Hays Travel agents have been told Facebook will continue to be a key driver of bookings in 2025 and they have been encouraged to join the “micro-influencer” community.
During a presentation to retail managers at the agency’s conference in Turkey this week, social media manager Natalie Heatlie highlighted that millions of potential customers use Facebook every month.
“As we continue to evolve our social strategy, Facebook will remain at the core of our efforts,” she said, going on to urge agents to post “authentic” content that can lead to conversions.
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Videos can be a particularly impactful medium, she said, as they can “evoke emotion”.
“What better way to get your personality across than with a video,” she said. “Translate that smile across the screen just as you would face to face.”
She predicted short-form video would have a healthy future as “users’ attention span is shrinking”.
Projecting related trends, she said: “Next year is going to be all about micro-influencers.”
Defining this group as “people with small but engaged audiences”, she said their posts could present opportunities to secure additional bookings.
“I challenge you to see how many influencers you can get posting after you book,” she added, noting that agents themselves could also tap into the developing community.
“You and all of your team and all of your customers are micro-influencers,” she said.
Facebook was highlighted as a powerful tool to help the business achieve its ambitions on long-haul booking figures.
Photo: Shutterstock/Primakov