mercredi 28 avril 2010
Augmented reality for city travelers
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Augmented reality for city travelers
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Internet video and the travel industry
Check out this article about Internet video and the travel industry: http://bit.ly/9KVgHI
mardi 27 avril 2010
Accor Launches iPhone Application
Customers are now able to make reservations at 3,000 Accor hotels worldwide directly from an iPhoneAs of today, accorhotels.com is providing iPhone users with free access to an application that will enable them to reserve a room in any of 3,000 Sofitel, Pullman, MGallery, Mercure, Novotel, Suitehotel, Adagio, ibis, all seasons, Etap Hotel, Formule 1 and hotelF1 hotels, directly from their iPhone.
Developed with Haiku, a provider of mobile solutions, the easy-to-use application takes advantage of Apple’s intuitive browsing capabilities and offers additional services, including geolocation features that enable users, for example, to search for the nearest hotels or calculate itineraries in real time.
The application also includes a personalised service that memorises current reservations and favourite hotels and synchronizes with the iPhone contacts. When booking via an iPhone, users also benefit from secure payment processing and enjoy access to promotional offers in Sofitel, Pullman, MGallery, Novotel, Mercure, Suitehotel, Adagio, Ibis, all seasons, Etap Hotel, hotelF1 and Formule 1 hotels around the world.
The application is already available in five languages (French, English, German, Spanish and Italian).
‘We’re proud to launch this innovative application, which is accessible to 30 million iPhone users,’ said Jean-Luc Chrétien, Executive Vice President, Accor Hotel Marketing and Distribution. ‘This puts our hotel network at the fingertips of iPhone users around the world.’
samedi 24 avril 2010
dimanche 18 avril 2010
Opportunities for the travel sector online
http://bit.ly/c4Jb0G Check this article on Opportunities for the travel sector online. For example, the article mentions the higher intent to purchase through mobile and Google that announced that a trial of hotel price are going to be listed in Google Maps. Those new tools will allow customers to have all the information they need for their travel in no time. To me, the travel business is really going to change thanks to those tools. We have to "rethink" as professionals the way we work, and take advantage of those new opportunities. What do you think about it?
Here's an example of the Google Maps results for someone who is searching for hotels in New York City:
Here's an example of the Google Maps results for someone who is searching for hotels in New York City:
mardi 6 avril 2010
The best new travel technology
Tweet link : http://bit.ly/aFfhs6
In my opinion new travel technology will revolutionize the way people are travelling. The tourism actors as hotels, airline companies will have to be aware of those new technologies and try to use them in the best ways to satisfy their customers. I believe also we are entering more largely in a world of technology, so we have to keep our mind open and search for opportunities!
In my opinion new travel technology will revolutionize the way people are travelling. The tourism actors as hotels, airline companies will have to be aware of those new technologies and try to use them in the best ways to satisfy their customers. I believe also we are entering more largely in a world of technology, so we have to keep our mind open and search for opportunities!
lundi 5 avril 2010
dimanche 4 avril 2010
mercredi 31 mars 2010
lundi 29 mars 2010
Search Engine
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Search Engine
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How to optimize your site for Google in 2010
The combination of organic and paid results page listings results in brand lift and higher click-through rates. While many marketers depend heavily on paid listings, they ignore organic SEO at their peril.
Google users have always indicated they prefer organic listings over paid listings at the rate of 70 percent to 30 percent. Regardless of user preference, recent research by Google and Enquiro reveals that purchase increases in both top organic and top sponsored listings.So to be competitive in 2010, marketers need both organic and paid links.
Here under are 3 areas to work on to improve your organic rankings in Google: site speed, real-time content, and video content.
1. Ensure your site is up to speed
Late last year, Google's Matt Cutts confirmed on his blog that speed will become a ranking factor on Google because search engine speed is important to users.
2. Create real-time content
Last year, Google started serving Twitter real-time search results and started implementing Facebook, streaming real-time content from across the web. That means that users view live updates from social media sites, headlines from news articles, and blog.
Because of the prominence of real-time search content in the results pages, it is now essential for companies to have a social media presence.
3. Create and promote videos
Another prominent presence in the SERPs is video links. People seem to click on videos more than other SERP links, and that's why Google is moving video up in the results. So it is a real opportunity to consider video,
dimanche 14 février 2010
E Business Hotel Direct Booking
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E Business Hotel Direct Booking
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3 Elements of a Successful Business Web Presence
I chose this article because our MBA assignment for next week is about : hotel direct booking ... the most profitable channel. To be an efficient website an hotelier needs to think about what people will see when they look at a hotel website.
This article describes three elements of a successful business web, that captures the customers, that is differenciating from the competitors, and that has an online presence.
Here under are the 3 elements:
1. Creating an online presence for building a website. This means building a site that includes your business information, highlights what makes you special, and gives consumers a way to contact you. In other words a website easy to use for the customers.
2. Maintaining a blog that portrays your thoughts and insights can help your website stand out and help consumers better understand your business. So an easy understanding of the hotel values, differenciation, concept.
3. A good business website can be used to capture potential leads. As the site grows it becomes a community for customers and potential consumers.
I agree with the basic points made above. However, I would offer one additional key piece of advice; building a web presence- in other words a hotel easy to find. Building a web presence which will actually be found, so hoteliers need to place themselves in the brain of customers.
This are the elements to build a successful hotel direct website!
This article describes three elements of a successful business web, that captures the customers, that is differenciating from the competitors, and that has an online presence.
Here under are the 3 elements:
1. Creating an online presence for building a website. This means building a site that includes your business information, highlights what makes you special, and gives consumers a way to contact you. In other words a website easy to use for the customers.
2. Maintaining a blog that portrays your thoughts and insights can help your website stand out and help consumers better understand your business. So an easy understanding of the hotel values, differenciation, concept.
3. A good business website can be used to capture potential leads. As the site grows it becomes a community for customers and potential consumers.
I agree with the basic points made above. However, I would offer one additional key piece of advice; building a web presence- in other words a hotel easy to find. Building a web presence which will actually be found, so hoteliers need to place themselves in the brain of customers.
This are the elements to build a successful hotel direct website!
dimanche 31 janvier 2010
Summary 7: 15 tips for survival in difficult times
Most hoteliers have been stricked by financial crisis. To survive through this recession, managers have developed short term fix solutions. But was it efficient? This article describes that short term solutions are not always successful.
Here under are some key pointers to help survive during difficult times:
Here under are some key pointers to help survive during difficult times:
- Think very carefully about your advertising and marketing activities and adjust them accordingly
- Know your guests and understand their requirements
- Monitor your competitors on a regular basis.
- Research and refocus your target market segments and go for volume -- for instance, choose 100 small contracted companies instead of five key accounts
- Make sure the correct rates for business and leisure guests are loaded into the right distribution channels.
- Do not forget about your existing regular contracted clients. Provide loyalty programs and, remember, it is easier and less expensive to keep existing clients rather than find new ones.
- Make your website a business generator =
- Familiarise yourself with the latest and most up-to-date technologies and booking systems
- Load promotional videos and advertisements on portals such as www.youtube.com; use social networks (Twitter, Facebook, etc.) and Web2 and deploy word-of-mouth strategies.
- Don't hesitate to keep co-operation going with third party intermediaries (such as HRS.com, booking.com), online travel agents, business travel agents (such as AMEX) and other tourism related companies.
- Use customer relationship management systems
- Create special offers for local clients to encourage them to use your hotel at weekends and during holidays.
- Develop new packages and programs to generate demand from new guests.
- Drive cost-cutting activities in the hotel. Involve hotel staff in looking at how costs could be reduced in their departments and introduce incentive programmes to encourage come up with ideas.
- Always employ talented service-orientated people
In my opinion, if we look carefuly at these 15 key points, sales and marketing strategies have become the main tool to survive through the recession. That is why, I have chosen this year to do a last internship in the sales and marketing department of a hotel, because I believe that I will learn new ways to develop hotels in general. I think, that these key points will help me in my internship, and that they will be effective to adapt in those financial circumtances.
mercredi 20 janvier 2010
META SEARCH TRAVEL SITES POWER POINT ON JING
Please find below the link of my work on meta search travel sites
http://www.screencast.com/users/camillensw/folders/Jing/media/46537e9c-3558-49c8-90cb-85f2c6437890
This new presentation was "rework" compared to the last one I made
http://www.screencast.com/users/camillensw/folders/Jing/media/46537e9c-3558-49c8-90cb-85f2c6437890
This new presentation was "rework" compared to the last one I made
dimanche 10 janvier 2010
On Twitter and in the Workplace, It's Power to the Connectors
“On Twitter and in the Workplace, It's Power to the Connectors” is an article which can be find on the Harvard Business School Review website. The author of this article is Mrs Rosabeth Moss Kanter a professor at Harvard Business School, specializes in strategy, innovation, and leadership for change.
In this article Mrs Rosabeth Moss Kanter expresses her thoughts about the importance of networking in our society and more specifically she focuses on business organizations and career success.
In the 20th century, American business organizations were very formal with a vertical hierarchy. In our days, we observe that more and more companies are relying on what we call networking and horizontal organization. This evolution in the way companies are organized in without a doubt an opportunity.
Indeed, networking has become a new strength to achieve a successful career. Even more, power is now handled by what we call the “connectors”, people who seek efficiently relationships and who connecting people to one another.
It is the fact that thanks to the creation of social media tools as: communities, Facebook, Twitter, Viadeo... it has become more easier to connect to a group and build a “networking area”. However, it has been observed that personal networks are more used because they are considered as the best way to find resources quickly. That means that, for example a manager will rely more on the people he has worked with or met in his career rather than data bases of resumes resource.
To get a good networking or social capital, it mainly depends on 2 factors:
- Having a great social capital is linked to the length of organizational experience
- And it is linked to the nature of the job. For example a sales manager thanks to the nature of his job will have better chance to get a huge and efficient network than may be a financial director.
However, what is there to be remembered by this article is sentence: In essence, "She who has the best network wins."
In my opinion, it is true that we are more and more talking about the importance of networking and the power that result from it. 10 years ago we were talking about an “individualist society” and now we have come up to a “community society” were people are linking to each other.
More personally, I have observed during my internship when I was a project manager, that having a great network gives you power. For example, when organizing a congress it is important to rely on a” personal network” of suppliers because they are more efficient, and the relationship with those suppliers makes the work easier and get it done faster.
Now, it is up to everyone to create a “network area”, to be active, and even become a “connector”.
In this article Mrs Rosabeth Moss Kanter expresses her thoughts about the importance of networking in our society and more specifically she focuses on business organizations and career success.
In the 20th century, American business organizations were very formal with a vertical hierarchy. In our days, we observe that more and more companies are relying on what we call networking and horizontal organization. This evolution in the way companies are organized in without a doubt an opportunity.
Indeed, networking has become a new strength to achieve a successful career. Even more, power is now handled by what we call the “connectors”, people who seek efficiently relationships and who connecting people to one another.
It is the fact that thanks to the creation of social media tools as: communities, Facebook, Twitter, Viadeo... it has become more easier to connect to a group and build a “networking area”. However, it has been observed that personal networks are more used because they are considered as the best way to find resources quickly. That means that, for example a manager will rely more on the people he has worked with or met in his career rather than data bases of resumes resource.
To get a good networking or social capital, it mainly depends on 2 factors:
- Having a great social capital is linked to the length of organizational experience
- And it is linked to the nature of the job. For example a sales manager thanks to the nature of his job will have better chance to get a huge and efficient network than may be a financial director.
However, what is there to be remembered by this article is sentence: In essence, "She who has the best network wins."
In my opinion, it is true that we are more and more talking about the importance of networking and the power that result from it. 10 years ago we were talking about an “individualist society” and now we have come up to a “community society” were people are linking to each other.
More personally, I have observed during my internship when I was a project manager, that having a great network gives you power. For example, when organizing a congress it is important to rely on a” personal network” of suppliers because they are more efficient, and the relationship with those suppliers makes the work easier and get it done faster.
Now, it is up to everyone to create a “network area”, to be active, and even become a “connector”.
samedi 9 janvier 2010
Summary 5: American Express Business Travel to launch BusinessTravelConnexion.com
I chose this article, because I did my last internship of 8 months at American Express Business Travel head office in Paris as a project manager.
I was really surprise that American Express has for objective to launch a business-to-business online networking community: BusinessTravelConnexion.com for the corporate travel industry.
The other benefits for users are :
Creating a community website will be beneficial also to American Business Travel : to my opinion executives of the company will be able to have feedbacks from their client, reach new customers, and adapt their strategies to what customers are suggesting.
I was really surprise that American Express has for objective to launch a business-to-business online networking community: BusinessTravelConnexion.com for the corporate travel industry.
Their mission with the creation of this travel community is to “revolutionize the business travel experience. Thanks to this B2B community users will be able to be in touch with industry decision makers, suppliers, and
The other benefits for users are :
- As any other community, users are able to share information and learn news, strategies about American Express Business Travel.
- Users will be also empowered to participate in online discussion boards
- Users will have access to discussion boards, editorial reviews, hot topic polls, product development councils that means more transparency.
- Finally users can provide feedback on what they want to hear about from the industry
Creating a community website will be beneficial also to American Business Travel : to my opinion executives of the company will be able to have feedbacks from their client, reach new customers, and adapt their strategies to what customers are suggesting.
It is true, that at first I thought that community sites were more useful for B2C companies, but after having read this article I am more and more convinced that creating a community B2B will be a good opportunity.
However, I also have some doubts I made some research about B2B community, and the issue that keeps coming back is that it is more difficult to create a B2B social media strategy in general rather than a B2C.
What makes it difficult is that B2B social media users are less passionate and that it is takes more time to build for example a community when having B2B users.
But still it is difficult to answer the question : Is Social Media can be adapt to B2B?
dimanche 3 janvier 2010
Summary 4: The great online travel revolution; December 16, 2009
It is now recognized as a fact that the web has revolutionized the way people travel. More and more online services have Emerged in the travel industry thanks to the web: price comparison sites, OTAs, blogs, communities ...
As a result, more and more customers are not avoiding high street travel agencies, newspaper, brochures ... Many high street travel agencies have seen their turnover rates lower down since the development of online travel services.
In my opinion the 4 main reasons for customers to look for a travel online are:
So in my point of view, online travel services have a great future in front of them.
However, the competition is becoming very hard, for example more and more OTAs are launched every year on the web. The market is becoming saturated with All Those OTAs Expedia, Opodo, Last Minute Travel SNCF Booking.com, all the tour operators' websites ...
As a result, more and more customers are not avoiding high street travel agencies, newspaper, brochures ... Many high street travel agencies have seen their turnover rates lower down since the development of online travel services.
In my opinion the 4 main reasons for customers to look for a travel online are:
- Customers can look for the best prices
- It is easy to search online: gathering information, getting opinions on hotels for example (Trip Advisor) and to book online (example: Cook / Expedia ...)
- Customers are also saving time: it takes less time to go on the Internet than going to a high street travel agency.
- The last motivation is that the customer is sort of "free", he can search by himself for what he wants.
So in my point of view, online travel services have a great future in front of them.
However, the competition is becoming very hard, for example more and more OTAs are launched every year on the web. The market is becoming saturated with All Those OTAs Expedia, Opodo, Last Minute Travel SNCF Booking.com, all the tour operators' websites ...
OTAs have to come up with new strategies to keep their customers and to keep their profitability.
Here under are some ideas that I have come up with:
- To better serve its customers online
- Ensure customer's satisfaction
- Innovation: Innovate with new services
- Be aware of the trends on the marketplace.
- Use social media communication
- Drive traffic and increase the linkability
- More transparency
- Allowing communication
samedi 2 janvier 2010
Community sites : Iloho vs Matador Travel
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Community sites : Iloho vs Matador Travel
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