Phocuswright Travel Innovation Summit Scorecard – 2015

In 2015, The Phocuswright Travel Innovation Summit has been expanded to showcase 41 companies with new products for the travel industry. New this year, in addition to calling the pool of judges “The Dragon’s Den,” is the new Battleground round where 21 startups compete for three open Travel Innovation Summit slots.

ReviewPro Webinar – Top Social Media Strategies for 2014

A webinar sponsored by ReviewPro covering Social Media Strategies for hotels held December 10, 2013 featuring: Daniel Edward Craig, Reknown, Robert Cole, RockCheetah; Suzie Wotton, Red Carnation Hotels; and Adele Gutman, Library Hotel Collection

How Big Data, Deep Web & Semantic Technologies Change Travel Marketing

Big Data, The Deep Web and the Semantic Web are all buzzwords that are bandied about, but they represent very real technologies that will dramatically alter the foundations of travel marketing. Robert Cole’s Keynote presentation to the 2013 Association of Travel Marketing Executives addresses the main benefits of deploying the technologies. Incredible opportunities exist for those who smartly plan to adopt the technologies to effectively engage with travelers.

2011 PhoCusWright Travel Innovation Summit Predictions

Hipmunk, Rearden Commerce and FlexTrip were voted as having the best odds of winning the title of the Most Game-Changing Travel Innovation at the 2011 PhoCusWright Travel Innovation Summit. Unfortunately, a number of participants attempted to stuff the ballot box, underlying the challenges of using the wisdom of crowds to gauge audience sentiment.

Handicapping 2011 PhoCusWright Travel Innovation Summit

Thirty companies battle for the title of Most Game-Changing Travel Innovation at the 2011 PhoCusWright Travel Innovation Summit. Held annually in conjunction with The PhoCusWright Conference, attendees and the general public are being asked to complete a survey and vote for the demonstrators they predict will win the $15,000 prizes for topping a category and the DEMO Award.

Handicapping PhoCusWright’s Travel Innovation Summit

The PhoCusWright Travel Innovation summit provides an unparalleled opportunity for companies to showcase their latest and most prized works of development wizardry to an audience of influential travel industry leaders. Handicapping this event is a difficult challenge – There is no daily racing form, and aside from Goby participating, and Amadeus winning last year, there […]

Future Lodging Trends and Emerging Technologies – Wisconsin Hotel and Lodging Association

The closing keynote address for the Wisconsin Hotel & Lodging Association, Future Lodging Trends and Emerging Technologies, targeted the rapidly changing business landscape and the need to address many fundamental changes impacting marketing and technology. Topics covered included: Web 1.0, Web 2.0 & Web 3.0; Four Traveler Mandates; Five New P’s of Marketing; Six Business Impacts and the Seven Phases of Travel. The WH&LA Annual Conference and Tradeshow was held at Hotel Sierra in Green Bay, Wisconsin on October 26, 2010.

Say Anything… Fast Times at Social Media High School

Relationships are the foundation of social media. Relevance, engagement, honesty & trust are the four cornerstones when establishing interpersonal relationships. The same factors impact social media relationships. Parallels can be drawn between the perspectives on relationships provided in Say Anything…, the seminal coming of age film about the complexities of teenage relationships and the business-customer dynamics in social media relationships. Social media appears to have matured to a point where it is about to graduate from High School.

Marketing Your Hotel or Resort in a Web 2.0 World – Presentation at HFTP Annual Convention

Presented at the Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals 2009 Annual Convention in Las Vegas, Marketing your Hotel or Resort in a Web 2.0 World covers the importance of ensuring property product and service delivery is functioning properly and the alignment of traditional marketing with online and social media efforts. Most importantly, marketing strategy must drive technology and channel decisions – ensuring tactics support marketing strategies and business objectives. The presentation includes hospitality industry examples applying rich content, reputation management, search engine optimization, and social media in both small and large properties.

HFTP Presentation – Marketing Your Hotel or Resort in a Web 2.0 World

Robert Cole presented “Marketing Your Hotel or Resort in a Web 2.0 World” for the Hospitality Financial & Technology Professionals (HFTP) Annual Conference held on September 19, 2009 at Green Valley Ranch Resort in Las Vegas, Nevada. Travel industry executives need to understand guest engagement is no longer broadcasting messages, it is a conversation.