Travel Trends

Travel Massive In Sydney on May 23

Martin Kelly — Thu, 17 May 2012 02:44:29 +0000

The next instalment of Travel Massive is happening in Sydney next Wednesday, May 23. Organiser Ian Cumming said: "We've got two web start ups demo'ing but we'll still be keeping the night informal."

For details visit http://www.meetup.com/Sydney-Travel-Massive/events/6172298/

Cumming said that Travel Massive is a global initiative to connect people in the travel industry locally, bringing together travel brands, travel startups, travel bloggers and travel professionals.

Opinion: Social Murky Media – Travel On The Web

Michelle Wohl, VP of Marketing, Revinate

Martin Kelly — Wed, 16 May 2012 10:11:28 +0000

Michelle Wohl is the VP of Marketing at Revinate, a San Francisco-based software company that helps hoteliers take control of their online reputation by using online reviews and social media to learn from and connect with travelers.

Revinate customers include Hyatt, InterContinental, Kempinski, Kimpton, White Lodging and thousands more.

Michelle began her career in product marketing at GoLive Systems, creators of the first Web authoring product for the Mac. The company was acquired by Adobe. At Adobe, Michelle led product marketing for the Web products, and later, Adobe Acrobat.

Prior to Revinate, Michelle was the VP of Marketing at Sprout, one of only eight Facebook developers chosen to participate at the F8 conference, the launch of Facebook’s development platform.

At Sprout, Michelle worked closely with some of the world’s leading consumer brands such as Disney, Coke and Pepsi to develop social media campaigns and strategies to drive sales and loyalty.

Michelle enjoys working with hospitality leaders to harness the power of social media and user-generated content.

Her articles on reputation management and social media are published regularly in print and Web publications such as HotelMarketing.com, Hotel Innovations & Technologies, 4hoteliers, Hotel Executive Magazine and TNooz.

She also speaks regularly at hotel events, hospitality schools and conferences around the world.

Tim Hansing, Chief Executive Officer, Red Planet Hotels

Martin Kelly — Wed, 16 May 2012 05:56:27 +0000

Timothy Hansing runs Red Planet Hotels, which has the master franchise for Tune Hotels in China, Thailand, Indonesia outside Bali, Vietnam, Cambodia and Bangladesh.

It already has five Tune Hotels up and running and, if everything goes according to plan, will be operating 40 of the budget properties within the next four years.

Prior to joining Red Planet, Mr. Hansing was Senior Vice President Acquisitions of Kingdom Hotel Investments from 2002-2009.

From 1999-2002, and was Senior Vice President, Corporate Development of Movenpick Hotels & Resorts.

From 1996-1999, he was Director, Real Estate & Hospitality Service Group, Middle East & Africa of Arthur Andersen.

From 1993-1996, he was a Senior Consultant at Pannell Kerr Forster Associates in London.

From 1989-1993, he held various operational roles at Whitbread Hotel Group, Thistle Hotels, Canadian Pacific, and Forte.

Robert Rosenstein, President and CEO, Agoda.com

Martin Kelly — Wed, 16 May 2012 05:33:44 +0000

Mr. Rosenstein is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Agoda.com.

As a co-founder of the company, Mr. Rosenstein has been part of the Agoda management team since its inception, and has overseen its principal operations for more than six years.

Before founding Agoda.com, Mr. Rosenstein was an active investor in Internet start-ups and has held various positions in e-commerce and online media enterprises.

Prior to taking the position of President and Chief Executive Officer of Agoda.com in November 2010, Mr. Rosenstein held the position of President and Chief Operating Officer.

Agoda.com is an Asian subsidiary of Priceline Group, having been acquired by Nasdaq-listed company (Nasdaq: PCLN) in 2007.

Speakers, Topics Revealed for No Vacancy SEA – Bangkok, June 26

Martin Kelly — Wed, 16 May 2012 03:51:40 +0000

May 16, 2012

A powerful international speaking lineup has been confirmed for No Vacancy Southeast Asia in Bangkok on June 26 – a conference which addresses the rapidly changing online business environment confronting regional hoteliers and online travel agents.

It examines key industry issues such as travel distribution, the internet and mass tourism while presenting the very latest in industry research. It is packed with panels, case studies, issues and debate. Key sessions include:

Managing user reviews
Hotel website design
Digital marketing and online distribution
SEA online consumer trends
Latest hotel and aviation research
The opportunity and threat of mass tourism
Latest booking trends
Online Travel Agents case study and panel
Revenue management

The program is shaping up really well with some great speakers from Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Hong Kong, United States and Australia already confirmed and there are more on the way. Confirmed speakers include:

Bill Barnett, Managing Director, C9 Hotelworks
Bill Black, President, SilverNeedle Hospitality
Scott Blume, Group CEO, PT Raja Kumar International
Ben Emery, Director of Revenue Strategy, Southeast Asia, Marriott International
Mark Flower, Director of Commercial – Southeast Asia, IHG
Timothy Hansing, CEO, Red Planet Hotels
Craig Hewett, Co-Founder, Wego.com
Sonia Kapoor, Director, Nielsen
Markus Keller, Regional Director of Sales & Distribution – Asia Pacific, Accor
John Koldowski, Special Advisor – Strategic Intelligence Centre, PATA
Dan Lynn, CEO, AirAsia Expedia
David Perry, General Manager, Gran Melia Jakarta
Robert Rosenstein, President, Agoda
Jagdish Sandhu, Director, Revenue Management & Distribution, Banyan Tree
Sen Sun-Moon, Director, Horwath HTL
Jessica Tham, Corporate Director – Yield Management, Berjaya Hotels & Resorts
Jerome Wise, Vice President – Global Internet Marketing Services, TravelClick
Michelle Wohl, Vice President Marketing, Reinvate

No Vacancy Southeast Asia is being held at the Banyan Tree Bangkok on June 26. Tickets cost from AUD$399. Please visit www.traveltrends.biz for program and booking details.

Smartphone Ownership Up 40% Says Google

Martin Kelly — Wed, 16 May 2012 03:05:09 +0000

Google is claiming that "more than half of Australia's (adult) population now owns a smartphone. According to a study Google conducted with Ipsos Media CT, Australia’s smartphone penetration is now 52%, up from 37% last year.

"The survey also found 65% of smartphone owners access the web each day, 94% have researched a product or service on their device while 28% have conducted a mobile transaction. Yet 79% of Australian businesses do not have a mobile-optimised website.

New 'Big Picture' Website For Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts

Martin Kelly — Tue, 15 May 2012 01:58:01 +0000

Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts has just relaunched its website after 10 months of development and testing. Features include a new, simpler booking engine, social media integration and a design based around the full-screen use of destination images. There are also mobile versions of Shangri-La.com for iPhone, Android and Blackberry users.

Travelzoo Reaches 700,000 Subscribers, 20% annual growth

Martin Kelly — Tue, 15 May 2012 01:32:12 +0000

Travelzoo Australia has grown its audience by more than 20% in the past year and has now reached 700,000 subscribers. A major catalyst has been the launch of Local Deals in April 2011, which continues to attract new subscribers. Travelzoo's main product is the weekly Top 20 email newsletter. Related posts:Travelzoo Asia Pacific To Be Sold [...] Related posts:

Aussie Dollar Slips Below Parity With Greenback

Martin Kelly — Mon, 14 May 2012 09:57:20 +0000

The Aussie dollar tonight slipped below parity with the $US for the first time in 2012, falling to 99.80 cents in early evening trade. Analyst predict it could go lower and perhaps impact on the booming outbound Aussie tourism trade. More at SMH.

Facebook Doubled-Edged Sword For Huon Bush Retreats

Martin Kelly — Thu, 10 May 2012 01:05:42 +0000

The explosive power of Facebook almost blew up the reputation of a small Tasmanian eco-lodge when a deal pushed through Facebook Offers rapidly got out of control, overwhelming the operators and sparking allegations of spamming. But as the dust settles, it appears the marketing experiment may have been worth it after all for Huon Bush Retreats, which according to Facebook now has 4559 'Likes', while the campaigns reached 3.6m users.

As of yesterday, there were 107,985 talking about while the number of 'coupons' downloaded was 127,835. Huge numbers, and a little misleading because no-one really seems to know understand the detailed mechanics of Facebook Offers.

In this case Huon Bush Retreats was invited to make a trial offer through the Facebook network. And that's when the fun started.

For co-owner Paul Dimmick, who deserves kudos for his hands-on management of the fallout, the experience has been a "double edged sword – happy with the business but whether our reputation has been harmed is yet to be seen"

He says the promotion has been driving good sales and the original target of 50 three-night packages has been met and that the offer will be expanded to cater for demand.

The major downside has been Facebook users complaining that they have been spammed by Huon Bush Retreats. "Take me off this list now !!!!!!" was a typical response, this one from Lena Borch Lindstrøm.

Paul's explanation of the alleged spamming is that: "As expected, Facebook has created a marketing tool that uses the viral nature of Facebook.

"What is not expected is that when someone opens the offer simply to read it, it seems to be distributed to their friend's timelines, even if the user does not ask for it to be networked.

"It then sticks on their timelines, their friend's pages and the business's pages."

The general understand is that the offer should only be sent to people who "like" the business in question, but clearly that doesn't seems to be the case with Huon Bush Retreats.

"The most disturbing messages are the ones saying that we are displaying people's email details on our public page.

"We have certainly not hacked into people's accounts or cause anything for private details to be displayed.

"We simply clicked a link and posted a genuine offer. Facebook has done the rest.

Hopefully as this product develops, Facebook will adjust it to be less disturbing to viewers."