Opinion

Alexa, what do Echo devices in hotels mean for travel marketers?
News / Technology
Alexa, what do Echo devices in hotels mean for travel marketers?
By Mat Harris - Sojern | June 29, 2018
It’s no secret that Amazon is extremely well-positioned to disrupt digital advertising, with a massive global customer base, hundreds of millions of Prime subscribers, tremendous data assets and large-scale investments in ad tech infrastructure. With the latest news that it will be placing Echo devices in hotel rooms, there’s now potentially even a bigger implication for travel advertisers.... Read More
Affiliate marketing strategies in travel
News / Online
Understanding the not-so-glamorous hidden gem of travel marketing
By Ivan Baidin - Travelpayouts | June 28, 2018
Affiliate marketing is a blind spot for the travel industry. ... Read More
How Google, Instagram and more are shaking up hotel digital marketing
Opinion / Online
How Google, Instagram and more are shaking up hotel digital marketing
By Margaret Mastrogiacomo - HEBS Digital | June 26, 2018
This month, Google nudges SEO marketers in the right direction with clarifications to the mobile‐first index as it rolls out to more websites, Bing pilots in‐market audiences and Instagram gets more serious with Stories by adding e‐commerce features.... Read More
online tours and activities
Opinion / Online
Quartz (and others) are wrong about tours and activities: Here's why
By Douglas Quinby - Phocuswright | June 22, 2018
In March of this year, Quartz proclaimed that somebody should let Airbnb know that travelers don't like booking tours and activities online.... Read More
Nine must-watch travel marketing trends
Opinion / Online
Nine must-watch travel marketing trends
By Monya Mandich - Expedia | June 22, 2018
Gone are the days of one-way marketing conversations, when marketers spoke at consumers and consumers didn't speak back. Now, we're engaging in meaningful two-way conversations across multiple platforms and formats.... Read More
Blockchain: Not your father’s dial-up modem
Opinion / Technology
Blockchain: Not your father’s dial-up modem
By Douglas Rice - Hospitality Technology Network | June 21, 2018
A recent article reminded me of an older colleague who, sometime around 1997, told me that the internet and e-commerce would never really take off because "you always get a busy signal when you’re dialing AOL".... Read More
grand-budapest-hotel-AI
Opinion / Technology
Don't panic! Artificial intelligence will bring human touch to hotels
By Frank Reeves - Avvio | June 19, 2018
The problem with all new hotel technology, unfortunately, is that innovation gets turned into buzzwords quickly, usually in order to sell more products and services.... Read More
google travel obsession
Opinion / Online
Google: Travel's closely watched obsession
By Douglas Quinby - Phocuswright | June 15, 2018
Google's entry into metasearch may be more than half a decade old, but it continues to be a closely watched obsession for the travel industry.... Read More
Behold a new era of digital marketing in travel
Opinion / Online
Behold a new era of digital marketing in travel
By Radoslaw Dobrolecki - RTB House | June 15, 2018
It's now time for the travel industry to adapt to newer digital marketing strategies to win over potential customers.... Read More
Debunking the impact of blockchain on hotel distribution
Opinion / Technology
Debunking the impact of blockchain on hotel distribution
By Max Starkov - HEBS Digital | June 14, 2018
A recent article on the Nasdaq website claims blockchain‐based platforms “offer promising solutions” to particular areas of difficulty in the hospitality industry, including blockchain‐based hotel booking platforms. But is that really the case?... Read More
Voice search marketing strategies
News / Technology
Listen up: Travel marketers need to pay attention to voice search
By Stuart Butler - Fuel | June 12, 2018
There’s a lot of coverage in the media about Google, Amazon and Apple (ok, AND Microsoft) regarding the race to dominate the voice assistant space.... Read More
13 mistakes that sabotage vacation rental bookings
Opinion / Distribution
13 mistakes that sabotage vacation rental bookings
By Kevin High - VroomRes | June 6, 2018
You work tirelessly to manage your properties. You do all the things that the so‐called “experts” tell you to do, but it just doesn’t seem to be paying off in the ways that you really want.... Read More
A Step in the right direction for blockchain and travel?
Opinion / Technology
A Step in the right direction for blockchain and travel?
By Arnie Weissmann - Travel Weekly | June 6, 2018
Distributed ledgers via blockchain came to most people's attention as the underlying technology supporting bitcoin.... Read More
hotels skeptical ai
Opinion / Technology
Are hoteliers too skeptical of artificial intelligence?
By Klaus Kohlmayr - IDEAS | June 5, 2018
Despite the negative depictions in science fiction and widespread public concern over privacy, security and safety, artificial intelligence presents the possibility for real positive change, human advancement and competitive growth.... Read More
How Airbnb grows its host community through online marketing
Opinion / Online
How Airbnb grows its host community through online marketing
By Tao Cui, Ye Wang and Bassel Namih - Airbnb | June 1, 2018
Which ads to buy? How much to pay for each ad? How to measure the performance of each ad? Airbnb built a marketing system to answer these questions.... Read More