How to Develop a Traveler Retention Strategy: A Case Study of Collaboration with Karta.com

A customer engagement strategy is a key part of the development and growth of any startup. It helps a business stand out from the competition, attract the target audience, increase sales, and build a strong, positive brand. Creating an effective advertising strategy requires a deep understanding of the market and modern marketing tools, as well as a consumer needs analysis.

Developing a successful customer engagement strategy was the goal of our cooperation with the Karta.com team. In this project, we maximized all stages of strategy development to come up with a comprehensive retention strategy.

About the project

The Client

Karta.com is a free accommodation booking service for travelers. This means that the booking platform does not make any profit from the transactions. The service also offers:

• Refunds or alternative accommodation options for tourists in case of problems with the booked accommodation.
• A secure payment system and strict verification procedures for accommodation prices.
• Below market average prices.

Karta.com is not only for tourists looking for authentic accommodation in the country they are traveling to. The service is also open to working with property owners in different countries. Those willing to offer their homes to tourists can post an ad for their house or apartment on the site for free.

Reason for contacting Netpeak

When they contacted us, the client had already made a start on creating a strategy. So, the ultimate goal of our cooperation was to create a ready-to-use development and promotion strategy.

The main elements of the promotion strategy development:

1. Market and competitor analysis. In-depth research of the market and competitive environment to identify strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities for growth.
2. Target audience analysis. Identifying the needs and desires of the target audience to develop personalized marketing messages.
3. Defining a USP. Identifying the main components of the client’s unique selling proposition (USP) and emphasizing them in all types of communication with potential users.
4. Selection of promotional channels. Selecting the most effective promotional channels, depending on the target audience and budget.
5. Measuring effectiveness. Identifying and using tools for regular analysis of marketing campaign results. This allows us to evaluate the effectiveness of the promotion strategy and make the necessary adjustments to achieve maximum results.

These aspects became the priority areas for our work.

Action plan

The first priority was to create an action plan.

Key items of the project plan

Each of the plan items had separate sub-items with a set time frame and an indication of the total cost of the task.

Some sub-items were planned to be carried out with specialists from the client's side. We identified these areas of work and created a plan for each of them.

Plan to develop a promotion strategy for the client

In total, the work plan included seven areas:

1. Strategy development.
2. Gathering a list of contacts.
3. Preparing for the implementation of mass newsletters.
4. Preparation for the implementation of triggered newsletters.
5. Performing irregular tasks, such as development of a subscription landing page and web push connection.
6. Performing additional design tasks.
7. Implementation of custom email design services.

According to the developed work plan, we started analyzing the existing data.

Team actions

Market analysis

To understand how the industry works, who our client's competitors are, and what needs to be done to create a successful promotional strategy, we conducted detailed market research.

List of key research points

We identified the most common types of vacation rentals, the size and growth rate of the vacation rental industry, and the average income of users in three combined regions: Asia, the USA, and Europe. Taking into account data from each of these regions, we compiled tips and insights that can help promote the service.

Here's how niche analysis can help determine the advertising strategy. Following a similar pattern, we studied the following:

• Demand and emerging trends in travel destinations
• Trends in the rental industry for 2023
• Tenants and landlords as players in the travel rental market

All of this analysis allowed us to draw the main conclusions by category:

• Seasonality
• Pricing strategies
• Local regulations
• Market saturation
• Technology and online platforms
• Economic factors
• Guest impressions and feedback
• Global travel trends

Example of pricing insights based on market analysis

Market dynamics

Understanding the changing needs of travelers, industry trends, and competitor behavior allows the business to make better decisions and adapt to changing conditions. Market dynamics research is responsible for this part of the promotional strategy. It helps predict and even manage demand by optimizing pricing, creating a competitive advantage, and mitigating risk.

To analyze the dynamics of the travel rental market, we studied the same indicators mentioned above, which we used to draw the main conclusions. Now, we focused on the impact of fluctuations in each of these items on the purchasing power of travelers and, thus, on the business of our client.

An example of market dynamics analysis by seasonality

Competitor analysis

Studying the offerings and promotional strategies of other players in the market gave us a clear picture of their: 

• Strengths and weaknesses 
• Geography and pricing policies
• Marketing channels used to attract users 

In combination, these data help highlight the advantages of the client’s offers more effectively and the unique capabilities of the service. We used it to identify areas of development to differentiate the client from its competitors.

We then compiled the main list of competitors in the niche and studied each individually and in comparison with others.

The list of competitors consists of the ten largest travel accommodation services in the world.

Gathering a user base is one of the most important requirements for successful marketing. No matter how good your communication skills are, they will have no effect if you do not communicate with anyone. So, we assessed how the client’s competitors collect their customer contacts and compared their methods. The vast majority of competitors used only two or three tools.

We also analyzed triggered and regular mass newsletters using a similar principle.

Based on this analysis, we compiled a list of recommendations to help the client compete with other platforms for the attention of both tourists and landlords.

Tips for technical settings of the sender domain

We developed a manual with tips on implementing certain technical changes. This was necessary for the user to confirm in the email after registration that their email address exists and that they agree to receive information and promotional material at this address.

The manual provides clear and understandable configuration instructions with information sources.

Tips for creating a welcome email series

Welcome emails are usually the first point of communication between a company and its customers. After developing the master template, the focus shifted to welcome trigger emails.

We started by developing the structure and content of welcome emails. Each trigger in the map contains a simple diagram of the blocks that will make up the finished email.

More details about each of the triggers, their content, and the function of the email elements are described in a separate document. We also created a communication map to build brand communication with subscribers.

Another task we did was to develop a design for a welcome email series. We included an incentive for the first purchase, which was a 35% discount on rentals.

The first trigger email in the proposed welcome email series

The second trigger email

The third and final triggered email in the proposed welcome email series

Creating a personalized bonus card for users

To strengthen customer loyalty and encourage repeat service usage, we created a personalized bonus card for each user. It offers 12 key bonuses that can be used as a basis for developing a discount system. Each point allows the user to save money on travel, which has a positive impact on the customer return rate.

Analysis of the current state of the project

The next step in developing the strategy was a detailed audit of the existing features of the website, templates, email campaigns, and mobile application. This helped us identify weak areas, growth points, and key KPIs to track the promotion results. We conducted a comprehensive analysis of the business from a marketing perspective.

The first step was to analyze the client's website and email service, which revealed a number of technical errors.

After explaining to the client the impact of these errors, we made recommendations for their correction.

We then found out how the database of contacts was collected and their sources, and we also analyzed the effectiveness of the methods used to retain site visitors. We emphasized the importance of website traffic in building a contact database.

Along with that, we reviewed the site's subscription and unsubscription methods. In the same section, we identified key growth points.

We evaluated the effectiveness of the emails already sent. The following metrics were used in the evaluation:

• Open rate
• Click-through rate
• Click-to-open rate
• Delivery rate
• Unsubscribe rate
• Bounce rate

We analyzed the effectiveness of all main email elements: headers, banners, body copy, info boxes, buttons, and footers.

This is what an average email looked like at the time of the analysis:

This is the email we suggested updating it to:

We also analyzed the types of campaigns that have been conducted and provided recommendations for launching future campaigns.

We audited the mobile application and provided a list of recommendations for improvement. We showed why it is important to implement the iOS version of the application (at the time of strategy development, only the Android application was launched).

Similar to the rest of the analysis, we identified growth points and areas for development. We not only explained the process but also emphasized the purpose of its implementation.

Finally, we identified performance indicators to assess future changes in performance. We emphasized that the forecast could only be achieved if all of these changes were implemented.

Promotion results

The client approached our agency to develop a promotional strategy. We divided this task into stages, according to which we:

1. Analyzed the market situation. As a result, we provided conclusions and recommendations in seven key areas.
2. Tracked market dynamics in the same areas and provided recommendations for each.
3. Identified ten key competitors in the industry and analyzed their promotion strategies. 
4. Provided recommendations for implementing technical specifications and supported them with a manual with detailed explanations.
5. Developed a map of automation and personal rewards for users to help build loyalty in customer relationships.
6. Created a work plan. Each item had sub-items, a defined execution time, and a fixed cost.
7. Performed a detailed audit of the current state of the project. As part of this, we identified priority areas for development and parameters for evaluating the strategy’s effectiveness.
8. Developed an example of a welcome chain email series, provided general advice, and defined the function of each element of the emails.

Feedback on cooperation

Anna Samus, Project Manager at Netpeak Agencies Group