In-destination payments on the day of travel – otherwise known as ‘walk-up payments’, or simply ‘walk-ups’ – are a huge part of hop-on hop-off bus tour operators’ income. Travellers visiting a city typically see the colourful ho-ho busses on their circular routes, and buy tickets on the spot to hit the highlights easily.
But aside from walk-up revenue, hop-on hop-off operators can explore a wide range of distribution strategies to sell their bus tour products to a wider audience. These methods can be divided into two distinct groups:
- First-party (direct) distribution strategies
- Third-party (indirect) distribution strategies
First-party (direct) distribution strategies
First-party—or direct—distribution strategies involve a hop-on, hop-off bus tour operator selling tickets through its own channels. Examples include the company’s website and branded ticket offices.
Selling through your company website
Building a user-friendly website is the most important way to manage first-party distribution, and there’s absolutely no substitute for direct online sales. Your site must clearly explain your sightseeing bus routes, schedules, ticket options, and pricing.
So, craft compelling and informative product copy that engages the customer. Use clear titles that explain the benefits of your services. Include high-quality tour and city images to entice customers, and optimise your website for online search by using relevant keywords.
On top of this, running an integrated booking system is essential to manage ticket sales directly from your site. Your booking system of choice must:
- Offer 100% online payment security
- Support multiple payment options, currencies, and, ideally languages
- Send instant booking confirmations to customers
Managing bookings through your mobile app
Building your own mobile-first app gives a huge boost to the customer experience, and can be a valuable benefit to your direct distribution strategy. Your app should offer functionality like:
- Real-time bus tracking, so customers can see exactly where and when their next bus is due, and plan their hop-on hop-off experience efficiently.
- Digital ticket storage will streamline the boarding process and eliminate the need for paper ticketing.
- Push notifications allow you to keep customers informed about service updates, visitor attraction closures, special promotions, seasonal events, or even upcoming stops and nearby attractions on their route.
Establishing physical ticket offices and managing on-board sales
As mentioned, walk-up sales bring in a huge percentage of revenue for hop-on hop-off bus companies. Maintaining physical ticket offices in high-traffic tourist areas will capture ticket sales from impulse buyers.
Onboard sales are another important first-party revenue stream, and contactless technology lets your drivers or tour guides sell tickets directly to walk-up customers on the go. This last-minute or impromptu convenience boosts sales, particularly during peak tourist seasons.
Managing walk-up street sales through ticket vendors can be challenging, but it’s an important direct distribution stream. Introducing sales user commissioning to your walk-up street sales process brings enormous benefits, including:
- Reducing cash payments in favour of card transactions
- Balancing the benefits of selling at high- and low-footfall city locations
- Improving walk-up payment security
According to research in 2023, 39% of travellers turn to social media for travel inspiration. It’s clear in recent years, social media platforms such as TikTok and Instagram – specifically the reels and stories functions – have become invaluable tools for businesses of all kinds to promote their services online. Their focus on visual content is perfect for showcasing the scenic and experiential aspects of hop-on hop-off bus tours.
By regularly posting engaging photos and destination-focused clips of your tours, you can build brand awareness online and engage with a larger but targeted audience keen to see your city. Paid advertising campaigns on these platforms can focus on specific demographics, to help ensure your promotions reach your ideal customer base and drive sales.
Third-party (indirect) distribution strategies
Third-party—or indirect—distribution strategies involve a hop-on, hop-off bus tour operator selling tickets through external intermediaries like online travel agencies. Such intermediaries require effective channel management to maintain efficient distribution, but they offer valuable ways to market tours indirectly to a larger audience.
“Palisis has been key in delivering a quality service to our major distributors around the world, for real-time availability and booking. The connectivity provided is a real booster for our business.”
Corinne Le Cam, Directeur Business Développement at ParisCityVISION
Partnering with online travel agencies (OTAs)
Expedia and Viator are examples of OTAs with strong brand recognition and a gigantic user base of potential customers, whose reach extends to a global audience. These platforms are used by millions of users worldwide, searching online for destination-based sightseeing experiences exactly like yours.
They charge a commission for each booking, but listing your sightseeing bus tour with an OTA can significantly boost your visibility – and the increased exposure and potential sales volume outweigh the cost. They offer live availability and a seamless booking experience across multiple languages and currencies. This encourages international travellers who might hesitate to book directly on a foreign website.
OTAs typically prominently feature reviews and star ratings from previous customers to maintain transparency and trust, which can influence potential customers to buy tickets. Encouraging satisfied customers to leave positive reviews with the OTA they booked through can enhance your online reputation and attract more bookings. Equally, responding swiftly to criticism or complaints shows you’re committed to maintaining excellent service.
Establishing corporate collaborations
For hop-on hop-off bus tour operators, collaborating with other tourism-based businesses in your city—such as local river cruises or the visitor attractions on your hop-on hop–off sightseeing route—is a good way to increase your third-party distribution.
You might partner with local businesses and visitor attractions to offer combined sightseeing packages or discounts, creating value-added experiences for travellers exploring your city.
Selling through wholesale B2B resellers
Wholesale B2B resellers are intermediaries who purchase large quantities of tour tickets at a discounted rate, and then resell them to travel agents, tour operators, and other distribution channels. They play a huge role in the tours and activities sector, and hop-on hop-off bus tour operators are no exception. By promoting your ho-ho sightseeing tours to customers you may struggle to reach, they’re a valuable part of your third-party distribution strategy.
Connecting to a wholesale B2B reseller requires effective channel management, but once the setup is complete, the advantages are clear:
- Bulk sales and predictable income: Wholesalers buy sightseeing and tour tickets in bulk. This means operators can rely on a steady and predictable revenue stream, and typically higher passenger numbers during off-peak seasons
- Expanded sales network: By distributing your hop-on hop-off sightseeing tour tickets through a wholesaler, you enjoy easy access to a wide network of resellers. This access extends your reach to markets you would struggle to crack on your own
- Reduced marketing costs: Resellers like B2B wholesalers handle their own marketing. So by selling through your wholesaler’s established distribution network, you can reduce your internal marketing and sales efforts – which saves time and resources
- Simplified sales process: B2B wholesalers handle customer interactions and bookings within their distribution networks themselves. That means there’s less sales work for you. As an operator distributing your products through a B2B wholesaler, you’re able to streamline your sales processes and focus on delivering your tours
There are drawbacks to consider when selling through wholesale B2B resellers, though.
- Commission rates to pay: Like OTAs, B2B resellers charge commission on the sales they make which can eat into your profit margins.
- Limited brand messaging: As B2B resellers manage their own marketing, you might find you have less control over your brand messaging in the wider marketplace.
- Restrictive contractual obligations: Reseller contracts can limit your freedom and flexibility to manage your own ticket pricing, marketing efforts, or distribution strategies.
Ultimately, the benefits outweigh the challenges – and distributing your sightseeing tours through a wholesale B2B reseller is recommended.
Listing your sightseeing services with your tourist board or visitor centre
Local tourist offices are valuable third-party distribution partners for hop-on hop-off sightseeing bus operators. They’re trusted information hubs for travellers, helping tourists seeking details on local activities and experiences in-destination. As with hotel concierges, providing your local tourist office with promotional materials can directly influence tourists’ decisions to join your hop-on hop-off tour.
Working with local hotel concierge services
When customers book their hotel of choice, they share a degree of trust in the hotel to deliver a satisfactory experience. This trust extends to any activity recommendations the hotel may make – and this is where strong relations with hotel concierge services can benefit your hop-on hop-off bus tour operation.
Establishing relationships with hotels, particularly those in central or tourist-heavy areas, can lead to direct referrals. Offering concierges commission on ticket sales and providing them with your promotional materials can incentivise them to recommend your sightseeing tours. Build a good working relationship by regularly updating them on your offerings, and ensure they have the most up-to-date information to share with their guests.
Advice on choosing your direct and indirect distribution strategies
Research your target market
Researching your ideal customer type(s) is an important first step in selecting the best distribution strategies for your hop-on hop-off bus tour operation. Your target audience could include short-break visitors looking for a hassle-free way to see your city or parents with young children seeking out ways to sightsee without walking.
Whatever your ideal customer type(s), researching where and when they tend to book their tours and experiences will give you helpful insight into the best distribution strategies for your business.
Distribute through both organic and paid channels
Organic channels—like an SEO-optimised website and engaging social media presence—build a long-term, cost-effective brand presence and help sustain customer awareness.
Paid channels – such as online ads and commission-based OTA partnerships – quickly reach your targeted audiences, bringing immediate visibility. They can also drive online traffic to boost sales over peak periods or promotional campaigns.
Distributing tours through both organic and paid channels ensures a balanced approach. It’ll help you:
- Maximise visibility among your target audience
- Boost market visibility and penetration
- Optimise marketing spend
- Drive consistent revenue growth
Avoid channel dependence
‘Channel dependence’ refers to an over-reliance on a single distribution channel. It’s dangerous for operators, because it leaves you vulnerable to seasonal shifts and changes in business relationships. If too high a percentage of bookings, revenue, or customers comes from one place, it could cause problems.
If you’re engaging exclusively in any of the distribution strategies listed in this article, you risk channel dependence. But by maintaining a selection of both first- and third-party distribution channels, you’ll avoid the problem and protect yourself against changing business practices.
For more information on embracing different distribution strategies to boost your hop-on hop-off sightseeing operation, reach the experts at Palisis through our contact us page.