Go ahead and blog - Seth Godin says you should!

If you are still sitting on the fence about whether you should be blogging or not, then take a look at this American Express OPEN video with Seth Godin and Tom Peters.  I think the most important point that Seth makes in the 1 1/2 minute video is that it doesn’t matter if you are good at blogging now, the point is that when you blog you are forcing yourself to think about what you are saying and how you say it.  Over time you will become better at it, and in the mean time, your words, thoughts, and writing are working as a powerful marketing vehicle for you and your brand.  Oh, and it’s FREE!

Thanks to SocialSquared, my new Twitter buddy @thattallguy for the link.  Now I definitely owe you a coffee.

One way to GetSatisfaction.com

In a previous article titled “When You Just Can’t Get No Satisfaction” I wrote about some last resort options for getting resolution to customer service issues.  The Better is Business Bureau is really, in my mind, a last resort and frankly if a company is having to deal with a complaint through the BBB then something has gone terribly wrong with their customer service process.  To that end, I have discovered a site called GetSatisfaction.com which is a fantastic tool for managing customer expectations and to build and foster an open and transparent customer service environment.  At first glace it would probably make many companies cringe.  Think about it… a place where your customers can all gather and talk about you in public.  Well, I for one am excited about the concept, because it increases accountability and keeps you aware of what your customers are saying about your product.

Over the last year I have had the opportunity to speak to many groups ranging from hoteliers to destination marketers.  In almost every event I have received the following question:

What if someone writes something negative about me or my company, what do I do?

As scary as this may be, I always use the same response.  I ask:

What would you do if someone complained about something to your face?

The answer, of course, is that you deal with the complaint in a professional manner and you try to resolve the issue.  In other words, you try to satisfy the customer.  That doesn’t always mean giving them something for free or kissing up to them, it means apologizing if appropriate and taking necessary steps to ensure the issue doesn’t recurr.

I see the concepts that make TripAdvisor.com so popular crossover into GetSatisfaction.com, only the reviews, ratings, and discussions go beyond just travel related companies.  I would even go so far as to say that GetSatisfaction.com could be a TripAdvisor.com killer.  There, I said it, and here is why:

• With GetSatisfaction.com, you (the customer) interact directly with the company on the GetSatisfaction.com site.  There is no moderation or intervention from GetSatisfaction.com.
• The company has the ability to assign employees or reps to the site to handle issues, resolve problems, and update customers.
• The site is very clean and simple to use and there is no booking engine, advertising, or distracting marketing.
• The company (in this case a hotel, dmo, travel agency, etc.) can embed a feedback form directly on their own site and encourage customers to leave praise or submit a problem. Although the company cannot moderate the topics directly, they can comment and interact directly without having to go through a management response process.
• Companies can embed topics on their own site and engage visitors and customers to interact directly with them.
• GetSatisfaction.com has a very well developed API which means that we could start seeing booking engine companies embedding GetSatisfaction.com ratings and topics into their displays.
• GetSatisfaction.com works for any company, not just hotels.  Whether or not you want them to, eventually your customers will start using sites like this to talk about you.  Here is a perfect example for British Airways:

Why it is different from TripAdvisor.com and perhaps NOT a killer?

• TripAdvisor.com is, ofcourse, travel focused and designed to compare properties directly.  So while you’re looking at one property, you are being presented with other possible choices.  This is great for the consumer but has little value to the company.
• There are few, if any, hotels in GetSatisfaction.com.  I did a search for Fairmont, Marriot, Hyatt, but alas there was nothing.
• This is not a tool for comparing companies but rather a way to communicate more effective with a company once you have done business with them.  It is also a way to get an idea how responsive they are to customer concerns and could be a great research tool.
• It would need some work to embed the GetSatisfaction.com value proposition injected into the travel purchase lifecycle.  For example, would it be used as part of the planning and buying phase or for the reminisce phase?

Whether GetSatisfaction.com gets picked up by the travel community remains to be seen.  At the end of the day consumers will find this site and start leaving topics of discussion about companies that will either go unanswered or be dealt with by other consumers.  The question then becomes whether or not you want your customers doing your customer service for you.  In the end, if you don’t, then your customers will do it in order to Get Satisfaction.

When you just can’t get no satisfaction

This is not really a technology post, but since I have received over a dozen comments from disgruntled individuals complaining about either Travelocity or TripAdvisor, I thought it was appropriate to write this article.

At the PhoCusWright 2007 Conference in Orlando, I had the opportunity to listen to some pretty high profile speakers and CEOs like Stephen Kaufer from TripAdvisor, Michelle Peluso from Travelocity, and others.  I wrote reviews and summaries of all these sessions and posted them to my blog.  Since that time, thanks to the effectiveness of blogs and the search power of Google, I have received a number of comments from disgruntled consumers looking for some measure of satisfaction.  It would seem that there are more than just a few people out there who have had less than satisfying dealings with a number of on-line travel providers.

There are a couple of ways of dealing with a company if you have not been satisfied with the service you have received.  The first step is to contact the company directly and let them know that you are not happy with the service you have received.  If this doesn’t work, then I recommend you file a complaint with the Better Business Bureau.

The following is a list of BBB Company Reports for some the major travel brands.  Most of the companies listed are Accredited members and have satisfactory reports.  I was a little bit surprised to find that a couple of them are not members.  To file a complaint, look for the “Complaints” or “File a Complaint” link in the navigation (usually the left area).  The process is fairly straightforward but does require you to note specific contact details, so make sure that if you are going to complain to a company (or about a company) that you take note of when you contacted the company, who you spoke to, and what was discussed.

• Travelocity
• Expedia
• Orbitz
• CheapTickets.com
• Hotwire
• Priceline
• World Choice Travel
• Travelnow.com/Interactive Corp (Not a BBB Accredited Company)
• Viator
• TripAdvisor (Not a BBB Accredited Company)
• Hotels.com

Are Developing DMOs Adopting New Technology Faster?

Over the last year I have started to see an interesting trend in the adoption of technologies by DMOs, both large and small.  The older and more established the DMO, the less likely they are to adopt newer web technologies.  The younger DMOs or ones that have traditionally been a little bit behind in their access to newer technologies are much more willing to try and adopt technologies that are web 2.0, SaaS, or from smaller companies Worldwide.  One consultant I spoke with from South Africa is working to bring together a unified destination platform for four of the largest destinations in the region.  His approach has been to look for systems that fit into the business model he is building with the destinations and, in addition, look for specialized applications that are open and have strong connectivity with other applications.  In other words, he is not looking for one application or platform to run his entire strategy but rather a mix of applications, each one specializing in a specific area, working together to create a complete strategy.  These newer and/or younger DMOs are not saddled with the baggage left to them by years of expensive implementations and integrations that have yet to provide an ROI to the organization.

Many of the DMOs in established North American and European markets have invested heavily over the years in technologies and strategies that are now becoming outdated.  The problem that arises is that there are positions and processes that are tied to the technology that cannot be readily replaced with new emerging technologies.  Given that these organizations are often publicly funded, they are also tied to a strict process of due diligence and vendor screening.  In many cases, small companies who are producing high quality emerging technologies never get to submit their applications for consideration because they are either too small or don’t have the right connections within the organization.  These organizations have a tremendous amount of technological baggage that cannot simply be replaced with a new strategy.

So what can these established DMOs do to take advantage of newer technologies and start to phase out technologies that are no longer worth the code they were written in?  There is no simple answer to this question, but there are a few ways to start moving in the right direction:

1. Start integrating smaller less expensive technologies that fall below the RFP limit or budgetary constraints of the organization.  For example, many organizations have a bottom limit for which a formal RFP is required.  In some cases this is as low as ten thousand dollars.  Many of the technologies that can be implemented now in incremental ways are much less expensive than this bottom limit.
2. Don’t be afraid to try something that is new that replaces something that is old or already in place.  Technologies evolve and there are many applications that are light years ahead of the “Enterprise” applications of old.  You don’t have to look any further than the iPhone for an example of how far technology, as a whole, has progressed in the last three to five years.
3. Consider creating specific projects around emerging technologies that have a budget that can be integrated into regular operating or technology budgets.  For example, you might create a specific project around a destination using hosted video on Youtube, photos hosted on Flickr, and user generated content.  The technologies are all available online and are free but you might have to pay for consulting or web development to pull it all together.  You can then use these smaller projects as a method for determining the effectiveness of these emerging technologies in other areas of the organization.  Once you do enough of the smaller projects, you can tie them together into a larger strategy or even begin to shift the overall strategy towards these new technologies.

The issue of key importance for me is ensuring that the organization is remaining as relevant and value driven as possible.  This means asking whether the technology strategy that was developed three to five years ago is still relevant today and what value it provides to stake-holders.  In many cases this kind of introspection may shake the core fundamentals of an organization and make it question what value it provides in today’s world of distributed social computing.

PhoCusWright Identifies Seven Emerging Themes for Travel Industry

Be on the lookout for these themes derived from the most creative and innovative minds in the business.

The Travel Innovation Summit at The PhoCusWright Conference will showcase the travel industry’s hottest, most innovative Web and mobile-based applications. In assembling this first-ever event featuring innovators from around the world, seven key themes emerge. Following is a preview of the next big wave of ideas that will shape the travel marketplace over the next 12 to 18 months.

1. The growth of pure Travel 2.0 businesses is slowing-dramatically.
   The Travel Innovation Summit demonstrators, along with applicants who were not selected for this year’s event, described very few applications involving new social networks or pure social networking.
2. Travelers will enjoy easy access to rich subjective, objective and experiential content for trip planning.
   Look for the pairing of trip planning and established social network brands and other sources of objective and subjective content. To facilitate the learning and shopping process, first movers are emerging in semantic search. Tools that facilitate an easier trip planning experience by narrowing alternatives based on profiles, stated preferences and observed behaviors are coming.
3. Abundant, varied mobile applications are beginning to emerge.
   Interestingly, many of the emerging mobile application innovations focus not simply on shopping and purchasing, but on a variety of content, including day-of-travel and concierge applications. Creative approaches to the mobile business model challenge also are arising.
4. The Long Tail is coming of age.
   With low cost computers and more pervasive Internet access than ever, the Long Tail of travel is poised to spread beyond the traditional air, car and hotel market. Unique approaches, including Software as a Service (SaaS), are on the horizon for the effective, efficient distribution of additional content and services.
5. Air shopping is still a work in progress.
   Innovators like Air Canada are redefining the airline seat as a product-think of a world where every seat is a SKU with unique characteristics and services-rather than a mere commodity. The complexities of air shopping mean new approaches are still in their infancy-with ample room to grow and mature.
6. Attention shifts from “learn, shop, book” in the travel value chain.
   Innovators are recognizing that elements beyond “learn, shop, book” in the travel value chain can be monetized. Expect pre-trip, trip experience, and post-trip technology models to arise.
7. Building supporting business applications loses its luster.
   Innovators are focused on the customer-facing applications in the travel value chain, with much less emphasis on the infrastructure services that support content development, content distribution, financial accounting and settlement, and even provisioning of Internet access.

Take a deeper dive on each of these important themes at The Travel Innovation Summit, being held in Hollywood, California on Monday, November 17. Register today.

Rezgo.com a Finalist for TIAC National Tourism Award

I was pleasantly surprised on Thursday to read that Rezgo.com’s parent company Sentias Software Corp. is one of three finalists for the Deloitte Innovator of the Year Award as part of the Tourism Industry Association of Canada’s National Tourism Awards for 2008.

In their own words:

The TIAC National Awards for Tourism Excellence presented by The Globe and Mail were developed in 2003 by the Tourism Industry Association of Canada to recognize and foster Canadian tourism excellence. The awards are presented annually at a gala dinner during Canada’s Tourism Leadership Summit. The 2008 National Awards for Tourism Excellence will be presented November 4, 2008 at the Hilton Lac Leamy in Gatineau, Québec.

Here is the full list of finalists for the TIAC National Tourism Awards:

AIR CANADA BUSINESS OF THE YEAR AWARD - SINGLE-UNIT

• Confederation Centre of the Arts (Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island)
• Rosebud Theatre (Rosebud, Alberta)
• Winnipeg Folk Festival (Winnipeg, Manitoba)

HILTON CANADA BUSINESS OF THE YEAR AWARD - MULTIPLE-UNIT

• Adventure Canada (Mississauga, Ontario)
• Pacrim Hospitality Services (Bedford, Nova Scotia)
• Sundance Cottages / Oasis Resort (Hunter River, Prince Edward Island)

DELTA HOTELS & RESORTS NEW BUSINESS OF THE YEAR AWARD

• Great Wolf Lodge (Niagara Falls, Ontario)
• Lakeway Houseboat Vacations (Fredericton, New Brunswick)
• Metepenagiag Heritage Park (Red Bank, New Brunswick)

DELOITTE INNOVATOR OF THE YEAR AWARD

• The Central Museum of the Royal Regiment of Canadian Artillery (CFB Shilo, Manitoba)
• Sentias Software Corp. (Vancouver, British Columbia)
• Taste the County (Prince Edward County, Ontario)

STARWOOD HOTELS & RESORTS WORLDWIDE INC. CORPORATE PARTNER OF THE YEAR AWARD

• Strait Crossing Bridge Ltd. / Confederation Bridge (Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island)
• TransAlta (Calgary, Alberta)
• True North Sports & Entertainment Ltd. / MTS Centre (Winnipeg, Manitoba)

TOURISM TORONTO TRAVEL MEDIA AWARD

• Atlantic Canada Tourism Partnership (Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island)
• Amy Rosen (Toronto, Ontario)
• Susan Reifer (Whistler, British Columbia)

VIA RAIL CANADA VOLUNTEER OF THE YEAR AWARD

• Margret Begner (Saint John, New Brunswick)
• Harreson Tanner (Whitehorse, Yukon)
• Ann & Dennison Tate (Berry Mills, New Brunswick)

FAIRMONT HOTELS & RESORTS MARKETING CAMPAIGN OF THE YEAR AWARD

• Ontario Place Corporation - Rogers Chinese Lantern Festival (Toronto, Ontario)
• Ontario Tourism Marketing Partnership (Toronto, Ontario)
• Edmonton Tourism - Festival City Initiative (Edmonton, Alberta)

METRO TORONTO CONVENTION CENTRE EVENT OF THE YEAR AWARD

• Canada Day at Canada Place (Vancouver, British Columbia)
• Winnipeg Folk Festival (Winnipeg, Manitoba)
• World Pond Hockey Championships (Plaster Rock, New Brunswick)

CTHRC AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE IN HUMAN RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT

• Auberge Le Baluchon (Saint-Paulin, Québec)
• CN Tower (Toronto, Ontario)
• Mr. Pickwick’s Seafood Bistro (Vancouver, British Columbia)

INTERCONTINENTAL HOTELS GROUP EMPLOYEE OF THE YEAR AWARD

• Jonathan Milne, Mr. Pickwick’s Seafood Bistro (Vancouver, British Columbia)
• Karl Doetsch, Delta Fredericton (Fredericton, New Brunswick)
• Paulina Alexander, Tigh-Na-Mara Spa Resort & Conference Centre (Parksville, British Columbia)

PARKS CANADA SUSTAINABLE TOURISM AWARD

• Niagara Parks Commission (Niagara Falls, Ontario)
• Oak Hammock Marsh Interpretive Centre (Stonewall, Manitoba)
• The Town of Bouctouche (New Brunswick)