m-Travel.com and Travel Distribution News

Finding ways to choose the right mobile measurement infrastructure

IN-DEPTH: Measuring mobile has historically been very hard to do given the fragmentation of devices, operating systems, and carrier restrictions. The majority of these hurdles have been eliminated over recent years with the advent of the smartphone and mobile application measurement SDKs, says Greg Dowling, Vice President of Mobile Strategy and Measurement, Semphonic.

By Ritesh Gupta

Mobile is a fast evolving channel and as part of the learning process, the travel industry needs to find ways to make sure that the right mobile measurement infrastructure is in place.

To initiate investments in this arena is the easy part. But to make sure your investment pays off is quite tricky, believes Greg Dowling, Vice President of Mobile Strategy and Measurement, Semphonic.

Dowling spoke to EyeforTravel’s Ritesh Gupta about the same in detail. Excerpts:

As an expert in mobile measurement and enterprise analytics, what do you recommend when it comes to making the most of mobile strategy especially in the travel sector? How should travel companies go about making the most of their investments in this arena?

Greg Dowling:

When thinking about mobile strategy in the travel sector, the primary place to look for direction is within your existing site analytics. Start by looking at which specific mobile devices and operating systems are visiting your site - where are they coming from, what are they doing, and what content are they consuming. By understanding the mobile usage of your current site and the areas where users are succeeding or failing, along with what devices they are using, you will be able to inform your mobile product strategy greatly. Understanding what site content or features resonate with mobile users will allow organisations to address the primary need of their site visitors and help direct the mobile strategy. Determining your overall product suitability to a mobile offering and which devices or experiences you need to support will ultimately drive mobile strategy and identify where you need to focus your mobile efforts.

It is highlighted that understanding how customers behave when using mobile devices is a major challenge. What are your observations and how do you think understanding behaviour is significant in assessing the overall measurement of any mobile product strategy and related initiatives?

Greg Dowling:

Measuring mobile has historically been very hard to do given the fragmentation of devices, operating systems, and carrier restrictions. The majority of these hurdles have been eliminated over recent years with the advent of the smartphone and mobile application measurement SDKs. Previously, feature phones incapable of executing JavaScript posed a significant measurement problem as they relied heavily on manually (or server) generated image requests making measurement of mobile initiatives and device side experiences difficult. Current smartphones can execute JavaScript and device resident applications making traditional web measurement methods viable for mobile websites and applications. Device and operating system fragmentation still persists complicating measurement deployment and organisations need to focus on their current user technographic to understand which devices they need to support from a measurement perspective in order to ensure measurability.

Understanding mobile user behaviour is critical to evaluating and optimising mobile strategy. After all, you can't improve what you don't measure.

The expectations and demands of smartphone customers are significantly higher than website visitors. What sort of benchmark should travel companies set for themselves when it comes to measurement of mobile web and app-related initiatives vis-à-vis any other component of digital strategy?

Greg Dowling:

The mobile user expects immediate satisfaction and demands simple and clean interfaces. It is the nature of the mobile user. They are not 'surfing' (generally) and are attempting to complete a specific task when engaging with a mobile website or application. This can be booking a flight, hotel room, or dinner reservations as well as researching destination highlights but all of these have a singular focus - completing a task. For all intents and purposes, mobile users should be converting on these tasks at higher rates and engaging more frequently than traditional website visitors. Often this is not the case due to complicated checkout flows and of course this varies with the utility and appropriateness of the mobile experience. Organisations should focus mobile benchmarks at or above their traditional website rates and optimise the user experience and conversion flow of their mobile initiatives accordingly.

How do you assess the maturity level of mobile application measurement framework at this juncture? What should travel companies learn when it comes to measurement?

Greg Dowling:

Historically, mobile applications were developed and released without any inherit device side measurement and the primary metric was downloads. While downloads are an important metric, we have come to realise that user engagement along with recency, frequency, intensity and duration are more actionable metrics providing a holistic view of application success. Mobile application measurement has improved greatly over the last two years and releasing a mobile application today without measurement is heresy. Niche mobile application analytics vendors held a lock on this market until recently and in some cases still provide a superior solution, however all enterprise analytics vendors currently offer robust SDKs. The SDKs allow for the ability to measure all device side interactions (even when the device is offline) and by instrumenting your application with the appropriate level of tracking to capture metrics such as install date, app launches, daily usage, and key event success organisations will gain a greater understanding of actual application usage not just application downloads.

Considering the varied utility and engagement level of mobile web and mobile apps, how should one approach measurement for both? What should one avoid in order to have unjustified expectations?

Greg Dowling:

Mobile web measurement should align with fixed web measurement wherever possible. Existing measurement frameworks and implementation methodologies translate well to the mobile web environment and should be leveraged wherever possible as to not reinvent or double efforts. Technology frameworks aside, the mobile website experience is inherently different than the fixed web experience and organisations should avoid a wholesale migration of all of their content or site functionality to their mobile web experience. Screen size and input methods weigh heavily in mobile product strategy decisions and determining which elements and in what format to display these elements is crucial to mobile website success and ultimately mobile website usability.

Conversely, mobile application measurement shares little with traditional fixed web measurement and only the high level success frameworks and key metrics will translate well to this medium. Aside from the technical differences in implementation from mobile web measurement, application measurement focuses primarily on a subset of achievable tasks. Organisations should avoid porting all website content and functionality into their mobile application and focus on the key aspect or element of their product offering that would make the user want to engage with them in a mobile environment. Simple, direct, and facile task resolution should be the primary component of a mobile application.

What do you make of the “Web Versus Application” debate in the mobile product strategy at this juncture? Would it be right to say that the pros and cons settled down now?

Greg Dowling:

Mobile websites and mobile applications both have their appropriate place within a mobile product strategy - it is not an either/or debate. Ensuring the appropriate user experience is present in each is the true debate. All too often organisations will make a technology decision rather than a strategic decision in the form of "We need an iPhone app" or "We need to run an SMS campaign" without considering the product suitability to a mobile environment or why the customer would want to engage with their brand in the first place. At this point, a mobile website is a must and should be at the top of your mobile strategy list if you don't have one. Once that is in place and you have gleaned actionable insights into how customers are interacting with your product offering then, and only then, should you craft a mobile application strategy.

Where do you foresee mobile application measurement framework headed in the next 12 months?

Greg Dowling:

Mobile application measurement needs to become much simpler to implement. A few vendors have succeeded in simplifying the development process by enabling automatic capture of device side events and variables but this needs to improve considerably for continued widespread adoption. Currently developers are expending tremendous effort to instrument measurement in their mobile applications significantly increasing time to market for new applications - this needs to change. Additionally, location based services are changing the way we visualise data once collected from mobile applications. Given the fixed nature of traditional web browsing this element has not had much attention until now. Being able to see where and when a customer is interacting with your mobile application creates a whole new dimension to the traditional marketing strategy. It is no longer about getting the right offer to the right person at the right time - but about getting it to them at the right "place".

What do you make of the mobile product strategies especially the usage of mobile apps in the travel sector?

Greg Dowling:

The hospitality and travel industries have embraced mobile fairly well and have incorporated mobile strategies into their product marketing and service offerings adequately. However, some of the most innovative mobile product strategies I have seen recently in the travel sector have originated from capitalising on the "location aware" aspect of modern smartphones.

For example, Vail Resorts, using RFID technology, is able to tell when their customers are "on" or "off" mountain and provide appropriate messaging and content to them along with social network interaction opportunities. By capturing this location based data they are able to expand and optimise the on mountain experience for their customers. The ability to track your progress, vertical ascent, capture photos, share achievements with your social network, and have all this in your pocket is truly amazing!

Mobile commerce sales to grow to $6.7b this year in the US

eMarketer estimates mobile commerce sales will reach $6.7 billion this year in the US—a tiny fraction of overall retail sales but a 91.4 percent increase over 2010. Next year, sales will rise another 73.1 percent to $11.6 billion.

M-commerce sales are on a steep upward trajectory, thanks in part to increasing adoption of smartphones and rising mobile internet usage, according to a new forecast by eMarketer. The company forecasts that 37.5 million US consumers ages 14 and up will make at least one purchase on their mobile phone next year, up from 26.8 million this year. The vast majority of that group will be smartphone owners, at 97 percent in 2012. Overall, 72.8 million mobile users will research or browse items on their phone next year but not necessarily make a purchase.

“For years, the trend has been for consumers to research products online, then go buy in-store,” said eMarketer principal analyst Jeffrey Grau. “But as the industry improves its slate of mobile offerings, consumers are increasingly visiting stores to research products, then go buy something else on their mobile devices.”

The projected mobile sales are based on a meta-analysis of data from research firms as well as overall trends in mobile ownership and usage. M-commerce sales include sales of physical goods as well as travel and event tickets purchased via mobile, but exclude digital downloads and usage of mobile phones as a point-of-sale payment mechanism. eMarketer’s estimates for m-commerce sales do not include purchases made from tablet devices.

Recently, eBay stated that mobile shopping is mainstream now, and the company expects this holiday to be the largest mobile shopping season ever. Steve Yankovich, vice president of eBay Mobile, highlighted that shoppers are in the driver’s seat, with mobile technology putting the mall right in one’s pocket. In 2011, eBay expects to see nearly $5 billion in mobile sales (Gross Merchandise Volume); PayPal expects more than $3.5 billion in mobile payment volume.

Starwood ties up with Chinese location-based social mobile app

Starwood Hotels & Resorts has formed a partnership with Chinese location-based social mobile app, Jiepang, in order to offer Chinese Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) members check-in rewards.

China continues to be a major source of new loyalty travellers for Starwood as evidenced by the 71 percent jump in Chinese enrollment in SPG last year. The group says this initiative marks a new digital extension to its loyalty programme specifically designed for Chinese travellers.

Starwood is to provide a localised social networking platform tailored specifically to Chinese travellers. The partnership will pave way for hotels to engage with guests and reward SPG members for their geo-social behaviour, leveraging Starpoints as a form of social currency.

“SPG’s new partnership with Jiepang localises and redefines the `check-in’ for our Chinese SPG members, enabling rewarding experiences beyond their hotel stays,” said Janice Chan, director, Digital Distribution & Marketing, Starwood Asia Pacific Hotels & Resorts.

Now guests can earn Starpoints and Free Weekend Night Awards for Jiepang activity at over 200 Starwood hotels and resorts in Asia Pacific. From December 1, 2011 to January 31, 2012, SPG members can now earn bonus Starpoints by checking in via Jiepang with a confirmed reservation.

Every month, the SPG member with the greatest number of Jiepang check-ins across all Starwood hotels in Asia Pacific will be declared the SPG Mayor. In addition to status and special SPG perks, the Mayor will be interviewed and featured within the specials landing page and will also be asked to contribute travel tips to the SPG Jiepang tips page, www.jiepang.com/spg.

Facebook acquires Gowalla: report

Facebook has reportedly acquired Gowalla, according to a CNNMoney report. The report attributed the development to “a source close to Gowalla” and mentioned that most of Gowalla’s employees will move to Facebook’s offices in Palo Alto. The team will work on Facebook’s Timeline feature.

In September this year, Gowalla revamped its offering into a social tourist guide. The company, which began as a check-in app, chose to push check-ins to a secondary function of its service. Gowalla decided to allow users to create “stories” around their experiences, grouping together photos and comments from different users who are interacting at the same location.

The company believes there is a huge opportunity for the travel industry to inspire people to tell better stories and share them in real-time with their friends and followers.

Opportunity for the travel industry

In an interview with EyeforTravel’s Ritesh Gupta just before the revamp, Andy Ellwood, Director of Business Development, Gowalla, said, “Each piece of digital content that is created tells a story. Each time I use Gowalla (or any other service) to associated myself with a place, I am including that location as a part of the narrative I am sharing with my network. It is the most honest look at how someone really lives their life. I can tweet, like, blog, and +1 things from my couch. But to share real experiences around the places that I go, I have to actually go. This is a huge opportunity for the travel industry to inspire people to tell better stories and share them in real-time with their friends and followers.”

“From day one, Gowalla has set out to answer the question "What if you could use your mobile phone as a passport?" Being able to share, discover, and record the places that you go and the things that you experience have always been core to our company. As we’ve grown in users and use cases, we've found a lot of value in being able to share those stories across additional services as well,” said Ellwood.

“The real currency that all of social media and the digital web trades in is social validation. The real core of why people share is because they are wanting to include others in their story and invite them along. There are so many discounts, deals, and coupons out there that it is no longer a competitive advantage. Flip open any service these days and there is some way for you to buy one and get one free. But what Gowalla is striving to do, and what I think you will see more of in the future, is create real meaningful experiences that have stand alone value whether or not you got 10 percent off.”

Barrhead Travel launches new rewards smartcard

Scotland-based-travel agency Barrhead Travel has launched a new rewards smartcard. The card will offer a five percent cashback reward for any travel booking made, with additional discounts offered to existing sQuid account holders.

The scheme will initially be piloted in Barrhead Travel’s Dundee store with a view to rolling it out across other branches in the near future.

“Our innovative smartcard-based rewards programme is another way of giving a little extra back, while acknowledging and maintaining a great relationship with our clients,” said Mark Brock, director, Barrhead Travel.

The company has tied up with sQuid, the eMoney payments network, for this initiative.

The contactless smartcard-based scheme will be operated by sQuid, which already provides a number of smartcard services in Dundee.

The company mentioned that loyalty cards cost £5, but give back £10 to the customer’s loyalty purse once registered online with sQuid. Cardholders are then rewarded with five percent of the booking value of all overseas holidays, which is credited to the customer’s card loyalty purse and can be redeemed against future bookings.

sQuid’s low cost pre-pay model enables contactless transactions in retail, digital and virtual commerce, bypassing bank and credit card networks, with its own FSA-compliant eMoney platform, featuring bank-grade security.

UK’s CAA seeks advise on Thomas Cook’s financial problems: report

The UK’s Civil Aviation Authority has reportedly hired US turnaround and restructuring firm Alvarez & Marsal to advise it over Thomas Cook.

According to a report filed by the Sunday Telegraph, the Authority has taken this decision over concerns surrounding the tour operator’s ability to pay a customer- protection bond and fulfill its obligations on aircraft safety should the financial strength of the company worsen.

Late last month Thomas Cook Group reached agreement with its banking group to provide it with a new facility that significantly improves the “robustness” of the group’s financial position. The group’s banks, led by Barclays, HSBC, RBS and UniCredit, agreed to provide a new £200m facility available until 30 April 2013, which replaces the £100m short-term facility finalised in October. In addition, they agreed on a further relaxation of the financial covenants under the existing facilities.

“2012 seems to be unfolding as a year with a lot of uncertainty”

IN-DEPTH: Uncertainty is once again creeping into market forecasts and turmoil in markets, customer sets and distribution channels is likely to happen in a number of ways. Revenue management systems and processes will need to be nimble to adapt as events unfold, says Frederic Deschamps, Vice President, Revenue Generation, Carlson Hotels

By Ritesh Gupta

Individuals working in revenue management in the hospitality industry often term management of the short term pressures as their major challenge especially when the external forces driving the industry aren’t too favourable.

The obvious RM issues relate to the downturn during the financial crisis and the subsequent upswing. Even as the global economy is facing increased uncertainty over the ongoing turmoil in the financial markets, revenue management specialists acknowledge that the industry on the whole hasn’t learnt the dangers of price cuts. Numerous studies have demonstrated that this is the least profitable strategy for the long term. Yes, it may yield short term gains, but certainly does more damage in the long term. One needs to be smart in how they drive tactical promotions.

2012 seems to be unfolding as a year with a lot of uncertainty, says Frederic Deschamps, Vice President, Revenue Generation, Carlson Hotels.

According to Deschamps, there are a lot of unpredictable forces shaping demand -- external forces such as the continued financial uncertainty in large markets and the internal forces of competition.

Deschamps says where revenue management can contribute the most in a situation like this is to be extremely vigilant on forward developments and have solid reporting in place to monitor the outlook, to have a process in place to help steer revenue activity in other areas based on a sophisticated view of the outlook and to have a price elasticity-based revenue optimisation system that can handle the complexity of treating every location and every day as a different pricing situation.

EyeforTravel’s Ritesh Gupta spoke to Deschamps about major developments pertaining to RM in 2011 and the outlook for 2012. Excerpts:

What according to you have been the major developments this year as far as revenue management is concerned? What do you think stood out in this discipline?

Frederic Deschamps:

The most consistent development across the hotel industry has been the increased prominence of revenue management.. This has been driven by a strong but uneven recovery where hotels face a complicated pricing situation where every market and every day can be different and therefore need assistance from systems to price correctly. Everyone’s brought their own solution to this challenge, but everyone’s brought some kind of solution.

How do you think the onus is going to be on revenue management to deliver considering the business environment and other external factors, and also the maturity level of RM? What do you think should be the focus of RM professionals going forward?

Frederic Deschamps:

The task of revenue management is going to be to be prepared for any eventuality. Uncertainty is once again creeping into market forecasts and turmoil in markets, customer sets and distribution channels is likely to happen in a number of ways. Revenue management systems and processes will need to be nimble to adapt as events unfold. That implies that revenue management needs to be put in a position to steer the overall revenue activity, armed with detailed forward-looking reporting on segments and channels at the hotel level.

What do you think are the major challenges today for RM professionals in order to optimise pricing, maximise inventory, and drive higher revenue while improving operational efficiencies across the organisation? How do you think RM is going to increase its significance from where it is today?

Frederic Deschamps:

In my estimation there are at least two major ways to increase revenue management’s contribution to the hotels’ bottom line. One is to start evaluating the worth of a booking on a profit basis and not just a revenue basis and the other is to start evaluating a booking on a lifecycle and not just marginal basis. By profit, I mean that all revenues and not just room revenues (i.e. including food and services) can be included and the costs of distributing rates and servicing the customer can be included. By lifecycle I mean that the repeat business or lower price elasticity of a customer can be taken into account to prioritise inventory access, rather than just looking at the single booking transaction. Revenue other than room revenue can represent 25 percent or more of a hotel chain’s revenues, and guests have an average of 2.5 stays in hotels, these are significant multipliers on the typical “room revenue only, single stay” approach of revenue management systems today.

Recently, Amadeus highlighted that price management thrives in an environment where revenue management does not. It is possible to realise a vision of a market tied to customer personalisation in place of more limited customer segmentation. It also indicated that the fluid, dynamic model of price management, and this multi-variable model works much more effectively with the complexities of the hotel industry. How do you assess the situation?

Frederic Deschamps:

Price management, or rate optimisation, claims to maximise revenue by setting the rate just right to truncate demand at the optimal level. Traditional management looks for the combination of customers paying different rates that maximises revenue. To the extent that pricing is becoming more transparent and more and more customers are converging onto a single rate, price management is becoming more in line with market realities. Carlson Hotels has adopted this approach and uses rate optimisation worldwide with strong results. However, it must be said that in price management (or rate optimisation) a lot rides on the quality of the rate calculations so the devil is in the details with that approach.

Within an organisation, RM professionals will not only need to invest more time and effort in liaising with other disciplines, but it is also being mentioned that the more ambitious the RM department and RM system become, the harder it will be to know that every single commercial decision contributes to overall profitability, i.e. to carry out RM’s main task. Keeping profitability as the guiding principle for all these new initiatives will require vision and discipline. What do you make of this assessment?

Frederic Deschamps:

I think that’s essentially correct, but not all that different from what revenue management tries to do today. Revenue management is uniquely positioned to steer the revenue process, because their expertise is about setting rational expectations of what lies ahead and about the customer. What lies ahead is the actionable window for all other revenue-contributing departments, so revenue management is the natural scout for this activity. Organisations that embrace this view tend to involve revenue management in virtually all their activities, so revenue management itself needs to prioritise effectively to ensure their activity remains productive. Most revenue management organisations develop solid tools and processes to increase their throughput without significantly increase resources to deal with this challenge.

Do you believe that revenue managers seem to still follow too easily the principle of dropping price to generate more demand?

Frederic Deschamps:

Good question! Overall I believe that the last few years where we’ve seen significant drop-off in demand has had a sobering effect on price-dropping. Revenue management has been reminded that there is a limit to customer elasticity. My perception is that revenue managers today are more discerning with their prices and fairly disciplined about calculating their break-even point before they initiate or respond to pricing activity. I believe that overall this is to the hotel’s as well as the customer’s benefit. A rationally priced market provides both a reasonable return to the hotel and a fair price to the customer.

The hotel industry has witnessed the emergence of price optimisation tools that incorporate real-time competitive rates with a hotel’s demand and booking patterns to recommend the best price. Overall, the industry is focusing more on price elasticity and price optimisation as part of its overall revenue management strategy. What do you make of the situation?

Frederic Deschamps:

I believe that’s correct, and Carlson Hotel is an enthusiastic early adopter of this approach. Our assessment is that with increased transparency between distribution channels, and the proliferation of instant-information tools (PDA’s etc); it is no longer realistic to price segments of demand discreetly. Therefore, the question is no longer how to prioritise inventory to customers paying different prices in a revenue-maximising way, it is to find the single rate most customer will essentially pay that maximises revenue, taking the customer’s alternatives into account. I believe that this approach brings a lot of rationality to the pricing in the market place which is to the hotel’s and the customer’s benefit.

European Travel Commission targets travellers from China, launches portal

Brussels-based European Travel Commission (ETC), a non-profit organisation focused on marketing and promoting tourism to Europe from long-haul markets, and European Commission (EC) have announced the launch of Travel Destination Europe and the portal in China.

This launch marks the first step in the recently strengthened cooperation between ETC and the EC to promote Europe as a travel destination in long-haul emerging markets and the recognition of China as one of the most important opportunities for outbound travel to Europe in the coming years.

“With the launch of our new Chinese web portal, visiteurope.com, today we declare our common initiative to focus on the Chinese market promoting Travel Destination Europe,” said Petra Hedorfer, president of ETC.

Promotional activity will begin in China through the visiteurope.com portal, with a series of campaigns initiating in 2012 focused on ‘Europe’s Ultimate Journeys’, designed to promote the most relevant pan-European tourism products to Chinese visitors.

Pedro Ortún, Director for Tourism, CSR, Consumer Goods and International Regulatory Agreements at the EC, said that the approval of the Visa Code for the Schengen area and the recent adoption of a harmonised list for supporting documents to be presented by visa applicants in China will certainly help in attracting more Chinese visitors to Europe.

Rich and seamless mobile shopping experiences drive mobile purchases: survey

A survey, reviewing how consumers respond to a bad shopping experience on their Internet-connected mobile device, has revealed that 62 percent abandon the site on their mobile device and return to the site at a later date using a computer.

According to Limelight Networks Research’s survey, 21 percent complete their research and/or purchase using their mobile device but will never return to the site in the future if they can avoid it. Also, 18 percent abandon the site on their mobile device and seek alternative brands using their mobile device.

Overall, the company highlighted that consumers are unwilling to suffer less than optimal mobile shopping experiences, with 80 percent reporting that they will instantly abandon a bad experience.

Of the 520 respondents who completed the survey, 83 percent have researched and purchased a product on a shopping site using their Internet-connected mobile device. And 17 percent have simply researched products on a shopping site using their Internet-connected mobile device.

The survey indicated that mobile shopping expectations mirror expectations for the desktop — respondents want speedy experiences, rich media like product videos, and easy-to-use sites.

Expectations

Survey respondents ranked the importance of mobile shopping features to making the experience of researching and/or purchasing products on their Internet-connected mobile device a good one:

• 88 percent ranked the time it takes for the site to load or appear on the screen as extremely important or important
• 88 percent ranked providing detailed product images on the site (for example, "zoom in" product photography or product videos) as extremely important or important
• 82 percent ranked mobile site optimization, or how the site appropriately fits the screen (for example, no side-to-side scrolling), as extremely important or important

“Consumers do not want to wait — they want to immediately begin shopping on their mobile devices, making the time it takes to begin viewing, searching, and clicking on a site absolutely critical,” said Jonathan Cobb, Mobility Solutions, Limelight Networks.

Equally important to speed is the availability of rich product imagery, which provides the detailed information that consumers need when purchasing on their phones or researching the products they will buy in store or on the computer.

Travel Industry

The travel industry, too, acknowledges that as smartphone adoption grows, consumers expect a faultless experience across all online channels, including mobile.

“We find that the expectations and demands of smartphone customers are significantly higher than website visitors. With the dynamic of the App Store and the user-review feedback loop, it's imperative to deliver a stellar customer experience, otherwise one can end up in a deep hole of negative app reviews,” says Sam Shank, CEO of mobile hotel bookings specialist Hoteltonight.com.

Building on mobile is a far greater challenge than that of any other channel or platform because one only has the smallest amount of time to surprise and delight customers as soon as they glance at their phones, says Dave Ambrose, Business Development Manager, Mobile for Travelzoo.

Thomas Cook Signature targets youth/budget traveller market

Thomas Cook Signature has partnered with YHA Australia to offer budget accommodation throughout its UK’s high street travel retail network.

With this move, the company is targeting youth/budget traveller market for the first time.

The pact allow Thomas Cook, Co-op and Going Places agents to tap into this growing market, which was previously only the realm of youth/budget travel specialists, highlighted the companies. It was also mentioned that over 128,000 British backpackers visit Australia each year, each staying an average 68 nights and spending $7,660 AUD per trip making this the highest yielding segment, spending nearly twice as much as the average international traveller.

Mandy Monk, YHA Australia’s marketing manager for Europe, said the budget and backpacker segment is continuing to grow and despite common misconceptions these travellers have disposable income, a strong propensity to travel and are generally less effected by issues such as the Global financial crisis, making them an ideal target group in these more difficult times.

“We welcome the foresight shown by Thomas Cook Signature to tap into this lucrative segment through its independent agent partners,” said Monk.

Thomas Cook Signature’s 2012 brochure launches on 15 December.

Direct mail most preferred for receipt of brand communications: study

A study in the US has indicated that despite direct mail’s reputation for being “old school” or expensive, it is the top choice of U.S. and Canadian consumers for the receipt of brand communications.

According to Epsilon Targeting’s 2011 Channel Preference Study, titled The Formula For Success: Preference and Trust, direct mail continues to deliver as consumers’ preferred means of receiving marketing messages from brands.

Suggestion

The study suggests that brands should use a variety of mediums to build relationships, starting with trusted channels like direct mail, then layering the message to re-enforce it through other channels.

Marketers need to understand which channels resonate most at various points in the consumer purchase cycle and incorporate a cross-channel strategy that leverages data and technology to communicate on a one-to-one basis

Findings

There has been 66 percent growth in U.S. consumers’ use of Facebook in the past year to research and review consumer product information. In response to an annual Epsilon Targeting survey of consumer channel preferences, 10 percent of U.S. respondents said they used Facebook for consumer product information, a jump from six percent in 2010. At the same time, roughly a third of U.S. and Canadian survey respondents (33 percent U.S. and 31 percent Canadian) said they don't find ads on social media sites useful.

Key findings:

• 26 percent of U.S. consumers and 30 percent of Canadians said direct mail is more trustworthy than email;
• 50 percent of U.S. consumers and 48 percent of Canadians said they pay more attention to postal mail than email;
• 60 percent of U.S. consumers and 64 percent of Canadians said they enjoy checking the mailbox for postal mail, highlighting an emotional connection;
• 30 percent of U.S. consumers said they’re receiving more mail that interests them compared to a year ago, and just 50 percent (down from 63 percent in 2010) said more information is sent to them in the mail -- indicating marketers are improving targeting efforts;
• The perception that reading email is faster declined among U.S. email account holders to 45 percent in 2011 (from 47 percent in 2010), suggesting clogged inboxes are draining time.

The 2011 Channel Preference Study also found:

• 37 percent of U.S. consumers and 29 percent of Canadians use TV daily to get consumer product information, down from 43 percent and 35 percent respectively in 2010;
• The least trustworthy channels are social media and blogs, achieving only six percent trust among U.S. consumers and 5 percent among Canadians;
• The number of U.S. respondents who said Internet use “is more anonymous” declined to eight percent in 2011 from 11 percent in 2010;
• Personally addressed mail is greatly preferred to unaddressed, with numbers in the insurance category showing a 31 percent to 5 percent gap;
• 34 percent of U.S. consumers who prefer email over mail cited “saving on paper” as the main reason, up strongly from 21 percent in 2010;
• In 2011, 39 percent of U.S. consumers claimed awareness of group deal web sites, lagging behind the 53 percent awareness level among Canadian counterparts.

The study is based on completed surveys from 2,226 U.S. consumers and 2,574 Canadian consumers.

Travel industry

Interestingly, another recent study indicated that digital content is a top priority for travel companies, with 83 percent reporting a planned increase in budget for 2012.

According to EyeforTravel’s Travel Distribution & Marketing Barometer – Edition 2 (released in October), looking towards the next quarter in the most recent data for both suppliers and intermediaries, the largest proportion of companies are increasing budgets for website design or re-‐design; 59 percent in the September barometer. Social media ranked at the top in February (from the first edition which was published in May this year), but in September a lower but still significant 57 percent are planning an increase. The investment area with the smallest proportion in September was group buying; 15 percent are planning an increase in the next three months and 22 percent are keeping their budgets the same.

As convergence between online and offline marketing continues, budget fluidity is also expected to increase. There’s no doubt that digital marketing has become an essential marketing tool – especially when paired with off-line. Global recession made this even more apparent as brands cut back off-line marketing budgets and had to do more with less.

YouTube unveils new website design

YouTube has introduced a new homepage and “Channel” design in order to make it easier for viewers to find and watch content.

The company’s improved Channel design focuses on what matters most: helping users find great videos.

The team has incorporated feedback from the “Cosmic Panda” Channels and Watch experiment, for:

• A more streamlined and consistent design
• An easier way to find and view videos
• New, more flexible layouts for featured content

The homepage design has been updated to make it easier to find and watch videos. On the left side of the homepage users can create their own, personal, customisable YouTube Channel line-up. Sign-in, or create a YouTube account. They can browse recommended Channels; customise their homepage’s feed; even link their YouTube account to Google+ and Facebook to see what their friends are sharing. Users can switch between feeds by clicking on different Channels on the left.

“We are trying hard to marry the best of TV and the best of online,” YouTube vice president of product development Shishir Mehrotra said.

Marriott International’s mobile app now available in five languages

Marriott International is now offering its mobile app for iPhone, iPod touch, and Android devices in Chinese, Spanish, German and French.

First introduced in English three months ago, the app has already been downloaded more than 500,000 times.

The company also announced the launch of its all new “app-like” Marriott mobile website in Chinese, Spanish, German and French, as well as English, that can be accessed from any web-enabled mobile device.

“As the Marriott International portfolio of hotels expands and diversifies worldwide, we are putting a premium on investing in our eCommerce channels, including mobile,” said Shafiq Khan, senior vice president, eCommerce for Marriott International.

The tools enable time-crunched travellers to quickly find nearby hotels, book a room, check their upcoming reservations and get details about their hotel, including photos. With the app and mobile website, travellers can also enroll in Marriott Rewards, check their point balance, and even find out what’s happening in the local area.

Earlier this year, the group shared that through June of this year, Marriott’s mobile website averaged nearly 2.6 million visits a month and $21 million in property-level revenue a month, which was more than three times the volume compared to the same time period from the year before. “We know that more than half of hotel reservations made using mobile devices are for same-day stays. This shows how rushed mobile travellers are; speed and choice are critical,” Khan said then.

Marriott’s mobile app for smartphones and its upgraded mobile website were developed by Kony Solutions.

The group’s mobile website and apps are hosted and managed by AT&T.

Google to enhance the airport experience with indoor map navigation

Google has shared that now Google Maps for Android enables users to figure out where they are and see where they might want to go when they’re indoors.

The development has emerged as the company announced the next generation of Google Maps for Android, which is first to get indoor Google Maps.

“With Google Maps’ “My Location” feature, which shows your location as a blue dot, you can see where you are on the map to avoid walking the wrong direction on city streets, or to get your bearings if you’re hiking an unfamiliar trail. Google Maps also displays additional details, such as places, landmarks and geographical features, to give you context about what’s nearby,” wrote Brian McClendon, VP of Engineering, Google Earth and Maps on a company’s blog.

“When you’re inside an airport, shopping mall or retail store, a common way to figure out where you are is to look for a freestanding map directory or ask an employee for help. Starting today, with the release of Google Maps 6.0 for Android, that directory is brought to the palm of your hands, helping you determine where you are, what floor you're on, and where to go indoors.”

Detailed floor plans automatically appear when you’re viewing the map and zoomed in on a building where indoor map data is available. The “blue dot” icon indicates your location within several meters, and when you move up or down a level in a building with multiple floors, the interface will automatically update to display which floor you’re on.

Google initially partnered with some of the largest retailers, airports and transit stations in the U.S. and Japan, including Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL), Chicago O’Hare (ORD), San Francisco International Airport (SFO) and Narita International (NRT), among others.

Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, too, confirmed that it has tied up with Google to become one of the first airports in the world to give Android phone users access to indoor maps in Google Maps.

Airport’s aviation general manager Louis Miller said, “To us, good way-finding means the customer never has to ask for directions and easily can find a restaurant, a gate or the nearest restroom.”

Users of Android devices will need to update the Google Maps application in order to access these indoor maps, but no updates will be required after that one-time installation to get new or updated indoor maps.

Orbitz’s contest to let “fans” nominate favourite do-gooder on Facebook

Online travel company Orbitz has initiated its Gift It Forward Facebook contest, letting its Facebook fans to nominate others for the good things they've done.

The contest allows Orbitz Facebook fans to nominate a deserving neighbour, co-worker, family member, or friend for a luxury vacation to Mexico.

Gift It Forward is a great way for deserving people to be recognised for their actions, said Chris Orton, president of Orbitz.com.

Grand prize winners will be announced on or about December 22.

Contest

To nominate someone for “Gift It Forward”, one needs to visit the Orbitz Facebook page and complete a short form describing why the person nominated deserves to win.

After submitting the form, the nominator must inform the nominee that they need to “Gift It Forward” and nominate someone else for their entry to be valid. Orbitz will award six travel packages to the nominees and their nominators for all-inclusive luxury trips to Mexico. Orbitz will also award fans with pairs of round-trip airline tickets throughout the contest just for submitting a nomination.

Nominations are accepted now through December 9.

Orbitz will select 10 finalists based on a combination of relevance, quality, and creativity. Orbitz Facebook fans will then vote for their favourite story.