“We were pleased with the response in every destination we went to – from Jakarta to Bali and Bangkok and Phuket,” said Alvin Ch’ng, commercial director, TripAdvisor For Business. “Most overwhelming was Bangkok where we saw more than 300 participants.
“As we expand in Asia, we want to have more outreach to business owners so that they can leverage off what we do and we can better learn to respond to their needs.”
The Master Classes shared digital marketing tips as well as insights on how travellers were using reviews and how business owners could use the Management Centre to respond and promote their properties.
This week, too, TripAdvisor announced the launch of a new Management Centre which comes with free resources and content to help hospitality business owners, managers and marketers engage with the TripAdvisor traveler community, drive sales and manage their properties’ reputations online.
“TripAdvisor has launched the new Management Center and accompanying educational series to provide hospitality business owners with helpful resources and actionable strategies for increasing bookings,” said Christine Petersen, president of TripAdvisor for Business.
The new Management Center includes the following resources and enhancements, which can be found on the “What TripAdvisor can do for you” page:
· How-to videos: Two-minute clips providing an overview of TripAdvisor’s free tools
· How-to guides and tip sheets: Quick overviews and advice on the most effective marketing activities
· TripAdvisor for Business blog: Regular updates on TripAdvisor news and resources, property success stories and industry updates
· Easy-to-use design: Straightforward, intuitive user interface based on owner feedback
Added Ch’ng, “Our research shows that travellers place great importance on reviews as well as management responses to reviews, whether positive or negative, so it is important for owners to respond well and within guidelines,” said Ch’ng.
The research conducted by Forrester Research shows that:
• 81% of travellers think reviews are important when choosing a hotel
• 78% think management response to positive reviews is important while 79% think a response to negative reviews is also important
In the Master Classes, local hoteliers also shared their experience with managing reviews and how using the Business Listings produced good results for some of them.
Said Ch’ng, “We hope these Master Classes have armed hospitality business owners with information and insights on how they can manage their business listings.”
More Master Classes are planned for Australia and Malaysia.
