Step 3: Improve Your Click-Through Rate

Metric: Click-Through-Rate (CTR) (% of guests who click the email’s Call-To-Action)

After your guests open your email, you want to maximize the probability that they will click through. Here, there are three areas you can optimize: Your Email Design, your Email Copy, and your Call-To-Action (CTA)

Email Design

  • Make sure that your brand logo is clearly visible. If the email is co-branded, ensure that the Tripadvisor logo is prominent as well.
  • The email design should be simple and short. Ideally, the message should be left-aligned with the image on the right (see example below).
  • Include images that support the content in the email. For example, a PTC for a Tour in Dublin could contain an image relevant to Dublin attractions.
  • 60% of people open their emails on a smartphone or tablet. Make sure the email's HTML code is "responsive", and will adjust to various screen sizes accordingly.
  • Don't forget to add "ALT-text" to all images in the email, in case they load slowly or do not load correctly.

Email Copy

Keep the email copy simple and short. Add in dynamic elements (such as first name, location, dates, etc.) to make the message more personal to the user, which leads to more clicks and more reviews. Here are some examples of email copy

  • Initial email: How was your stay/visit?
    • TA review request: Dear <first name>, Thank you for choosing <hotel, restaurant, attraction>. We hope we exceeded your expectations. We invite you to review us on TripAdvisor, the world's largest travel site. Your review will help other travelers know what it's like to stay/eat/visit here. Thank you.
    • GSS + TA review request: Dear <first name>, Thank you for choosing <hotel, restaurant, attraction> for your recent stay at <City>. As a valued guest, your opinion is very important to us. We hope you can find a moment to offer some valuable feedback regarding your stay. Many travellers value comments from other guests, so we’re also giving you the opportunity to share your feedback on TripAdvisor in this survey.

 

  • Reminder email: May we have your feedback?
    • We hope you enjoyed your stay at <hotel, restaurant, attraction>. Just a quick reminder that we'd love to have you review us on Tripadvisor. Thank you.


Note: Avoid placing any images (such as the Tripadvisor logo) within the email copy. This is because many email clients won’t automatically load images.

However, including the Tripadvisor logo in the email footer is still recommended as it helps the user to recognize that the hotel is working with Tripadvisor - a globally renowned partner in hotel reviews.

Therefore, we suggest including a line in the email footer indicating: “In partnership with <Tripadvisor logo>”.

 

Call-To-Action (CTA)

Strong calls to action are the most important element of every email. Pay attention to the following principles to make your CTA as strong as possible:

 

  1. Visibility: Place your CTA above the fold. Use different colors in your CTA compared to other parts of the email. Rounded buttons or CTA buttons tend to stand out best. It should be large enough to be noticed, but small enough that it doesn’t turn people off.
  2. Clear and Compelling Message: Have a clear message that creates a sense of urgency. For example, use copy such as “Leave Your Review Now”, “Give Your Feedback Now” or “Enter The Survey Now”
  3. Utilize the Dynamic TripAdvisor Bubbles: In the initial email, you can use the bubble rating with a CTA of “How Would You Rate Us Overall” to engage customers. The Dynamic Tripadvisor bubble ratings will change depending on where your mouse hovers on the image. Contact your Tripadvisor account manager if you wish to implement this for your emails.

 

Best Practices

(Make sure there is a sentence in the email that tells the reader they will have an opportunity to leave a TA review- especially if it’s part of a GSS)

  • The CTA button should, where possible, be the Tripadvisor bubble rating. This CTA proved +50% more clickable than all other versions we've tested.
  • Where possible, code CTA buttons as HTML to avoid empty images on mobile + tablet
  • The CTA in both emails should link to the review form or widget (or to your own guest satisfaction survey, with the Tripadvisor form embedded at the end).


See an example of a PTC following our best practices:

RCP Opt-Dublin PTE