Travel Trends - TripAdvisor, YouTube, Customer Service

TripAdvisor Shows Off New Look In U.K. - TripAdvisor U.K. rolled out a likely preview of an upcoming site refresh for the state-side travel review site. The updated site, launched in the U.K. this month, features a cleaner look and addresses some of the usage issues that have begun to affect the growing content on the site's homepage. While the new look is not guaranteed to be rolled out on TripAdvisor.com, some of the new design will surely make it's way to the site.
http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/

Put the YouTube video on Google Earth - Ah, good old synergy. Google announced earlier this month that users of Google Earth will now be able to upload and view YouTube videos linked to specific locations within the program. So, if you are searching Google Earth for the Tower of London, you could also watch related videos from the area around a specific location.
http://www.reuters.com/

I Heart Zappos - A fantastic story circulating online about the power of customer service and blogging. A normal woman...a writer, cook and blogger...writes a simple entry into her blog about an extremely positive experience with online shoe retailer Zappos.com. People read it, email it, pass it around...and now, if you search for the words 'I Heart Zappos' in Google, you receive 223,000 results, most of which about this story. Public relations and viral marketing that you just cannot pay for. Plus, great customer service at it's best.
http://www.zazlamarr.com/blog/