A longer and richer tail

In a recent article published in the Harvard Business Review (n. 1-2 2008), university professor and forecaster Vito Di Bari predicts the appearance of the longer tail by 2015. Starting from Chris Anderson’s ground-breaking long tail concept, namely the grassroots diffusion of supply and demand on line, and the prevalence of “many niche items” as opposed to “few mass items”, Di Bari has hypothesized the growing density of the long tail concept, with users increasingly interested in specific,… This article was originally posted on Relactions blog.You can read and comment... Read more »

Usability: what’s in a name?

Usability is a very broad issue, so broad it can often be overwhelming when it comes to choose the right kind of testing methodology for your travel website and the right kind of company to conduct the analysis. Yet usability is a vital aspect for the success of a travel website, as it directly affects the conversion rates (i.e. your revenue) and the user experience (i.e. the perception and reputation of your brand). Additional benefits of revising your website based on a usability test… This article was originally posted on Relactions blog.You can read and comment on the original... Read more »

Christmas wishes from Relactions (and a very special guest)

And a happy new year from all our team! This article was originally posted on Relactions blog.You can read and comment on the original article here.  Read More →

Emerging trends in the hotel industry: no frills, more trills for European travellers?

No-frill chic is a new consumer trend that is going to deeply affect the hotel industry, by shifting consumer expectations and changing the traditional segmentations in which marketeers try to squeeze - with decreasing success - the modern travellers. Trendwatching defines the No-frill chic trend as: “low cost goods and services that add design, third-party high quality elements and/or exceptional customer service to create top quality experiences at bottom prices. No-frills chic is… This article was originally posted on Relactions blog.You can read and comment on the original... Read more »

A new star in hospitality? Exclusive interview with CitizenM’s CEO Michael Levie.

Today we are interviewing Michael Levie about his new start up chain CitizenM (please note that this name was disclosed on September 3rd 2007; the brand was previoulsly referred as Onestarisborn, as you will read throughout this interview which took place before the brand launch): a new business hotel concept that is promising to take hotellerie by storm by introducing a luxury contemporary hotel for the cost conscious traveler. They say that successful businesses have clear, simple and… This article was originally posted on Relactions blog.You can read and comment on the original... Read more »

Travel industry and Deep Web: exclusive interview with Marcus P. Zillman

Today we are interviewing Marcus P. Zillman, International Internet expert, author, keynote speaker, corporate consultant and one of the most renowned expert on Deep Web, information retrieval and Internet. Marcus is currently the Executive Director of the Virtual Private Library. He is a member of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, and is also actively involved as an internationally known speaker and author. Marcus will talk about Deep Web, search engines’ future… This article was originally posted on Relactions blog.You can read and comment on the... Read more »

Lost in Second Life

Every day, nowadays, there is news of someone reaching the shores of Second Life: companies, politicians, entertainment celebrities, famous brands. So, as it seems that Second Life is the marketing and Web 2.0 event of the day, I decided that I would set out to explore it before it went out of fashion. After a few clicks, there I was, transformed into Trax Chandrayaan, my avatar. During the first log-in to Second Life, there was help on all sides to prevent me from getting lost. There were… This article was originally posted on Relactions blog.You can read and comment on the original... Read more »

Starwood Aloft leaves Second Life

Almost every day, there is news of a new company opening an office in Second Life. Nevertheless, it is also time to close for some of them. About two weeks ago, the online newspaper www.latimes.com reported Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worlwide closing its Second Life shop and donating its virtual land to the nonprofit social-networking group TakingITGlobal. Starwood was one of the first big brands to establish a presence in Second Life, with their much-hyped Virtual Aloft hotel property…. This article was originally posted on Relactions blog.You can read and comment on the original... Read more »

A flash of creativity

Orbitz’s flash advertising games have always striken me as very clever, well-executed, and with a “viral” approach long before “viral marketing” was a topic on the table. They are quite irresistible in engaging the consumer in simple and funny games for a few seconds, which is an excellent result to achieve with a flash banner in an era where search engine marketing is the mantra… Now a community website has been created to access and play the games. This article was originally posted on Relactions blog.You can read and comment on the original article... Read more »

Click Fraud: what’s the deal?

A recent research by E-marketers enphatises once again the increasing relevance of click-fraud issues. This is obviuosly a main concern for the whole travel industry, where the pay-per-click spending (both in absolut terms and as keyword cost) is continuosly growing. The research reports an average 14% click fraud rate in 2006 across all industries, which should sound quite scaring to anyone seriously investing in paid search marketing. Wasting 14% of your budget means significally increasing… This article was originally posted on Relactions blog.You can read and comment on the original... Read more »