Impact of social media on hospitality e tourism by maxfone srl

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LETTER FROM MINDSHIFT INTERACTIVE... I thank all of you for the excellent response to our Social Media Report 2011 on Consumer Sentiments, revolving around Brands leveraging their association with The Formula One 2011. It gives me great joy to see brands integrate MindShifts shared in our findings within their social media strategy. We are determined to make bold statements and create mindshifts and keeping that in mind, our Social Media Report 2012 on The Impact of Social Media on Hospitality & Tourism shows the need for businesses within this booming sector, to be on Social Media and leverage it in an insightful manner to their advantage. We have focused upon four key sectors, namely Airlines, Online Travel Agencies, Hotels and Travel Review Sites. The confidence in which we state things at MindShift Interactive is an indication of our deep understanding of not just Social Media but also of the consumers and business we touch. Yes, it is our Metrics that give us this confidence to show the way towards sustained engagements and innovations. Our Social Media Report 2011 on Consumer Sentiments which was implemented across brands that conducted Events is clear indication of the value of our findings, or as we call them, MindShifts. The result for each brand implementing our MindShifts assures sustained digital outreach that crossed boundaries of innovation and engagement. Try it for yourself if you haven’t already! This report is a must read for all those within the Travel & Hospitality Industry, as well as those wishing to offer Social Media within the Airline, Hotel, Online Travel & Travel review sectors. This report drives home the point for all to not just being present on Social Media, but making your presence felt! As always, I look forward to hearing from you on the MindShift our report creates for you or your organization. ZafarRais Chief MindShifter zafar@mindshiftinteractive.com

Know what’s happening at MindShift Interactive: Website – www.mindshiftinteractive.com Facebook – www.facebook.com/MSInteractive Twitter – www.twitter.com/Mind_Shifters

• MindShift Interactive • Social Media Report 2012 • Impact of Social Media on Hospitality & Tourism • • www.mindshiftinteractive.com

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Table of Contents Executive Summary

Hospitality& Tourism – MindShift Findings

5-7

Airline Industry

8 - 27



Airline Industry in India

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MindShift Report Findings

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Consumer Perception

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Platform Wise Distribution

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Sentiment Analysis

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Social Media Metrics

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Key Social Media Findings

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Trend Forecasting

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Key MindShifts

Online Travel Agencies 

Online Travel Agencies in India

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MindShift Report Findings

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Consumer Perception

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Platform Wise Distribution

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Sentiment Analysis

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Social Media Metrics

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Key Social Media Findings

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Trend Forecasting



Key MindShifts

28 – 44

About MindShift Interactive

• MindShift Interactive • Social Media Report 2012 • Impact of Social Media on Hospitality & Tourism • • www.mindshiftinteractive.com

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Executive Summary Over the last decade India has transformed into a popular tourism destination in the world, largely as a result of various initiatives lead by the government. Campaigns like “Incredible India” and “Atithi Devo Bhavo” have showed India in a new light to overseas tourists.According to the World Tourism Organization, India will be a leader in the tourism industry in South Asia with 8.9 million arrivals by 2020, emerging as the second most rapidly increasing (8.8 percent) tourism economy in the world, according to World Travel & Tourism.Tourism in India is the largest service industry, with a contribution of 6.23% to the national GDP and 8.78% of the total employment in India. The tourism industry in India generated about 100 billion US$ in 2008 and is expected to increase to US$275.5 billion by 2018 at a 9.4% annual growth rate. The increased dependancy on Social Media by travellers is growing faster than the travel Leader in the tourism industry in industry itself. India’s travel category garnered South Asia with 8.9 million the second largest share (42%) of total Internet arrivals by 2020 visitors in Asia, with 17.8 million average monthly unique visitors in the 1st quarter of 42 % of Total Internet travel 2011.Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube are the inquiries in Asia are from India most popular and effective social media networks for marketing within the tourism and hospitality industry, catering to the need of consumers to review brands, locations and read user experiences, whilst also responding actively to queries and comments. In this report, MindShift Interactive audits & analyzes the Impact of Social Media on Hospitality & Tourism Industry, tracking leading sectors associated with the industry, namely, Airline, Online Travel Agencies, Hotels and Travel Review Sites. The basis of selection for these sectors was on the standard experience of a traveller, starting from chosing his destination, to getting there. Brands chosen within each sector were selected on the basis of their Active Social Media Presence and the MindShift Metrics Scorecard© which covers the outreach across the Social Media Landscape. This Report covers:     

Analysis of social mentions tracked across a months timeframe on Hospitality & Tourism Brand Ranks and their presence on various platforms Competitive Intelligence across Sectors Key MindShifts to shift the way the industry moves Trend Forecasting & Global Benchmarking in various sectors

• MindShift Interactive • Social Media Report 2012 • Impact of Social Media on Hospitality & Tourism • • www.mindshiftinteractive.com

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Hospitality & Tourism – MindShift Findings Social Mentions - The overall mentions tracked during the timeframe of one month were 19,025 across various social media platforms. Conversations were monitored and analyzed across these sectors: Airline, Online Travel Agencies (OTA), Hotels and Travel Review Websites.

Social Mentions - 19025

Social Share of Voice–Social Share of each industry is calculated on the basis of Industry Conversations and Overall Conversations tracked. The below shared statistics highlight that Airlines, with 56% conversations, lead the Social Media space, followed by OTA (25%), Travel Review Sites (11%) and Hotels (8%).

Airline Industry dominated the Social Media Presence (56%) due to the crisis revolving around Debt & Bailout, Safety Issues and Staff Concerns amongst various Airlines.

Social Reach explains the various platforms brands are present on. Twitter, Facebook and Forums were the leading Social Media Platforms for conversations on Hospitality and Tourism. Given these platforms are heavily used towards sharing of comments, reviewing products or services, it throws light upon the usage of Social Media for this sector. • MindShift Interactive • Social Media Report 2012 • Impact of Social Media on Hospitality & Tourism • • www.mindshiftinteractive.com

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+82% Conversations on Facebook and Twitter

Top Conversations / Platform:

Twitter - Current News on Brand / Industry

Facebook - Brand Presence

Forums - Reviews & Queries

Social Reactions–7% of the overall conversations were official updates from the Brand itself, informing the consumer about the current happenings or offers and news. The remaining conversations were reactions/ interactions or individual discussions from the consumers. A clear indication that consumers realize the effect of their voice on Social Media, and a point for brands to start creating routes of channelizing these opinions on specific platforms and creating engagement channels that ensure grievances are kept at bay. Truly, the rise of Social Influencers would be key here.

Hospitality & Tourism accounts for 93% Social Media Conversations by the Consumer

• MindShift Interactive • Social Media Report 2012 • Impact of Social Media on Hospitality & Tourism • • www.mindshiftinteractive.com

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Consumer Perception– 83 % of consumer sentiments were positive or neutral towards the industry. Positive conversations were primarily lead by an experience that the brand helped toward enjoying or happy customer reviews of their journey. Queries, sharing of information by the brand were neutral conversations that were shared. Negative sentiments were identified at 17% of the overall conversations, with conversations dominated on issues related to airline delays and crisis.

©MindShift Interactive

TG Profiling - Men dominate the social conversations at 79%, with women holding a 21% share of social voice. This is an indication that men are actively involved in making travel decisions and reviewers of the experience. Learning for brands to capitalize on them whilst also creating experiences for women to ensure participations from them increase in tandem.

Conclusion - Airlines dominate conversations on Social Media primarily because of the involvement of brands in various controversial issues along with the start and end of the holiday season for travellers. The need to ensure this part of the industry creates a positive experience is vital, whilst also ensuring the overall Hospitality & Tourism Industry provides for positive sentiments. Brands must provide for experiences to consumers which are favourable towards changing their sentiment when they receive announcement of a delay or the shift of a room in a hotel. The rise of Social Media Influencers, the correct usage of every platform & innovating on the basis of understanding the consumer pulse will help leverage the industry as a whole and help them ensure consumers interaction is sustained and not contest lead. • MindShift Interactive • Social Media Report 2012 • Impact of Social Media on Hospitality & Tourism • • www.mindshiftinteractive.com

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Airline Industry Analysis

Hospitality & Tourism Industry: Airline Online Travel Agencies Hotels Travel Review Websites • MindShift Interactive • Social Media Report 2012 • Impact of Social Media on Hospitality & Tourism • • www.mindshiftinteractive.com

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Airline Industry in India The Indian aviation sector is a major economic driver for prosperity, development and employment, with a growth rate of 18 per cent in the domestic market expected to open up various opportunities on the global front. According to Associated Chamber of Commerce (ASSOCHAM), the Indian aviation industry holds potential to soar high on a growth curve in 2012, poised to emerge as the third largest aviation market in the world by the end of this decade. One of the key factors that will define the growth of the Industry is how each brand builds and nurtures online communities, leveraging social media networks as effective marketing tools. The Industry can engage with its consumers right from the information stage, leading to quick responses, sales and also acting as an effective online reputation manager to resolve complaints or acknowledge customer feedback. Globally, airlines have integrated Social Media in their marketing campaigns leading to an adoption of an integrated 360 degree marketing strategy. MindShift Interactive conducted a study on the top five social media savvy Airlines, tracking conversations to gain insights on various social media patterns within the industry.

Industry Snapshot 56% Conversations on Airline Industry

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MindShift Report Findings – Indian Airlines on Social Media Air India boasts of being the most talked about brand on Social Media with 50 % share

Top 3 Platforms in the Airline Industry: 1. Twitter 2. Facebook 3. Forums & Blogs © MindShift Interactive

Spice Jet had the highest Positive: Negative (4:1) Conversation Ratio Conversation Topics on Each Platform

7391 Conversations

2140 Conversations

1151 Conversations

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Consumer Perception The chart displays the positive, negative sentiments of consumers towards each brand, along with neutral sentiments, displaying that Air India received maximum conversations on Social Media followed by Jet and Kingfisher. Although Air India experiences the highest amount of conversations, they rank with more negative than positive experiences. The same is the case for Kingfisher Airlines. Both the airlines remained in the news due to issues like debt, bailout, frozen bank accounts and employee/ staff related concerns. On the other hand, although conversations related to Spice Jet are low, consumers seem to have the higher positive experience with the brand as compared to others. It is important for Spice Jet to build upon this by nurturing their influencers, and for others lagging behind to create instances for consumers to feel good and voice their thoughts about the brand.

TG Profiling– With 83% conversations, men dominate the social media conversations for Airlines. Women occupy 17% of the social media space. Consumer discussions largely show Men being responsible for taking travel decisions when it comes to booking& chosing the right airline. Clear indication that marketing activities need to create targeted efforts towards both.

• MindShift Interactive • Social Media Report 2012 • Impact of Social Media on Hospitality & Tourism • • www.mindshiftinteractive.com

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P a g e | 12 Ratio of Positive: Negative Conversations – Brand Analysis The chart below shows the ratio of Positive: Negative conversations by consumers on Social Media. The findings reflect that the most talked about brand may not necessarily be spoken about for the right reasons. Key to balancing this is to constantly stay active and ensure you respond to consumers, even on negative responses, gracefully. SpiceJet has the maximum Positive: Negative Ratio of 4:1 implying that for every four Positive Conversations, they witnessed one negative conversation. All others equate the conversations.

Though SpiceJet was the 2nd least talked about brand, the ratio of Positive: Negative Conversations was the highest

• MindShift Interactive • Social Media Report 2012 • Impact of Social Media on Hospitality & Tourism • • www.mindshiftinteractive.com

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Platform Analysis The below statistics help us understand the presence of the top three brands in the Airline Industry, over various Social Networks. The charts highlight the number of conversations for each brand on Social Media, strengthening the MindShift Audit and Analysis.

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Sentiment Analysis -Top Positive Conversations

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Top Negative Conversations

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Social Media Metrics We tracked the Social Media presence of the five airlines, analyzing the objective, activeness of the brand and the strategic approach chosen, with respect to campaigns, platform integration and response management, resulting in a thorough Social Media Audit. The MindShift Metrics Scorecard® shares insights on each brands Social Media presence, via predefined and proven Metrics. The scores aligned to each metric provide for a sustained and insightful digital outreach for brands which come from an understanding of the consumer and business. Metrics defined for each platform take into consideration the qualitative (content, creative’s, etc) and quantitative (fan numbers, outreach, interactions, etc) features of the platform. The sum of all scores together aligns a Rank to the Brand thus leading us to the insights of which brand dominates on social media and the reasons behind the same. The table below displays the MindShift Rank* for Airline brands, highlighting that Jet Airways leads the social media space followed by SpiceJet and Kingfisher. Air India and Go Airare at the bottom of the chart, showing their need to get onto the bandwagon and make their presence felt.

Airlines

MindShift Metrics Rank

MindShift Scorecard®

Jet Airways

52.5

Spice Jet

Kingfisher

Air India

Go Air

16.5 ©MindShift Interactive

*For a detailed understanding of the Ranking process, please refer to our Research Design – MindShift Metrics Scorecard Section.

MindShift Metrics Scorecard® and our Social Media Audit helps you gain deeper insights on the following: 1. Platform Analysis 2. Strengths and Weakness of each brand on Social Media 3. Global Trend Analysis and Forecasting

• MindShift Interactive • Social Media Report 2012 • Impact of Social Media on Hospitality & Tourism • • www.mindshiftinteractive.com

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Jet Airways - MindShift ScoreCard® Rank - 1 Score – 52.5/100 Airlines

Social Reach

Jet

12.5

Airways

Jet Airways leads the Social Media Space with the highest rank of 52.5 – MindShift Scorecard® Leaders on Social Media with Higher Outreach, Innovators & Active Presence across Platforms Facebook Insights – With over 3, 18,000 Fans, Jet Airways leads the way on Facebook – LOW Engagement Ratio of 2.4% Content Mix - Intelligent & Interestingly postedAir Schedules, Fares, Corporate Information, Awards, Jet Privilege, JetEscapes, Festive Wishes, Popular Destinations & Travel Tips Campaign Strategy – Big Campaigns are missing, though the brand balances the presence with helpful information for the customer. Integration of innovative campaigns could help increase the engagement ratio on Facebook.

Twitter, with more than 11,000 Followers is positioned as a CRM Platform. Objective: Effective Response Management within a Timeframe, taking the conversations off the timeline via DMs and Customer Care

Key Focus: Redirect traffic to Website

An active Foursquare Account with over 2700 Followers and 552 Tips shared. The ONLY ACTIVE airline brand on Foursquare

Early Adopters on Social Media, with usage of QR (Quick Response) for the Smartphone users • MindShift Interactive • Social Media Report 2012 • Impact of Social Media on Hospitality & Tourism • • www.mindshiftinteractive.com

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SpiceJet - MindShift ScoreCard® Rank – 2 Score – 49/100 Airlines

Social Reach

SpiceJet

20.5

12.5

Second Most Active Airline on Social Media with a Rank of 49 – MindShift Scorecard©

Creative Innovation on Social Media, with customized look on various Social Media Properties Facebook Insights – With over 3,07,000 Fans, SpiceJet is the second highest brand with a high Facebook Reach – Engagement Ratio of less than One Percent – VERY LOW Content Mix - The updates are more Informative and more updates are leading to lesser reactions on each update Information about Flights, Destinations – Linked to Website Campaign Strategy – Innovative Travel Campaigns + Interesting Content Mix + Regular Campaigns could lead to higher engagement on the Fan Page

Twitter, with more than 2200 Followers is positioned as a CRM Platform. Objective: Handle Queries on the timeline and Public Domain within a timeframe

Twitter CRM Approach differs with each Airline Brand

86,000 Views over 12 Uploads - SpiceJet YouTube Channel includes TVCs and some on ground videos from the Airlines Social Media Presence across 7 Platforms – BUT Active only on three platforms

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Kingfisher Airlines - MindShift ScoreCard ® Rank - 3 Score – 41/100 Airlines

Social Reach

Kingfisher

14.5

12.5

Kingfisher Airline ranks third on Social Media, with a score of 41 – MindShift Scorecard® The Social Reach of the Brand extends to FIVE Platforms

Facebook Insights – With over 1, 24,000 Fans, Kingfisher does have a considerable share of Fans on Facebook – Engagement Ratio of approximately 1% indicates LOW RESPONSE Content Mix - Daily 1 -2 informative updates ONLY Brand Specific are done. Information about Flights, Destinations – Linked to Website Brand needs to work on Content Strategy with Interesting, innovative & engaging content Campaign Strategy – Concepts like Wonderful Wednesdays and Earn King Miles are communicated via the updates.

With over 14, 200 Followers, Kingfisher leads the Twitter Presence amongst Indian Airlines Content Mix – Customer Care, Facebook Updates synced, Retweeting Quotes from Kingfisher Authorities & Sharing News

Kingfisher Airlines is the No. 1 Indian Airline Brand on Twitter

The Brand leverages Twitter to keep its customers updated about the current happenings / clarifications on controversies about the company No Individual YouTube presence for Kingfisher Airlines, content shared over Official Kingfisher Channel • MindShift Interactive • Social Media Report 2012 • Impact of Social Media on Hospitality & Tourism • • www.mindshiftinteractive.com

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Air India - MindShift ScoreCard ® Rank - 4 Score – 23/100 Airlines

Social Reach

Air India

7.5

3.5

Air India ranks fourth in the Social Media Race, with a score of 23 on MindShift Scorecard© Air India is the ONLY Government owned Airline, with a LOW Social Media Presence Facebook Insights – With over 770 Fans, Air India still needs to reach out to its TG and develop a Fan Base on Facebook – An Engagement ratio of 4% is due to low reach on FB Content Mix – No routine/schedule is followed on Social Media and updates Latest news from the industry or the airlines is the only shared content on the fan page, leading to fewer interactions on the fan page Campaign Strategy – Brand needs to explore the medium and capitalize the medium with innovative ideas and campaigns. The current approach has Campaigns MISSING in the plan

A Basic Twitter Presence with over 340 followers and ONLY 5 Tweets till date No Bio or Description to describe or validate its presence on the platform. Zero Response Management or Customer Care activities are done via Twitter. Air India had expressed last year on April, 2011 to have an Active Social Media Presence. As we complete a year after the announcement, the Airline seems to be moving at a slow pace

• MindShift Interactive • Social Media Report 2012 • Impact of Social Media on Hospitality & Tourism • • www.mindshiftinteractive.com

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GoAir - MindShift ScoreCard® Rank - 5 Score – 16.5/100 Airlines

Social Reach

Go Air

7.5

Go Air ranks the lowest amongst the Indian Airlines with a score of 16.5 – MindShift Scorecard© Brand seems to have an UNDEFINED Approach on Social Media

Facebook Insights – With over 2400 Followers and an Engagement ratio of 2% the brand yet needs to explore Facebook, with respect to Fan Base and Consistency on the platform Content Mix – Less Activity & Poor Response Management on Fan Page, leading to a sense of agitation among the customers No specific themes or campaigns have been integrated on social media Campaign Strategy – MISSING Aspect by the Brand

A Basic Twitter Presence with over 445 followers Unlike other airlines, Twitter does not manage or address any grievances online. Tweets only redirect followers to Facebook and then to their preferred service, thus increasing the steps in a consumer’s surfing pattern.

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Social Media Findings – MindShift Metrics Social Media Platforms are a MEDIUM for Airlines to lead customers to their WEBSITE

Twitter is the leading platform with maximum Social Media Conversations

Jet Airways leads Twitter due to its active presence and response mgmt

Air India is the most talked about brand due to Aviation Regulations/ Controversies

Jet Airways leads the Social Media Universe with an active presence on 7 Platforms

Consumers prefer Social Media Platforms over Forums, due to quick response and engaging activities

Twitter is primarily used as a CRM platform, though each brand adopts a different communication route

YouTube is the least leveraged Social Media Platform by Indian Airlines

Effective Engagement on Facebook is MISSING!

SpiceJet leads the Facebook Presence through effective integration of platforms, creatives and intelligent Content Mix

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Trend Forecasting Globally, airlines are one of the most active sectors on Social Media. Key business goals such as Customer Care, identification of loyal customers, increase in sales via E-Commerce and engaging with fans are catered to on Social Media. The medium serves as a heavy consumer care platform. Unlike Indian airlines, global players have realised the true potential of the medium and evolved into integrating it across other marketing channels whilst also adopting innovative campaigns to truly generate an ROI. We studied the global presence of a few International Airlines like Southwest, American Airlines, Delta and Virgin America to share a few insights that could serve as learning by Indian Airlines. Global Trends1.

Social Advocacy: Most of the brands track conversations on Social Media, segregating them into Positive and Negative Conversations. The negative conversations are flagged instantly but the positive conversations only make it to the reports/testimonials sections. Taking a leap ahead, Global Airlines have leveraged the concept of Social Advocacy by rewarding their loyal fans with virtual points, which can be redeemed in the real world. Social actions like tweeting about your experience, writing MindShift Insights – Did you know that a review or checking in via Foursquare, 75% of frequent flyers would fly an can lead to discounts, free admission to airline if it is recommended by a friend, the lounge or various additional rather than flying the cheapest one. benefits from the airlines. Virgin Atlantic revamped its Social Media Community Vtravelled and rewarded its frequent flyers using gaming mechanisms to engage with their 1.8 million flying club members. Air New Zealand incentivized its loyal flyers by free admission to the Lounge by showing their Mayor Status and Boarding Pass. Virgin America and Jet Blue have also banked on the same concept. Miles Millionaire was another concept explored by British Airways & American Airlines where loyalists were rewarded 20,000 Bonus Miles with a contest connect to the activity. The Reviews and Testimonials act as a referral system, extending the brands reach and trust circle on Social Media. Thus tapping the influential network of your loyal and frequent flyers is one of the strategies adopted by Global Airlines.

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2. Conversations on Each Platform: Identifying the need and customizing each platform as per its capability is a prerequisite before aligning social media strategies. Facebook is used as a One Stop Medium for Information, Innovation and Integration, syncing it with other platforms. Brands like Southwest and American Airlines have integrated a Recommend Us feature as soon as an individual ‘Likes’ the fan page, thus leveraging the opportunity and increasing the fan base. Campaigns, Contests and Videos are created on a regular basis to create sustained engagements.

Twitter is used as a CRM Platform where each brand has a pre-defined approach. American Airlines has three Twitter handles, each dedicated to cater to a set Target group: @AmericanAir - Thanks for checking in! Send your praise, concerns and suggestions to the link below to ensure an appropriate response from American Airlines. @AAdvantage - The official AAdvantage Twitter feed, a community dedicated to all the ways to earn AAdvantage miles! @AdmiralsClub - American Airlines Admirals Club membership lounges span the globe and provide a respite from the concourse The response time taken by Global Airlines to respond to a query on an average is an hour. The quick response strategy demonstrates that airlines are certainly taking Customer Service seriously on Twitter. Tapping the potential of Video networks such as YouTube is seen effectively through Southwest Airlines who have a dedicated YouTube channel called NutsAboutSouthwest. With over 316 Uploads, 7 million views and 4000+ Subscribers the airline uploads videos of their experiences, testimonials, campaign ideas and contests. Foursquare integration is seen through a successful campaign by KLM Airlines - An experiment on how happiness spreads to surprise their customers. KLM installed a “Surprise Team” who would track the Check-Ins at various airports, Counter-Google about the person via their Social Profiles, decide on a creative gift and surprise them by giving it to them before their journey starts. One of the most innovative campaigns with an integrated foursquare plug-in, KLM Surprise Campaign merged online concepts with an offline connect to spread their acts of kindness. • MindShift Interactive • Social Media Report 2012 • Impact of Social Media on Hospitality & Tourism • • www.mindshiftinteractive.com

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P a g e | 25 3. Innovation is the key: Southwest Airlines welcomes its Fans on Facebook with a Fare Play Concept, where the Airlines talks about its No Change Fees and Bags Fly Free services. Driving home the core point and giving you reasons to join makes for the perfect welcome tab. Having been in the social media space longer than most players allows them with the ability to innovate further and use the medium to greater advantage. Content created by the brand also showcases the thoughtthrough approach and an underlying reason behind them. Attributes which truly come out of having matured in the industry.

4. Research & Insights:Global brands understand that Social Media offers vast amounts of data which could be used to their advantage. They understand that sentiments cannot be gathered simply through a tool and hence incorporate it with their campaigns and content which translates into an analysis for future strategic approaches. A trend worthy of adoption in India by the Airline Industry on Social Media will be towards customer redressal, with brands enticing them to voice out their positive experiences, even if it requires constant gratification. This, we feel, will only be possible when brands learn to understand their consumers on social media before creating strategies towards marketing to them.

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Key MindShifts Social Media Opportunities keep evolving, changing the perception of hundreds of people who communicate and share information. It would be crucial for brands to monitor this fast evolving process and leverage the data sourced through Social Networks. Brands would be expected to lead rather than follow, listen rather than dictate and create a social community of trusted influencers. Our analysis concludes with 8 Key Takeaways for the Airline Industry that would help brands leverage Social Media. 1. Be Approachable: Brands need to identify the value that Social Media offers, and accordingly integrate the medium in its marketing plan. Creating an outreach which offers consumers with a two-way communication model is the need of the hour and is only possible when they begin to understand the pulse of the consumer and deliver strategies accordingly. 2. Different Platforms.Different Objectives: Every social network caters to needs to every business separately, and hence, it is important to customize usage. For the Airline Industry, Twitter plays a vital role in customer relations, engagement while their customers are at the airport as well as while offering specific deals to targeted users. Similarly, YouTube plays a role in showing consumers an experience visually, prior to experiencing it live, satisfying an important channel of decision making. 3. Consistency is the Key: Once a brand enters Social Media and creates a considerable klout, it is important to maintain the same on an ongoing basis, in a thought-through manner. Brands who get lost mid-way or fail to engage their consumers after the end of a contest tend to stop activities and go back to the drawing board. This may harm brands more than they can imagine. Hence, keeping a consistent engagement pattern is the advisable route to take. 4. Avoid a Crisis! Social Media can help you resolve a crisis and even avoid one. A socially active presence where queries are heard, complaints are resolved and feedback is used constructively is key to managing and maintaining the reputation of a brand, whilst also creating a happy experience with the consumer. 5. Define an ROI: Everything requires deliverables to be aligned with well defined goals and key performance indicators to assure a satisfactory ROI. KPIs may be Higher Engagement Ratio, Lower Response Time, High Outreach content, etc. 6. Explore Location Based Platforms: Location Based platforms are the least explored within India but have amazing potential within the Airline Industry. Looking at global players leveraging this medium to the optimum, it’s a learning we must adopt and build upon. 7. Listen – Control the medium by listening and analyzing the conversations that take place and the tonality that suits your brand before you start talking. People will talk to you if you understand their sentiments and the way they prefer to talk on Social Media. Constant tracking of conversations via tools and analysing the same through social research specialists is the way to a successful Outreach. • MindShift Interactive • Social Media Report 2012 • Impact of Social Media on Hospitality & Tourism • • www.mindshiftinteractive.com

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P a g e | 27 8. Social Loyalty Programs – Your audiences are experiencing your brand day in and day out on Social Media. Whilst they love to share negative experiences, their mentions of the positive ones are rare. Create instances for your consumers to “share” via loyalty programs and special associations. Build a healthy base of influencers & nurture them into the voice of your brand.

• MindShift Interactive • Social Media Report 2012 • Impact of Social Media on Hospitality & Tourism • • www.mindshiftinteractive.com

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Online Travel Agencies – MindShift Analysis

Hospitality & Tourism Industry: Airlines Online Travel Agencies Hotels Travel Review Sites • MindShift Interactive • Social Media Report 2012 • Impact of Social Media on Hospitality & Tourism • • www.mindshiftinteractive.com

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Online Travel Agencies in India E-Commerce in India has been growing exponentially in the last decade and is likely to grow year on year, leading to a growth in the trade market. One dominant factor in this growth journey has been the contribution of Online Travel Agencies (OTA). With more than 80% of the transactions in this sector, Online Travel Agencies contribute a major share in the E-Commerce Industry. Online Travel Agencies sell travel products and services on behalf of suppliers that include bookings for hotels, airlines, railways, sightseeing tours, etc. According to Government of India, Ministry of Tourism, India witnesses more than 740 million domestic tourism visits annually. An avid traveller always looks for bargain opportunities while purchasing/booking hotel or air tickets, thus emphasizing the role of Online Travel Agencies that provide services/ offers at competitive pricing. The term "Online" on its own implies how important it is for Online Travel Agencies to leverage themselves on the social media arena to stand out from the crowd and, ofcourse, garner new business. The OTA portals can achieve new heights of conversations in Social Media, bridging the gap between consumers and travel agencies.

MindShift Interactive conducted a study on the Top 5 Online Travel Agencies in India that are active on Social Media, observing their social media patterns & social media optimization strategies to increase traffic/leads/sales, etc.

Online travel Agencies have gathered 25% of the Social Media Conversations

• MindShift Interactive • Social Media Report 2012 • Impact of Social Media on Hospitality & Tourism • • www.mindshiftinteractive.com

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MindShift Report Findings – Online Travel Agencies on Social Media Most Talked About - MakeMyTrip (29%) Least Talked About - Cox & Kings (10%) Facebook, Twitter & Blogs were the top three platforms that defined conversations in the OTA Sector

Most Interactive Sector in the Tourism Industry

Conversation Topics on Each Platform

1690 Conversations

2910 Conversations

27 Conversations

47 Conversations

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Consumer Perception MakeMyTrip has the highest number of conversations in the Sentiment Analysis. The Positive to Negative ratio shows higher Positive sentiments, drafted out of a strategic route of ensuring consumers share their experience as well as due to the consumer acceptance and appreciation towards the OTA sector which makes online booking an easy experience. Positive: Negative Ratio – OTA MakeMyTrip – 3: 1 Yatra.com – 9: 1 Cleartrip – 2: 1 Ixigo – 16: 1 Cox & Kings – 12: 1

The chart besides shares the Sentiment of each brand, reflecting that Ixigo had the Highest Positive ratio followed by Yatra and Cox and Kings. TG Profiling for OTA – With 77% conversations, men dominate the social media conversations and women occupy 23% of the social media space with their thoughts. A category dominated by men as influencers and decision makers when it comes to finalizing and booking online. Identifying & nurturing such influencers is key to creating evangelists for a brand and standing out from the massive number of brands offering online travel solutions.

Most Interactive Sector in Hospitality & Tourism: The below chart highlights that Online Travel Agencies are the most interactive and responsive, as compared to Airline, Hotels & Travel Review Sites. When it comes to responding to complaints or guiding consumers towards specific packages, they were the most active and spontaneous.

Industry leader with 837 conversations with consumers

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Platform Analysis The below statistics help us understand the presence of the top three brands in the Online Travel Industry over prominent Social Networks. The charts also highlight the number of conversations for each brand on Social Media, strengthening the MindShift Audit and Analysis.

It is visible from the above that Makemytrip.com over powers all social networks but fails to make a mark as impressive as Yatra.com, on twitter.

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Sentiment Analysis -Top Positive Conversations

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Top Negative Conversations

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Social Media Metrics We tracked the presence of five online travel agencies, analyzing the objective, activeness of the brand and the strategic approach chosen, with respect to campaigns, platform integration and response management, resulting in a thorough Social Media Audit. The MindShift Metrics ScoreCard® shares insights on each brands Social Media presence, via predefined and proven Metrics. The scores aligned to each metric provide for a sustained and insightful digital outreach for brands which come from an understanding of the consumer and business. Metrics defined for each platform take into consideration the qualitative (content, creative’s, etc) and quantitative (fan numbers, outreach, interactions, etc) features of the platform. The sum of all scores together aligns a Rank to the Brand thus leading us to the insights of which brand dominates on social media and the reasons behind the same. The table below displays the MindShift Rank for Online Travel Agencies in India, highlighting that MakeMyTrip leads the social media space followed by Yatra.com & Cox and Kings. Cleartrip and Ixigo are at the bottom with a very basic presence on social media.

Online Travel Agencies

MindShift Metrics Rank

MindShift ScoreCard®

MakeMyTrip

Yatra.com

Cox and Kings

46.5

Cleartrip

Ixigo

MindShift Metrics Audit below justifies the ranking of the Social Media Presence along with platform wise content and campaign analysis for each brand. MindShift Metrics ScoreCard® and the Social Media Audit helps you gain deeper insights on the following: 1. Platform Analysis 2. Strengths and Weakness of each brand on Social Media 3. Global Trend Analysis and Forecasting

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MakeMyTrip – MindShift ScoreCard® Rank - 1 Score – 59/100 Online Travel

Social

Agency

Reach

MakeMyTrip

MakeMyTrip has the maximum reach with presence on 8 Platforms Independent page termed as MakeMyTrip Deals to leverage Social Media opportunities

Facebook Insights– With over 3, 35,000 Fans, the page has an Engagement Ratio of less than 1% - LOW as compared to Industry standard of 5 – 10% Content Mix - Packages Information, Just for Fun Updates, Guess the Destination, Photo Fridays, Offers & Trivia Campaign Strategy - Concepts like Fan of the week, Top 100 Fans (Integrated Application) and Trip Planner keep activities alive

Twitter - Combined Reach of over 2500+ Followers through Two profiles (@MakeMyTripDeals& @MakeMyTripCare) FOCUS – Sharing Information + Website Links + Customer Care

ONLY Brand in OTA to have a dedicated Twitter handle for Customer Care

With over 29,000 Views on 136 Uploads, YouTube Channel is updated with TVCs, Hotel and Destination Videos An active Foursquare Account with 1028 Followers and 102 Tips shared, further shared by followers

Presentations & Pictures of Tourist Attractions & Must Visits for Domestic/ International Destinations shared via Slideshare

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Yatra.com – MindShift ScoreCard® Rank - 2 Score - 54/100 Online Travel

Social

Agency

Reach

Yatra.com

Yatra.com has a Social Reach across 7 Platforms Facebook Insights– Yatra.com has over 2,17,ooo fans on Facebook, with 4% of Engagement Ratio Content Mix - Trivia about Destinations, Questions with Options, Campaign updates linked to Application, Travel Packages Information Campaign Strategies - Creating #MindShift with ideas Learning Europe (Innovative, Informative & Relevant), Happy Travel Movie Application, Yatra Travelometer and Integration with Booking Services

An active Twitter Presence with over 2200 Followers. Synced with Facebook Activities, with a customized approach for Twitter shows the right balance of cross marketing & customized marketing. Popular Hash tags - #HappyTravel & #TravelTip Platform is leveraged to respond to queries or complaints YouTube Channel features 36 Videos and over 6,000 views till date with content such as TVCs, Campaign Videos (Travel-O-Dance), Domestic/ International Destinations. A platform still awaiting further exploration by the brand, and industry.

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Cox & Kings – MindShift ScoreCard® Rank - 3 Score – 46.5/100 Online Travel

Social

Agency

Reach

Cox and

19.5

Kings Cox and Kings India – Social Reach across 6 Platforms Facebook Insights - 33,000 Fanswith 2 fan pages, Cox and Kings India (for brand outreach) &Cox and Kings Deals (for promotions), with engagement ratios of 3% & 32 % respectively Content Strategy is similar on both the pages and redundant at times. Diversification of properties also leads to Confusion amongst Consumers. Brand needs to focus on one property.

1310 followers on Twitter - Interaction and Engagement is key

YouTube has over 8,000 Views across 29 Uploads with interesting content on domestic and international destinations.

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Cleartrip – MindShift ScoreCard® Rank - 4 Score - 38/100 Online Travel

Social

Agency

Reach

Cleartrip

Cleartrip has a Social Reach across 4 Platforms Facebook Insights – +46,000 Fans with an engagement ratio of Approx 17% Content Mix - Trivia about Destinations with every alternate update focussing on Packages, Cash Back Offers and Deals. Innovation is high in linking onto the website, and the brand seems to understand the consumer pulse although platform integration & campaigns are amiss.

YouTube Channel has the highest views in the OTA Sector, with over 2 lakh views on 52 Uploads due to the Every Trip Has a Purpose video, as well as UGC videos.

4900+ Followers makes their outreach the highest on Twitter. Twitter Strategy – Content themes on twitter are not travel or package related only. From latest technology, website designs, innovations and travel news, the brand covers it all.

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Ixigo– MindShift ScoreCard® Rank - 5 Score – 36.5/100 Online Travel

Social

Agency

Reach

Ixigo

18.5

Ixigo has a Social Reach across 3 Platforms Facebook Insights – Ixigo has over 1,54,793 fans with an engagement ratio of Approx 0.1% Content Mix includes albums, facts and guess about Destinations. Ixigo’s engagement ratio on Facebook is very low, even after gaining a decent fan base. An increase in updates that push users towards interaction would be the way forward. Ixigo doesn’t seem to push their Facebook fans to their website, as there were very few updates that redirect to their website.

Twitter –2021 followers used for interacting with their consumers and sharing their experiences via tweets. Unlike other agencies, Ixigo tweets generic updates as well apart from travel updates on their twitter account.

YouTube has not yet been explored by Ixigo yet.

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Social Media Findings – MindShift Metrics MakeMyTrip has the maximum Social Reach with presence on 8 Platforms

Facebook& Twitter are two priority platforms for Online Travel Agencies

Cleartrip leads Twitter due to its active presence and response management

Cleartrip has the highest Engagement Ratio of 17% on Facebook

MakeMyTrip – Only OTA with a dedicated Twitter Account for Customer Care

Key Objective of Social Media: 1. Outreach

Twitter is primarily used as a CRM platform, though each brand adopts a different communication route

Foursquare and YouTube are the least leveraged Platforms

2. Bookings Ixigo ranks the lowest due to its lesser active presence on various platforms, apart from Facebook and Twitter

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Trend Forecasting 1. Personalization is the BUZZ Word – Online Travel Agencies need to integrate a personalized approach in their offerings. Social Personalization, as a concept needs to be explored to connect and assure a positive, customized experience for the customer. Integrating a Social Connect on the Website, where a member can view his history with the agency as well as track his travel pattern. The member can also be requested to share a review and recommend his friends to become active members of the site, leading to a chain of a Social Referral System.

2. Offer Experiences – Global Travel Agencies follow a creative route to attract the attention and engage the consumer with campaigns that allow them to experience the offers and packages through applications, videos or blogs. Creating a desire to do things versus selling an offer directly helps increase engagements and repeat visits to the fan page. Whilst it is important to lead consumers to the final objective, making the experience fun is of key importance. Expedia, with its campaign You Deserve a GETAWAY this holiday explored new • MindShift Interactive • Social Media Report 2012 • Impact of Social Media on Hospitality & Tourism • • www.mindshiftinteractive.com

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3. Understand the Consumer Pulse – We notice that individuals book trips on websites either for business trips, to get package deals for friends / family or to review and view vacations suggestions at the same time. The ability to dive in and understand the consumers’ requirements before creating a strategy for the content and campaigns will ensure higher outreach and engagement for the brand. Interestingly, brands globally have adopted certain areas of studying the consumer pulse and delivering on platforms accordingly but a lot is to be seen out here, in India and globally. 4. Going Niche – With the rapid increase in E-Commerce and growing sales in each sector, OTAs are opting to emphasize on a Social Media Strategy, where services are catered to each industry through a different Social Media Presence and Approach. The objective being to tap each sector, identify its growth pattern along with consumer trends and launch services which would enhance the services and experience of the customer. 5. Seamless Customer Care – For an industry heavily dependant on referals and consumer share of voice, responding to angry customers is not the solution to a stable social media presence, but providing a strong customer support team that is willing to handle situations at all times is. This, therefore, cannot be a service provided simply via an automated tool and requires the support of someone who understands the business, and the end consumer. Creating alternate channels/platforms on social media to specifically cater to consumer greivances, suggesstions and queries is something Indian OTAs must adopt after having created a stable presence on their primary social media platforms.

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Key MindShifts The Online Travel Agencies, as we’ve seen are actively involved in the Social Media space with campaigns and content that creates an outreach for them. Our Insights 8 Key Takeaways for Online Travel Agencies that would help brands leverage Social Media. 1. Innovative Content Strategy – Innovative campaigns are a requisite and so is an innovative content mix. Brands must understand the content relevant to their business and their consumers and deliver accordingly. The space you have on their News Feeds is very precious so deliver content after you listen, analyze and learn what your audiences want. 2. CRM is the Key – Efficiently handling your consumers online is the need of e-commerce portals. Create a seamless CRM process that ensures your customer resolves his query online and moves back onto making that purchase. All queries, complaints and feedback must be acknowledged, responded to and resolved. 3. Social Integration: Connecting your website with social media platforms is an important integration to allow for a direct flow from one to another as well as allows consumers to sign in with basic details and progress towards booking their tickets. After all, we do agree Registration forms are a chore don’t we? 4. Assign a role to each Platform – Brands need to identify the right platforms and prioritize the same to build an effective Social Media Plan. Goals and approach differ for each platform and only a sound knowledge of your consumer mixed with an understanding by your social media consultants will ensure optimization. 5. Evangelists –While you’re busy building a large fan base, don’t forget it is the ones with the largest share of social voice on your page that need to be gratified and given the maximum attention as they are probably the best people to convert into Influencers of your brand. 6. Optimize your Presence – Create a presence that appropriately allows your presence to be searched and disseminated. Create channels high in SMO capability & provide relevant searched content on them. Social Media success is inevitable for a well optimized social media presence. 7. Social Loyalty programmes- Recommendation by family & friends is one of the major contributors in the travel industry that affects a consumers decision while making a travel plan. Brands need to identify this aspect and have a Social Referral Strategy to encourage and build a referral program via social networks. 8. Monitor Conversations – OTAs cater the most to active social media users which also gives them a stronger voice on social media to discuss positive and negative experiences. Learn to track and respond to these at the earliest, curtailing the issue at hand earliest. Use this data beyond response management to gain insights on your brand and consumers and work towards changing sentiments, if required.

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About MindShift Interactive “Experience a MindShift to deliver legendary Outreach.” MindShift Interactive is an Insightful Digital Outreach powerhouse that provides business with a data-centric approach towards achieving an impactful, innovative and, most of all, sustained Social Media presence. We recreate brands in a truly Social environment by gathering insights not only from the outlook of your people affected by the actions of your brand, but also from a business viewpoint. Our expertise inSocial Media and Research assures your business an insight on how to honestly create long-term engagement with consumers that delivers a MindShift. MindShift Interactive Private Limited is the parent company of MindShift Digital and MindShift Metrics, our Social Media Marketing Agency and Social Media Research Company respectively. Combined together, they give your business an insightful and innovative Social Media Outreach. MindShift Metricshelps you make sense of the data available over digital platforms and MindShift Digital takes over to convert insights into strategies that ensure arich Social Media presence that is intelligent, engaging and crosses boundaries of innovation.

Get in touch with us: MindShift Interactive Pvt. Ltd | 3, Baig Mansion | Babulnath Road |Mumbai – 400007 | India. +91 22 2309 3980 | +91 98 2007 1517 contact@mindshiftinteractive.com www.mindshiftinteractive.com Join the MindShift:http://www.facebook.com/MSInteractive

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