Google and the Wisdom of Crowds with Tim Armstrong at PhoCusWright Orlando 2007

2007-12-04

Did you know that 22% of traffic to travel sites is driven by Google!

No wonder Google is interested in this area given the amount of traffic around travel websites and the amount of money spent on advertising through Google’s channels.

Mr. Amstrong started by saying that connecting with consumers is an important part of the success of marketing a destination. New Zealand Tourism, for example, has done an excellent job of connecting with consumers. The site contains a variety of assets including videos and photos. By combining a variety of assets, they have encompassed all aspects of the search by using multiple mediums of communication. This is becoming particularly attractive with the advent of Google’s universal search which includes text, video, and images.
So, what does Google make available for the long tail of travel? What assets will the long tail use that Google offers?

Many of Google’s programs including search, YouTube, Gmail, Analytics, and others can all be used by the long tail because they are relatively easy to use and cost nothing.

Jason Dailey from Microsoft asked what challenges Google faces playing with the travel space. Mr. Armstrong answered that Google’s mandate is to drive the consumer to the best destination online for travel information, and so Google’s primary challenge is ensuring relevance in the search results that it presents.

Rob Torres from Google added that there is untapped opportunity with using YouTube to market travel using videos. Connecting clients in a different way and a different manner.

When asked about the mythical Troogle, Mr. Amstrong announced in no uncertain terms that There is no Troogle. He stated that Google does not want to get into the travel business. Google would have a very hard time getting involved in travel because Google is not good (because of scale) at specializing in a specific businesses. Mr. Armstrong went on to say that travel and e-commerce were the first to adopt search optimization. Pureplay Internet companies dominate the search because their marketing strategies are focused on this channel whereas airline and hotels are generally mid tier because the Internet is a secondary channel. There is a weak point however for both the pureplay and mid-tier companies and that is content. Marketers are not fully realizing the content areas, connecting content related areas. Another area of consideration is social networking. Mr. Armstrong noted that peer to peer connections are important, social networking is an important component. If you are not taking advantage of the peer-to-peer then you are missing out.

Jasper Malcolmson, VP Yahoo Travel noted that the travel industry hasn’t generated as much share holder value because of customer-centricity. Mr. Malcolmson aked what, in Mr. Armstrong’s opinion, can the travel industry do to increase share holder value and still provide a quality customer experience. Mr. Armstrong responded by saying that travel becomes a part of your life. He mentioned that he flies on American Airlines and that American probably has ways to optimize the travel experience for customers that it has not yet identified, for example, wouldn’t it be great to see stats on your travel with American and determine which flights were best based on past flying patterns. Mr. Armstrong’s recommendation was to focus on the experience, rather than the transaction.

The discussion turned to mobile search and the effect that mobile search will have on search in general. Mr. Armstrong stated that mobile will continue to play a more important role. In the next 5 years, mobile technology and open choice in using mobile technologies will have a dramatic effect on how people search, find, and use information. In addition, Google’s universal search is integrating all searchable assets to allow a unified search platform including a platform for mobile.

So what were the big takeaways from Mr. Armstrong’s presentation. In my mind, from a long tail supplier perspective, I think the keys are content, connecting with customers by providing useful and engaging experiences, and planning for a mobile world.

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