Last minute bookings - curse or opportunities

Every year more businesses owners say to me, 'we're getting more and more last minute bookings', 'there's no real pattern - on days we don't expect to be busy, we are and then on other days barely anyone comes'. 

This isn't a temporary blip. It's a trend that's here to stay.

So what can you do? You have a few choices: 

1. Do nothing, hope for the best - but it feels pretty scary

2. Do some panicked marketing, usually leading with special offers and discounts - but then visitors will come to expect those discounts, won't pay attention to your other marketing, and you'll lose money

3. Accept this pattern is here to stay, hold your nerve and start giving visitors stronger reasons to visit - and you'll be more likely to survive and stand out in all the other marketing 'noise' of special offers. 

It used to be that if you had a gap to fill in a week or so, there was little chance you could do so. 

Now, you might have gaps, but you also have the prospect of visitors deciding to come at the last minute. 

It might not help your planning, but there is an opportunity to attract last minute visits. 

The way you try to fill those last minute gaps can really affect how your business is perceived by potential visitors.

When faced with a space to fill, the knee-jerk reaction is often to post a panicky message on social media, typically along the lines of “due to last minute cancellation, special offer for [insert dates] price £x”.

Visitors learn from others. They get tips for places to go. They look out for recommendations. They also follow behaviour. I’m sure you’ve spotted trends that just grow and grow? Some are good trends. Some behavioural trends are less desirable.

A business that posts about last minute cancellations may unwittingly increase the likelihood of it happening more frequently.

Social media messages that talk about last minute cancellations focus on the price: the message is effectively book this date, it’s this price.

There’s no mention of why it’s a good time to visit, what’s also happening in the area, or any key selling points.

An alternative post might say something along the lines of: [date] is a great time to enjoy the xxx in zzz – book now to take advantage of one of our last slots before [date further in the future to show availability is rare].

Or you could use some of your other selling points to fill a specific date, so you’re raising awareness of your business, not just stating the price.

As I’ve said, there are plenty of people ready to take advantage of last minute availability, which may mean you fill the space but people are still responding.

Instead of just saying ‘sorry too late’, do you have a system to get people to sign up to a mailing list so they can find out about other availability (don’t just say ‘special offers’ as it can devalue your business and just attract the bargain hunters) and find out more about your business?

Building your mailing list has two other benefits. You’ll be able to offer last minute availability more as a ‘reward’ for repeat or interested visitors than as a price-led offer. It also means your social media posts aren’t filled with mentions of cancellations and special offers, encouraging others to do the same.

You could post on social media that when you have last minute availability (you don’t need to say ‘due to cancellations’), you give priority to people on your mailing list. This will help to build your list, show you value people on it, and convey the message that you’re generally full – which in turn makes visitors see you as successful so they’re less likely to expect discounts…