Klout, Cathay Pacific Webtrends, Emirates, Netbooster, Gmail, Bescover, RateGain, Trippy, Yahoo, and Airberlin all appear in our roundup of the stories making news and driving opinion on 18 October.
SOCIAL COMMERCE
AdWeek has the scoop on how Cathay Pacific is going to be a partner airline for social media measuring service Klout's new Klout Card in test markets. As of yesterday, your "Klout Card" can display via Apple's Passbook your social media savvy according to the company, giving you access to business discounts.
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In May, the airline began allowing users with a 40 or higher Klout score access to its lounge in the San Francisco Airport. Last month, the company unveiled Klout Pass, which acts like Facebook Connect, and lets a website recognise a visitor’s purported social media influence and react in various ways for targeted marketing and promotions.
Yesterday we said there had been layoffs at social travel startup Trippy. Well, a report later in the day confirmed the news. The site is pivoting in an direction that's hasn't yet been revealed.
We're still wondering: Why hasn't Yahoo bought TripAdvisor yet?
DIGITAL MARKETING/SEARCH
Digital marketing company Webtrends claims it has boosted Italian airline Alitalia's online bookings by more than 7% in three months. That means about 220,000 euro per month, at an average Alitalia price.
NetBooster wins Emirates’ global search marketing account globally. The agency that employs hundreds of SEO wunderkunds will open an office in Dubai in November, says CEO Raphaël Zier.
Google has begun a second field trial of personalised search results. You can join at g.co/searchtrial. Not only will travel itineraries that are saved in your Gmail will turn up in Search but so will results from Google Drive. Plus, as you type a search in Gmail you'll start instantly seeing "relevant" results from Google Drive, Google Calendar and more.
San Francisco's Bescover has launched new distribution management tools for innkeepers. The first all-in-one marketing solution, at $34/month and can be cancelled at any time. Each innkeeper gets their own mobile web site from Bescover and has a tool for generating guest leads by searching Twitter, Facebook, and other user-generated sites.
DEVICES
By the end of 2012, aviation technology service provider Airberlin Technik will begin using tablet PCs in their aircraft maintenance operations in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
DISTRIBUTION
Blue Sea Hotels & Resorts, a premium chain of 22 properties in the Mediterranean, has seen revenue growth lately. It says the reason is it has adopted RateGain’s channel management solution for controlling room inventory sold by online travel agencies (OTAs).
THANKS!
Tnooz hopes you have an effective day. Feel free to e-mail us your tips, theories, and ideas for social travel startups that will be profitable.
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