❓ Is Your Buyer Journey Costing You Customers?

Fix buyer journey blind spots and convert more customers.

🌞 Welcome to this Week's Newsletter

Hospitality customers don’t follow a funnel or a straightforward path. They hesitate, scroll, compare, and disappear without warning, making it tough to keep track of their experience.

Poor customer experiences can result in significant losses; up to $3.7 trillion in global revenue is at risk annually due to customers reducing or halting spending after negative interactions.

In this newsletter, you’ll gain valuable insights into how to track and influence the buyer’s journey, optimise every touchpoint, and convert hesitation into loyalty.

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👨‍👩‍👦 Understanding the Non-Linear Buyer Journey in Hospitality

The chances are you’ve heard of the buyer’s journey in some form, AIDA, the sales funnel, or the classic “awareness to loyalty” model; they all have one thing in common: linear paths.

The decision-making process is anything but linear. Holiday-makers now rack up 140 visits to travel sites in the seven weeks leading to a booking, 20 digital touchpoints a week.

And it doesn’t end at conversion. Nearly 9 in 10 customers expect personalised updates and communication during their stay or service period. They want reassurance. Real-time answers. A sense that you still care after they’ve paid.

Buyers, whether booking a hotel, choosing a restaurant, or sourcing ingredients for a foodservice business, are more hesitant, distracted, and demanding than ever. Over 50% of travellers still weigh up multiple destinations just one week before booking. Diners, particularly Millennials and Gen Z, are increasingly influenced by social media and online reviews, with 33% switching their preferred restaurants in the past year due to better food or value.

In B2B, the lines are blurring as buyers increasingly act like consumers, influenced by storytelling and emotional cues, with 6–10 stakeholders involved in most purchase decisions.

Every moment matters, from that first spark of inspiration to the loyalty loop that kicks in long after checkout. Your marketing must work across the entire journey, not just the obvious touchpoints, if you want to achieve sustainable results.

No two brands are alike; your buyer’s journey must reflect your distinct value, whether you're offering a luxury hotel stay, a memorable dining experience, or tailored services that stand out. Recognising the unique needs of your audience and aligning each touchpoint with their expectations is key.

So, what does the buyer’s journey look like in hospitality?

🗺️ The Buyer’s Journey

Customers make decisions at each stage of the buyer journey, often subconsciously. In the Dreaming stage, they explore possibilities and are open to inspiration without the intention to buy. In Planning, their focus narrows as they evaluate options and compare priorities. When it comes to Deciding, the goal is to provide the reassurance they need to feel confident in their choice. In the Experiencing stage, the customer uses your service or product in real-time, forming a lasting impression based on delivery. Finally, the Belonging stage builds loyalty and ensures customers feel valued enough to return.

Each stage in the buyer’s journey has distinct emotional and decision-making triggers. Optimising these touchpoints is essential to maintaining momentum throughout the entire process. With a clear strategy for each stage, you can turn interest into lasting relationships that drive sustainable success.

Here’s how you can apply this to your hospitality business.

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⚙️ Optimising Touchpoints for Maximum Conversion

Each stage of the hospitality buyer journey relies on carefully designed touchpoints and connections that shape the customer experience. Being present at every stage isn’t enough. Your media, messaging and Calls to Action (CTA) must match the customer’s intent, meet them emotionally, and guide them towards action, otherwise, they’ll scroll past, hesitate, or disappear entirely.

Buyer behaviour at these touchpoints provides rich insights: scrolls show interest, pauses can signal doubt or interest, and abandoned bookings often expose deeper issues. According to Salesforce, 67% of customers exit during the planning stage due to irrelevant or poorly timed communication, and 43% will leave your site altogether if the experience feels clunky. Think slow page loads, forms that force re-entry, or a visual style that lacks coherence or trust.

Here are the touchpoints to consider for each stage - click to enlarge

These touchpoints highlight where to focus your marketing efforts to connect with customers at every stage and ensure a seamless journey.

First, identify which touchpoints matter most. Then, explore buyer behaviour at each stage, review content, and test your Calls to Action (CTAs) to ensure they align with customer intent.

Ask yourself: Is the media appropriate? What do your buyers do at each stage?

Understanding trigger moments, the key actions or signals that customers give off at touchpoints. These emotional triggers can be used to push the buyer forward. For example, curiosity can be sparked during the Dreaming stage, while urgency and reassurance become necessary in the Deciding stage to drive conversion.

One highly effective tactic of sustaining momentum is retargeting—a method of re-engaging customers who have already shown interest but haven’t yet converted. According to HubSpot, retargeted ads have 10x higher click-through rates and increased conversion rates compared to traditional display ads. This could include retargeting ads, personalised email follow-ups, or tailored discount incentives based on the customer’s previous actions. Without retargeting, you risk losing valuable business already in your pipeline.

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Inside the Lounge, you’ll unlock my full Hospitality Buyer’s Journey Framework: a proven system to map, optimise, and influence every guest decision.

🧭 Editable journey map
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💡 Bonus: CTA tests, AI touchpoint tracker, campaign prompts

You can also ask questions in the member-only comments, where I’ll reply with practical, tactical advice, without the consulting fee.

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🧭 Guiding Your Customers Through Their Buyer Journey

Understanding your buyers’ journey is essential to creating meaningful, long-lasting connections. Their emotional states shift at every stage, and your marketing must adapt to meet them where they are. By re-engaging customers through tailored ads, personalised follow-ups, and timely offers, you ensure that the conversation doesn’t end when they put down their phones. Whether they’re dreaming about their next stay, comparing options, or reflecting on their experience, the right message at the right time can move them seamlessly through each stage.

Below, you’ll find a comprehensive table of the key emotional states, messaging strategies, and re-engagement tactics that can help drive meaningful interactions at every stage of the buyer journey—from Dreaming to Belonging.