TRAVEL TRENDS - INCORPORATING TRAVELTECH AND NOVACANCY
21 August, 2008, 4:35:09 PM
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Events
GET a fix on the future at TRAVELtech, Australia's online travel marketing, distribution and tech event, which is being held in Sydney on August 26. The 2008 event is shaping up well with strong bookings, an excellent speaker roster and compelling theme: the open-ended Year of Living Dangerously? It can be taken a couple of ways ... the obvious: oil, inflation, interest rates and marketing costs up - challenges ahead. But it's also a question, and the good news is there's increasing evidence the online channel may be the place consumers turn at times like these. Confirmed speakers are listed below, while the latest program has just been posted - it's packed with industry leaders and topical content.
TRAVELtech, founded in 1999, focusses on the latest online travel marketing and web-based innovations. It has a well-established reputation for delivering relevant, high-quality content and excellent networking - see who is coming to TRAVELtech 2008 so far. If you have any questions, please call Martin Kelly on 61 2 9882-1575. Please visit the TRAVELtech photo gallery to see some photographs from the 2007 event. Sponsors include:
Bookings are now open for Australia’s original search marketing and optimisation event, Search Engine Room. Event highlights include:
Confirmed speakers include:
Search Engine Room an Australian-owned event that strives to reflect the market in which it operates while embracing international trends. It’s outward rather than inward looking, taking great care to incorporate consumer and marketing priorities into innovative and provocative programs. The program focus is on respected, well-connected speakers delivering topical, relevant information. Search engine optimisation and marketing is well-covered, while broader industry issues are also addressed through interviews with leading search industry figures. There are case studies, debates and panels. Audience interaction is encouraged and Search Engine Room always makes an effort to be forward-looking, tracking the latest search and digital trends. Consumers are also given the once-over, enabling delegates to gain a better understanding of their customers.
A RECORD crowd attended the second No Vacancy acommodation industry conference in Sydney recently. It was a great day featuring industry leaders, panels, case studies, presentations and debate. There was a touch of controversy with hard questions asked - and answered. Program topics included online distribution, consumer trends, channel and yield management, carbon offsetting, star ratings, modern marketing tactics, pricing, social media strategies and plenty more. No Vacancy will return in 2009 - please sign up for the TravelTrends.biz newsletter if you'd like further details. |
Travelzoo Embarks on Ambitious Regional Expansion
By Martin Kelly, Travel Trends TRAVELZOO has embarked on an ambitious Asia-Pacific expansion program with the US travel newsletter and meta-search business intent on launching up to eight country-specific websites across the region by the end of March. “We have a mandate to open seven or eight offices in Asia Pacific by the first quarter of 2008,” Jason Yap, Managing Director, Japan, Australia and India, told Travel Trends in Sydney this week. The company has just launched in Hong Kong while Japan will follow later this month. “China, South Korea and Taiwan are in the works, while India will also happen next year,” said Yap. Brad Gurrie is leaving his role as General Manager of Lastminute.com.au to lead Travelzoo Australia and will take up his role on November 14. Planning for the full-scale Oz site will begin then. While optimism abounds, Travelzoo’s aggressive expansion strategy has hit the company’s profits, which are significantly down year on year. However the margins, by travel industry standards, remain solid. Its net income for the June quarter was US$2.8m on revenue of US$20.1m. Over that period it spent US$7.9m on subscriber acquisition and branding, primarily in developing markets such as Germany and the UK. In Asia Pacific, Travelzoo - which offers a range of products in the US, including meta-search – will initially focus on its weekly Top 20 newsletter. The US edition, which started in 1999, is sent to a database of many millions (Travelzoo has 12 million worldwide subscribers) but in Asia Pacific it will basically be starting from scratch. While most of the Top 20 listings are paid links – generally from suppliers or Online Travel Agents who pay a flat rate depending on volume - Yap said genuinely good travel deals from non-advertisers will also be included, especially in the early days. “Demand comes first … and it’s very important to ensure we have quality deals that keep the consumers happy,” said Yap. “At the end of the day our content will be the premium drawcard.” Yap said newsletter open rates in the US were running above 35%, while open rates for the recently-launched Hong Kong edition were around 60%. He said consumers liked the newsletter format because it cut through the clutter and enabled them to make easy, deal-based decisions. In terms of the process, consumers click on the newsletter link and are taken through to the relevant Travelzoo site where they are given further details. An additional link is provided through to the suppler or agency site if they want to take it further. As for the Aussie operation, Yap commented: “Should we copy everything the US has done? No. The answer is to get a local expert such as Brad on board and develop strategies based around that.” Travel Trends: November 1, 2007 Latest News
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