Tourism INTERNET Marketing Blog 1.0

Initially slow to embrace the Internet, tourist boards are now catching up and incorporating blogging, reviews and interactive functionality on their sites. UK-based Online Travel Magazine Travolution looks at some of the developments worldwide. 

Just as particular airlines, operators and agents have been quicker to embrace the Internet than others, the level and quality of online marketing activity by international tourist boards varies widely.

With some notable exceptions, tourist boards have been relatively slow to catch on to the potential of e-marketing, but they are now catching up – fast.

Mostly run by their respective governments, many tourist boards struggle not just with inadequate funding but also with bureaucracy and internal politics, and the difficulty of keeping all of their local and international partners happy.  But they’re getting to the point when they are realising they have to be competitive and they need to have reviews, blogging, interactive maps, videos and Google Earth locations.

Tourist boards are recognising they cannot simply develop one website to cater for all incoming markets and many are now investing in spin-off sites. Aside from language, each incoming market will vary in terms of its interests, requirements and familiarity with the destination. Marketing to your neighbouring country, which shares a similar culture and geography and where people pop over the border for the weekend, is different to marketing to first-time visitors from the other side of the world.  The head office will be based in their respective country but most will have offices worldwide. They need to have a website for each individual market too.

Many tourist boards have dedicated sections on their websites for their trade partners, while an increasing number are effectively competing with their trade partners by offering travellers the opportunity to actually book their flight, hotel and tour trip through their website.  However, most are concerned with creating awareness, inspiring people and providing practical information.

Here, we look at some of the latest developments in online marketing by tourist boards worldwide.  >>>

Simply put, .travel is the framework for the travel and tourism industry on the internet. Designed to serve the global travel and tourism community, the major goals of the industry-exclusive .travel top level domain are: improved internet identity, creation of advanced distribution channels, and the establishment of a strong trust-factor between the travel industry and its customers.

Four key benefits of registering a .travel internet domain name include:

• Authentication of your organization’s industry credentials and name eligibility by an independent third party (establishing your trusted brand on the internet)
• Registration of domain names that reflect your company’s right to a name (which removes cyber‑squatting and domain name speculation in the travel sector of the internet) enabling your intuitive .travel domain to be easily found, today and in the future
• Inclusion in the first central, global online travel industry information directory designed to precisely match providers of travel products and services with consumers worldwide in an unbiased, uniform manner – www.directory.travel
• Inclusion in the consumer online travel research tool, www.search.travel, which delivers qualified search results from the entire World‑Wide Web, giving top priority to all .travel authenticated businesses and destinations

Log on to www.travel.travel for more information!

How to Register Your .travel Domain Name

Registering a .travel domain name is an easy three‑step process.

1. All registrants must first be authenticated by an Authentication Provider (i.e. TIAC, HAC, ACTA in Canada), meaning all businesses or organizations wishing to register a .travel name must first have their eligibility approved as a bona fide travel and hospitality provider by either a verified industry association or an independent third party. Go to travel.travel/authenticationframe.htm. or www.tiac.travel/english/travel.asp in Canada.
2. Once your eligibility is confirmed, you will be sent a Unique Identification Number (UIN) as proof of eligibility. You will next go to an approved .travel Registrar (Go to: www.travel.travel/dnr.htm), and by entering your UIN where noted, you will be permitted to register your domain name(s). Registrars are businesses that are approved by ICANN to accept applications for registration of domain names by consumers. Only approved Registrars will be permitted to register .travel domain names.
3. Last, but not least, you will want to establish your profile in the .travel directory to be sure your products and/or services can be found in the www.directory.travel global marketplace and appear in the search results at www.search.travel. To enter information in the directory, go to: profiles.search.travel.

Now this is TRUE country-branding:



Thailand's government opened hundreds of Thai Restaurants around the world, in an elaborate franchise scheme set up by the Thai Department of Export both to promote Thai food and act as physical tourist brochures around the world. The highly branded outlets will be known as Golden Leaf, Cool Basil and Elephant Jump. The goal is to open 3,000 restaurants worldwide, in cooperation with joint-venture partners. Kicking off this remarkable initiative, two 'Elephant Jump' outlets recently opened in London. In the US, franchise fees would be US$30,000 for Golden Leaf, $20,000 for Cool Basil and $10,000 for Elephant Jump. Franchisees would pay 3% of their annual revenue to the holding company, which would see a 30% Thai government ownership. With tourism now the world’s largest industry, and smaller countries scrambling to be heard and seen amidst the explosion of travel destinations, Thailand shows that it understands the future of ‘popular embassies’. Opening up entertaining (not to mention appetizing) global outposts that generate both instant cash and future income from increased tourism/trade is far more profitable than boring brochures and travel trade shows.

Now, targeting high net-worth individuals around the world, the country's Tourism Authority has introduced a loyalty scheme, called the Thailand Elite Privilege Club. A world's first, membership (which comes with the Thailand Elite Card) earns card holders benefits and discounts all over the kingdom, ranging from fast-track immigration at Don Muang Airport, heavy discounts on Thai Airways (buy one, get one free), special rates at five-star hotels, free golf at several courses, free limousine transfers, 24-hour concierge service, free spa treatments and medical check-ups, and five-year multiple entry visas allowing the cardholder to stay continuously in Thailand for 90 days. And it gets even better: next year (2005) will see hotels like the Thailand Elite Boutique Hotel, golf clubs, and entertainment centers that would be exclusive only to card holders.

Perhaps most intriguingly, members can also 'purchase' second homes in Thailand. As foreigners aren't allowed to own land in Thailand, purchases would be in the name of Thailand Privilege Co., the entity that runs the Thailand Elite program on behalf of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT). The state tourist body, which is overseeing the promotion, is hoping to sign up at least 10,000 wealthy visitors to the program by the end of next year. Thailand's president, Thaksin Shinawatra, has predicted that 200,000 members could eventually join. That's a lot of newly minted Thai ambassadors!

If for government. Or tourism. Or loyalty management. Or anything that could do with a healthy dose of privilege for customers floating in the ever expanding 'sea of sameness'. This Thai initiative may inspire to re-assess the assets and determine which could carry a premium by making them available to members-only. From a country's point of view, there are a lot of potential candidates who could do with either an inflow of prosperous visitors, or more goodwill.

*Source: Trendwatching.com

5 STAR LIVING is all about the phenomenon of five star hotels joining forces with real estate developers, from London to Las Vegas. Hotel companies from Four Seasons, Ritz Carlton, Starwood's St. Regis, Hyatt, Mandarin Oriental, Kempinski, and Fairmont, just to name a few have all embraced this concept.The hotels offer services that were previously for guests only to owners of luxury residential properties located next to or even on top of sumptuous hotels. Think exclusive access to the spa, bellboys walking the dog, guaranteed reservations in Jean-Georges Vongerichten restaurants, or 24/7 room service instead of Domino's. Great for busy double income couples or wealthy followers of Carpe Diem.

I myself was in charge of marketing and owner relations strategy for Fairmont Heritage Place, the Vacation Ownership and Residences product of Fairmont Hotels & Resorts.

Read what Trendwatching has to say about this 5 Star Living trend. The question worth asking, is this just something for real estate developers and hotel companies to fill a growing demand, or does this also have implications from a tourism standpoint, and can actually revenues for destinations?