Technology & the Digital Journey
By Velma Corcoran Executive Marketing Manager Cape Town Tourism
Social Media has forever changed the way users share their travel journey
New technologies and trends mean it’s hard to keep up with all the platforms available
Impossible to keep up…
China’s online community has grown to 564 million consumers in 2013
The rise of social media users
Technology is not a substitute for a good story
Travelers are looking for ways to spend minimal time searching online
Lets not forget the basics
Holland, The Original Cool Campaign
BlogVille - Emilia Romagna, Italy
Cape Town Tourism – A Digital Snapshot
Some of our Digital success stories…
8300 players
14,800 likes
133,696,493 impressions
SMITTY AWARD
GOLD CANNES
of domesticpassengers in May on Mango airlines
40%increase
20:1 ROI
37,053,224 impressions
reaching 1,500,000+
peopleWTM White Paper
304,136,992 total REACH across 6 continents
Travel Blogging Today: It’s Complicated
http://www.crttbuzzbin.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/Minnesota-Blogger-Conference-3.jpg
What travellers want from travel blogs
• Most travellers travel infrequently. Half travel less than 2 weeks a year
• “Search” and “Friends & Family” are the most used & credible sources of travel information and content
• Only 40% of travellers have ever read a travel blog
• Travellers who read blogs do so to get unbiased opinions based on real life traveller experiences.• To hear opinions of others about places they have visited (58%)• To get unbiased and honest reviews and opinions (48%)• To read about the real life experiences of travellers (47%)
• Travel blogs have a significant impact on travel decisions, especially in reinforcing and confirming travel plans.
Source: Gary Bembridge 2013; http://www.tipsfortravellers.com/TBU
Understanding the role travel blogs play
DREAM
PLAN
BOOKVISIT
SHARE
What does the future hold?
We want to create the right environment for Bloggers to tell their own stories
