Social Media in Travel SpecialTravel suppliers can set up the framework for creation of consumer-generated content via various Web 2.0 applications and features.

Published: 12 Aug 2008

Social Media in Travel Special

Travel suppliers can set up the framework for creation of consumer-generated content via various Web 2.0 applications and features.

They can instigate and encourage it. But ultimately the online travel consumers are the ones who create the social content.

In this context, how should companies go about adoption of a corporate social media strategy?

In an interview with EyeforTravel.com's Ritesh Gupta, Tom Griffiths, Founder, gapyear.com shared his viewpoint on such strategy, credibility issues etc. Excerpts:

Ritesh Gupta: In your opinion, how should companies go about adoption of a corporate social media strategy?

Tom Griffiths: It is less about 'How do our customers fit into our SM strategy and subsequent activity', but more about 'How does our SM strategy fit into the lives of our customers'.

There is too much emphasis at the moment on the fun toys and gadgets and not enough on the relevance to people's lives. The creation of widgets, downloads, podcasts, videos etc. is one thing. Getting a user to accept them into their life and as a result convert from a 'looker' to a 'booker' is another thing. Unfortunately, many now see social media as a Golden Egg solution. Others seem to be getting it right and it seems to be paying dividends. So we need to engage fully with social media and reap the rewards.

Too often, there is one-size fits all approach, which might not be appropriate. Top end of the market: will someone choose a five-star Hilton as a result of what others on TripAdvisor say? Bottom end of the market: is user generated content going to feature if customers are looking for a last minute travel deal? (quite likely a price-lead decision, less on recommendation). And if you're fighting toe to toe on price, is there logic in integrating UGC into your business?

I guess it's about picking your battles and understanding whether social media is a useful weapon / solution. But to engage it as a solution one first needs to understand the problem. If the problem is "Ex customers are telling the world that we are expensive and over-rated and we can see it affecting our bottom line", spending time trying to change / influence human opinion may be futile.

The product and customer experience is the issue. If your brand and product shine then developing a strategy that boosts this is logical. The next step is understanding social media. It's very easy to say words like 'Web 2.0', it's another thing talking from experience about the success of your own private twitter and identifying, again from experience, how your customers may react positively or negatively to your company advancements in this area. You need to know it to use it.

Ritesh Gupta: What according to you travel suppliers should do to avoid credibility issues when it comes to comments on independent sites?

Tom Griffiths: The world has finally woken up to negative side of Wikipedia. Just because it is written online doesn't necessarily mean that it is true! Open source / public travel advice sites are now being treated with an arms length attitude by most customers who use the advice as 'guide only'. Will I choose a particular hotel in Delhi because Bob from Indiana thought it was amazing? Probably not.

However, 50 'Good' to 'Excellent' reviews with a few clear examples of why people like the hotel will help me decide in seconds. Although not impossible, it is very difficult for companies to deliberately cheat the system on the quality portals as users can distinguish pretty quickly between regular independent users who travel and review and those who seem to be heavily focused on one topic / company and so biased as a result. Ultimately it is down to passion and volume. Have a high number of passionate users and they will police the system well. Many of us bring these users into our quiet army of moderators, policing the site to ensure quality is maintained. The portals are also working hard to find ways of elevating the credible UGC to the surface, often by user weighting through site voting and readership numbers.

Regards credible content on your own websites, the rule of thumb on creating your own content is 'Would it fool you?'. We would advise against creative home produced content which could easily be spotted as non credible and damage your brand and reputation. We have seen many companies being very effective by simply identifying happy customers and ask them to sell you to others in their own words.

Ritesh Gupta: How do you think travel suppliers should participate in the conversation and use the medium to address issues head on and to serve the needs of customers?

Tom Griffiths: Over the years we have seen some representatives of companies spending their time in the middle of the communities they value and engaging heavily as a user themselves.

One in particular has been a well known user of our site for years and regularly comes on and dishes out useful travel advice. As a regular traveller his opinions are valued and the users know him. He stays well away from commenting on other companies and sticks to the basics. The footer on all of his content states his company name, title and a link to their website. He has built quite a profile, showing thousands of messages posted on the boards and a great history. Commercially, it works very well for him.

Based on this, our advice would be: if you're going to engage in this way (a) find someone / people who can engage as a natural user and (b) create a minimum six-month strategy to build an online history or credibility. This team could also be used as a customer-facing online resource, on call to answer customer's questions in either 'live chat', or 'call/email me back' format.

Ritesh Gupta: Do you think travel suppliers are yet to figure out how to use independent web 2.0 sites to not only brand themselves but also use them for fare sales and special promotions?

Tom Griffiths: It's getting better! It's all about their content and the relevance to the user. As an online publisher of an independent portal I jump at ideas which I feel would (a) go down well with our users and (b) help our site stand out from the rest. Every now and then a piece of creative does both and we see thousands clicking through.

Ritesh Gupta: Which according to you is the best way to measure the ROI of advertising campaigns in a social media environment?

Tom Griffiths: The social media environment is changing fast, so it might be worth checking the state of the playing field before you throw a ball.

The fun of Facebook is starting to lose its appeal with the masses of 'grown ups' who have assisted the boom. Their initial enjoyment of the ability to connect with old friends, create web profiles and post photos with relative ease and at last become part of the global web community is starting to fade.

Once you were reminded why you hadn't kept up with those friends, have been 'connected' to random strangers, seen embarrassing photos of you posted up by others for all to see and understood that your life is on display, for many the attraction died. During this whole experience, thousands of brands attempted to connect with you and you ignored them all.

As an advertiser the ROI for a broad social network is therefore difficult to gauge. Vertical or localised social networks around interests and community groups, predicted by many to be the 'next big thing', may, however, deliver a higher ROI through more loyal, interested and focused networks. Music, photography, travel, films are all strong areas…the photography site Flickr.com currently enjoying one of the strongest 'Group' networks on the web. Vertical or localised social networks are more relevant, less intrusive, easier to maintain and as such can be turned on and off when required. Those in the travel arena, especially the more niche examples, should deliver a high ROI both in revenue and brand awareness.

Social Media Strategies in Travel Europe Conference

EyeforTravel is scheduled to conduct its inaugural Social Media Strategies in Travel Europe conference, as part of Sales & Marketing in Travel Europe 2008. The two-day conference will be held in Munich on 14 and 15 October.

For more information, click here http://events.eyefortravel.com/smeurope/socialmedia/agenda.asp or contact Gina Baillie at +44 (0) 207 375 7197 or gina@eyefortravel.com).