1. Social Media for Tourism: AoifeExcite and MeasureHow to Engage,PorterSligo Tourism Training Workshop 2November 2011 www.sligotourism.ie

2. Session Overview What are we going to cover today? Twitter for business LinkedIn for promoting and networking Geo-location platforms: Foursquare/Yelp &Facebook Places Trip Advisor Google Maps www.sligotourism.ie 3. Twitter for BusinessWhy Twitter As we covered last week, approx 11% of the irish adultpopulation(or 385,000 people) have twitter accounts, and thisnumber is growing steadily. We also spoke about how deceptive these figures are, asmany more people see tweets than have twitteraccounts, for e.g. through embedding twitter content intohome pages or on to facebook www.sligotourism.ie 4. Twitter/web integration www.sligotourism.ie 5. Top 7 Business Uses of Twitter1. Updating content on your own website, or other social platforms like facebook/linkedin/foursquare2. Gather/cluster your customers & fans/advocates around you via #hashtags3. Conduct free, ongoing, market research, through search terms and follower questions/surveys4. Hear what people are saying about you via search and then join the conversation5. Organically communicate and solidify your brand values or your organisations voice6. Take control of your message7. As a customer service tool www.sligotourism.ie 6. 1. Updating Content You can embed twitter into your own mainsite in a number of ways Through the twitter widget With a good web designer You can send tweets to facebook usingselective tweets #fb You can send tweets to linkedin using #in Or use a twitter client like TweetDeckwww.sligotourism.ie 7. TweetDeckwww.sligotourism.ie 8. 2. Cluster your fans/customersBecause Twitter has such a volume of information you can useelements of it to better gather the info that is relevant to you, themain ways of doing this are:1. Twitter Search2. Lists3. #hashtags A desktop client like Tweet Deck can save thesesearches/hashtags and alert you when new tweets are posted It also allows you to cluster around similar people, you can followhastags around a tv show or a conference/eventwww.sligotourism.ie 9. #hashtags Provide a better filter for search Allow for easier monitoring Are very promotable, on and offline Can be analysed Perfect fit for short term events, but cancontinue to cluster fans post event Allow customers to tag you in a tweet www.sligotourism.ie 10. #hashtagswww.sligotourism.ie 11. #hashtagswww.sligotourism.ie 12. #hashtagswww.sligotourism.ie 13. 3. Market Research Once you have a good base of followerstwitter, or any social network, is a great way topush out surveys like polldaddy Use search to eavesdrop on what people aresaying about you Throw out questions Use specific shortlinks to gather info with bit.ly www.sligotourism.ie 14. www.sligotourism.ie 15. 4. SearchHear what people are saying about you viasearch and then join the conversation Some search examples:www.sligotourism.ie 16. 5. Find your voiceOrganically communicate and solidify yourbrand values or your organisations voiceSo what do I mean by that? Let people get to know your organisation as if it were aperson, give it its own personality, dont be toocautious. This can work even if you have a group ofpeople using one account if you are clear on what theorganisation is aboutwww.sligotourism.ie 17. 6. Take ControlTake Control of your message As a right to reply from another source mediaarticle for e.g. As a quick way to remedy a incorrectcommunication As an immediate way to communicate change www.sligotourism.ie 18. 7. Customer ServiceTwitter can work as a great customer servicetool Allows customers to contact you directly Allows you to respond to complaints and queries An additional method of contact that is moreimmediate than email/facebook/website if youset up text aletswww.sligotourism.ie 19. 7. Customer Service www.sligotourism.ie 20. Top 7 Business Uses1. Updating content on your own website, or other social platforms like facebook/linkedin/foursquare2. Gather/cluster your customers & fans/advocates around you via #hashtags3. Conduct free, ongoing, market research, through search terms and follower questions/surveys4. Hear what people are saying about you via search and then join the conversation5. Organically communicate and solidify your brand values or your organisations voice6. Take control of your message7. As a customer service tool www.sligotourism.ie 21. How to Approach TwitterUsing Twitter requires the same approach as using anysocial network:1. Learn about it and its etiquette2. Plan, Target and Track3. Remember that effective Online/Social Marketing is a 2- way Converstion4. Real World Integration5. Remember: Content is Kingwww.sligotourism.ie 22. 1. Learn about itUse Twitter the way your audience uses it The average irish user has: 199 followers, 213 friends. & has sent 1178 tweets since joining Twitter Retweets (RTs) make up just 10% of tweets on theaverage personal account, but often account for muchmore traffic on business/campaign accounts Only 33% of users send tweets via twitter.com Source knexys.com June 2011 www.sligotourism.ie 23. Top 10 ways to send a tweet1.Twitter.com (web) 33%2.Twitter for iPhone 19.6%3.Twitter for BlackBerry 7.6%4.Twitter for Android 4.5%5.Facebook 3.6%6.TweetDeck 3.6%7.Tweet Button 3.3%8.Mobile Web 2.8%9.Echofon 1.8%10. Twitter for iPad 1.1%11. (HootSuite 0.8%)Source: knexsy.com (June 11) www.sligotourism.ie 24. www.sligotourism.ie 25. 1. Learn about itIf you are not already using twitter, create an account and spend some timelearning how it works before launching yourself publically on twitter for your organisationAsk other twitter users how it worksThink about who in the organisation is the best candidate to tweet Consider who best embodies the spirit/brand values of your organisationEnable your twitter manager Make sure whoever is manning the feed has the authority to reply directly, andquickly, without having to check with layers of management for every tweetHave an internal response policy Consider in advance how youll deal with negative tweets or queries so that there isnt a long response delaywww.sligotourism.ie 26. 1. Learn about it Do bother to learn the rules Include your website, and relevant info in your bio. Consider incl. who is tweeting Check your DM (Direct Messages) regularly Check your @replies regularly Respond in a timely fashion (within a day at most, more quickly at event time) ReTweet (RT) regularly but remember that the average RTs from individual accounts is only 8-10%, campaigns are often much higher Always acknowledge the source of information if you are passing it on (via) Engage get involved in conversations OTHER than those about your organisation/event A twitter client like TweetDeck combined with text alerts for DMs and @replies is the best way to effectively monitor your conversations www.sligotourism.ie 27. www.sligotourism.ie 28. 2. Plan Target and Track Have a plan even if its not a full scale strategywhat do you want to get out of twitter? Set targets Target web referrals, increase in traffic, increase in followers, or new visitors Track your progress Measure your effectiveness at achieving what you set out to. Use stats from your own site how many referrals are from twitter? How many followers do you have at the start, after a quarter, a year How many ReTweets? Whats your TweetReach? Use bitly to track shortlinks www.sligotourism.ie 29. 3. Twitter: Dialogue vs MonologueGolden Rule of any online engagement? Conversations are two-way, this is especially true of twitter Resist the broadcast only approach Time your tweets (use an auto scheduler like Tweet Deck for regular info tweets)Think of twitter as a virtual front desk for your businessIt should be; Welcoming Informal Social Informative Transmitting info about you and gathering info about your customers Interactivewww.sligotourism.ie 30. 4. Real World IntegrationEffective Twitter use involves combining it with the realworld: Display hashtag/twitter handle in your business Display hashtag/twitter handle in your brochures/business card Encourage twit pics from your followers and of you remember the gregans example, pictures appear on your profile Encourage tweetable check-ins on foursquare to increase the number of mentions of your business/eventwww.sligotourism.ie 31. 5. Content is KingLast week we spoke about how content is king when it comes tosuccessful online marketing. This is especially true of twitter Is your content (your updates + tweeted media) Snackable Sharable Relevant More than just about sales Does your contents subject matter reach out beyond yourcore business and engage people around the broaderthemes, your location, or another soft aspect of your work www.sligotourism.ie 32. End Section 1 Any Q&A about first section? 5 minute breakwww.sligotourism.ie 33. Linked InAs we mentioned last week: LinkedIn is the 7th most popular website inIreland Almost million irish people have accounts In % terms LinkedIn is growing at almost3 times the rate of FacebookSource blog.neworld.comwww.sligotourism.ie 34. Top 5 SME Uses of LinkedIn1. Networking After every meeting add new contacts to your linkedin Use in-mails for occasional correspondence2. Recommendations Regularly request recommendations from appropriate contacts3. Groups & Discussions Display your area of expertise through answering questions4. Events Post/recommend events to your network5. Regular Updates Post useful links or business updates to your personal profile and/or company profile. Consider linking to twitter or your blog Remember updates will filter through to weekly emails www.sligotourism.ie 35. GeoLocation platforms Foursquare Yelp Facebook Places InstagramWhat is Geolocation? Any platform that uses yourgeographical location, via your phones gps, tolocate you at a place/eventwww.sligotourism.ie 36. TripAdvisorTrip Advisor is a powerful web platform thatoperates on several levels1) A global listings site for your business2) A sales channel for your tourism business3) A review and recommendation service for travellers4) A socially linked guide book www.sligotourism.ie 37. TripAdvisor 50+ million unique monthly visitors* a 20% increase on the same period last year 20 million members & over 50 million reviewsand opinions 1+ million businesses 93,000+ destinations 520,000+ hotels 155,000+ attractions 715,000+ restaurants 8,000,000+ candid traveler photosSource: Sep 11 ComScore on TripAdvisorwww.sligotourism.ie 38. TripAdvisor for Business Intro videohttp://tripadvisor4biz.wordpress.com/videos/#WhatBLwww.sligotourism.ie 39. 8 ways to use TripAdvisorhttp://tripadvisor4biz.wordpress.com/videos/#Howtomarketwww.sligotourism.ie 40. Local case studies Rowanville B&B Grange Website> TripAdvisor>Browse Sligo Top listings on Trip Advisor> www.sligotourism.ie 41. Dealing with Negative FeedbackThe Power of Management reviews go tohttp://tripadvisor4biz.wordpress.com/videos/#ThePowerofwww.sligotourism.ie 42. Negative Feedback58% of users want Managers to respond toreviews, only 5% do not.Consider this recentresearch from a MelbourneUniversity on the perceivedtrustworthiness of brandsvia the ratio of negative topositive feedback on theirpages on facebook www.sligotourism.ie 43. Additional Learning In order to claim your listing, or to create one, go tothe Owner section http://www.tripadvisor.com/Owners Use Trip Advisors Business blog for tips andseminars: http://tripadvisor4biz.wordpress.com/how-to-guideswww.sligotourism.ie 44. Google Places Google is the leading search engine worldwide USA Search Engine use Nov 2011 ask.com Aol 4%2%Bing14%Yahoo 15% Google65% Source hitwise.comwww.sligotourism.ie 45. Google Places In the US 97% of people search for local business online. Irish stats are not as readily available but you can be sure they areheaded in the same direction 40% of Map searches are travel related 50% of Irish Mobile users utilise maps on their phone With the proliferation of smartphones Google Maps isincreasingly being used as a Journey aid fordirections, route planning, in car journey assistanceand pre-visit searches via street view. Through Google places you can ensure your businessinformation is correct for the vast majority of peoplewww.sligotourism.ie 46. Google PlacesGo tohttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TpZan96KHOMwww.sligotourism.ie 47. Sample Owner Verified Listingwww.sligotourism.ie 48. Sample searchwww.sligotourism.ie 49. Sample mobile search www.sligotourism.ie 50. Foursquare Foursquare is a location based social network This means that it uses your exact location via yourphones gps to suggest tips of nearby places youmight like, based on information from your socialnetworks Users Check in via a mobile app, to real worldplaces. Foursquare reached 1 billion check-ins in Sep ofthis year www.sligotourism.ie 51. Foursquare Intro Video Go tohttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DFXzyJ8mUh4www.sligotourism.ie 52. Foursquare for Businesshttp://youtu.be/cib1Mnl2Kfcwww.sligotourism.ie 53. Content Sharing Sites Flickr Pix.ie YouTube Vimeo SoundcloudVideo Increases Sales by 55% & Photos increase salesby 69% for travel providers source Phocuswright via Tourism Irelandwww.sligotourism.ie 54. Next StepsNext Week Aoife Porter will be delivering a FacebooksessionFor next week can you; Prepare any questions you have re: facebook pages orplaces Monitor your page for interactivity in the coming week Print a report from your facebook insights and bring itwith you www.sligotourism.ie