Each year, social media continues to grow as a marketing tool. Almost everyone uses some form of social media daily, and it has become an essential part of many company’s marketing strategies. If your social media presence is lacking or feels stale or sporadic, you’re likely missing out on using social media to increase your bookings and brand loyalty.
It can be difficult to master each social media platform. Different types of content thrive on different platforms. It is important to know the best content to post that will actually reach your target audience. This guide breaks down exactly what your tourism business should be posting right now to thrive online.
Understand Your Audience First
Before you start posting, it is important that you understand who your audience is. Who are you trying to reach? What age groups do they fall under? What are their interests? Knowing your audience helps determine the best platforms to use and what type of content will resonate most.
Platform Preferences by Audience Type:
- Gen Z (18-27): TikTok, Instagram Reels, YouTube Shorts
- Millennials (28-42): Instagram, YouTube, Facebook
- Boomers (55+): Facebook, YouTube
Once you determine who you’re talking to and where they spend their time, the next step is creating content that actually captures their attention. In an era of doom scrolling, your posts need to be both visually engaging and purpose-driven. Let’s dive into the kinds of content that work best in 2025 and take a look at how your tourism business can use them to stand out, build trust, and drive more bookings.
10 Fresh Content Ideas
1. Short-Form Video Tours
Short form videos are becoming increasingly popular, especially now that TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube Shorts exist. Consider posting a 30-second video teaser of your top tour spots with a trendy audio in the background.
2. Behind-the-Scene Stories
People love seeing personal parts of your company. It makes them feel more connected to you. Share staff prepping tours, funny moments, or daily routines. This will add authenticity and humanizes your brand.
3. Customer Takeovers & UGC
Creating content from your customers is a great way for visitors to hear others’ opinions and experiences. Repost tagged videos or stories from happy customers and encourage guests to use a branded hashtag to help with brand visibility.
4. Interactive Stories & Polls
Not only are these fun for your followers, but the interaction will drive more awareness and visibility to your social media account. Use quizzes like “Which adventure is right for you?” or polls like “Would you try paddleboarding at sunset?”
5. Local Insider Tips & Hidden Gems
You are the expert and you have the opportunity to provide useful information for your followers. Share local food spots, sunrise viewpoints, or cultural facts. This establishes authority and provides value beyond your tours.
6. Testimonial Clips
Testimonials are a great way to strengthen your credibility. Create short, subtitled video testimonials from happy guests. This adds trust and social proof.
7. Upcoming Event Highlights
Utilize your social media platforms to keep your followers in the know. Use fun countdown stickers and reminders for special tours or deals.
8. Time-Lapse Journeys
Show a whole trip in 15 seconds, from departure to sunset. This is a great opportunity for you to showcase value and experience.
9. Personal Content
Again, personal content is a great way to give visitors insight into your personality and it can also allow them to learn more about who your tour guides/employees are. It humanizes your brand, and that’s what people like to see. Highlight what guides do to prepare, interact, and enjoy the tours.
10. FAQ Sessions
Answering frequently asked questions can help potential customers to ease their worries and feel more confident booking with you. Consider answering common questions via Instagram Stories, Lives, or carousel posts.
Coming up with great content is only part of the equation. The other part is knowing where to share it and making sure you’re sharing the right content on the right platform. Each social media app has its own style, audience, and expectations. Posting the same content everywhere doesn’t always work. Let’s look at how to adapt your content strategy across today’s most important social channels.
Match the Content to the Platform
Each platform rewards specific content types. It is essential that you tailor your posts to fit the style and expectations of each social media app.
- Facebook: Great for longer posts, customer reviews, and community groups. The demographic of this platform is usually older individuals, which is useful to keep in mind when planning content to post.
- Instagram: This platform has great features that you can take advantage of, such as Reels, carousels, and stories with interactive features.
- TikTok: Very popular among the younger generations. Allow yourself to be creative, crafting raw, funny, or cinematic short-form content. Participate in trends and use popular music and audios in the background.
- YouTube: Post vlogs, destination guides, and long-form educational content here. YouTube is a search engine, so make sure that you are posting videos with value that people really want to see.
- Pinterest: This is popular within the female demographic. It can be useful for visual planning and inspiration, as well as itineraries and checklists.
- Twitter (X): This platform is a great way to share quick posts with minimal text. Share real-time updates, customer shoutouts, blog content, and quick travel tips. Use trending hashtags to increase reach and participate in destination-related conversations.
Creating platform-specific content gives your posts the best chance of success. Once you get the hang of posting, you’ll want to focus on growing and refining your strategy. You need to understand what’s actually working. Tracking your performance and using data will help inform you of what content is resonating with your audience and driving conversions. Let’s talk about the different metrics you can track and how to use them to guide your content decisions.
Measure What Matters
With analytics, you don’t need to be posting blindly. Utilize these key metrics to gain insights on your social media accounts and learn the type of content your audience actually wants to see.
Key Metrics
- Engagement Rate: this includes likes, comments, shares, and overall reach
- Saves and Shares: these key metrics are a good indicator of the value of your content
- Story Interactions: these are poll votes, swipe-ups, replies, etc.
- Click-Through Rate to Your Booking Page: this can help you to track how your social media posts are actually driving conversions
TIP: Set aside 30 minutes weekly to review analytics and adjust your content based on what resonates with your audience and what is performing well.
Tracking these metrics can help you make informed decisions about your social media strategy. Instead of just guessing what will work, you’ll have more concrete evidence of what’s already connecting with your audience. This is the key for growing on social media and generating more bookings, better reviews, and a stronger brand.
Start Seeing Social Media Success
In 2025, it’s not enough to just post pretty pictures on social media—you need to tell stories, build trust, and track data to continually improve and grow. Starting to post does not have to be overwhelming. Think of one new content idea, tailor it to your audience and platform of choice, and track how it performs. Remember that you don’t need to be everywhere. It isn’t even completely necessary to go viral. You just need to be relevant where it matters.
From Social Media Growth to Website Improvement
If you’re serious about working on your business, your website is one of the best places to start. We’ve put together a free Website Checklist specifically for tour and activity operators to help you spot missed opportunities, improve conversions, and make sure your site is truly working for you. Enter your contact info below and we’ll send it right to your inbox. No fluff – just clear, practical steps to help you make your website work smarter.
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