20 Marketing Tips That Will Boost Your Venue’s Holiday Bookings

It’s time to focus on your venue’s holiday bookings as we are days away from the start of the holiday season and customers are eager to plan holiday parties and celebrate. Earlier this year, 40% of consumers told us they are spending an average of $6,947 per event, and 45% of corporate event planners are spending between $1,000-$5,000 for their company holiday parties.

Make sure you take advantage of the holiday season. Promote your venue as the perfect place to hold holiday events this year. We’ve made it easy for by listing out 20 marketing tips that you can use now to help your venue boost its bookings for the holiday season.

1. Use your Tripleseat lead form link in your email newsletter

We’ve seen dozens of emails already from venues about booking holiday parties, but some have been missing one crucial thing: a link to their Tripleseat lead form! We’ve made it easy for potential clients to book with you. Take a moment and include your Tripleseat lead form in all your newsletters.

To find your lead form link, go to your Tripleseat account. Scroll to the bottom left of the navigation and click Settings. Then scroll to the Leads & Public Listings in your settings. Click on Lead Forms and view the forms you created or start a new one. Click on the View Live Page button next to the lead form you want to share. Copy the website address to your form and use that link in your email marketing.

2. Post your lead form link on social media

Since you’ve got that lead form page open anyway, copy and paste that link on your social media accounts. Add it to your about section and create social media posts promoting your venue’s holiday bookings.

3. Review your EventUp listing

Get your venue in front of hundreds of thousands of event planners on the industry’s best venue marketplace: EventUp by Tripleseat! Your Tripleseat subscription automatically comes with a basic listing on EventUp. Your venue listing is a dedicated page about your venue. Include photos and event options marketed to social and corporate event planners searching for the perfect venue for their next event.

Make planners aware of your holiday offerings by adding seasonal information to your listing, and make sure you have the right amenities, keywords, and photos on your listing to get noticed. Increase your exposure by upgrading to an EventUp premium listing.

4. Use images

Images are eye-catching, so use them in emails, social media posts, blog posts, or your website. Use tools such as Canva, PicMonkey, or Adobe Spark to create images that layer text, icons, graphics, or photos that include information about holding holiday events at your venue.

5. Send an email to your VIPs and last year’s clients

Log in to your Tripleseat account to look at who booked holiday events with you last year and who your big spenders are for this year. You’ll need to go to the Reports tab in the menu on the left in your account. Go to the Events section on the top and pull a custom Event Details Report. Select dates for the last holiday season. To find your most booked contacts, scroll down to Accounts and Contacts in the Reports section. Pull a Most Booked Contacts Report for the year to date.

Click the Export button when you’re in these reports to pull a list of contact information you can upload to your email service provider. Send an email that thanks them for booking with you in the past and remind them to contact your venue soon to book this year’s holiday events.

6. Record a video

Grab your smartphone and create a quick video to say hello to your customers and let them know your venue is now accepting holiday bookings. Have fun with it! Use props or accessories and include some of your employees. Share the video on your blog, in your email marketing, and on your social media accounts, especially Instagram and TikTok.

7. Do a livestream video

Use Facebook Live to show your followers some behind-the-scenes action at your venue. Show off your decorated event spaces and amenities. Interview your staff. Give fans a look at what’s on your menu. Or, do a cooking demo on a special drink or menu item you’re featuring for the holidays.

8. Create a photo album to boost your venue’s holiday bookings

Create a photo album on Facebook or Instagram of events you’ve held in the last year. Make sure to use the captions to remind customers that the year isn’t over yet. They still have time to book their holiday event with your venue. Share a link to the album in your social media posts, in your emails, and on your blog. Make your lead form link easy to find by including it in photo captions and the album description.

9. Talk about trends

Your customers are looking for the best holiday party trends, and you are the holiday party expert. Share the décor, theme, food, and cocktail trends you’ve noticed this year, and if you’re incorporating them into the events you’re hosting. Write about the trends and share photos or videos of them on your blog, in your emails, and on social media.

10. Share a recipe

Is there something special that you offer on your seasonal menu every year? Write about it or create a video about it. You don’t have to give away your recipe secrets. Just talk about the dish, provide general information on how it’s made, and share why you serve it.

11. Write a blog post on holiday event planning advice

The holidays are a fun but frantic time of year. Offer your customers help with a blog post about holiday party planning and your advice in the form of tips or a checklist for how to get everything done in time without stressing out.

12. Create a page on your website with holiday booking info

Make it very easy for customers to interact with your venue’s holiday bookings. Create a special page about your holiday events and any details like special pricing or amenities. Provide direct access by linking to your lead form so prospects can get started right away.

13. Post Throwback Thursday photos

Get customers in the holiday spirit by sharing photos on social media and in emails from your venue’s past holiday parties. It will get them thinking about booking their events and help them picture what their event might look like at your venue.

14. Give a behind-the-scenes look

Part of the fun of the holidays is making them happen. Take photos or videos of your employees hanging up decorations. Show how your chef prepares a special menu item or your bartender preparing a festive cocktail, or your staff getting ready for the holidays.

15. Build a Pinterest board of holiday resources

If you’ve created blog posts or images that share holiday trends, advice, and tips, pin them to a Pinterest board for a one-stop shop of your holiday expertise. Share the link to the board on your blog and social media as a place where customers can find resources. Include your lead form link in the board and pin descriptions.

16. Offer Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals

You can still participate in the big shopping days during the holiday season even if you’re not a retailer. Offer deals such as a percentage or dollar amount off of their contract or individual services. Share your deal in email and on social media.

17. Change your social media cover images

Upload a new cover image for your Facebook and Twitter accounts for the holiday season. It could include photos of your events or just a seasonal theme with text about how customers can book events with you.

18. Ask a question

Get a conversation going with your fans on social media. Ask them a question about the holidays, such as “What is your favorite holiday party tradition?” or “What do you do to relieve holiday stress?” Their answers can help you learn more about their needs, and they’ll be impressed that you are interested in their opinions. You’ll stay top of mind when they’re ready to plan their holiday events.

19. Use a fact or stat

People love learning new facts or statistics. Get their attention by sharing something they might not know about the holidays as a chance to let them know that they should work with you on their upcoming celebrations. Go to the United States Census Bureau’s site, Statista, or Visually’s collection of holiday infographics to find interesting facts and stats. Use your image creation tool of choice to build an image with the text of the fact or stat layered on top.

20. Post a screenshot of your Tripleseat calendar when it’s starting to fill up

An image of your event bookings calendar will definitely get a reaction from customers. Go to the Calendar section of your Tripleseat account, select the month you want, and then take a screenshot using Shift + Command + 4 on a Mac or try this screenshot tip from Digital Trends on a PC. Post the image on your social media accounts or emails with a caption about how your calendar is filling up and anyone planning a holiday event needs to act fast.

Start now to get sold out for the holidays

You might not have time for all these tips to boost venue’s holiday bookings, so try one or two to get started. Then you can always add more if you can. Get even more tips by downloading our Events Industry Handbook, ‘Tis the Season for Holiday Events. We created this resource to help restaurants, hotels, and venues ensure their calendars are fully booked with holiday events before the end of 2022.