Travolution meets Greg Dyke

Wholly unrelated to Travolution, but...




Here's all our other - slightly more relevant - content from the Advantage Conference last weekend.

Kevin May, editor, Travolution

The Superbrands thing [Sigh]

So plenty of coverage everywhere about the release of the latest Superbrands survey of top brands in the UK.

Google tops the list for the first time, ahead of Microsoft, Mercedes-Benz and the BBC.

In the travel-hospitality world, British Airways comes out on top (5th), with Hilton (20th), Eurostar (47th) and Virgin Atlantic (70th) all featuring in the top 100.

Thomas Cook has made a great PR play today with its top billing amongst tour operators and agencies in 72nd position, beating Kuoni (340th), Sandals (355th), Expedia (401st) and Lastminute.com (476th).

And this is where all this branding stuff gets murky and silly.

It was only last year that Expedia was named the coolest travel brand in the, er, Superbrands' Coolbrands list.

So, one question:

Is it better to be a 'cool' brand or a 'super' brand?

Anyway, back to the Superbrands list. Well done to Thomas Cook (which, according to marketing boss Simon Carter is "head and shoulders" above its competitors). But is it REALLY 46 places behind the Royal Albert Hall, for example?

Take this one step further and you could also ask the following question:

If the Royal Albert Hall is 46 places ahead of Thomas Cook, how on earth can Thomas Cook be at least 428 places higher than Thomson, its biggest and bitter rival and, let's face it, a fairly big travel brand in its own right.

[Thomson actually doesn't figure anywhere in the list of 500 brands]

And THAT is the problem with branding lists - not that Thomson doesn't feature, but that the results are so random when all evidence to the contrary (sales, adspend, offline and online presence, word-of-mouth and history) indicates that a company such as Thomson should at least have a higher ranking than Maltesers, Stannah Stairlifts and Nicorette!

There are plenty of people who have strong views about Superbrands et al - the comments button is dying to hear from you...

* The Superbrands selection criteria can be found on its website.

Kevin May, editor, Travolution

Technorati tags: superbrand

Future shocks

UK-based readers of a certain age will fondly remember BBC’s Tomorrow’s World, the long-running TV programme which predicted technological and scientific breakthroughs that would dominate our lives in the future.

Most of them never happened, such as the folding car which would fit into a suitcase. But some did, such as the ATM and Ceefax.

Ian Yeoman claims to be the only futurologist working exclusively on travel and tourism. His latest book, Tomorrows Tourists, looks at ‘where world tourism will be in 2030 and what the tourist will be doing in 2030.’

The headline predictions range from China being the world’s largest destination [likely - Ed] and holidays in Outer Space being the ultimate luxury experience [unlikely].

Topics covered range from shopping in Dubai and health tourism in India to the feminisation of business and travel in China and what would happen if governments banned tourism.

The link to the Tomorrows Tourist home-page includes a few sample chapters and a couple of podcasts, including a look at the ‘sex tourism’ industry now and in 2030, using Las Vegas as a starting point.

Yeoman’s work has been ‘supported’ by FutureFoundation, a London-based consumer think, so there is a proper methodology behind the predictions.

Back in the mists of time , well, 2004 to be exact, a well-known tour operator issued its own 'predictions' for what we would be doing in 2024. Maybe that well-known tour operator should have been getting its web strategy in place rather than telling us that trips to New York would cost £50 or that the ‘the hotel of the future will be a fully transportable super pod containing rooms of varying sizes that can be dismantled and moved anywhere in the world’.

Martin Cowen
chief writer
Travolution

BBC travel portal - just fancy that

The Sunday Times reports how listings giant Time Out is joining a growing list of companies angry over the BBC's acquisition of Lonely Planet.

There are concerns that the licence fee funded broadcast giant will use its expertise to develop the global travel guide publisher Lonely Planet, a direction Time Out boss Tony Elliott is understood to have said is "beyond the resources of any privately funded organisation".

Lonely Planet, in turn, may well help the BBC develop a travel portal of its own to run similarly to its motoring and environmental channels on the website.

People really shouldn't be surprised at such a turn of events. The BBC didn't buy LP because of a deep-seated love of backpacking!

And it would take a messy intervention from the likes of the UK's Office of Fair Trading to put a stop to it.

Kevin May, editor, Travolution

Cyberwalk around Pompeii

Odd but rather intriguing story on the BBC about a omni-directional walkway which will be developed to simulate a virtual tour around the ancient - and destroyed - city of Pompeii.

Obviously there are huge possibilities for destination marketing or experience-led facilities in travel - you just need to use your imagination at the moment.

Kevin May, editor, Travolution

Technorati tags: pompeii

Accessibility or bust

Our recent article on major changes to online accessibility regulations is getting a fair bit of coverage across the media.

It's a massively important issue.

Julie Howell, an accessibility guru in the UK who co-wrote the piece with Rune Leth Andersen, a colleague from Fortune Cookie, spoke to the BBC earlier this week.

Here is the interview.

More coverage, some of which explores the issue even further and adds some interesting analysis, can be found here:

• E-Consultancy.
• TMCNet.com.
• Rolling Rains.
• BizReport.com.
• HotelMarketing.
• IT Backbones.
• Marketing Services Talk.
  

Howell will be speaking on this issue at the E-Access: Technology For All conference in London on April 23.

Kevin May, editor, Travolution

Technorati tags: accessibility fortune cookie

Expedia and Firefox - maybe we missed the memo

Dedicated Firefox users here at Travolution Towers, primarily for its tabbed pages and multi-search engine toolbar (yes, IE7 does this but we're luddites and old habits die hard).

Anyway, we discovered this morning that users can add an Expedia search button to their Firefox toolbar.

For example, type in "Las Vegas" into the box and a list of hotel options for the Nevada city are displayed (data comes from the US Expedia site).

It also produces options for flights if you type in the airport codes. - although it gueses the departure dates).

One wonders how much use this toolbar gets. Other add-ons, we suspect, like BBC News, USA Today and Amazon, probably get a lot more traffic. But that's probably not the point either...

Other travel-related add-ons include Lonely Planet and the Weather Channel.

Kevin May, editor, Travolution

Technorati tags: expedia firefox

Beats the African royalty scam hands down

Like most businesses, Travolution receives almost on a daily basis a pitch to lose lots of money become the benefactor to a huge financial windfall.

Please send us your bank details and a contact address once you have deposited the $50,000, etc, etc.

But here is a new - and rather novel - one:

It comes from a certain Sergeant Lee Boyd, an American soldier in the "Third Infantry Division" in Iraq, who has discovered $25 million from "fleeing regime leaders".

There is a rather handy link to a BBC story to "understand events that took place in Iraq" and how the cash was discovered.

Our man in the fatigues continues:

"Basically, since we are in government service and we are not allowed to have or keep discovered looted funds around us, we have decided to look for someone to help us relocate and keep this funds for us, that is why I have contacted you, so that you can keep it for us in your safe account or custody untill we complete our foreign service in Iraq.

"You will take 30%, while 70% will be for me and my partner. This business is confidential, and it should not be discussed with anyone. There is no risk involved whatsoever as it is only me and my partner that knows the present location of the money."

There is then a gentle threat about not telling anyone - oops - and asking for our "physical address". OK, sure.

Beware of emails from men with guns...

Kevin May, editor, Travolution

Technorati tags: iraq infantry

IPC Media is not nuts to buy TrustedReviews

Terrible pun, apologies for that. [IPC owns Nuts magazine]

The publishing giant has today bought TrustedReviews.com, a user generated content site for electrical products, gadgets and computer gear.

What does this have to do with travel?

Well, there have been an interesting number of developments in recent weeks with mainstream media organisations snapping up unrelated companies - all with a strong online presence.

The BBC-Lonely Planet deal a few weeks back got lost of tongues wagging, for starters.

The point is this. Content-heavy websites are very valuable to mainstream media companies keen to increase their web presence in the face of competition from pureplay online media companies.

[For the most part] Content = Google Juice.

It wouldn't be a huge surprise if media companies start sniffing round some of the user generated content travel sites in the future.

Likely takeovers??

Kevin May, editor, Travolution

Technorati tags: lonely planet BBC Nuts IPC

Travelzoo Oz and Travelzoo Manc

Tim Hughes on The Boot points to the imminent launch of Travelzoo in Australia (since confirmed by Travelzoo).

There is a beta version of the site already up and running.

Marginally less glamorous news, some might argue, is the launch of a Travelzoo office in Manchester, unveiled this week.

It may not hit the highs in the attraction stakes but it is certainly a signal that the company is expanding rapidly to the extent that it needs a regional office just to cope with advertisers from the Midlands, the North of England, Northern Ireland and Scotland.

Either that or Travelzoo is apeing the BBC and moving all its operations to Manchester. Perhaps not...

Kevin May, editor, Travolution

Technorati tags: BBC travelzoo australia manchester

Expedia takes a kicking on BBC Watchdog

The BBC's consumer programme Watchdog is a powerful weapon when it concentrates its efforts on a particular company or individual - but Expedia has been taken to the cleaners in the opening slot of the new series this evening.

Three groups of customers shared their bad experiences with the UK's leading online travel agency: Nigel Ricardo's pre-booked hotel in La Rochelle was cancelled; Lee Styles was given the runaround on his way back from Asia; and Leah Daltrey got her dad involved over a problem.

All pretty damning stuff.

Watchdog used some dodgy graphics to illustrate customers entering their details via the web (shock, horror) and then told viewers about "dozens" of similar complaints about Expedia.

Cue analysis from travel journo Alison Rice, who made the usual and valid points about how protection has changed dramatically since the introduction of the web and how buyers should "beware" online.

Unfortunately the presenter Julia Bradbury nodded just a bit too earnestly in the cutaway and then made a predictable comment about the "good old days" when travel was booked through a high street agent.

And finally, back to the studio for Dermot Halpin, Europe president for Expedia, to explain the company's behaviour.

"99.5% of our customers" are happy, Halpin explained, looking reasonably uncomfortable as Bradbury threw accusation after accusation at him.

Responding to (let's face it, ongoing) issues with the Expedia call centre, Halpin stressed that 85% of calls are answered within one minute and 50 people are now employed to deal with problems.

"We are constantly trying to get better," Halpin managed to stress before the end of the interview.

Despite having the opportunity to respond to accusations, as in this case, very few companies emerge from a battering on Watchdog with their reputation restored.

An exercise Expedia will probably not want to go through again in a hurry. And a lesson for other online travel providers.

[Watchdog's online summary]

Kevin May, editor, Travolution

Technorati tags: expedia watchdog BBC

Did anyone see this coming? The BBC and Lonely Planet

BBC Worldwide has bought Lonely Planet.

Convergence of media continues apace...

Kevin May, editor, Travolution

Technorati tags: bbc lonely planet

Burge, Donoghue, Martos, Ghosh, Steckler and Dimbleby

Well, not THE David Dimbleby (he of the BBC), but his presence will be felt during the inaugural Travolution Question Time on Tuesday 25 September.

Joining me, as chair for the evening, on the panel will be:

• Graham Donoghue, new media director of Thomson UK
• Ignacio Martos, chief executive of Opodo
• Hugo Burge, vice chairman of Cheapflights
• Michael Steckler, managing director of AOL UK
• Arjo Ghosh, chief executive of Spannerworks

A fantastic line-up of the great and the good from across the travel and new media industries.

The format for the evening will follow very closely that of the BBC political discussion programme:

• Each member of the audience will be asked to submit a question prior to the event
• The panel members will not see the questions beforehand

It all takes place at the Charlotte Street Hotel, London, from 6pm.

Tickets are limited and cost just £45 + VAT, available by calling Charlotte Davies on 020 8652 3860 or by emailing charlotte.davies@rbi.co.uk.

Kevin May, editor, Travolution

Email fatigue takes its toll

According to a report on the BBC.

Right - off to check emails.

Kevin May, editor, Travolution

Two blokes in deckchairs...in a TV studio

Don't rub your eyes.

It's actually Ian McCaig, chief executive of Lastminute.com, on BBC Breakfast last week with presenter Declan Curry, talking about the current state of the travel sector:



A prize for anyone who can identify the two people in the background.

Kevin May, editor, Travolution

Travolution@MediaGuardian Summit - Travel and media face similar challenges

There is no doubt that the mainstream giants are facing many of the same challenges as some of those in the travel industry.

The final session of the day demonstrates this is many ways. The heavyweights have finally been wheeled out: Alan Rusbridger (editor of the Guardian), Andy Duncan (CEO of Channel 4) and Tom Loosemore (web 2.0 project director of the BBC).

So what are the similarities?

The old media houses have been forced to take a long, hard look at what their customers are doing in their daily lives: how people consume programmes or newspapers; how they find out what is being broadcast or printed; and how they share their experiences of what they have seen or read.

Travel companies are facing the same challenges: how people interact with travel brands; how they find out what travel products are available; and how they share their experiences of where they have been.

And what has been driving this change? It's the web, of course.

"I think we’ll look back in 200 years time and say the internet revolution was bigger than the broadcast revolution," says Loosemore.

What is clear, listening to final remarks from the panel and various delegates, is that the media [travel] companies that do not adapt to the new consumer landscape will struggle, or cease to exist.

If anyone thinks consumers in one/two/five/ten years time will be behaving in the same way as they do now, they are sorely mistaken.

Media [travel] companies are starting to adapt - BBC, Guardian, Times are good examples in media, Thomson, Thomas Cook and BA, in travel - but there are many, many others that are not.

Nobody here will stick there neck out and say who may or may not survive in the new digital world. And we wouldn't dare suggest who may be under threat in travel.

But, as we've said many times before: travel companies need to understand the new landscape, in which consumers are taking far more control of their purchasing decisions than they ever before.

The challenges, if possible and if the enthusiasm is there, should really be seen as opportunities.

Kevin May, editor, Travolution

Live blogging from MediaGuardian Summit

Tomorrow (Thursday 22 March) sees Travolution break away from travel for a day as we will be attending the MediaGuardian Changing Media Summit 2007 in London.

Speakers include senior representatives from Bebo, Internet Advertising Bureau, Netvibes and Google.

Alongside them will be a host of high profile brands - just like those in travel - that have seen major changes to the way they do business following the arrival of the web, including Vodafone, Sony Ericsson, Orange, Electronic Arts, BBC, Channel 4 and Reuters.

We will be blogging live from the event during the day.

Kevin May, editor, Travolution