Why Your Customers Want Pre-Booking VR Tours 

As travel begins to reach normal rates once more, your customer not only wants more online presence but actually demands it. Many have dealt with virtual meetings, virtual medical appointments, and made virtual purchases. They want to know exactly what they can expect, and they want to do it at their own pace. No longer are online videos or still photographs acceptable for your discerning customer.   

• Face it. Virtual reality is fun. Customers enjoy looking at the things that interest them, skipping over the things that don’t.  They can feel immersed in your property, and feel as if they are exploring their accommodations. And because of that, they stay on your site for extended periods. In fact, they stay as much as five to ten times longer than if the site had no VR tour.   
• Your customer will not only stay on your booking site longer,  but they are also enjoying the tour enough to book more often. Millennials, in fact, are as much as 130% more likely to book based on a virtual tour.   
• Your competitors offer it.  Your customer wants the ease of browsing, the security in knowing what they are getting, and the ability to view and book in the same place.  There are over five million virtual tours every day globally, so without one, your prospective customer may feel you are not as modern, savvy, or customer service oriented.

Why Are VR Tours So Successful? 

When booking, your website visitor has many choices.  Your competitors offer 360 VR tours, and your customer is familiar with navigating the tour.  They are not rushed as in a video presentation, nor are they confused with still photos. With VR tours, they are able to feel immersed in the image, as if they have already arrived.  Since more customers return to a site that offers VR tours, return visitors will increase your booking conversion rates as well.  According to a study by eMarketer, compared to as little as 10 years ago, approximately 57% of hotels in the US were booked online.  That number has only increased since the pandemic when many additional clients became more familiar with online reservations.

Travelers who are booking vacations consider the internet their main source of travel planning.  According to  Think with Google, leisure travelers visit an average of 22 travel-related sites before booking and a staggering eighty-eight percent of travelers would switch to another site if yours doesn’t satisfy their needs.  

Of course, in order to attract and keep customers, you must offer a high-quality, high-resolution VR tour, giving them an experience that they want to repeat in person.  Because they are spending so much time there, you want to be sure that the time spent is enjoyable, and gives them the total experience.  Once your customer is excited about their virtual experience, you need to carry that over to the booking stage, where they can easily navigate the process.  If the transition is difficult or cumbersome, you could easily lose the client to your competitor. 

How to Get Started with a Pre-Booking VR Tour 

Of course, pre-booking VR tours are just a piece of the total sales and market package.  But do not underestimate the effect that a VR tour can have on your profit margin.  Virtual reality is not just specific to the hotel business.  Customers are purchasing automobiles, touring new homes, and visiting national landmarks.  No longer will they settle for the website experience of years past.  They want to be in the center of the property, walking virtually from room to room.  If there is something they want to give a bit of extra attention, they can do it.   

Your combined digital sales and marketing program can present an appealing concept to your prospective visitors.  Though a VR tour is not a standalone marketing program, it will enhance your current digital profile and improve your standings.  As a professional hotelier, you know the importance of giving the best service and all-around experience to your customer.  Virtual Reality tours can elevate the experience.