Improve Charter Social Media!

1. Facebook

Some refer to it as a dying platform. However, don't discount its effectiveness just jet. Currently counting over 2.9 billion users with the majority in the 25 - 35 age group – keep in mind that this is the demographics with the purchasing power.

One of Facebook's main advantages is that you don't need to create content for this platform specifically but rather use it to draw eyeballs by sharing the content from your own website. Whether you do new Sailing itineraries, blog posts with Sailing tips and tricks, or celebrating a significant milestone, make sure you share it on Facebook.

Another must - is creating photo albums to display your offer. Dedicate one to the base, yachts, destination, and user-generated content. Make sure your company's Facebook is an extension of your website and displays all the critical information your website does. One of Facebook's features that needs to be more utilized is Facebook events. No other platform does this as well as Facebook, so be sure you share your activities, such as Boat Show exhibitions, regattas, and so on.

During the charter season, it is more than likely that the majority of your guests will take pictures, and shoot videos with their phones or even drones to keep the best memories of their dream holiday experience. Ask them to share their content and you can instantly create a beautiful content album of the current charter season on your Facebook page. This content can be used twofold: first as a testimonial to your services over the years and secondly you can repost the content during the off-season to get the next wave of guests all warmed up to the idea of chartering a yacht with your company during those cold winters.

2. Instagram

Undeniable is the platform that serves as the best marketplace for charter services. Scheduling a professional photoshoot of your fleet would be the easiest solution. Still, if time/budget leaves little space for it, you can easily snap a few pictures of the yacht set up before your clients board the yacht. Don't get discouraged by "picture-perfect" Instagram feeds, as this is something you can emulate if you put a little time and effort into it.

Stories are your best friend. This feature helps you connect better with your audience without spending hours editing a picture or writing a perfect caption. Stories are a fantastic tool to share special offers, last-minute or one-way. Share behind the scenes, introduce your employees and crew, display your offices, and share fun moments.

Reels are the latest of Instagram updates and algorithms favoring it over other content, so now is the time to start posting reels. Most users avoid video format, but once you get the hang of it, it is entertaining to create, and the best part is that you can use the same video content on TikTok.

Instagram users are used to influencers sharing their custom Promo codes, so make sure you use them to promote your discounts. You can easily create Promo codes with Booking Manager and share them on your platforms.

It might be very costly to hire influencers to cover your company brand, but still Instagram provides you with a unique setup to do something innovative like creating your brand ambassadors. Leverage the fact that the skippers, hostesses, and other crewmembers you hire anyway are most likely engaged in building their own charter-specific audiences to secure more job opportunities. Synergize with their efforts, especially with the ones that are working with a larger follower base. You might want to provide them with a yacht in the off-season to generate free “how to” content for you or share with them special discounts to generate more direct bookings over the years while building higher brand awareness with both the charter guest and professional community.

3. TikTok

Many dread the "silly dancing app", but the fastest-growing social media platform in the world is one you don't want to sleep on. The best thing about this platform is the possibility of going viral regardless of the size of your audience and going viral usually translates into sales going through the roof. Now that you are convinced to install Tik Tok let's discuss the technicalities.

Trend is one word you must get familiar with. TikTok is all about trends, in the most straightforward terms - trend is something prevalent at the given moment, it can be a filter, sound, or just a video template. It is crucial to jump on the trend as it is gaining traction. This is an opportunity to let your imagination run wild and adopt the trend to fit your yacht charter business.

Storytelling is another trendy style of video and an excellent opportunity to connect with future customers on a personal level. Use it to tell a story of your destination, how you founded the company, or film "A Day in a Life of a Fleet Manager" even the most mundane tasks you do, might be relatable to so many people.

It is imperative to note that there are little or no viral trends on Tik Tok at least for now in the yacht charter industry. So this might be a great opportunity for you to either start generating a new trend through a challenge i.e. in a friendly regatta race. Alternatively, find existing trends and storytelling opportunities that are trending which you can easily translate into the yacht charter world.

While you can easily edit the videos in TikTok directly, it is clever to use apps like InShot or CapeCut to avoid the TikTok watermark and be able to repurpose the video for Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts.

4. YouTube

Many still only use YouTube for music videos, but this platform has so much potential once you use it correctly. Youtube videos are more complex than Instagram, and TikTok due to the level of production users are accustomed to. Still, there are ways to work around it. A more current phone camera will do just fine.

The research shows internet users tend to prefer YouTube over Google search engine when purchasing a Holliday, so make sure your video is SEO optimized. An excellent video idea that could get you many views regardless of your budget is the so-called "Sit-down videos" You can repurpose your FAQ page content and translate it into a video format.

Another fun style to use is the display of "top 5 beaches to visit in your destination", or "3 things you must try the first time you go sailing" - you get the picture. YouTube algorithm tends to prefer the longer video format, so aim for over 10 minutes of duration to increase your viewing time.

Thumbnails are essential to attract clicks on YouTube. Just be sure to make your thumbnail on brand and create an eye-catching photo version of your video title. Free tools such as Canva will allow you to do wonders.

You can use your YouTube channel to be your video content library with little or no active effort to build this channel. Here you can either store your professional or user-generated content and use it across all of the social platforms or simply embed the content on your web to further enrich your guest experience.

Alternatively, as an example, you can use the shorts format to either showcase or quickly explain any specifics about the yacht before check-in and share the content link using the branded booking manager e-mail templates with your clients.

5. REUSE, RECYCLE AND REPURPOSE

In essence, no matter which content type you wish to focus on and regardless of the social media channel mix you choose, bear in mind that you need to maximize your impact while minimizing your utilization efforts across platforms.

Achieve your goal by using existing content multiple times in a way that best fits the platforms of your choice. Base your platform picks on the company’s existing social media and branding strategy or create your own using the data above. Additionally it is important to note, that your clients and employees can act both as content creators and your target audience. Engage them year-round with a signature mix of both social media channels in combination with your booking platform to drive your yacht charter sales.

Finally, these efforts should aim to provide a unique customer journey for your clients, especially in pre-departure and post-departure segments which will be hard to replicate by your competition, making you stand out even more!