071 ⎢ The Seasonality in Tourism Business Operations

In this insightful episode of the Tourism Hub Podcast, host Despina Karatzias dives deep into the crucial topic of seasonality in tourism, exploring how it can be both a challenge and an opportunity for businesses. Drawing from her own experiences in the hot air balloon industry, Despina shares valuable strategies on how small businesses can effectively manage seasonal fluctuations and thrive throughout the year.

Listeners will learn the importance of understanding and anticipating seasonal trends by analysing data and booking patterns, enabling them to make informed decisions about staffing, promotions, and marketing. Despina emphasises the power of diversifying offerings, encouraging operators to think creatively and extend their services to cater to different audiences during off-peak times.

The episode also highlights the significance of targeting shoulder season visitors, building loyalty programmes, and leveraging technology to streamline operations. Collaboration within the local business community is underscored as a key strategy to enhance visibility and value, while planning off-season events and promotions is presented as a fun and effective way to attract visitors year-round.

With inspiring examples and actionable insights, this episode is a must-listen for tourism professionals eager to adapt and innovate in the face of seasonal challenges. Tune in and ignite your passion for excellence in the tourism industry!

00:00 - Seasonality, one of the most important features of tourism demand
02:46 - Understanding and anticipating your seasonal trends is a powerful business strategy
05:27 - Building loyal and reward programmes can help you attract loyal customers
06:28 - Use technology to maximise high season and soften dips during low season
09:55 - This is the 71st episode of the Tourism Hub podcastConnect with

Article: 6 Seasonal Strategies For Small Businesses in 2025

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Show hosted by Despina Karatzias and brought to you by Tourism Hub in association with Institute Of Excellence.

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Episode Transcript

>> Despina Karatzias (00:05):
Welcome to the Tourism Hub Podcast, a podcast
devoted to you and your excellence,
providing inspiration and education for
the entrepreneurs, experience makers and
excellent seekers of our industry to take
your tourism business and career to a whole
new level.

(00:30):
Seasonality, one of the most important
features of tourism demand. And it can either
be your biggest challenge or your greatest
opportunity. Hello and welcome, my
beautiful Tourism Hub family. It's
Despina Caracias here and you're tuning in to
another episode of the Tourism Hub podcast

(00:50):
brought to you by the Institute of Excellence, the
home, of tourism and small business
industry development greatness. Now,
I'm especially excited to be with you today because I
recently had the great
fortune to pen an article,
Yes, I wrote an article on behalf of
Business Victoria, all about how

(01:12):
small businesses can best manage
seasonality. Now, running a hot air
balloon operation for some time, did
give me a bit of a master class in running a
tourism seasonal business that is
at the mercy and the hands of Mother
nature and the weather gods. So I'll be

(01:33):
adding that article to our show
[e-mail]
71. And you can
also simply Google Google Business
Victoria Seasonal Strategies
2025. And it should pop up first
if you want to read and you can't wait and you want to
have a look at the original feature. But here's

(01:53):
the thing. I didn't just want this to sit on
a page. I want to bring it to life for you,
my incredible tourism hub community
of tourism operators and business owners and
dreamers and doers and leaders.
So today I'm taking the time to repurpose
that article as I share with

(02:13):
all of my businesses and, you know, give
you some of the best insights from,
from the article, but also add a
little extra tourism spice
and love. The only, way that we
know how. Because let's be honest,
seasonality isn't going away,
but how we prepare for it and

(02:36):
adapt to it, that's totally within
our control. So let's
kind of get into it. Let's roll up our sleeves and unpack
this.
The first strategy I want to share is
understanding and anticipating your
seasonal trends. And no, I'm not
like talking about guessing when it might get busy.

(02:56):
I'm talking about getting really
geeky and nerdy with your numbers.
Dive into your data, dive into your
booking patterns, your website analytics, your
customer feedback. I really want you to see
exactly when things boom and really get in
the weeds with your numbers when they tend to

(03:16):
go up, when they tend to go down. Maybe
your busiest month isn't just Summer, it's
late January when the city or your region
winds down. Maybe mid winter
gets a surprise bump from snow
chasers or wellness seekers. When you
really understand these
rhythms in your numbers, you can plan

(03:39):
your staffing, your stocking, your
promotions and your marketing with
laser focused precision.
Now, once you know your seasonal heartbeat, that
brings me to the second powerful move
and strategy. Diversifying
your offerings. Seasonal businesses

(03:59):
that thrive aren't necessarily working
harder. you guessed it, they're working smarter.
A winery that's packed during harvest season
might transform into a cosy winter glamping
retreat in the cooler months. A
summer water sports hub or adventure
park might run wellness and meditation
weekends when the water's too cold to swim in the

(04:21):
winter. It's all about stretching
your core strengths into new
experiences that meet people where
they are all year round. And speaking
of timing, here's another golden opportunity
targeting shoulder season visitors.
The shoulder seasons, what are they? the

(04:41):
shoulder seasons, what are they exactly?
Remember, those precious periods right
between peak and off peak are
a goldmine if you know how to speak
the language to the right audience.
Think retired humans looking for a
quieter getaway, Freelancers and digital

(05:02):
nomads craving a working holiday.
Even young families outside of school
holidays collaborate, create
packages, tell your destination
story, your business story, and create
deals that specifically woo
these groups when things would otherwise

(05:22):
slow down.
Which flows perfectly into another
strategy. I think you'll love building
loyal and reward programmes.
It's always easier and cheaper
to bring back a happy customer than to find
a brand new one. So how are you
communicating and treating your

(05:43):
VIPs who already know you,
like you and love you and invite them to come
back. Maybe it's a simple come back and
save. Maybe it's an exclusive
local or, you know, customer first booking
offer. Maybe it's a surprise
handwritten thank you note with a cheeky

(06:03):
update next time they stay.
Loyalty isn't about flashy tech.
It's about genuine, consistent
connection and communication to those who
have supported you up until now.
Of course, to manage all this behind the
scenes, we need the tools, the software
and the tech.

(06:25):
And that leads me to that next
must do. Leverage technology
for efficient tourism operations.
From smarter booking systems to customer
relationship management tools to
digital marketing that runs while you
sleep, using the right tech

(06:46):
means you're ready to pivot that
word. Ready to kind of change
things up, and communicate quickly
with whatever the season brings you.
Even something simple like
dynamic pricing. Hello, airline industry.
Love my airline days can

(07:06):
transform how you
maximise high season and soften
the dips during low season.
Now none of us does this
alone. Which is why one of the most
joyful strategies that I love to talk about
is to collaborate and partner

(07:27):
with your local business community and
your trade partners within
your industry. Get creative.
Pair up with that spa down the road,
link arms with that boutique gin distillery or
brewery or winery. Collaborate
on a campaign with a trusted

(07:47):
loyal agent online or
offline your visitor information centre.
Again, when was the last time you dropped in and said g' day
and shouted everyone with those volunteers
to morning tea, co host
a festival or create a seasonal bundle
that offers your visitors a ready

(08:07):
made adventure. Tourism
is at its heart, about connection and
collaboration and collaboration
multiplies your visibility and
your value in the market. And
finally, my absolute favourite in
a mix of favourite strategies and the

(08:28):
most fun is plan those off
season events and promotions.
Don't wait for people to
maybe stumble across you and what you
do, give them the
why, the reason why they must
visit all year round.

(08:48):
Any destination can host a winter wellness
festival. A rural town can light up with
a harvest food weekend. A, historic
hotel could run a murder mystery event.
Any tiny whimsical idea
can create word of mouth magic and fill
your rooms when they might otherwise

(09:09):
see empty. Look at small
Victorian regional town of
Timbula and what the vision of Chan,
one of the founders of the Timbula
Imaginarium and Wimmera
Steampunk Festival have done. to
place Timbula and the wider
Wimmera region on the map.

(09:31):
Inspiring stuff. All
sparked with an idea, a vision
and courage to act.
And just like that, that's
my seasonal strategies to share with you today for
today's episode of the Tourism Hub
podcast.
And just like that, after a short break, it's

(09:52):
a pleasure to be back. And it's a wrap for
today's episode of the Tourism Hub
podcast. Thank you so much for tuning in and
sharing your precious time with us. I hope
today's ideas sparked something fresh for you
and gave you the confidence you can
ride the waves of seasonality
like the powerhouse tourism organisation and

(10:15):
human of tourism that you are. Don't
forget you can grab all the details and extra
resources over the show notes@instituteofexcellence
M.com
7:1 for the 71st
episode and if this episode ignited
you or simply reminded you why you love
this beautiful industry, please take a moment to

(10:36):
subscribe, leave a review and most importantly,
share it with your fellow tourism brothers and
sisters. Because together, we do we lift each
other higher like a beautiful hot air
balloon. Until next time, my friends. Ignite
excellence. Go out there and be better. and do
better today than you did yesterday,

(11:09):
yes?