Nordic travellers are highly desirable and lucrative visitors. Studies show that they spend more than their counterparts from other countries, they are more likely to look for high-end or luxury experiences and accommodations, and they also tend to take more holidays throughout the year than their neighbours elsewhere in Europe. All of this means that even though they may be a small group in terms of population size, they represent a veritable goldmine of opportunities that is well worth targeting.
Some quick facts and figures:
- Danes spend 46% more per trip than the European average, while Finns spend 25% more and Swedes 8%.
- Before the pandemic, Finland, Sweden, Denmark, and Norway ranked in the world’s top five for outbound travel frequency, with Finland at #1.
- Nordic travel and tourism spending is projected to reach US$20.8 billion in 2025, with growth to nearly US$28 billion by 2030.
- After the pandemic, Nordic outbound travel spending rebounded faster than in Germany, France, or the UK, showing resilience and strong demand for international experiences.
Investments made on marketing and localising for this group will therefore be returned handsomely in the form of more bookings, bigger spends and an enhanced reputation. We have already helped numerous clients to target Nordic travellers, and below you can read some tips and insight on how it’s done best!
Searches Start Local
The first thing you need to understand when targeting Nordic travellers is an apparent paradox at the heart of what they want and how they go about finding it. The thing is, Nordic travellers often seek authentic experiences – they want to feel immersed in another culture and context, and they don’t necessarily like it when everything is handed to them on a silver platter. They want to eat paella in Valencia and Bouillabaisse in Marseille, surrounded by locals, without feeling like they’ve been sucked into a tourist trap.
At the same time, however, studies consistently show that their searches begin in their own language. Despite high levels of English proficiency, the quest for authenticity begins not in a lingua franca or in a foreign tongue, but in Swedish, Danish, Norwegian or Finnish. This means that websites that cater to these languages will be in prime position to soak up those initial queries, even if they then direct visitors onwards to subpages in English. The important thing is to catch web users at the beginning of their search, and to do that – you need to speak their language.
Information Is Gold
Another defining characteristic of Nordic travellers is that they like to be well informed. Rather than simply pick a place and wing it, they tend to research their destinations more thoroughly, carefully plan out activities and take steps to make sure they will get as much out of their holiday as they possibly can. This means the more information they can find on your website, the more likely they are to fall down a rabbit hole and remain on your page for longer, building a stronger relationship with your brand and perhaps ultimately making a booking.
Of course, the quality of this information is also important. Nordic consumers are discerning, and quick to become mistrustful of anything that might betray a lack of seriousness. Typos and confusing language will quickly be interpreted as red flags, making Nordic users reluctant to trust your brand, product or service. It is therefore important to make sure the text on your website is polished, fluent, up-to-date and free from grammatical errors, typos and other warning signs that might risk eroding confidence.
A good idea might be to include some original copy on your website with texts that directly target Nordic readers. These could cover practical details such as currency exchange rates and information about the local transit system, or they might explore local attractions, tips on when to visit certain sights, and recommendations for great places to eat, drink or sleep. Texts that are designed from the outset to address Nordic concerns and tap into current travel trends in this region will have excellent chances of convincing and converting.
Reviews Build Confidence
We know from our own experience that Nordic travellers place a lot of trust in reviews, and so by making them more accessible on your website, you can do a lot to eliminate doubts and nudge visitors along in their customer journey.
There are various ways you can do this. One is to use an AI feature to automatically translate reviews. This is quick and convenient, and it means that new reviews can be made automatically accessible to users in any language. However, odd turns of phrase and mistakes in the translation can quickly erode the value of these reviews, causing them to be ignored.
Another option is to have a selection of reviews localised professionally on an on-going basis and included in a widget on your website or featured as standalone testimonials. This can be done as part of a post-editing workflow, meaning that AI does the heavy lifting to keep the process quick and affordable, while a human linguist reviews each text to make sure it can serve its purpose. This strikes a good compromise between speed and efficiency, while also taking measures to raise quality and thereby protect the value of these reviews.
Target the Nordics with Us
If you would like to deploy some of the tactics described above and target Nordic travellers, we can help you in a range of different ways. For example, we could begin with a market entry consultation in order to help you better identify your target group on the basis of your existing web traffic, current industry trends and your objectives for the coming year. Next, we can proceed to localise all or parts of your website, and/or create original copy that addresses specific Nordic concerns or opportunities. We can also help you to create content for a Google Ads campaign, and provide advice on what channels to use and what angle to take.
For more information, check out our case study which shows how we helped a holiday home platform in the Nordics to grow, or head over to our contact page where you can book a free, no-obligation consultation to talk through the options.
We are your linguistic gateway to the Nordics – and we’re ready and waiting to help connect the dots between you and lots more lucrative Nordic travellers!
