Diving Centre

In its first year of working with Bókun, a Diving company saw a significant increase in bookings and growth. The scuba diving agent based in Europe unlocked new revenue streams by adopting key functions and tools of our tour operator software. The client now does everything through Bókun and has transformed the experience for the end customer.

Key results highlighting Bókun’s impact:

• 1,000 new bookings in a single month after utilising the Bókun PRO features, marking a 40% Month-over-Month (MoM) increase compared to the previous three months
• New partnerships with 20 resellers through the Bókun Marketplace, including some major players like Viator
• 35% of sales now come from the adoption of selling with Online Travel Agencies (OTAs)
• Direct online sales now account for 40% of all sales thanks to building and managing a website on Bókun.

Before adopting Bókun, the diving company grappled with a tour operator software that passed its commissions on to end customers, causing dissatisfaction. Extra fees added on during checkout made clients unhappy, and unfortunately, the previous software lacked the capability to absorb these additional costs upon booking.

Recognising the need for a new booking software partner aligned with their commitment to providing exciting experiences, they turned to the Bókun all-in-one platform. 

We presented our solution that allowed the operator to absorb the fee rather than their customers, effectively addressing their main challenge. However, soon after working with us, they realised they could do much more with Bókun.

“With Bókun, we noticed we could pay the 1.5% commission ourselves. So, in terms of costs, I believe Bókun is more proportionate. Honestly, it made sense to us to do everything through Bókun. We create bookings with Bókun — we do everything”. –– Owner of Diving Centre

In this case study, we dive deep into the Diving Centre’s experience and growth following their partnership with us.

The owner highlighted how Bókun initially impressed with its remarkable ease of implementation and access to a dedicated account manager, available for assistance at any moment. 

Bókun effectively combined all the operations the team used to handle separately before, significantly reducing manual work and creating a single body of documentation for their records.

Initially integrating an external website with our platform, our account manager guided the Diving Centre in building a bookable website from scratch on Bókun, enhancing bookings and operational efficiency.

Bókun’s tour operator website builder became a game-changer. This and other Bókun PRO features allowed direct online bookings to become a primary revenue source, accounting for 40% of total sales.

The diving operator achieved a significant milestone in July with 1,000 bookings, marking a notable 25% increase from June and an impressive 40% surge from May. The Bókun Marketplace platform played a crucial role in driving this growth.

Through the Bókun Marketplace, they established strategic partnerships with 20 resellers, including major platforms like Viator, GetYourGuide (GYG), Musement, and Civitatis. This diverse network of resellers was key in expanding their presence and visibility in the industry.

The Marketplace platform facilitated partnerships and enabled the team to utilise selling through Online Travel Agencies (OTAs), contributing to a substantial 35% of total sales. This not only increased revenue but also allowed them to tap into a broader customer base by leveraging partnerships with established and reputable agencies in the travel industry.

These impressive figures demonstrate the effectiveness of their operational strategies and highlight their ability to meet the growing demand for its services with the right tour operator software.

Other Key Operational Improvements: 

• Reduction of manual work and errors with Bókun Availability Management 
• Enhanced customer experience at checkout
• Increased customer engagement through scheduled email triggers, service and experience reviews, and customer information and reminders.

In this case, several functionalities were pivotal for success, such as the option to design and distribute gift cards and the ability to add more than one product to a cart. 

The dedicated account manager on Bókun’s end helped the client effectively use our platform features. This empowered the operator to make updates to the gift cards they’ve wanted to make since the beginning, which is just one of many examples of what our features, combined with expert guidance, can do for tour and activity operators.

“One of the main things that I really like about Bókun is the fact that you can add more than one product to the cart, which, for us, is a key feature of the platform. In our case, a lot of people like to buy more than one activity over several days. So, the fact that you can buy different activities over a few days is absolutely important to us.”

One-click Website
The Bókun website editor made their experiences bookable online and streamline their online presence without coding knowledge.

Bókun Marketplace
Bókun’s Marketplace opened new opportunities to establish partnerships with reputable resellers amongst thousands of tour and activity operators looking to connect and grow their businesses.

Auto-Messages and Abandoned Cart Messages
Implemented a customer engagement strategy with 20 scheduled trigger emails, reducing manual work and boosting customer interactions.

Promo Codes, Price Modulator, Payment Links
Dynamic pricing facilitated through Bókun allowed the team to adjust pricing based on demand and preferences. Payment links were employed for manual/offline bookings, connecting everything in one place.

Enhanced Refund Policy
Benefited from Bókun’s Enhanced Refund Protection, providing customers with greater flexibility and earning the company 1% extra on every refundable booking.

Google Things To Do
Leveraging Bókun’s integration with Google Things To Do, enhanced their online visibility, appearing in Google searches for greater exposure.

“I like the flow during the checkout. It’s fast, it’s intuitive, and the payment is fast. Most of the positive things I could say about Bókun is about the experience for the client, in terms of the design as well as the checkout.”–– Owner of Diving Centre

In addition to the above, the Diving Centre capitalised on various features from the Bókun App Store. These include the Bókun Mobile app, which is free with their Pro subscription, Advanced Website Upgrade, Gift Cards and Upsell, Bókun Google Calendar Sync, and Slack Notifications.

The tourism industry is witnessing a consistent annual growth in the number of direct online bookings. For the Diving Centre, this required implementing the most agile and adaptable tour operating booking software to meet the ever-expanding demands of travellers.

The operator’s partnership with Bókun is a remarkable success story, showcasing a significant 40% month-over-month increase in bookings, totalling 1,000 in July alone. This success goes beyond the numbers, emphasising their ability to overcome challenges and better live up to their promise to deliver exceptional experiences. The positive feedback we received from the Diving Centre reinforces our role as a trusted partner in their growth journey.

Bókun’s mission is to help your tour and activity business generate more bookings with less work. Start your free 14-day trial today to explore how our software can help you save time and grow your business.