4 Tremendous Travel Marketing Trends From the Past Week: Hospitality Marketing Link Digest

Hope you’ve had an amazing weekend, Big Thinkers. As you get set for the week ahead, be sure to review these 4 Tremendous travel marketing trends from the past week. Enjoy:

1. Mobile Commerce Daily says that Expedia’s HomeAway acquisition takes booking competition up a notch, specifically with Airbnb though the move also puts pressure on Priceline/Booking.com and TripAdvisor. We’ve hardly heard the last of this story, which we’ll keep watching over the coming weeks/months. Stay tuned.
2. Want to know why Airbnb, Expedia, Priceline, and TripAdvisor have made so much progress so quickly? Here’s one possible answer: MBLM has a report showing that the “Travel & Leisure Industry Produces Least Intimate Brand Relationships in the U.S.” Of course, part of that lack of intimacy has to do with the fact most of the rooms filled in a given market on any given night are occupied by people who rarely travel to that market. It’s pretty hard for hoteliers to build intimate relationships with customers who might visit their market — not the property mind you, but the entire market — only once. I’m going to give this concept, and how you might respond to it, a bit more attention in this week’s Travel Tuesday post, so be sure to check back later this week — or subscribe to Tim Peter Thinks by email — to learn more.
3. Speaking of our Travel Tuesday, posts, this past week’s explored “The Hidden Factor OTA’s Use to Get Between You and Your Guests.” Check it out to see what it is, and why it matters to your business.
4. And, while you’re at it, don’t miss these “4+ Fantastic Travel Marketing Posts: The Top Posts Of October, 2015” too.

If you’re interested in more insights and information about travel marketing and distribution, be sure to check out this list of “7 Insightful Distribution and E-Commerce Trends,” a great set of “7 Key Insights: The Top Travel Marketing Posts of August, 2015” and a terrific round-up of “7 Brilliant Insights into Mobile Travel E-commerce” from our hospitality marketing link digests (part of the ongoing E-commerce Link Digest series).

And if you’re looking to learn even more about how changing guest behavior shapes hospitality marketing, e-commerce, and distribution, be sure an register to receive a special report I’ve produced in conjunction with hotel marketing firm Vizergy, “Digital Hotel Marketing in a Multiscreen World.” While it’s targeted specifically at hotel and resort marketers, the lessons apply to just about any business. You can get your free copy of the report here.

You might also want to take a moment to review the slides from my recent webinar, “Digital Marketing Directions 2016: The Key Trends Driving Your Hotel Marketing Next Year” here:

Finally, you will definitely want to check out some of our past coverage of the mobile, local, social web and how to make it work for your business, including:

• 10 Key Posts about Millennials and Mobile: E-commerce Link Digest
• The Secrets Behind “It’s All E-commerce” for 2014
• Should Marketers Really Trust Google in 2014?
• The Zen of Digital Marketing Strategy
• 7 Steps to E-Commerce Heaven
• Today and Tomorrow: Mobile and The Changing Customer Journey
• Mobile Makes E-commerce Even More “Frictionless”
• Your 2014 Internet Marketing New Year’s Resolutions – Thinks Out Loud Episode 56