Will reviewing bring about the end for big travel brands?

Photo by: Kevin Dooley

I thought this article from Nathan Labenz on GIGAOM was really interesting.

My interpretation is that with the adoption of online review sites, large brand empires can no longer rely soley on their name and reputation to garner business. In a situation such as a large hotel chain, frequently the locations vary in quality - and now consumers are privvy to this information via sites such as TripAdvisor.

Prior to the social reviewing revolution many travellers would book a hotel simply because the brand had a good reputation or they'd stayed in another hotel of the same brand and enjoyed it. However, as many travellers will be painfully aware - luxury hotel in 'city A' can often be VERY different to the same name luxury hotel in 'city B'. After so many years of riding on the coat tails of the umbrella brand - this reviewing revolution could force underperforming hotels to step up to the mark, OR, as the article suggests, high performing franchises may step out on their own - leaving the umbrella brand struggling.

My interpretation is that Nathan's suggesting that the dissonance created within certain brands by sites such as TripAdvisor could ultimately lead to their collapse, but as he finishes: "The loss of some familiar brands is a small price to pay for more informed purchasing decisions and fewer unpleasant surprises."

Definately a thought starter!

Time to do penance for your potty mouth?

http://www.charityswearbox.com/

Regular Twitter users will be aware of how much filth gets spouted via the site. But recently launched Swearbox promises to help make amends and help 'turn a bad word into a good deed online'.

Users of Twitter can use the site to 'scan' their recent posts for bad words and then suggest an appropriate amount to donate to charity to make up for it - a virtual swear jar.

The site even features a leader board of top donators / top potty mouths!

This little video explains just how it works!

Clever idea - and it's nice to see someone do something for a good cause too!

The mile hile (check in) club

http://www.myskystatus.com/

The phenomenom of checking in is now even possible in the air!

Seen on Digital Buzz Blog recently MySkyStatus will automatically push updates out to your social networks about arrival and departure times, and even in air information.

Interesting - but is this verging on too much information!?!

BE your target audience

If you drink a coke with your name on it - it tastes better! Well that's what I've heard anyway!

Perhaps you'd 'get well soon'-er if you ate some Heinz soup just for you.

There's a bit of a craze lately for personalised products with your name on them. Brands leveraging the additional level of attraction created by this kind of personalisation are notably Coca Cola and Heinz.

This type of product isn't new (remember those personalised stickers/picture books/stamps kids love) BUT the idea of personalising FMCG products is. Consumers seem to be loving it too - there was a line too long to count at my local shopping centre for the Coke booth last weekend.

I'm interested in the break-even analysis here - surely the entire experiment is ridiculously expensive. But I wonder how the idea will measure up in post-campaign tracking studies.

One to keep an eye on!

'Scrapbooking' my life

This post follows on from the theme of my previous post, where I spoke about checking in on Facebook as a way of chronicling my life - a type of journal if you will. I recently installed the new developers version of Facebook timeline on my profile so I could check it out prior to launch.

Now, I'm generally pretty averse to changes (especially on my Facebook) - I'm a girl of habit! However, I surprised myself when I realised that I actually REALLY like the new timeline. I've always been more of a visual person and I think this is why it appeals to me - everything is laid out really clearly and it's really simple and intuitive to use. I had lots of fun playing aroud with the interface to see how I could customise my timline - and it was simple!

Scott Monty, at The Socia Media Marketing Blog gives a really nice overview of the changes that've been made and some of the implications for marketers.

And, just for fun, love this post on Mashable about creative timeline covers!

A personal history OR my social media addiction

Gratuitous holiday shot

So, after 3 weeks away and a little while recovering from jet lag I’m back blogging!

One thing I noticed acutely while I was away, with minimal internet access, was how addicted to social media I am. I thought to myself on arriving at a beautiful  destination – ‘it’d be great to check-in here so my friends and family can follow our holiday’ or ‘I wish I could post a status about how amazing that pizza was!’

But it also got me thinking about social media, and why it’s such an integral part of many of our lives today. There are a couple of perspectives on this – some say that the use of social media is narcissistic, that users seek approval from others, only update to ‘show off’ to others about their lives and that the very process is self-centric. On the other hand, I view social media as a way to track my life and share it with my loved ones – many of whom live hundreds of miles away.

The types of places people choose to check in interest me immensely. Sure, if you’re at an amazing restaurant or exciting event, check in! In fact, often comments are received back asking how it is or sharing past experiences. But I often notice mundane places on people’s feeds – work, airports, even public transportation are becoming increasingly common in my news feed. Do I need to know my friends are there? probably not. Does it make their life sound better? Nope. Do you need to track that you attended work each day? It’d be easier to remember the days you weren't there!

Do these types of check ins signify a habit? A learned behavior that’s just become second nature? Or just not enough else to do!

The sub-conscious reasons people use social networks are many and varied, but it sure is interesting throwing motivations around!

Excuse me, I’m off to check in.