Let the battle begin.
As a member of the travel industry, I am constantly looking at what my peers and counterparts throughout the country are doing. And quite often, co-workers and constituents ask me who has the best website.
I have some standard answers (none of which will be divulged here), but that got me thinking...we should really have a vote to see which website would come out on top. If only we had a blog to run it on...
So, over the next several weeks, the Travel 2.0 blog will be hosting the first annual 'Great Travel Site Showdown' pitting the best travel sites around the nation, plus our friends from D.C. and Puerto Rico, against each other in a winner-take all contest! (Prizes to be determined later, but pride and boasting rights are included!)
Groups
Ala March Madness, the states are pooled into groups of 4 (13 in all, randomly generated by random.org), with one winner emerging from each group. Those winners, plus the next 3 highest second-place finishers* will move onto the quarter-finals, etc, etc. until we can declare a winner.
Voting will take place on the Travel 2.0 blog (see the top of the page) each Tuesday and Friday, with voting open for 5 days.
Judging Guidelines
Voters should take into consideration the design, ease of use, available travel information and technology used in the site when making their decision. Or, if you want to suck up to your boss, just vote over and over for your state!
Link To / Email
For your emailing / linking convenience, send the link below to your office, friends, cousins, etc. to ensure total domination over your smaller rivals:
http://traveltrendreport.blogspot.com/
Groups / Schedule
Good luck all!Group 1
Tuesday, April 1
1. Maine
2. Minnesota - Group Winner
3. California
4. District of Columbia
Group 2
Friday, April 4
5. Oregon
6. Washington
7. Alaska
8. Virginia
Group 3
Tuesday, April 8
9. Hawaii
10. Alabama
11. New Jersey
12. North Dakota
Group 4 (Group of Death)
Friday, April 11
13. Tennessee
14. Florida
15. Delaware
16. Maryland
Group 5
Tuesday, April 15
17. Pennsylvania
18. Mississippi
19. Iowa
20. Puerto Rico
Group 6
Friday, April 18
21. Vermont
22. South Carolina
23. Georgia
24. Michigan
Group 7
Tuesday, April 22
25. Utah
26. Oklahoma
27. Kentucky
28. Montana
Group 8
Friday, April 25
29. Indiana
30. Arkansas
31. Kansas
32. Ohio
Group 9
Tuesday, April 29
33. North Carolina
34. Nebraska
35. New York
36. New Mexico
Group 10
Friday, May 2
37. Rhode Island
38. Wisconsin
39. Missouri
40. South Dakota
Group 11
Tuesday, May 6
41. Arizona
42. Idaho
43. Nevada
44. West Virginia
Group 12
Friday, May 9
45. Louisiana
46. Connecticut
47. Wyoming
48. Texas
Group 13
Tuesday, May 13
49. Massachusetts
50. New Hampshire
51. Illinois
52. Colorado
Have you made your customers smile lately?
A few weeks ago, I told you about an e-mail snafu at Travel Oregon that resulted in us issuing a tongue-in-cheek "mea culpa" that resulted in phenomenal "love" from our consumers. This week, I was on the receiving end of such an e-mail that reinforced my love for Netflix.
Thoughts:// I was pleasantly surprised when I found this e-mail from Netflix last week. Turns out a shipping error on Monday caused a slight delay in the shipment of our next movie ("The Wind the Shakes the Barley") by two days. Granted, my wife and I are movie fanatics and we did notice the slight delay; but we shrugged it off and chalked it up to some Netflix algorithm that's gently holding back our que.
But as the e-mail mentions, it turns out it was just a "shipping system" outage. Netflix could have definitely let it slip by in the hopes that we wouldn't notice; but the fact that they not only issued a personal apology in addition to a small discount on our next bill is just astounding.
In an age when many big brands simply call a "website" or a rote "monthly e-newsletter" interactive marketing, Netflix's approach is remarkably refreshing.
Deltalina - From now on, all Delta flights are smokin'. (Zing!)
That oh so cute line from the Atlanta Journal Constitution is in reference to the increasing publicity that Delta and more specifically, Katherine Lee (Delta + Angelina (Jolie) = Deltalina...which was thankfully not coined by yours truly) is receiving from the mainstream media and YouTube. Our friends over at Under the Wing premiered the new in-flight video on the blog February 20th via YouTube. The new in-flight video was probably not the most interesting video on paper, but communicating this new video (or any new or 'exclusive' content) to a loyal group of users via a blog is an ideal way to build consumer trust and loyalty (and having Katherine in the video does not hurt). Plus, posting the video on YouTube extends the reach of the spot beyond the blog...7 comments on the Delta blog, 624 on YouTube. Not to mention over 400,000 views and national media coverage.
Which brings us to an interesting point, how does Delta measure all of that coverage?
There are several ways to address that question...number of comments, views, time spent, traditional media coverage, etc. But I would be interested to know if Delta is looking at this viral campaign as a way to sell seats or as another piece in building the new Delta brand.
http://blog.delta.com/
YouTube Launches Insight - Google has introduced a free YouTube tool that will provide those who post clips -- whether they are semiprofessionals or media conglomerates -- with deeper insights into when, where and how often their videos are viewed. Using YouTube Insight, publishers can analyze the viewing patterns of individual videos far more thoroughly than in the past, when only total views and users ratings were available. For example, with the new tool, any content producer who posts videos on YouTube can examine which days of the week or hours of the day traffic spikes; which U.S. states account for the most viewing streams; and how long particular clips remain popular.
http://www.adweek.com/
Michigan Rolls Out New Design - The team up in Michigan has launched a new design for Michigan.org. The new look is clean and uncluttered, plus easy to read. The large image in the background is a nice touch, and one that we have seen in a couple other state-level sites. However, the biggest change is breaking away from the Michigan Economic Development Corp's website. No need to tell travelers about the great tax breaks for opening a diner in Lansing...just get them to the state first.
http://www.michigan.org/
Wealthy Consumers - Some good stats from the Center for Media Research on Wealthy Consumers and social networking sites:
http://blogs.mediapost.com/According to The Luxury Institute's latest WealthSurvey, the participation of wealthy online consumers in social networks dramatically increased to 60% in 2008, from 27% in 2007. Participation levels of online wealthy consumers in leading social networks are 16% for MySpace, 13% for LinkedIn, and 11% for Facebook.
A national sample of 805 wealthy American consumers, with an average income of $287K and average net worth of $2.1 million, was surveyed online. According to the report:
- The wealthy average membership in 2.8 social networks, with an average of 110 connections.
- They are intolerant of opt-out techniques, with 65% saying that having their personal data given out without permission would cause them to disconnect; 63% have an interest in "do not track" lists.
Jim Brody, our rep at TripAdvisor, passed along this email earlier in the week. Apparently it is making the rounds at TripAdvisor HQ not because it is negative, but actually because TripAdvisor has sent our friend Bob too much business.
Behold the power of the internet. And specifically, user-generated content / reviews.
From: "Bob Wombacher, Jr."
To: hotelrelations@tripadvisor.com
Sent: Tuesday, March 25, 2008 1:26:21 PM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern
Subject: A different kind of problem...
My name is Bob Wombacher and I am the owner of a small motel - Bashful Bob's Motel - in Page, AZ 86040. A few weeks ago you printed some glowing reviews and comments about my business. Shortly after, we began getting phone calls and inquiries and reservation requests from people, mostly French, who wanted to patronize our establishment. To say it was overwhelming is an understatement.
To date we have received nearly 400 requests for information or to apply for reservations. Unfortunately we are not equipped to handle such volume. We have a small business and, while we are happy for the help you have given us, we need to "turn off the spigot," so to speak.
The e-mails and phone calls your help has given us have resulted in over 600 reservation/nights, spread out over the next 7 months.
Is there a way to stop your reports, at least temporarily? Any suggestions you can make will be helpful in solving this problem.
You certainly do have great coverage in France.
Thanks.
Bob Wombacher
Bashful Bob's Motel
928-645-3919
P.O. Box 2990
Page, AZ 86040
www.bashfulbobsmotel.com
After starting the Travel 2.0 group on LinkedIn (741 members, thank you very much), several peers asked how we could further the conversion and discussion beyond the networking opportunities of LinkedIn.
We gave it some thought, and decided the best way to approach this was to start a simple Q&A or conversations series that would live on the Travel 2.0 blog and on LinkedIn Answers.
We choose the Q&A format since it is quick and easy (for the travel executive on the go!), but also provides a wide variety of opinions and perspectives.
So, for all of those in the LinkedIn group, you will be receiving an email inviting you to participate in the series. And for all of those readers of Travel 2.0, you can simply comment below.
State of the Industry Conversations
Bringing the Travel Industry together…one question at a time
Question:
Considering current privacy laws and regulations, as well as the New York State Assembly's recent proposed legislation on limiting internet data collection (specifically in response to contextual and behavioral targeting), from a travel industry perspective, how do you see online advertising evolving over the next 1 – 3 years?
Are you looking to create a larger conversation with your audience via non-traditional advertising solutions such as content integration or blogs? How do search and mobile advertising factor into those plans?
Answers:
Post your answer in the comments field below or via the Answers section of LinkedIn.
Note: You do not have to be a member of Blogger to post a comment to the Travel 2.0 blog. Anonymous comments are allowed, however we would appreciate if you signed the comment with your name.
Hopefully this new feature will be beneficial to everyone involved.
If you have a topic suggestion, please send it along.
Last week, I had the pleasure of speaking to Laura Bly from the USA Today to contribute to her recent story, 'Blogs start a dialog between travelers, those serving them' (See next post). Needless to say I was quite humbled to speak with Laura, the idea behind the blog was simply to inform and provide insight to our peers...let alone become some sort of an expert.
We spoke at length about blogs, challenges in consumer relationship building, the recent Southwest news, the difficulty in starting a blog and why more tourism agencies don't have them.
To which, Laura pulled my singular quote from the piece:
But official forays into the blogosphere remain scarce — with good reason, says Troy Thompson of the Arizona Office of Tourism and the blog Travel 2.0. "We talk about all these new technologies, but maintaining a blog takes a good chunk of time," he says. "And you have to be open and honest … a lot of people haven't gotten past the idea that there can be negative comments."
Those experienced readers know that Mo and I would have said a lot more than that quote, but alas, you can only fit so many words into a printed piece. Which is also why our concise blog name, Travel 2.0: Interactive Trend Report, was left on the cutting room floor.
I will have to request that ahead of time for the next interview.
...Southwest Airlines discovered that this month when its 2-year-old Nuts About Southwest blog fielded some 300 public comments about a proposed $10.2 million fine by the Federal Aviation Administration and accusations that the airline flew at least 46 planes without required fuselage inspections. >>Full Story
Thoughts// As many of you know, Southwest Airlines has been facing some tough scrutiny over the past several weeks due to reports of fines and missed inspections. These are very serious allegations that pose a huge challenge for any corporation and it's public relations staff. On top of that, the airline, in it's fun loving way, also promotes a popular blog about all things Southwest.
What has been extremely interesting over the past few weeks is to observe how Southwest has used the blog during this story and what the user / reader reaction been.
For example, take a look at the post titled 'Southwest Airlines Continues Internal Audit' and the 88 comments that follow.
I would expect Southwest to respond with the tone (via posts) that they have used so far. This is a serious issue and for numerous reasons (let alone legal ones) you cannot have just anyone writing about the incidents on the blog. However, that 'corporate' tone just does not fit on a blog, so the posts do stand out a bit...and to some readers seem like 'spin' or a 'cover-up.'
As far as the comments, about what you would expect...half of the readers are irate, half would still rather fly Southwest than any other airline (count me in the latter half, seriously $25 for a second bag?).
Fortunately for Southwest, they have built up a sizable amount of consumer trust and goodwill which should see them through this negative news cycle.
And keep posting away to start rebuilding that lost consumer confidence.
Innovation has long been the harbinger of progress. Innovators have touched every facet of our lives, from electricity to penicillin to the microchip. Innovators are those who bring the future to the present via their dreams and willingness to take the risks that others often eschew. TIA honors innovation, via the TravelCom Innovator Award.
Thoughts// Last week I had the honor of being part of the 2008 TravelCom Innovator Award Selection Committee. The Travel Industry Association's Innovator Award recognizes "those special companies whose outstanding innovations in the areas of technology, e-commerce and distribution have transformed their business and had a broad impact across the travel industry".
On Thursday—between catching the March Madness action and a bottomless cup of coffee—I spent most of the day reviewing and "grading" this year's submissions.
This year, the committee received nominations from 33 up-and-coming and established technology/travel companies with a wide variety of product or service offerings including the more esoteric "back end" technology products such as Simpleview CRM (formerly CVBTV) and Amadeus. The nominees also included more "consumer facing" services such as Larry the Travel Guy from Air New Zealand and Where2 GPS navigation from Avis. It's also quite noteworthy that several of the nominees were featured on the Interactive Trend Report over the past year. They included:
- Yapta: Allows users to bookmark airline fares, tag and share them with others
- Kayak.com: The popular meta airfare search engine
- Tripit: Organizes all of your itineraries, schedules and travel plans (no matter where they were booked) into one, easy-to-read page
- Travelocity Experience Finder: Allows consumers to plan their trip to destinations based on experiences and themes
- Orbitz Traveler Update: Airport info hub that combines data from FAA, TSA, traffic reports, parking updates, taxi lines, flight delays, weather information and fellow traveler updates.
So who won? Well...you'd have to wait until this year's TravelCom Conference to find out. Let's see if I am better at picking the winners here as opposed to hoops brackets!
Well, I've got video.
We talk a lot on the Travel 2.0 blog about other sites, ads, trends and technologies throughout the travel industry, but never too much about ourselves (Arizona Office of Tourism and Travel Oregon). I mean, how much more can you take? Well, now it is your turn to critique some of our work.
One of our (my co-worker Johnny and I) major projects at AOT for the past few months has been creating a rich library of video about the Grand Canyon State for our consumers. Luckily, our relationship with Arizona Highways Television provides us with a wealth of footage from around the state. After partnering with Arizona Highways Television, we looked for a robust, yet easy to use and manage video hosting solution.
We looked at using YouTube or Google Video (same thing, I know) as a solution, but alas I want too much control for YouTube. Plus, I don't like that little YouTube logo on my videos. After some research we settled on the Brightcove Platform.
When looking for a video platform, we were looking for several key functions...usability, integration, ease of use, customization, flexibility and control. And so far the Brightcove system has been easy to implement and manage. Plus, it comes with all of the standard viral tools...email to friend, link, embed, etc.
I invite all of the Travel 2.0 readers to take a look at the new section:
http://www.arizonaguide.com/video/
Please note the section is still in the development stages, so we are still tweaking a few things as well as adding addition videos. Eventually, we will be offering several hundred short clips about attractions and experiences in the state.
In addition to this centralized location, the videos will be integrated throughout arizonaguide.com within related sections, cities and attractions.
The new video section has certainly been a lot of work, but I am excited to present this new offering to our consumers. I really believe this level of video will enhance there visit to arizonaguide.com and increase actual visitation to the state.
As Mo and I have talked about ad nauseum, engaging your consumer is key in this new 'Web 2.0' world. For the Arizona Office of Tourism, taking advantage of our partnerships to introduce this level of video is just one of the ways we are increasing engagement among our visitors.
I will continue this post once we start seeing some numbers on viewership and engagement, but for now take a look and let me know what you think.
Oh, and if anyone is looking at developing a video site, I would be happy to share my experience and thoughts.
