How is the sudden increase of mergers and acquisitions going to shape travel, in 2013 and beyond?

Priceline buying Kayak, AirAsia merging with Expedia, Delta investing in Virgin Atlantic, TripAdvisor buying Jetsetter….to name but a few.

This sudden flurry of company acquisitions and buy-outs in the travel space, coupled with the always-connected online and mobile consumer demonstrates how travel is moving at a faster pace than ever before.

Take these two examples. Can we identify key clues which indicate the direction the travel industry is pointing for 2013 and beyond?

Priceline buying Kayak:

Take Priceline’s unexpected move of purchasing Kayak end of last year– this immediately raised the importance of hotels and other travel related companies to have multi-channel digital marketing strategies and to not rely too heavily on Priceline or Google’s strategies.  Multi-channel and digital strategies emphasise the importance of presence on social channels (Facebook, Twitter – or RenRen, Weibo for the increasingly lucrative Chinese consumer) and that brand building through these is essential.

This acquisition also suggested that Priceline may be using Kayak as a way to bypass Google and consequently save up to $1 billion annually that it spends on Google – after all, Priceline is one of Google’s biggest customers, having spent $375.2 million in online advertising just in the third quarter of 2012.

What does this mean for Travel 2013 and beyond: The travel and hotel industry is incredibly fragmented and everyone is vying for space.  This is reflected by the big OTAs merging in the battle for supremacy.  Could this mean that smaller travel companies need to be even more innovative to compete, or should they be placing more effort in to looking at how to partner with such giants? 

Air Asia and Expedia:

What I found interesting about this was that ‘AirAsia Expedia’ appointed Kathleen Tan, who previously served as AirAsia's Group Head of Commercial and Senior Vice President in China since 2004.  Is it just a coincidence that they chose someone with a strong background in the Chinese market, or could this be a sign of things to come, suggesting and reinforcing AirAsia Expedia’s intention of placing an even bigger focus on penetrating the Chinese market.  This would make sense as the Guardian (among many) have recently reported, the “Chinese become world's biggest-spending tourists - Chinese tourists spent $102bn on foreign trips last year, outstripping travellers from Germany and the US” (www.theguardian.co.uk)

What does this mean for you in 2013 and beyond:  There has been a lot of press on the growth of China as a soon to explode huge player in the travel industry – everyone wants to know how to penetrate this market.  Should this be an area to focus your distribution efforts?

Conclusion:

The travel industry is booming.  2013 is set to have more apps, more online personalisation, more mobile friendly websites and more choice.  Smaller companies are going to have to place significant effort in building their brand through multi-channel marketing.  Ultimately, mergers and acquisitions mean more data and more reach, so as the travel giants battle it out, as a consumer, you can expect great things from travel.

The flurry in mergers could also be a reaction to the pressure and expectation the industry has around Google's travel plans.  The launches of Google Flight Search and Google Hotel Finder caused a stir, years before they even got released.  Maybe the key players ‘merging and acquiring’ is in the wake of the prospect of a big entrant like Google making waves in the online TA space.

As a competitor, expect to be integrating slick, targeted and personalised marketing into your distribution strategies. To make sure your strategy is on track for success in 2013 and beyond; make sure you attend the 9^th Annual  Travel Distribution Summit,Asia 2013

Hyper-Personalization – Is your company ready?

At EyeforTravel, we are often asked what the future holds for travel marketing.  In my research ahead of EyeforTravel’s Online Marketing Strategies for Travel conference in Miami, the buzzwords for 2013 have been mobile and also personalization.

What’s interesting to me is the rapid development of the technology that facilitates personalization.  Personalization means going far beyond just acknowledging that they’re a valued customer.  Understanding what it is the consumer wants, needs and indeed when they want to hear from you and how, sets brands aside from their competitors and wins sales.  Even more intelligent brands are integrating social data, booking patterns, anticipating wants and needs to inspire customers and sell travel products that are highly targeted to them, that they might not have realized were on offer if it wasn’t for the right marketing message at the right time. 

You can only do this however, if the tools you have permit.  Thankfully such tools are advancing.

A great example of this is Facebook’s “Unpublished Posts” feature – something until recently only available for adverts appearing on the right hand side of a user’s page. Now, posts targeted to specific segments can be published on to their newsfeeds, without appearing on other users’ newsfeeds or the Page’s own feed. This means that relevant content will be delivered directly to the user where they’re most likely to see it, without the danger of alienating the rest of your audience, which could result in them clicking the dreaded “unsubscribe” option.

Personalization, requires an integration of your marketing efforts, and data is at the heart of this. Existing data must be leveraged to build robust databases that can then be added to as more information is collated. Though it is certainly a dire warning not to go too far when it comes to personalizing your content, Target’s story of how they used algorithms to work out a young girl was pregnant before her father knew, shows that with careful analysis of patterns and data, you can determine a lot about your consumer – but remember, as Spiderman’s uncle Ben once told him, “with great power, comes great responsibility”.

So where does the future of personalization lie? In further personalizing the consumer’s experience; at every level. Websites will become fully adaptable to their visitors, so a sun-worshipping beach body will be greeted with an entirely different page to an adrenaline-junkie adventure traveler. The messages, calls to action and offers all being adapted to the individual based on their data. Even Search is becoming more and more personalized, Google’s alogorithm learns what it’s users are searching for, and engines such as Bing are allowing users to integrate their Facebook accounts to power their personalized search – and thereby opening the door for even more relevant, targeted advertising.

Utilizing these tools, you can create a comprehensive personalization strategy with marketing that users will not find intrusive but genuinely useful. Dancing that fine line between helpful and creepy will help instill loyalty to your brand, which will drive sales and in turn provide more data for your personalization strategies, marking you out in the consumer’s eye as a cut above the rest.

To find out more about Hyper-Personalization as well as other key Online Marketing strategies why not check out our Online Marketing Strategies for Travel: The Americas & Caribbean 2013 (June 4-5^th, Miami) where Ritz-Carlton, Virgin Atlantic, Avis and many other top travel brands will be presenting the latest developments in Online Marketing in the travel space.

Social Networks – ‘Over 50% of people never research travel through Social Media’

By Emily Assender

I’m a bit of a latecomer I admit, but I’ve recently become a Twitter fanatic and can’t get enough of the tool.  I was thinking though - would Twitter influence my decision to purchase a holiday?  Would Facebook carry more weight?  What about other social channels?

Travel Reviews on Social Media sites have been proven to create a direct increase in bookings for travel brands.  But how significant is the role of Social Media in the research process?  I decided to do some reading around the topic.  

EyeforTravel’s Travel Consumer Report 2012-2013 shows that social networks are more valuable for reviews (rather than selling products) and that when it comes to actually making the booking, “respondents currently do not use social networks to research travel products or destinations”.

To look at the US, the report asked 3,044 correspondents and here’s what they said:

·         57% said they never use SM to research travel products

·         53% never use SM to research destinations

·         53% of consumers said that they never use SM to keep updated on travel company news or deals

So, actually how important is Social Media to your overall brand?  Do we over-hype it in the wrong areas and what is the best way to integrate it perfectly into our marketing strategy?

Edward Perry, Global Senior Director of Social Media Projects at World Hotels says,

“In terms of Social Media, you need to focus on the intent.  If the intent is solely to generate bookings, then social media may not necessarily be the best vehicle to do this on.  Travel companies, hotels and airlines should be focussing on Social Media because of the long term effect.  Social Media should be used to complement branding and marketing and should be used not as a completely different marketing channel, but should be weaved into the current marketing efforts as a means of communicating back and forth with the (potential) consumer.”

To learn more about the value of Social Media and how to use it in the most effective way for your brand, make sure you check out the 9^th Annual Travel Distribution Summit, Asia (28-29^th May, Singapore) where Twitter, World Hotels, Google, LinkedIn, Facebook, Flight Centre, Emirates, Japan Airlines, Starwood Hotels, Malaysia Airlines, Groupon and more - will all be presenting their views on this theme.

For more info on the event, visit: http://bit.ly/ZkoSQP

What do Twitter plan for the travel industry?

Hacked accounts and controversial law suits.  Twitter has been hitting the headlines recently for all the wrong reasons.  However, with their newly announced Advertising API, revenues at the Social Media giant are set to soar.

According to eMarketer, Twitter ad revenues hit $259 million last year.  TechCrunch predict this could rise to a massive $1billion in 2013.

With Twitter set to make its inaugural travel industry appearance at EyeforTravel’s Social Media & Mobile in Travel conference in San Francisco next month, we examine what opportunities lies ahead for the travel industry.  

Twitter has a billion tweets every 2.5 days on every conceivable topic - including travel.  Through introducing an advertising API they aim to allow brands to "to run ad campaigns through the company’s API partners, rather than having to buy them through Twitter itself."

This will allow advertisers to buy more ads, run them more quickly and in a more sophisticated manner.  It will also allow for better targeted campaigns.  The value-add is the ability to productively and efficiently grow and scale campaigns,” a source said.

Twitter have already started briefing large social media marketing agencies, which help brands and big advertisers plan and buy ads on social networks like Twitter.  

What does this mean for travel brands?  Well, many airlines and hotels are successfully using Twitter particularly as a customer service and engagement tool.  But, will they see the value in purchasing advertising?

Well, Twitter advertising could potentially help them extend their reach as interestingly, 70% of Twitters 200 million monthly active users are based outside of the U.S.   The advertising API allows brands to launch global campaigns across different geographies. 

Whether travel brands will be interested in purchasing advertising remains to be seen.  It also remains to be seen how users will respond the greater infusion of advertising into the social network.

Would you advertise via Twitter?  We’d love to hear your thoughts!  

Want to find out more?  We’ll be quizzing Twitter themselves during their inaugural travel industry appearance as well as gauging the travel and hospitality industry opinion at EyeforTravel’s upcoming Social Media & Mobile in Travel conference in San Francisco, March 18-19.  

Dan Greene, Director of US Online Sales & Operations fromTwitter will be joining Facebook, Google, Uber, and Cathay Pacific to share Twitter’s views on the future of social business and what it means for travel brands.

Join us! http://events.eyefortravel.com/social-media/conference-agenda.php

There’s “No I(T) in Team” For Travel Companies, Is There?

It’s not actually that often that we hear from the IT and Tech folk within a travel company. Ie, the people who really make buying decisions on solutions and technologies. The focus of so many travel conferences, including most of ours, is upon the distribution, pricing and marketing functions of the business. With that in mind, I’ve spent the last six months talking to people working in this integral part of the business. It has highlighted a number of opportunities and challenges in this space which I truly hadn’t anticipated (perhaps naively, but still).  

With the launch of the first ever Smart Travel Technology Conference imminent, I thought it would be interesting to outline my top 6 current issues as described by CIOs and CTos in the travel sector. You’ll be surprised I think, as I was, at how many of these issues are shared across hotels, airlines, cruise lines, car hire companies, OTAs and more. So here’s the list.

1. Who Owns The Data! This is something we covered at our recent Smart Travel Analytics Conference in NYC. It’s a big issue for IT professionals in the travel and hospitality sectors, largely because often they own the rights to systems, and they often act as “gatekeepers” to the data (although many dislike the term). This leads to internal aggravations when it comes to who has access to various databases and what actions they can take. The IT team are often in the centre of this web, and it’s a difficult position to moderate.  
2. Innovation in The Future: In general, travel IT execs are pretty up to speed with new technologies for the travel sector. But! What about futuristic consumer technologies outside of travel like 3d printing, hologram TV, Google Goggles, ANW and interactive advertising screens? How can you stay ahead of the curve and your customerr
3. Internal Struggles: It’s the name of this blog post and it’s a huge issue for IT execs. What exactly should the role of an IT professional working in travel be, and how can IT increase boardroom awareness of technology and IT related issues? These questions are just a few which came up in the research. Others include recruiting IT talent (and keeping it), working with other teams and more.
4. SAAS Based Solutions: We’re Not There Yet! I remember back in 2009 when I started out in the travel industry that Cloud companies were everywhere, and it was the next big thing. Over the last year or so, conversation in this space has lessened at our conferences and other trade shows alike. However, the issue has never been more important as it is right now. With data warehousing becoming more difficult to find and more expensive, businesses are slowly starting to transfer to the Cloud. But with this transfer, come a lot of headaches- think moving databases in real time, privacy laws, hacking concerns and escalating Cloud rental costs for a start.
5. Wifi and Bandwidth: Despite large scale technology expenditure in this area by most travel companies (particularly affecting hotels, airlines and cruises), wifi and bandwidth issues are still unfortunately very much afloat. IT professionals have been asking us, “how do you re-align your HSIA infrastructure for better customer service and also a fully backed up internal system?”
6. Payment and Transactional Efficiency: Significant changes are afoot in terms of the way travel companies can sell to their customer. Compliancy and PCI regulation, plus strategic planning for payment related deadlines are all hot topics for 2013 and beyond.

I’ve covered here just a sample of things IT professionals are talking about in 2013. I have already admitted that I was extremely surprised to see not just so many new issues that I hadn’t anticipated, but also some issues which had perhaps “gone out of the limelight” in the news, but topics that were absolutely, wholly, still affecting travel companies on a daily basis. I’m excited to see what happens at the summit this October, and to meet CIOs and CTOs alike to discuss these topics in more detail.

A Keynote You've Never Seen Before, in the Heart of Asia...!

Our most recent event launch - the 9th Annual Travel Distribution Summit, Asia (May 28-29th, Singapore) has some exciting new ingredients in the mix.  On top of the latest innovations and biggest speakers on Revenue Management and Online Distribution - the Kings of the Online World (Facebook, Google, Twitter, LinkedIn and Amazon) are collaborating to bring you an invaluable Keynote you’ve never seen before…

These  will focus on engaging customers through online channels, examining where you will see the biggest ROI and the future of the online supply chain.  Make sure you join your industry peers who will be attending 2013’s Summit and to discover through these brands exactly how to fuel your travel-strategy and win the always-connected travel consumer.

Day Two Morning Keynote: 9.00-10.30 Meet The Kings of The Online and Mobile World: Who Holds Your Consumer’s Attention?

Reaching and engaging with your customer is becoming increasingly difficult, not least of all because of the surplus of communications channels, touch points and competition. Hear from the gatekeepers of the online world as to how you can better interact with travellers, increase bookings and offer an unrivalled customer experience to build genuine relationships with your customers and inspire them to travel. Get expert insights into:

• Facebook, Google, Twitter, LinkedIn, Amazon Web Services: how can you work with these brands to reap the rewards?
• See how top online businesses find, nurture and keep highly active customers engaged through these channels
• Where are your customers hiding online? On which channels do they enjoy travel related content and marketing?
• Learn how to keep consumers in a world of choice and variety: repay your customer, drive brand awareness and encourage loyalty
• Understand better the need for social media integration and brand responsiveness
• Learn which human resources talent will you need in your online organisation to thrive
• Technology costs and wrong investments could set you back $$$. Where should you invest to see the biggest return?
• Relationships: As the travel supply chain continues to change, who will have the power and who do you need as a trusted partner?

Dhruv Parpia, Solution Architect, Amazon Web Services

Doug Stotland, Director Advertising Sales APAC, Facebook

Christian Cadeo, Head of Mobile SEA, Google

Hari Krishnan, Managing Director, APAC & Japan, LinkedIn

Aliza Knox, Managing Director, Online Sales, Twitter

You won’t see all the major controllers of your customer speaking in the same place again

To download the brochure to see which of the well established travel brands is joining the Kings of online world click here. 

Apparently the online grim reaper is here again…. But it could be something else this time…

That “cheerful” publisher Plimsoll Publishing recently said 70 UK Tour Operators are looking like HMV (a once popular and now defunct Music store chain) and could soon fold.

When I read this I assumed that this would just be another example of the evolution of travel sales leaving the established travel business behind in terms of product and customer behaviour.

Plimsol Publishing concluded  "As seen with the recent closures and administration of big high-street stores, these were all victims of outdated business models. It's much the same in the tour operators market, the overall market is healthy, but these companies are falling behind.”

However if you look at what ABTA say it may not be the case. Recession hit Brits are going back to packaged products and the high street channel has seen a rise in 2012, with 27% booking through a high street agent compared to 25% in 2011

Now I have always understood that most organisations fail at the end of the recession. Could this finally be the case.  Travelmole reported yesterday that this market is seeing sales increasing at 7.2%, with margins sitting at 1.8%

But I am also seeing new trends impact the travel industry all the time. For instance our latest conference in New York was looking at how the Travel industry is using big data and analytics and it was a sell-out. I am pretty certain this would not have worked a year ago. Big data is now seemingly affordable, Social media is providing the insight you guys need and mobile is providing the channel to sell. The established industry has to keep innovating and those that will are going to do very well.