Episode 10
Inside Your Ideal Customer’s Mind: Why Tours Get Booked with Corey Jay
How travelers actually search, compare, and decide which tours to book.
What builds trust during the dreaming phase and what quietly kills it.
In this episode of the Tour Operator Growth Podcast, we take a different approach to the Dreaming stage of the Growth Engine. Instead of talking about marketing tactics, we go inside the mind of an ideal customer.
Corey Jay from Zebulon joins us to break down how real travelers discover, research, and decide which tours to book. As someone who both works in the industry and regularly books experiences herself, she gives a clear, honest look at what actually influences decisions. We explore where travelers start their search, how they use Google, OTAs, social media, and AI, and why most decisions are shaped long before someone lands on your website.
Corey shares how trust is built through content, reviews, and consistency across platforms, and why red flags, poor experiences, or lack of clarity can quickly push potential guests away. We also dive into how decision-making changes based on the type of experience, why longer and higher-ticket tours require more validation, and how brand awareness plays a bigger role than most operators realize.
This episode also highlights what happens after someone finds your business, including what they look for on your website, how they evaluate your credibility, and what keeps them engaged over time. If you’ve ever wondered why some tours get booked while others get ignored, this episode gives you a clear look at what’s actually happening behind the scenes.
Understanding how travelers think allows tour operators to build marketing systems that align with real behavior instead of assumptions, and working with a specialized
SEO agency for tour operators helps turn that visibility into consistent bookings
Why Most Tour Operators Misunderstand the Booking Decision
Many tour operators believe that bookings happen on their website. While the final transaction may occur there, the decision itself begins much earlier. Travelers are influenced by multiple touchpoints before they ever consider clicking “book now.”
A potential guest may first discover a destination through a Google search, then explore options on TripAdvisor, watch videos on social media, and read reviews before returning days or weeks later to make a decision. By that point, they already have a strong perception of which companies they trust.
This means your website is not the starting point. It is the final checkpoint. If trust has not been built beforehand, your website has to work much harder to convert. If trust is already established, even a simple website can perform well.
The key insight is simple but often overlooked. Travel decisions are shaped long before the booking page.
Where Travelers Actually Start Their Search
Google as the Primary Starting Point
Most travelers begin with broad, idea-based searches. They are not looking for your brand. They are looking for experiences. Searches like “things to do in Moab” or “best tours in Costa Rica” are common starting points.
This is where visibility matters most. If your business is not present during these early searches, you are invisible at the moment interest begins.
OTAs and “Top Lists” as Inspiration
Platforms like TripAdvisor and Viator are often used for discovery rather than final booking. Travelers browse lists, compare options, and gather ideas. These platforms help shape the consideration set, but they are rarely the final step for higher-value experiences.
Social Media and YouTube for Validation
Travelers turn to social media and video platforms to see real experiences. They want to understand what the tour feels like, not just what it includes. Authentic content helps them visualize the experience and evaluate whether it fits their expectations.
AI Is Changing How Discovery Happens
AI tools are becoming part of the discovery process. Travelers now ask conversational questions and expect curated answers. However, they still verify information through websites, reviews, and multiple sources before making a decision.
AI accelerates discovery, but it does not replace trust-building.
How Travelers Move From Inspiration to Decision
The “Anchor Experience” Moment
At some point, a traveler identifies a key experience that anchors their trip. This could be a rafting tour, a wildlife excursion, or a specific guided experience that defines the itinerary.
Once this anchor is identified, everything else revolves around it.
The Research Rabbit Hole
After finding an anchor experience, travelers go deeper. They read reviews, watch videos, compare providers, and evaluate options. This phase is where most of the decision-making happens.
The Trust-Building Phase
Before booking, travelers look for signals that confirm their choice. They evaluate consistency across platforms, quality of content, and credibility of the company.
Trust is not built in one moment. It is built through repetition and consistency across multiple touchpoints.
What Builds Trust and What Instantly Kills It
Trust is one of the most important factors in the booking decision, especially for higher-ticket or multi-day tours.
Strong trust signals include consistent branding, clear messaging, real photos, detailed content, and positive reviews. When travelers see the same message reinforced across platforms, confidence increases.
However, trust can be lost quickly. A confusing website, outdated content, unclear pricing, or inconsistent messaging can immediately eliminate a company from consideration. Even small red flags can create doubt.
Travelers are not looking for perfection. They are looking for confidence.
The Role of Reviews in the Booking Decision
Reviews play a significant role in how travelers evaluate options. Most people do not just look at ratings. They read reviews carefully, especially those in the middle range.
Two- and three-star reviews often provide the most insight because they highlight real concerns. Travelers also pay attention to how companies respond to feedback.
Authenticity matters more than perfection. A mix of honest feedback with thoughtful responses builds more trust than a flawless but unrealistic review profile.
How Website Experience Influences the Final Decision
When a traveler finally lands on your website, they are looking for confirmation. They want to validate what they already believe about your business.
Clarity, simplicity, and ease of use are critical. Visitors want to understand what the experience includes, how it works, and why it is worth booking.
A strong website removes friction and reinforces trust. A confusing website introduces doubt and can quickly push users away.
Even small improvements in clarity can significantly impact conversion rates.
Preparing your site ahead of demand spikes using a structured tour operator website guide can improve both user experience and conversion performance.
How Decision-Making Changes Based on Tour Type
Short Tours
Short, low-commitment tours often involve faster decisions. Travelers require less research and may book more impulsively.
Multi-Day or High-Ticket Tours
Longer or more expensive experiences require deeper evaluation. Travelers spend more time researching, comparing options, and validating their choice.
The higher the commitment, the more important trust becomes.
Why Brand Awareness Matters More Than Most Operators Realize
Travelers rarely book the first time they encounter a brand. They often see the same company multiple times across different platforms before taking action.
This repeated exposure builds familiarity and increases the likelihood of being remembered when the traveler is ready to book.
Brand awareness is difficult to measure, but it plays a critical role in the decision process.
What Keeps Travelers Engaged Before Booking
Travelers stay engaged with brands that provide value without constant selling. Content that inspires, educates, and entertains keeps your business top of mind.
Stories, visuals, and helpful insights create a connection that encourages return visits. Overly aggressive sales messaging often reduces interest and engagement.
The goal is not immediate conversion. The goal is sustained visibility and trust.
The Biggest Missed Opportunity for Tour Operators
Most operators optimize individual parts of the journey but fail to evaluate the full experience. This creates gaps that can reduce conversion without being immediately obvious.
A simple but powerful approach is to act as a customer and go through your own booking process. This reveals friction points, inconsistencies, and missed opportunities to build trust.
Small improvements across the entire journey can create significant results.
These types of improvements are demonstrated clearly in the
Grand Canyon Expeditions case study, where stronger visibility and user experience led to measurable growth.
A similar approach can be seen in the
Four Season Guides case study, showing how aligning visibility, messaging, and experience improves booking outcomes.
How This Fits Into the Growth Engine
The Growth Engine framework connects every stage of the customer journey.
The Dreaming Stage focuses on inspiration and discovery. The Planning Stage involves research and validation. The Booking Stage focuses on conversion.
This episode highlights the importance of the early stages. When visibility and trust are strong in the Dreaming and Planning phases, conversion becomes easier in the Booking stage.
Frequently Asked Questions
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How do travelers decide which tours to book?
Most travelers start with a broad search for things to do, then narrow down options by reading reviews, watching videos, and comparing companies before making a decision.
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Where do people usually start researching tours?
Google is still the primary starting point, often followed by OTAs, blogs, YouTube, and increasingly AI tools that help personalize recommendations.
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What makes a tour company feel trustworthy?
Consistency across platforms, real reviews, strong content, and a clear online presence all help build trust before a guest ever books.
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Do bad reviews stop people from booking?
Not necessarily. Travelers often ignore one-star reviews but pay close attention to patterns in two- and three-star reviews and how companies respond to them.
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How important is content in the decision process?
Very important. Blogs, videos, and real guest experiences help travelers visualize the tour and build confidence before booking.
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Does the type of tour affect how people decide?
Yes. Short, low-cost tours require less research, while multi-day or high-ticket experiences require more time, validation, and trust.
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What turns potential customers away?
Poor website experience, lack of information, generic messaging, and overly aggressive sales tactics can quickly push people to competitors.
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How does this fit into the Growth Engine?
This episode primarily focuses on the Dreaming stage (inspiration and discovery) and Planning stage (research and trust-building), which ultimately drive stronger Booking decisions.