08Automne

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By

Miguel SANCHES TAVARES

MBA 2.A 2011

Digital Marketing Final Exam

1) Why do you feel this particular Resolution is most important – for what types of hotels?

Regularly post new content

Build a stronger connection with fans and followers are the most important resolution in view of expanding brand awareness. To be well positioned on social media, first it is important to build a community around the hotel, for this reason I have chosen this resolution. Then hoteliers must develop an atmosphere of trust by regularly posting new content.

In my point of view this resolution may be apply to upscale establishments because hoteliers need to hire someone to be responsible about the hotel’s reputation. Currently we see more and more hotels employing community manager.

What additional actions would give that Resolution even greater impact – drive more impressive results

Hotels could reward their most actives fans and followers by offering them special deals, discount on future hotel stay valuable in any of the hotels’ chain.Furthermore, organize a cocktail meet-up with online influencers and obtain their sentiments about any hotel’s refurbishment or new services to be launch.Finally, engage fans in contents that hotels could write about.

Research 3 examples of hotels (or other businesses) that are successfully executing this Resolution online

Comment below the screenshot how the examples you have chosen supports the selected Resolution

Example 1: BELLAGIO HOTEL LAS VEGAS

This hotel is well represented in social media, as I remark they are extremely active. Each day they interact with their fans.

They have several fans.

They attract their fans by writing different and new contents. In that way, fans have interesting things to look at it.

They organize correctly their page by separating events and promotion. In this way it is much clear for follower to look at specific data.

Example 2: MGM GRAND HOTEL LAS VEGAS

- Active on tweeter with several tweets

- Many followers on their page

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Frequency posts (someone is in charge of it)

Tweeting about exciting information (Chinese New year, Super Bowl)

Different subjects are discussed even presentation of discounts

We can see some retweets that demonstrate their followers’ engagement

BURTON

- They are very active on this social media (someone is in charge of it)

- They give information related to their field, which increase their customers’ interest.

- Their fans interact in liking their post

- They post also pictures (cleaver way to attract fans)

- They present all the events that their brand organizes or participates.

- We can notice the result in being active

- Fans can feel how much Burton is engaged in sharing many information.

They interact with their fans like if they were their friends.

2) From the article, what role does technology play in a hotel's Internet strategy success? If you are an independent, limited budget hotel (or business) what steps would you take to compete effectively online?

Research 2 hotels or businesses that are creatively reaching customers, without expending large resources – as the large chains are capable of doing.

Take screen shots of those examples, include in your answer

Nowadays, all the new technology in the Internet will allow hotels to increase their website’s visit and also to be much more present in an active way on the net. Technology is a crucial tool to use in order to become more successful and visible.

Word used to find an exampleThe 2nd on the search engine is an independent consultant working in Canada, he is absolutely well referenced when looking at the key word ‘Hotel Consultant”. It is surprising to find this consultant who do not work in Paris.

He is present on social medias

He has a Blog

People can interact easily

Fans can subscribe by enter their Email

The title clearly announces what he is doing.

This Hotel consultant example shows explicitly what is a great positioning on search engine.

Word used to find 2* Hotel in Paris

Hotel chosen to comment on

Hotel well graded when looking at Google adresses.

Referenced in Google Map, which increase the visibility on the first page.

The website is well presented and can be translated in many languages.

They have a Blog written in French and English. They regularly post articles.

They illustrate their website with photos and videos. They use different tool to be quickly found in the net.

They use Keywords to increase their visibility

They are connected with social medias

Customers can leave directly and easily comments

This Hotel is an excellent example when we look at the tools that he uses such as:

Blog

Social Media

Comment

Reference in Google Map

Videos

Thanks to the perfect examples, limited budget hotel just need to take lesson with ‘Hotel du Nord et de l’Est’ and independent businesses with the Hotel Consultant example.

To sump up, hotels and independent businesses should use these steps as follows to be well positioned on the search engine:

- Create an attractive website and use correct title to facilitate the search engine research

- Work with third party- Locate my hotel into the Google map- Use in my website as much as possible strategic keywords according to

my city, to my hotel category, to my concept …- Be present and active in social media (Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare…)- Build a community around my hotel in developing an atmosphere of trust- Use as much as possible links related to my field- Create a blog and post regularly relevant articles- Post some photos, videos, pictures of my hotel and my city in order to be

present in the first page of the search engine.

3. From the Build Your Own Brand video series – what are they KEY

elements to online branding, according to Loic LeMeur?

Key elements from Loic Lemure’s videos are presented as follow:

- Be present in different social media- Share many stuff with your community- Not just broadcast- Engage with people- Feedback and comment have to be answered- Listening is as important as sharing- Tell stories to your fans and followers- Be generous, help people and bring them something- Do not use the same conversation intonation in social media

Research 2 hotels or businesses that are using the KEY elements successfully, in your view.Take screenshots, include in your answer comment on why you have chosen these 2 examples

I’ve chosen Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas and Disney World in Orlando to support my answer.

Present in different social medias, which increases their online visibility.

Engage fans by giving rewards and points by ‘Retweet’

Using mobile device allows them to broaden their marketing activity

I’ve chosen this example because I was impressed in the manner that Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas uses the social media to develop their brand awareness. They are extraordinary managing their online branding by being in different platform, by interacting with their fans and followers. They do not only promote their establishment, we can feel that they want to be interesting. The positive part of their online presence is that they listen and interact, this attention is extremely important on social media.

They answer to customers’ comment

They give importance to clients by being interested to them

They do not use the same conversation intonation in both social media

They provide additional information related to their field

They interact in friendly way on Facebook

Followers could know what’s happening in the hotel. They create fans’ curiosities by doing that.

Imaginative

Disney is present in the most popular social media and they show their interactivity these platform.

Personalized service

Customer can easily do an action to be in contact with someone.

They share many contents with their fans and that work, we can remark it by the number of fans they have.

They own a personalized Youtube channel with many recent videos.

They provide RSS feed and Email listing in order to share their post as soon as possible.

Followers have the possibility to comment and share the posts.

Their blog is constantly updated with new contents several times a week.

I was working for Disney World during one year and I was amazed about their entire organization. With that in mind I’ve decided to use them as example. Regarding their presence online, they are completely in harmony with the key elements of online branding. This could be characterized by the number of followers they have in Facebook. They constantly provide different and interesting contents in each social media. To finish, they respond to their customers’ expectations, wishes and needs.

4) From the Build Your Own Brand video series – choose any 2 online tools that were mentioned:

- Include a text link to each tool

- Seesmic - Blogs

- Describe how a hotel could use these tools to effectively engage their customers

By using Seesmic hotel could:

Have all their social media in one platform Engage customers at speed of real time Stay constantly connected Bring answers and information’s promptly Enhance customers satisfaction Show to customers the attention given to feedbacks

By using Blog hotel could:

Attract a large audience by posting different contents Engage followers Develop a community Provide interesting stories, information’s and events Stay connected

- What actions would be needed to put the tools in place, in a hotel?

Create a seesmic and blog account Be active online Someone need to take care of it Build a relation of trust with followers

- How could the selected tools be utilized across channels

Blog could appear into the website along with social media platform Strategic tools

- What problems would the use of the selected tools solve

Interactivity Online reputation Brand awareness Lack of trust

- What problems would the selected tools create?

Increase the cost of fixe charge by hiring someone Lost of real human relationship

- Why did you selected these specific tools

I’m an active user of these tools and I extremely appreciate it Easy and interesting to use Allow to share and bring things to our audience Absolutely useful when interacting with followers, fans and customers Enhance customers’ curiosity Allow creating rapidly a community Demonstrate to our clients that we care about them Result can be quantify

5) Select 5 of of the following terms. Define in your own words – include a screenshot example of each term.

Location based services

This term characterizes the research of any services around us accessible by using mobile network. For instance, we can use Foursquare platform in order to find any stores, restaurants, cinema and so on…

PPC

The pay-per-click is an advertising tool that allows companies to buy keywords on Internet to be well positioned in the search engine. For instance, in writing these keywords: palace paris. On the right page it appears the websites that have bought these group of words.

Aggregator site

It is a site that could be personalized by users as they like in adding and collecting the most famous sites in using widgets and RSS feeds.

For instance, Netvibes and Popurls.Thus, there are also aggregators booking websites that gather many websites in order to compare prices (i.e. kayak.fr, govoyages.com, skyscanner.fr and so on)

Social commerce

After the ‘e-commerce’ now is a time for social commerce to be distinguished. It is the same concept of e-commerce but this one is characterized by using social media that supports the social interaction and users contributions.

Tweets

Send a message via Twitter platform is simply call ‘Tweet”. All Tweeters’ users use it to make a short conversation (140 characters authorized) and to update information.

Tweets could be sending by another platform than Tweeter such as Seesmic.