Tourism Tech

Fish Where the Fish Are

Posted on December 13, 2011 by Sarah Page

Courtesy of Coos Bay-North Bend VCB/David Miller

Back in June of 2009, I wrote a post about The Ones To Watch. In it, I highlighted two smaller communities that were using social media effectively to help promote their destinations. And while neither of them have really left the scene, Coos Bay, OR is back with a simple lesson to us all: Fish where the fish are. Both literally and metaphorically. Read more »

Filed under: General Marketing/Advertising, Uncategorized | Tagged: Coos Bay, destination, DMO, Katherine Hoppe, listening, marketing, Oregon, small town, website | Leave a Comment »

Sharing Your Destination with the World: Lessons Learned Using Flickr

Posted on November 18, 2011 by Sarah Page

Last week I had the distinct pleasure of being one of the presenters at the 2011 Social Media Tourism Symposium. As cool an experience as this was for me, it was made even better by getting to present with my friend Katie Cook, Interactive Marketing Manager with the Austin Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Our topic was “Sharing Your Destination with the World: Lessons Learned Using Flickr.” Katie and I both have Flickr groups for our destinations, and use them extensively as a source for user-generated content.

Check out the Colorado River Trail Flickr group and the Visit Austin Texas Flickr group to see the amazing material we have to work with. Read more »

Filed under: Conference, Flickr, Social Media Marketing | Tagged: #SoMeT, Colorado River Trail, DMO, Flickr, Katie Cook, tips, Visit Austin Texas | 6 Comments »

How To Treat Conference Speakers Like Rock Stars – #SoMeT Style

Posted on November 16, 2011 by Sarah Page

There’s a lot to like about the Social Media Tourism Symposium. Like a whole lot. As a practitioner in the industry, it’s hands down the best education out there. We get to learn from the best and brightest in the field, and go home with ideas that we can put to work in our own destinations right away. As a self-proclaimed Tourism Geek, I get to spend 3 days with my people. We understand each other, both professionally and personally. I’m home. Read more »

Filed under: Conference, Social Media Training | Tagged: #SoMeT, Austin Convention and Visitors Bureau, conference, Dave Serino, Katie Cook, presenter, social media, Social Media Tourism Symposium | 10 Comments »

Bam! Market Research Made Easy

Posted on October 14, 2011 by Sarah Page

Social media changes on a daily basis. So much so, it’s hard to keep up with the newest shiny toy that shows up to solve all our marketing problems. It’s great to experiment and try new things, but sometimes we forget about the fundamentals as we chase after the brass ring. That’s why I get so excited when I see brands that still do the simple – and often overlooked – things in social media marketing. Take today for instance … Read more »

Filed under: Social Media Marketing, Social Media Monitoring, Twitter | Tagged: Foursquare, listening, marketing, Mighty Fine Burgers, monitoring, Red Robin Gourmet Burgers, Twitter | 2 Comments »

Smart Businesses Watch Conference Hashtags

Posted on August 11, 2011 by Sarah Page

For the last couple of days, Texas CVBs have converged on San Marcos TX for the 2011 Texas Association of Convention and Visitors Bureau’s Annual Conference. I am fortunate to have joined them for the first time in several years. The educational content has been first-rate and the San Marcos CVB and Embassy Suites San Marcos have done a terrific job hosting us.

But they weren’t the only ones who provided excellent customer service and hospitality. There’s a local Twitter account called TwitBiz San Marcos (@TwitBizSM) that helps shine a light on some of the great local businesses and restaurants located in San Marcos. They do a hell of a job. Read more »

Filed under: Conference, Social Media Marketing, Twitter | Tagged: Beaumont CVB, Embassy Suites San Marcos, San Marcos CVB, San Marcos Texas, Stephanie Molina, TACVB, TwitBiz San Marcos | 1 Comment »

National Tourism Week Goes Social – 2011

Posted on May 6, 2011 by Sarah Page

About this time last year I wrote about some cool social media promotions that DMOs around the country were doing to help celebrate National Travel and Tourism Week. This year, National Travel and Tourism Week is May 7-15, 2011. Hundreds of events will be held throughout the week to inform the public about the economic impact that travel has in our communities.

Many groups are holding local rallies. Some are doing outreach to the media. And others are stepping up their advocacy efforts to elected officials. Some DMOs are including social media as a major component of their National Travel and Tourism Week activities.

Last year, I featured the Abilene Convention and Visitors Bureau, Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, Visit Indiana, and Visit Jacksonville, Florida. Swing by the U.S. Travel Association for all the information and resources you need to launch an effective campaign in your destination. And if you tweet, be sure to add #TravelTuesday and #travelrally to your tweets on Tuesday, May 10 to help spread the word.

Are y’all ready for round 2?

Filed under: DMOs, Social Media Marketing | Tagged: Discover Ohio, DMO, Experience Grand Rapids, facebook, Fargo-Moorhead CVB, Groupon, national travel and tourism week, social media, the Woodchipper in Fargo, Twitter, Visit Buffalo Niagara | 2 Comments »

Customer Service … IRL (gasp!)

Posted on March 22, 2011 by Sarah Page

I felt inspired to write a post about good customer service. There are lots of examples of good online or social media-based customer service out there. This post, however, is about customer service IRL … meaning face to face … without computers … or <gasp!> Facebook. In other words, no technology was harmed in the writing of this post.

If you’re cool with that, then let’s proceed. I think you’ll enjoy this.

Filed under: General Marketing/Advertising, Just for Fun | Tagged: cameron park zoo, chipotle, customer service, embassy suites, funny signs, loudoun VA, schlotzsky's, waco | 4 Comments »

West Texas’ Social Media Rock Star – Shanna Smith Snyder

Posted on March 17, 2011 by Sarah Page

West Texas is known for a lot of things. Big skies, ranching, oil, rugged terrain … One thing it hasn’t always been known for is being a hotbed of social media activity. Until now. Enter Shanna Smith Snyder with the Abilene Convention and Visitors Bureau (ACVB).

Shanna and I first got acquainted on Twitter, where I became an instant fan of her work with the CVB in Abilene. After building our online relationship for a while, we finally got to meet at a Texas Travel Industry Association function. Shanna impressed me so much that I asked her to speak at a seminar series my organization hosted called “Social Media for Economic Development and Community Marketing”. As I expected, she did a fantastic job getting our attendees to realize that social media marketing was not out of reach.

I think her story will really resonate with a lot you out there. ACVB is a small- to mid-sized bureau that does all their social media marketing in-house. Yes, it’s possible and yes, it can be done. Shanna is living proof.

So here’s my one-on-one interview with Shanna Smith Snyder.

Filed under: DMOs, Social Media Marketing | Tagged: #SoMeT, abilene convention and visitors bureau, marketing, Project 365, Shanna Smith Snyder, social media, Texas Social Media Awards, tourism, Travel Matters, Your24 | 10 Comments »

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