed by Anchalee J.

http://www.jetcopywriting.com/

https://twitter.com/dustinjaywalker



You probably already know that

Beautiful Images are

Key To Selling Travel Online.

Amazing Photos of sky-piercing mountains, velvety-

soft beaches and other stunning locales help people

imagine themselves on vacation.

And

the more travelers think about that trip

or hotel room,

the more they’ll

want it.

Your written

Website

CONTENT

works the same way.

Much like enticing photos,

Vivid Copywriting

Gets Your Prospects Daydreaming

about the experience your business provides.

PEOPLE TEND TO

THINK IN

PICTURES,

rather than in words or numbers. So the more detailed

and vivid your written descriptions of hotel rooms or tours

are, the easier it is for travelers to imagine themselves

experiencing what your travel business has to offer.

And it’s not just about what your audience can see

– Descriptive Writing Evokes All The Senses.

It helps travelers imagine the feeling of warm, silken sand

against their skin or the scent of pine-spiced mountain air.

Veteran adman Drew Eric Whitman says

persuasive copywriting

‘Directs A Mental Movie.’

When someone reads vivid text that

engages the senses, it activates more

brain cells by causing them to think more

deeply about what they’re reading.

And if your written and visual content work together to

Create Tantalizing Mental Imagery, well, that’s when your website will

Really Start Converting.

Follow these

for crafting Descriptive Content that’ll get

Travelers Daydreaming about what you’ve got

in store for them.

TIPS

Whether you’re penning a tour itinerary or a room description, every

word you write should resonate with the travelers most likely to convert.

KNOW WHAT

APPEALS

TO YOUR CUSTOMERS

1.

and the trekking tour you offer just so happens to meander

through a field of lavender. You might be tempted to go into

detail about the sweet scent of these plants, since that’s what really stands out for you on the trip.

Let’s Say

You’re

A FAN of

WILD FLOWERS

KNOW WHAT APPEALS TO YOUR CUSTOMERS 1.

BUT ARE YOU SURE…

…your customers feel the same way? Is the field of lavender actually a significant selling feature of

the tour or does it simply appeal to your own preferences?


THINK LIKE A

SALES-FOCUSED COPYWRITER

rather than a travel writer. You can

write dazzling descriptive content

worthy of a glossy magazine, but it

won’t help your bottom line if your core customer base isn’t interested.


Small details can add a deeper level of description and

authenticity to your content.

USE

SMALL DETAILS T O R E V E A L T H E

BIG PICTURE

2.

This might include

the syrupy scent of FLOWERS,

the haunting chorus of CICADA or

the ornate, HAND-MADE CLOCKS in every room of your hotel.

USE SMALL DETAILS TO REVEAL THE BIG PICTURE 2.

Don’t spend too much time detailing that famous sky-

scraping mountain you’ve got on every other page of

your website


Rather, think

about what

your images

DON’T

COMMUNICATE.

– the photos already

tell that story.

The website OneFineStay is great at teasing out

the compelling details of a property to paint a

striking picture.


The look is high-end luxe,

the materials blissfully

sensuous. You cannot

help but trail your fingers

across the open plan

sitting room’s exposed

brickwork, the printed silk

wallpaper and the

kitchen’s worktop of cool marble.

Verbs are the powerhouses of any sentence. They drive the action

and ramp up the intensity of what you’re communicating.

POWER UP YOUR

WEBSITE COPY WITH

VERBS 3.

The key to really

making verbs work

is

SELECTING

FRESH WORDS that

CREATE IMAGERY

in your readers’

mind.

POWER UP YOUR WEBSITE COPY WITH VERBS 3.

Take a look at this paragraph about the

Vietnamese city of Hanoi:

The streets of Hanoi vibrate with a chaotic energy that’s

both exciting and intriguing. Mopeds jostle along

winding boulevards, sidewalk cafes overflow with

patrons and vendors balance shoulder poles carrying

fruit, fish and fiery-red textiles.

Verbs bring this description to life. The

words ‘vibrate’, ‘jostle’ and ‘balance’

create


SPECIFIC VISUAL IMAGERY.

It would have been easier to simply say

that mopeds drive or cruise (rather than

jostle) along the streets or that vendors

carry (rather than balance) shoulder poles,


but then the

paragraph

WOULDN’T be as

MEMORABLE.

Nothing kills compelling content faster than generic adjectives like

‘premier’ or ‘world-class’. People have seen these clichéd words so

many times they now have zero impact. Plus, they’re kinda cheesy.

DAZZLE READERS WITH

SENSORY-RICH

ADJECTIVES

4.

But vivid and specific adjectives have

been found to ENGAGE readers and

BOOST SALES.

DAZZLE READERS WITH SENSORY-RICH ADJECTIVES 4.

This is because

these words

TRIGGER the

SENSORY PART of Our Brains.

Our down featherbeds

are piled with crisp

Egyptian cotton sheets,

plush pillows and

velvety cashmere

duvets.

So forget lines like

“Our beds are exceptionally comfortable.”

Instead, construct a sentence that’ll stick in their heads:

The words ‘crisp’, ‘plush’ and ‘velvety’ engage the

readers’ senses and help them imagine sinking into these

oh-so-comfy beds.


”

“

Just be sure not to overdo it. Piling on too many

adjectives can drag down the pace of your text and

make it cumbersome to read. So use them sparingly.

< = > Less is More


OK, this stuff is a bit more advanced. Similes and metaphors

compare two or more seemingly unrelated things to create an

image in the reader’s mind. They make your content memorable by

engaging the emotion-driven right brain, much like stories do.

STRENGTHEN YOUR IMAGERY

WITH SIMILES &

METAPHORS

5.

SIMILES make comparisons using

‘LIKE’ or ‘AS’.

Here’s one in action:

The Whitesands Beach stretches

along the shore like a ribbon of fresh powder.

Comparing the beach to a ‘ribbon of fresh powder’

instantly creates a picture in the reader’s mind.

Would describing Whitesands as a ‘long, sandy beach’

be as impactful?

STRENGTHEN YOUR IMAGERY WITH SIMILES & METAPHORS 5.

METAPHORS are a little different

– they state that something is like

something else. For example, many travel

brands have played with the common

“LIFE IS A JOURNEY” metaphor.

Life is a journey, travel it well. (United Airlines)

STRENGTHEN YOUR IMAGERY WITH SIMILES & METAPHORS 5.

When crafting your own metaphors and similes, avoid

clichés that people have heard over and over unless you

can put a fresh twist on them.

Persuade By Putting It All Together

Writing Dazzling Descriptive Content will make it

easier for your brand to stand out in a cluttered online

market. Most travel websites out there are packed with empty adjectives, clichés and marketing drivel.

Know What

Appeals To Your

Customers

1.

Use Small

Details To Reveal The

Big Picture

Power Up

Your

Website Copy With

Verbs

Dazzle

Readers

With Sensory-

rich

Adjectives

Strengthen

Your

Imagery With Similes

&

Metaphors

2. 3. 5. 4.

And when you combine vivid descriptive

copywriting with A Strong Brand Voice,

Engaging Headlines and (of course)

Mesmerizing Images, your website will be a

More Powerful Marketing Machine.

Did You Find This Deck Useful?

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