“Learning, improving and the same time executing social media and mobile marketing campaigns plus achieving a desired RoI can be a laborious process,” says Gina Baillie, VP Global Marketing & Events, EyeforTravel as the London-based firm released its new Social Media and Mobile Strategies for the Travel Industry 2011 report.

“There are several case studies in this report and experts have discussed in detail where to spend time and resources and their efforts to assess RoI by creating metrics specific to their businesses and their customers,” shared Gina. Citing an example, she referred to a case study:

Social Media Case Study: Unless it’s making money, I’m not using it

Nearly 80% of respondents to the report survey revealed they do not see social media ROI as a purely financial measure. Many did however cite that they felt under pressure from their superiors to show ROI in terms of monetary value.

For Barbara Pezzi, Director of Analytics, Fairmont Hotels & Resorts, social media is part of a customer service strategy that’s so important the company has created the position of a dedicated community manager. “It’s not all about RoI or making money,” she says. Pezzi’s role is to take volumes of data and translate it into practical advice throughout the chain.

Mobile

The convergence of two technological shifts – with the rise of the smartphone use and the meteoric popularity of social media – has created a seismic shift in consumer behaviour. Now, wielding their GPS-enabled phones, social media users are more comfortable than ever before in sharing information about their lives, and also expect instantaneous access to information and purchasing no matter where they are in the world.

According to the report, the majority of marketers say mobile is key to information search, and to a lesser extent, sales (32% of respondents have received direct bookings via mobile devices). While mobile users’ interaction with travel brands throughout their life cycle is analogous to that of social media users, mobile is clearly more important to users while they travel and pre-purchase.

Read on at eyefortravel

Even at the initial announcement of the acquisition last year, Google has made it clear that it will use ITA’s data to create new flight search tools (while also promising to honor its existing agreements with partners). The launch of these tools may be just around the corner. We’ve been able to gather a few details on what Google could be unveiling.

One feature that we’ve heard is in development is a map-based search tool that will show flight prices from destinations. Travelers will be able to choose filters of where they want to fly, and price range and will be able to access these results on a map interface. It’s similar to Kayak’s Explore feature.

Read more of this article at TechCrunch

Travelodge Ireland celebrate their victory at the top of the table again this week.

Download the list as a PDF here

(List is correct as of 07^th Jan 2011)

The data in this list differs slightly to that of our Facebook list and is ranked according to the hotel’s influence on the twitter verse.

We’ve used twitter.grader.com to rank each hotel on twitter. This clever little app considers many different factors including number of followers, number of followings and number of posts (among many others). This creates a score, enabling each twitter account to be ranked out of all the accounts that have been graded in the twitter network.

It basically gives you an idea of the impact each tweet has.

The grade is out of 100 and represents the percentage of accounts that have less of an impact than yours. For example, a Twitter Grade of 95 means tweets from your account has more of an impact than tweets from 95% of all other graded accounts on twitter. Pretty impressive hey?!

As with our Facebook list, we’ve done our best to recognise every contender for the list but a few are bound to have slipped through the net. If you think your hotel should be included on the list, please let us know by commenting below, remembering to include your “@” twitter account name.

The list is open to all hotels in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.

Be sure to check back each week to see if your hotel has made the list.

The Chesterfield Hotel in Mayfair, London celebrates their 36th week at the top of the table.

Download this list as a PDF here

(List is correct as of 4^th January 2011)

The data in this list differs slightly to that of our Facebook list and is ranked according to the hotel’s influence on the twitter verse.

We’ve used twitter.grader.com to rank each hotel on twitter. This clever little app considers many different factors including number of followers, number of followings and number of posts (among many others). This creates a score, enabling each twitter account to be ranked out of all the accounts that have been graded in the twitter network.

It basically gives you an idea of the impact each tweet has.

The grade is out of 100 and represents the percentage of accounts that have less of an impact than yours. For example, a TwitterGrade of 95 means tweets from your account have more of an impact than tweets from 95% of all other graded accounts on twitter. Pretty impressive hey?!

As with all our lists, we’ve done our best to recognise every contender for the list but a few are bound to have slipped through the net. If you think your hotel should be included on the list, please let us know by commenting below, remembering to include your “@” twitter account name.

The list is open to all hotels in the UK.

D4 Hotels, Dublin celebrate their 13^th week at the top of the list.

Download the list as a PDF here

(List correct as of 20^th December 2010)

The list is by no means final so if you feel we’ve missed you out, please let us know by commenting below and your hotel/group could appear on next weeks list.

The list is based on the number of fans the Facebook page has and is open to all hotels in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.

This list only considers Facebook Pages as opposed to groups and personal profiles.

A Page or a Group, which is better? Well the answer to that depends on you and what works for your business.

Facebook Groups:

1. Set up for more personal interaction, they are highly active and require constant engagement.
2. Connected to the profile of the people who administer them.
3. When you post something as a group administrator, it appears to be coming from you and is attached to your personal profile.
4. Groups are great for organizing on a personal level and for smaller scale interaction around a cause.
5. If the group is under 5,000 members, group admins can send messages to the group members that will appear in their inboxes.
6. Permissions settings make it possible for group admins to restrict access to a group, so that new members have to be approved.
7. Groups can’t host applications.
8. You can advertise your group.

Facebook Pages:

1. Access to a Page, however, can only be restricted by certain ages and locations.
2. Page admins can send updates to fans through the Page, and these updates will appear in the “Updates” section of fans’ inboxes.
3. There is no limit on how many fans you may send an update to, or how many total fans a Page can have.
4. Pages can host applications, so a Page can essentially be more personalized and show more content.
5. Pages can benefit from social ads that publicize the fan connection between a Page and a specific user.
6. Pages are better for brands, businesses, bands, movies, or celebrities who want to interact with their fans or customers without having them connected to a personal account, and have a need to exceed Facebook’s 5,000 friend cap.

Neither Groups nor Pages have great moderation features. If someone posts spam on your Group or your Page, you have to remove it manually, and you can also remove specific members.

So it’s up to you who best suits your business right now and going forward.

Be sure to check back every Monday to see if your hotel has made the list!

The Chesterfield Hotel in Mayfair, London celebrates their 33rd week at the top of the table.

Download this list as a PDF here

(List is correct as of 14^th December 2010)

The data in this list differs slightly to that of our Facebook list and is ranked according to the hotel’s influence on the twitter verse.

We’ve used twitter.grader.com to rank each hotel on twitter. This clever little app considers many different factors including number of followers, number of followings and number of posts (among many others). This creates a score, enabling each twitter account to be ranked out of all the accounts that have been graded in the twitter network.

It basically gives you an idea of the impact each tweet has.

The grade is out of 100 and represents the percentage of accounts that have less of an impact than yours. For example, a TwitterGrade of 95 means tweets from your account have more of an impact than tweets from 95% of all other graded accounts on twitter. Pretty impressive hey?!

As with all our lists, we’ve done our best to recognise every contender for the list but a few are bound to have slipped through the net. If you think your hotel should be included on the list, please let us know by commenting below, remembering to include your “@” twitter account name.

The list is open to all hotels in the UK.

D4 Hotels, Dublin celebrate their 12^th week at the top of the list.

Download the list as a PDF here

(List correct as of 13^th December 2010)

The list is by no means final so if you feel we’ve missed you out, please let us know by commenting below and your hotel/group could appear on next weeks list.

The list is based on the number of fans the Facebook page has and is open to all hotels in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.

This list only considers Facebook Pages as opposed to groups and personal profiles.

A Page or a Group, which is better? Well the answer to that depends on you and what works for your business.

Facebook Groups:

1. Set up for more personal interaction, they are highly active and require constant engagement.
2. Connected to the profile of the people who administer them.
3. When you post something as a group administrator, it appears to be coming from you and is attached to your personal profile.
4. Groups are great for organizing on a personal level and for smaller scale interaction around a cause.
5. If the group is under 5,000 members, group admins can send messages to the group members that will appear in their inboxes.
6. Permissions settings make it possible for group admins to restrict access to a group, so that new members have to be approved.
7. Groups can’t host applications.
8. You can advertise your group.

Facebook Pages:

1. Access to a Page, however, can only be restricted by certain ages and locations.
2. Page admins can send updates to fans through the Page, and these updates will appear in the “Updates” section of fans’ inboxes.
3. There is no limit on how many fans you may send an update to, or how many total fans a Page can have.
4. Pages can host applications, so a Page can essentially be more personalized and show more content.
5. Pages can benefit from social ads that publicize the fan connection between a Page and a specific user.
6. Pages are better for brands, businesses, bands, movies, or celebrities who want to interact with their fans or customers without having them connected to a personal account, and have a need to exceed Facebook’s 5,000 friend cap.

Neither Groups nor Pages have great moderation features. If someone posts spam on your Group or your Page, you have to remove it manually, and you can also remove specific members.

So it’s up to you who best suits your business right now and going forward.

Be sure to check back every Monday to see if your hotel has made the list!

D4 Hotels, Dublin celebrate their 11^th week at the top of the list.

Download the list as a PDF here

(List correct as of 06^th December 2010)

The list is by no means final so if you feel we’ve missed you out, please let us know by commenting below and your hotel/group could appear on next weeks list.

The list is based on the number of fans the Facebook page has and is open to all hotels in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.

This list only considers Facebook Pages as opposed to groups and personal profiles.

A Page or a Group, which is better? Well the answer to that depends on you and what works for your business.

Facebook Groups:

1. Set up for more personal interaction, they are highly active and require constant engagement.
2. Connected to the profile of the people who administer them.
3. When you post something as a group administrator, it appears to be coming from you and is attached to your personal profile.
4. Groups are great for organizing on a personal level and for smaller scale interaction around a cause.
5. If the group is under 5,000 members, group admins can send messages to the group members that will appear in their inboxes.
6. Permissions settings make it possible for group admins to restrict access to a group, so that new members have to be approved.
7. Groups can’t host applications.
8. You can advertise your group.

Facebook Pages:

1. Access to a Page, however, can only be restricted by certain ages and locations.
2. Page admins can send updates to fans through the Page, and these updates will appear in the “Updates” section of fans’ inboxes.
3. There is no limit on how many fans you may send an update to, or how many total fans a Page can have.
4. Pages can host applications, so a Page can essentially be more personalized and show more content.
5. Pages can benefit from social ads that publicize the fan connection between a Page and a specific user.
6. Pages are better for brands, businesses, bands, movies, or celebrities who want to interact with their fans or customers without having them connected to a personal account, and have a need to exceed Facebook’s 5,000 friend cap.

Neither Groups nor Pages have great moderation features. If someone posts spam on your Group or your Page, you have to remove it manually, and you can also remove specific members.

So it’s up to you who best suits your business right now and going forward.

Be sure to check back every Monday to see if your hotel has made the list!

TripAdvisor announced the results of its annual travel trends survey of more than 3,000 U.S. travelers. Americans appear eager to pack their bags in the coming year, as 36 percent plan to spend more on leisure travel in 2011 than this year, while 42 percent expect to spend the same amount. Ninety percent plan to take two or more leisure trips next year—a slight increase on the 89 percent who said they have done so in 2010.

While travelers named an increase in online travel deals as the best travel development of 2010 (39 percent), rising airfares (40 percent) and bedbugs (20 percent) are the top two travel concerns for 2011.

On the Road Again: Travelers Globetrotting in 2011

- 69 percent of travelers plan to take international trips next year, and of that group, 52 percent will travel to Europe, 13 percent will visit Asia and 12 percent will journey to South America.
- The top three international destinations U.S. travelers plan to visit in 2011 are Paris, London and Rome.
- 75 percent of respondents plan to visit a U.S. city next year, with Las Vegas, New York City and San Francisco the most popular choices.
- Vacation rentals will be a popular lodging choice in 2011, with 47 percent considering a stay in a vacation rental home – a significant increase compared to 39 percent one year ago.

Best and Worst in Travel for 2010 and the Past Decade

Best Travel Development of 2010:

- More online travel deals – 39%
- Cheaper hotel rates – 22%
- More in-flight Wi-Fi Internet access on planes – 12%

Worst Travel Development of 2010:

- Carry-on baggage fees – 69%
- New hotel fees – 10%
- TSA full body scanners – 10%

Best Travel Development of the Past Decade:

- Online check-in – 26%
- Candid traveler reviews – 16%
- Increased options for online travel bookings – 16%

Worst Travel Development of the Past Decade:

- More airline fees – 45%
- Carry on restrictions for liquids, gels and aerosols – 19%
- Longer security lines – 9%

Up in the Air

- Despite being fed up with airline fees, 24 percent of travelers plan to fly more next year, while 60 percent will fly the same amount.
- Shelling-out for in-flight extras is becoming second nature to travelers, with 77 percent expecting to do so in 2011 – up from 72 percent one year ago.
- In-flight manners leave much to be desired, with the top flyer faux pas revealed to be people kicking the seat back (28 percent). Rude seat recliners (20 percent) and passengers sneezing or coughing without covering their mouths (18 percent) further aggravate travelers.
- 27 percent would pay to sit in a child-free section of an airplane, while 19 percent would pay to sit in a quiet section, should such an option ever exist.
- 65 percent think passengers of size should be required to pay for an extra seat on an airline when necessary.

Popular Pursuits and Eco-Traveling in 2011

Top Five Vacation Activities for Next Year:

- Visiting an historic site – 85%
- Visiting a museum – 73%
- Visiting a national park – 46%
- Attending a festival – 43%
- Hiking – 42%

- Further popular pursuits among travelers for the year ahead include water activities (38 percent), visiting a spa (33 percent) and gambling (29 percent).
- When asked what travel activities they might try for the first time in 2011, 11 percent chose a cruise, while 11 percent are also considering taking an educational course on vacation.
- 47 percent will take eco-friendly factors in to consideration, such as their carbon footprint or “green” hotel policies, when making travel plans in 2011.
- 20 percent expect to be more environmentally conscious in their travel decision and choices next year.

Read More at Hotel Marketing

D4 Hotels, Dublin celebrate their 7^th week at the top of the list.

Download the list as a PDF here

(List correct as of 8^st November 2010)

The list is by no means final so if you feel we’ve missed you out, please let us know by commenting below and your hotel/group could appear on next weeks list.

The list is based on the number of fans the Facebook page has and is open to all hotels in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.

This list only considers Facebook Pages as opposed to groups and personal profiles.

A Page or a Group, which is better? Well the answer to that depends on you and what works for your business.

Facebook Groups:

1. Set up for more personal interaction, they are highly active and require constant engagement.
2. Connected to the profile of the people who administer them.
3. When you post something as a group administrator, it appears to be coming from you and is attached to your personal profile.
4. Groups are great for organizing on a personal level and for smaller scale interaction around a cause.
5. If the group is under 5,000 members, group admins can send messages to the group members that will appear in their inboxes.
6. Permissions settings make it possible for group admins to restrict access to a group, so that new members have to be approved.
7. Groups can’t host applications.
8. You can advertise your group.

Facebook Pages:

1. Access to a Page, however, can only be restricted by certain ages and locations.
2. Page admins can send updates to fans through the Page, and these updates will appear in the “Updates” section of fans’ inboxes.
3. There is no limit on how many fans you may send an update to, or how many total fans a Page can have.
4. Pages can host applications, so a Page can essentially be more personalized and show more content.
5. Pages can benefit from social ads that publicize the fan connection between a Page and a specific user.
6. Pages are better for brands, businesses, bands, movies, or celebrities who want to interact with their fans or customers without having them connected to a personal account, and have a need to exceed Facebook’s 5,000 friend cap.

Neither Groups nor Pages have great moderation features. If someone posts spam on your Group or your Page, you have to remove it manually, and you can also remove specific members.

So it’s up to you who best suits your business right now and going forward.

Be sure to check back every Monday to see if your hotel has made the list!