the new digital normal, and what it means for travel
TRANSCRIPT
Stranger in a
Strange Land
The New Digital Normal,
and What It Means for Travel
#ETC2015
Perry Hewitt | Harvard University
1. Travel today
2. Digital
opportunity
checklist
3. What’s next
We travel, initially, to lose ourselves;
and we travel, next, to find ourselves.
We travel to open our hearts and eyes
and learn more about the world than
our newspapers will accommodate.
We travel to bring what little we can, in
our ignorance and knowledge, to those
parts of the globe whose riches are
differently dispersed. − Pico Iyer
Let’s start here:
“My name is Perry, and I
have a travel problem.”
Image credit: Elliot Verhaeren for The Noun Project
TRAVEL TRENDS INTERSECT WITH DIGITAL ADVANCES
http://skift.com/2015/01/28/international-
tourist-arrivals-reach-record-1-13-billion-in-
2014/
Image credit: Archives New Zealand
There is a lively
intersection
(collision?) of the
global travel industry
and the internet
Image credit: Atelier Iceberg for The Noun Project
Booking: ubiquitous, flexible, mobile
Alternative transportation
Visibility into locations
Alternative accommodation
And unprecedented transparency
We live in an era of
blurred lines and
high expectations.
A new trend started
in 2007 which
affected not only the
researching and
purchasing, but the
experience of travel
Image credit: George Agpoon for The Noun Project
The four phases of the user
experience of educational travel
Evaluate AnticipateExperienc
eReflect
Optimize digital presence for 24/7 searchers
Embrace email as a killer app
Ask for social profiles
Provide shareable content about the trip itself
Recognize that WIFI is the oxygen for travel
Consider a template for tour leaders
Recommend website and photo/video sharing tools
Digital opportunities checklist
Evaluate
1. Optimize your digital presence
for 24/7 searchers
Evaluate
2. Embrace email as killer app.• Lists clean?
• Brand consistent?
• Voice?
• Send strategy baked?
• Mobile first?
• Measured and optimized?
Anticipate
3. Ask for social profiles upfront
to enable (but not mandate)
social connection
Anticipate
4. Provide shareable content to
your guests about the trip
before they travel
Experience
5. Recognize that WIFI is oxygen
for travel
Experience
6. Consider templates for tour
leaders – plug in two photos a
day with location
Reflect
7. Recommend website and
photosharing tools for traveler
connections post travel
THE UNEVENLY DISTRIBUTED NEAR-FUTURE
On the horizon …
Where can I go with a beach and
nightlife scene that also has things
for teens to do?
On the horizon …
On the horizon …
One final,
parting
thought
Embrace digital
capabilities to
complement rather than
threaten travel
Thank You
