Entries from December 2008

Suppliers Won the Battle for Online Leisure and Unmanaged Business Travelers

December 30th, 2008

Suppliers seem to have won the battle for online leisure and unmanaged business travel market share in the US, according to December 2008 PhoCusWright data.
Fully 61% of online travel sales are now made directly at supplier sites, compared with 39% for online travel agencies (OTAs) in 2008. This balance is projected to hold steady through [...]

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Tags: Hotel Marketing · Travel Marketing

The Principles of Marketing in a Web 2.0 World

December 22nd, 2008

For marketers, Web 2.0 offers a remarkable new opportunity to engage consumers. If only they knew how to do it. That’s where this WSJ article aims to help.
The Wall Street Journal interviewed more than 30 executives and managers in both large and small organizations that are at the forefront of experimenting with Web 2.0 tools. [...]

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Tags: Internet Marketing · Online Advertising · Social Media Marketing for Hotels

Make Your Paid Search Advertising Campaigns Work Harder

December 18th, 2008

When times are tough, marketing needs to work hard and prove its value—and that’s what search does. While other forms of advertising (TV, print, display) are facing cuts, search is surviving because it’s extremely measurable and enables advertisers to easily tie revenue and ROI back to the ad level.
Even in this challenging economy, paid search [...]

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Tags: Online Advertising

Supplier Web Sites vs. Online Travel Agencies – Uneasy Equilibrium

December 16th, 2008

As the online leisure/unmanaged business travel market in the U.S. has matured, supplier Web sites and online travel agencies (OTAs) appear to have reached relatively stable market share, a new report from travel industry research authority PhoCusWright Inc. reveals.
PhoCusWright’s Online Travel Overview Eighth Edition, finds that supplier sites account for 61% of the online market [...]

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Tags: Hotel Marketing · Travel Marketing

Designing Websites to Meet Consumers Demand for Mobile Websites

December 12th, 2008

Adapting your website for the wireless age is about more than formatting – it’s about meeting the unique demands of your mobile users. Here’s what marketers need to know.
For the past 10 years, pundits have proclaimed the next year as the “Year of Mobile.” And if you look at the rate of growth of mobile [...]

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Tags: Social Media Marketing for Hotels

US Hotel Prices Down by 5%, Yet Europe Keeping Strong

December 10th, 2008

The average price for hotel rooms across the world fell over the summer, according to the Hotels.com Hotel Price Index. The average price paid by travellers for a room during the period July-September 2008 fell by 3% globally, when compared to the same period in 2007.
This is the first year-on-year fall in prices measured in [...]

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Tags: Hotel Marketing · Travel Marketing

Emerging Opportunities in Medical Tourism for Health Spa Resorts

December 8th, 2008

The multi-billion dollar medical travel sector could become an important new source of demand when traditional demand drivers are under increasing threat.
According to Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels’ most recent research FocusOn Medical Travel – fad or focus for hotel operators and investors?, the medical travel sector has potential to develop into a lucrative niche market [...]

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Tags: Hotel Marketing · Travel Marketing

Can we Defend Luxury Hotels against Terrorist Attacks?

December 4th, 2008

For decades, luxury hotels have been oases for travelers in developing countries. But last week’s lethal attacks on two of India’s most famous hotels have underlined the extent to which these hotels are becoming magnets for terrorists.
Hotel executives and security experts say that little can be done to stop extensively trained gunmen with military assault [...]

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Tags: Hotel Marketing · Travel Marketing

Cruise and Budget Travel Sectors are Booming

December 2nd, 2008

UK Internet traffic to travel websites fell by 4.6% between September 2007 and September 2008, but certain sectors are thriving despite, or in some cases because of, the squeeze on household budgets. UK Internet visits to budget travel providers, such as EasyJet, Ryanair and Travelodge, increased by 5.3% between September 2007 and September 2008, while [...]

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Tags: Travel Marketing