Cole Lim, a hospitality graduate from Singapore Institute of Technology, attended WiT Singapore 2022 and this is his key takeaway from the event.
Imagine that you are planning a picnic with your friends this weekend. Where would you go to search for the perfect picnic spot with luxurious green grass that allows you to take scenic photos during the golden hour?
Cole Lim, a hospitality graduate at Singapore Institute of Technology
Previously, I would go straight to search on Google and as you would expect, results such as ’10 Best Parks and Beaches for Picnics’ and ’The Best Hidden Picnic Spot’ shows up. Now, the social video app, TikTok, is my go-to app for quick answers and more importantly, it shows authentic user-generated content.
Searching ‘best picnic spots in Singapore’ on TikTok reveals an array of videos from the unique point-of-view of each user. I can look at the number of likes, which indicates how popular the videos are, and more importantly, the comments section allows me to read what people say about the place. Compared to a Google search, I loved this new way to search for new places to travel on TikTok even though the content is mostly not professionally shot compared to travel vlogs and YouTube videos.
‘Flawsome’ videos, a wordplay between ‘flaw’ and ‘awesome’, was the word Tejveer Singh Bedi, Head of Travel, Southeast Asia, TikTok, highlighted when speaking about people wanting to consume more authentic behind-the-scenes content during WiT Singapore 2022. “Right now, we started seeing videos that are not created as high-production, very curated videos,” he said.
And this is an important trend for brands to focus on as rightfully pointed out by Hermione Joye, Sector Lead, Travel & Vertical Search APAC, Google, that at least 98% of all travellers are researching and making travel purchases online, and over 56% of them are using video touchpoints in their travel journey.
“We have seen consumption of travel content on TikTok, and people want to take the trip on TikTok before they decide to take the trip. And this kind of content is produced by creators in the travel community. Communities are engaging with creators daily and brands want to engage with creators to bring their message across,” Tejveer said.
“Right now, we started seeing videos that are not created as high-production, very curated videos.” ~ Tejveer Singh Bedi, Head of Travel, Southeast Asia, TikTok
Tourism boards and Online Travel Agencies (OTAs) have also cranked up their TikTok marketing in pursuit of authenticity-seeking customers.
During the pandemic, it was the best time for destinations to challenge our perceptions of what a destination can be. For example, the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) ran a gamified TikTok filter where users get to pose in front of various Singapore tourist attractions allowing them to virtually explore the country and its offerings. This SingaporeReimagine Pose campaign garnered over 8.5 million unique views and nearly 2 million unique impressions.
“Experience is the new currency,” said Eric Gnock Fah, Co-founder and COO of Klook. Showcasing these experiences, mixed with ‘flawsome’ short-form content, authentic user-generated comments, and a call-to-action button at the end of the video, seems to be the trending formula to direct customers to their booking website, but of course, converting them into actual bookings might require more persuasion.
As I am scrolling through TikTok while writing this article, I have received advertisements by Klook to go on a short getaway to explore Penang Hill in Malaysia, and user-generated videos to visit the Great Ocean Road in Melbourne.
“Experience is the new currency.” ~ Eric Gnock Fah, Co-founder and COO of Klook
Perhaps I could finally be part of the ‘TikTok made me book it’ community which according to Tejveer, is a real community of people who enjoy spending their time on short-form videos because of its highly entertaining nature.
These conversations about the advancements in travel technologies, aviation, payments, sustainability, the metaverse, and many more during the WiT conference, make me elated to say: Hello, New World!
