Travel Is Your Business – travel industry podcast

044 – Gilad Goren of Raleigh&Drake – Enabling the Generation of Experiences

May 18, 2018Marc Raco Leave a Comment

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 55:15 — 78.1MB)

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The world’s first influencer-driven discovery platform using social currency for travel…

Gilad Goren, social entrepreneur and Founder of Raleigh&Drake, joins John Matson, Bess Chapman, and guest host Marc Raco in the MouthMedia Network studios powered by Sennheiser.

In this episode:

Gilad Goren on the future of content in the travel context, mix of personalization, instead of celebrity culture of past more local authentic voices and people who align with the travel in the way they view travel, ubiquitous and quality content throughout the journey
Millennials rarely plan trips until on their way, dreaming and planning
Raleigh&Drake is not setting new paradigm, instead reading the lines on how people plan their trips, helping with the tool for brands in travel space to adapt to how travelers view luxury
Many people spend 45 hours on 45 websites when planning travel, but will ask friends on social media what they do and think
Less than 25% trust recommendation sites, and
Building a quilt of different sources of insight, aggregating trusted content so brands can deploy into their websites, as a discovery ecosystem
White label bookable content as a service solution, aggregate great content, make bookable, license to brand who want to increase engagement and increase customer experience
Power of Instagram was in the visuals from real individuals sharing experiences with others, timeless power of visuals as we are visual beings
Always looked for advice from people close to us, this is another way of doing it
Brand can really own an experience, host and facilitate experience, benefit on ancillary revenue, and benefit from enhancing guest experience, all built for personalization which grows as the traveler uses it more
Necessity of CRMs, how Raleigh&Drake can feed data to a brand’s CRM
An opportune times to leapfrog
A route into travel for brands to connect with consumers
Interacting with local travel resources can lower the carbon footprint, have less cultural negative impact, increase spend into local economies
Curating and trusting explorers
Through their lens, a multiplicity of curated authentic unique voices
Earliest memories of Saturday morning cartoons like GI Joe as a first glimpse into the American hero and American spirit, as an early brand experience forming who Goren is
How Raleigh&Drake started B to C, and leveraged partnerships and turned B to B
Goren spending 45 days in Bolivia in an animal refuge in taking care of middle aged pumas

043 – Greg Buzulencia of ViaHero – Experiencing Travel with the Local Hero

May 11, 2018Marc Raco Leave a Comment

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 42:47 — 49.1MB)

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Connecting travelers with local trip planners for custom itineraries to Iceland, Cuba, and Japan…

Greg Buzulencia, Co-Founder/CEO of ViaHero (a marketplace for travelers to hire locals to plan their personalized trip), joins John Matson, Bess Chapman of jetBlue Technology Ventures, and Pavan Bahl (President, MouthMedia Network) in the MouthMedia Network studios powered by Sennheiser.

In this episode:

Bess Chapman [Episode 003] of jetBlue Technology Ventures (a venture capital spinoff of jetBlue Airways, keeping a pulse on tech innovation and driving deal flow through New York) joins the podcast as a host
ViaHero works with locals telling people what they should be doing on a trip
How, being a marketplace, ratings and reviews keeps people in check, whereas travel agents are beholden to commissions
Cuba, Japan, and Colombia as countries in which Via Hero has presence
Average user wants local knowledge, people who have tours or Travel Agent plan, they are there for service but want to be independent
Algorithm matches with people who have same Interest and are in that area
SEO and user acquisition in various geographies
Changing needs and expectations of travelers, but there is still a feeling of needing info to help figure it all out
Hanging out with hosts, immersing in local culture, but it is a digital relationship with a “hero”
Offline maps with local recommendations and locations
Consistent trends in data being collected, database of their recommendations to more easily crate the guide books
The economics of the relationships with the local “heroes”
A cross-country trip as a child that made an impression on travel, and the passion of never paying for water

042 – Stuart Butler of Fuel Travel – Marketing Hotels with Empathy

May 1, 2018Marc Raco Leave a Comment

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 53:52 — 61.8MB)

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Ecommerce and marketing solutions that reduce OTA reliance & increase bookings…

Gaining ground in market share isn’t the only goal for hotels and hotel chains. Keeping it — comes in at a close second. To do that in the current industry climate, many hotels must utilize specialized e-commerce solutions to make sure all online presence and marketing resources are maximizing market share opportunities. Fuel Travel, a premier hotel marketing agency, is offering just that — website design, custom hotel apps, and marketing solutions that reduce OTA reliance & increase bookings. Plus, its COO hosts a podcast which can add some “fuel” to a resort or hotel’s marketing strategy. And the one snack you have to try. Stuart Butler, COO of Fuel Travel and host of Fuel Hotel Marketing Podcast, joins John Matson and Pavan Bahl in the MouthMedia Network studios powered by Sennheiser.

In this episode:

How hotels can differentiate in the market
Following brand standards and following the flag is more challenging, and in the end hospitality comes down to one thing: hospitality
Why the best marketing is hiring the right people and exceeding the expectations of guests
Exceptional experiences are priority, and the rest takes care of itself
How Butler wanted to work for NASA, originally from the UK, and how while studying physics he got into computer programming
Why fuel Interactive rebranded as Fuel Travel, adjusting focus to hospitality
The Guest Express mobile app, giving a property the ability to communicate with customers one-on-one
The mistakes independent hotels make when launching, how too many are people chasing the bright and shiny buzz vs. paying attention to the basics that have worked forever
Email marketing is still the #1 thing one can do as a property and destination property
Also, most hotel operators do not have a grasp of the data, or how customer acquisition is happening, or tracking the whole revenue journey
The focus on accessing info via mobile, with micro-periods of access, yet mobile is an afterthought for so many web designers for hotels
More traffic comes from mobile, but bookings are not following that yet (likely because mobile experience is not as good as desktop)
Good profiles are very important to connect with younger generations
It is unnecessary to give away massive discounts to get business if marketing is strong enough
Podcast helping marketing hotels with the Fuel Hotel Marketing Podcast
Aspirations for space travel, and Star Wars
Why marketing should be thought of as a conversation with the guest

041 – Isabel Berney and Truth Oladapo of Vacayo – Vacation Rentals Landlords Love

April 24, 2018Marc Raco Leave a Comment

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 46:07 — 53.0MB)

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Leasing long-term rentals and converting them into outstanding vacation homes which provide landlords higher income and eliminate vacancy risk with Vacayo…

Isabel Berney (COO/Co-Founder) and Truth Oladapo (CEO/Co-Founder) of Vacayo join John Matson and guest host Jenny Silber (VoyagerHQ) in the MouthMedia Network studios powered by Sennheiser.

In this episode:

Examining the short term rental market, how much a revenue property can hold, developing a propriety pricing algorithm, scraping websites to see the highest earning potential of homes, and owners can earn at least 40% more at least with short term stays added into the mix instead of long-term leases
How this is an arbitrage model, and the risk is potentially in any miscalculation in revenue-generating potential of a home — but with historic data, and the fact that the vacation market is growing, the risk appears to be low
How the model is different and not just profit sharing, so some risk is involved
Additional risks of a downturn in travel, a major shift in economic conditions, etc.
Landlords receive a monthly payment regardless, so what Vacayo does to cover that risk
Insuring each home as well in case Vacayo can’t rent properties due to storms etc.
How Vacayo has started to install smart devices which revealed people are spending less time in the homes than believed, overcoming the landlords’ misconceptions that homes have greater wear and tear and risk with comings and goings in short term rentals
How in the future Vacayo will likely be more of a data company,
Why Vacayo is banking on a nomadic lifestyle
Providing flexible accommodations with more options and sleeping arrangements than hotels, people prefer vacation rentals as a result
Vacayo is partnered with Ikea and Wayfair to succeed in getting things ready quickly, with the right team working together can do fast turnarounds in 48 hours
How they started off on Craigslist, bootstrapping, and were discovered by a landlord
The six markets Vacayo is in
“Superhosts” who take care of on-the-ground operations as independent contractors, with easy onboarding, and working on a percentage
The matching process with renters to properties
The crowd-funding campaign as a way for people to own a part of the company in a sharing economy, but without the complexity of formal shares
Why there is little worry about competing with companies like Airbnb, and how there is plenty of room left in the industry, especially for an asset-light business model
How Vacayo specializes in large group travel
The story of Berney and Oladapo starting out as roommates

040 – Robert Albert of Routehappy – How Was Your Flight?

April 18, 2018Marc Raco Leave a Comment

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 53:33 — 62.2MB)

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Merchandising content platform for flight shopping…

Robert Albert, CEO of Routehappy (the industry standard for airline rich content, acquired by ATPCO) joins John Matson and Nick Vivion in the MouthMedia Network studios powered by Sennheiser.

In this episode:

The most commonly desired amenity in travel: seat, then WiFi
Selling a singular vision when pitching/building Routehappy
How it is not actually all about price
An entire ecommerce category that’s comeditized, we all about the experience from that moment on
Explaining products and services customers are happier, and the industry does better
How it was obvious to him that every customer needed this
Why Albert feels it has felt like spreading a religion, every meeting is positive, but not necessarily a priority all the time
It is an organic experience, brick by brick building the path forward for the company and the recognition of the need
How the pace of building the company has helped them build it right, solving a complex problem, and why the company is ready for prime time now and can solve global differentiation problem in flight shopping
Why GDS’s didn’t solve this prior
Sales cycles in travel vs. funds for startups
Massive network effect, explaining the story and getting airlines and distributers to align on the story and potential impact
How hard Albert and team worked building the company, holding twenty five meetings a week while traveling, making good product decisions that got companies interested
Originally Routehappy was about consumer flight reviews, then built APIs of data, and operating lean
Happy and cheap as a product compass
How Routehappy’s solution was now described as being able to enable the industry with better data, and that resulted in the first serious ways people were paying attention
Moving from B to C to B to B as a pivot
Pineapple chunks, and why this Australian treat was the snack, and the meaning
How Routehappy was recently acquired by ATPCO, software that manages the world’s airfares
UTA rich context (universal ticket attribute)
Becoming the “Switzerland of rich content”, how Routehappy can now deliver on the thing they said they were doing for seven years
Overall vision as the next gen storefront, how it is time to modernize flight shopping, how indirect channels can and should transform, and coming together with the “how”
The happy empire and the tip of the iceberg
Albert’s parental inspiration for travel

039 – Viktorina Lintsova of SkyGuru – Experience Flying Again

April 10, 2018Marc Raco Leave a Comment

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 39:38 — 45.5MB)

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Real-time explanation what and why happens and what to expect during your flight, and a tool for anxious flyers…

One in three people experience anxiety when flying. Now there is an app that can help. Viktorina Lintsova, Managing Director of SkyGuru joins John Matson and Nick Vivion (tnooz) in the MouthMedia Network studios powered by Sennheiser.

In this episode:

The most anxious moments for flyers
Pre-boarding, why the anxiety, anticipation and fear of the unknown
The inspiration for SkyGuru, with the idea from a pilot and psychologist, who wanted something to be there and support people when he couldn’t be there with them
Like having a pilot and psychologist in the seat next to you
One in three people experiencing psychological discomfort, many altering plans due to psychological stresses
Money left on table for airlines, why airlines haven’t addressed this
Is a loss of cognitive function due to anxiety a safety issue?
Freemium vs. pro versions, anxious passengers gravitate to the pro version, which supports through the whole flight
Looking at how people interact with SkyGuru, whether an anxious flyer or not, and how SkyGuru has been evolving into a travel companion and people curious about aviation
SkyGuru soon releasing updated version with some augmented reality
Why the app needs to be flat on armrest at time of takeoff
Accelerator experience, getting the most out of a 3 ½ month program,
A home-baked snack with a secret recipe
Who is the anxious flyer – not who you think, and how it can come out of nowhere.
Anxiety can cause airlines to lose business travelers, 5% of the highest value flyers are anxious
SkyGuru has gotten interest in airline industry in industry events, and can be integrated in seatback screens to enhance passenger experience
How the app can help passengers plan their flight experience better, flight crews can know when to serve the food/drinks, and one can see use with OTAs and travel portals to help passengers plan flight better,
Bringing the experience back to flying

038 – Tom Cintorino of Northstar – Meeting At The Center of the Travel Industry

April 3, 2018Marc Raco Leave a Comment

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 35:07 — 41.0MB)

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Events, publications, education, and technology for the travel industry with Northstar…

Tom Cintorino, EVP of Digital for Northstar Travel Media (the leading B2B information, business intelligence, commerce and events platform serving the travel industry) joins host John Matson in the MouthMedia Network studios powered by Sennheiser.

In this episode:

How Northstar’s team of outstanding editors, ground-breaking journalists, engaging educators and savvy directors is unrivaled in the Travel Industry
In-depth articles explore the industry’s most critical issues
Education platforms for travel agents and meetings planners about global travel destinations
How events play a role in travel industry relationships, because we’re human and we need to meet, and how that concept is right in the center of travel
The many publications of Northstar including Travel Weekly, Travel Weekly Asia, Travel Weekly China, TravelAge West
Travel technology such as Phocuswright, Inntopia, Web in Travel
Meetings & Conventions in the US, China and Asia
SportsTravel , Corporate Travel, Business Travel News, The Beat, Travel Procurement
Notable events such as The Phocuswright Conference, Phocuswright Europe, WIT Singapore, Mountain Travel Symposium, CruiseWorld, Global Travel Marketplace, Global Travel Marketplace West, The Beat Live, Innovate, etc.
How Cintorino became involved with Northstar after the grind of the startup world
Why the travel industry supply chain is like a bowl of spaghetti, and everyone is doing business with everyone, even if only impacting one part of a traveler’s experience and you might work with most everything and everyone
Impacting the culture of a company, spending a lot of time on destination experience of a work trip, and raising the bar for personal experiences
Setting up in China, and early accomplishmentsHow technology plays into vision for Northstar, with acquisitions and how the focus is not just events or media companies but also tech companies
Geo-cloning

037 – Rama Poola of SkyHi – For Thirty Five Bucks

March 28, 2018Marc Raco Leave a Comment

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 42:50 — 59.5MB)

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Last minute travel subscription service, cheap tickets in exchange for a monthly fee…

Rama Poola, CEO of SkyHi (the first on-demand service for commercial airline tickets.), joins John Matson and Nick Vivion (tnooz) in the MouthMedia Network studios powered by Sennheiser.

In this episode:

About SkyHi’s most interesting recent use case, with people using it to go to Sundance Film festival, one click and they were ready to fly to Salt Lake City
How last minute travel is a bit of a business case
Looking at how removing all pricing allows free flowing travel action
How SkyHi wasn’t originally targeting corporate travelers, and was marketed toward digital nomads, but realized business people were joining
How an experience in Lisbon created an idea for the business
Why technology has been traditionally stifled in the travel industry
The way SkyHi found a strategic partner out of Hungary who had done this before
The business model of SkyHi
OTAs seem to want to haggle for the business, they want the customer to buy, but keep it a distance from them
How SkyHi is making it easier for customer, but price arbitraging in a seamless, invisible way
Booking within a minute is game changing in itself
Loving the experience of flying

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Hosted by industry leaders and relevant business experts, Travel Is Your Business (TIYB) podcast features discussions inspired by recent news, useful in-depth interviews with thought leaders, innovators and top brands setting the pace and changing the face of travel, announcements by business leaders on initiatives and milestones, and commentary about virtually anything in between — making insights into business and technology within the travel industry entertaining, meaningful and accessible.

036 – Eduardo Cartaya of G Adventures – Changing Lives Though Travel

March 22, 2018Marc Raco Leave a Comment

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 35:46 — 51.4MB)

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Responsible travel & tourism with a group adventure travel operator…

Eduardo Cartaya, Regional Sales Manager of G Adventures (G Adventures is a Toronto-based adventure travel company with a wide selection of small-group tours, safaris and expeditions) joins John Matson and Nick Vivion (tnooz) in the MouthMedia Network studios powered by Sennheiser.

In this episode:

Cartaya shares how the way constructing travel was going to a purpose, then G Adventures realized that was why people were traveling with them – because it was both affordable and immersive
The impact made from altering the local supply chain, insisting on using locally owned business, immersive attractions, spending money more responsibly than other operators in the field
How the company can make more money, make a difference simply by showing people a fantastic vacation
Marketing/customer acquisition, going after the immersive travelers who want to do something exceptional and to give back as much as they take
Trying to impact everyone that tourism touches, doing the right thing part of five core values
Approaching sales, selling values, selling sustainability, a lot of storytelling of interactions, things they care about can be political, more than 20 offices in 18 countries
How for 40 poorest nations in world tourism is primary economic driver, and how incentivized trips work to up tourism
Partnerships, and a partnership with National Geographic
How G Adventures travelers can maintain their travel independence while traveling with a group
When traveling brings surprises

035 – Dane Andrews of Roam – Maximizing Happiness, Because You Want To

March 16, 2018Marc Raco Leave a Comment

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 52:38 — 73.1MB)

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An international network of co-living spaces…

What does it mean to be location independent? Dane Andrews, Co-Founder and Head of Growth at Roam (a co-living and co-working community testing the boundaries between work, travel and life adventure) joins John Matson and Nick Vivion (tnooz) in the MouthMedia Network studios powered by Sennheiser.

In this episode:

How Roam provides for people interested in “Nomadicism”, solving logistical things, and how the difference is the people and the community available the instant you’re in a new city
How usually you just get to know people when you’re leaving and can’t get deep with people, really know them – and Roam allows you to have people in your life in that city immediately, with authentic interaction, with the spaces set up that way
A lot is about architecture of space, designer by trade, the social dynamics of hospitality, with a focus more than most co-working providers
How, while looking like an urban city, it is not about price per square foot, and more about setting up for interactions and maximizing happiness
Common denominators of seeking out happiness, and how curiosity binds people together
Various global places differ more in logistics than mindset
Play spaces, and how design and architecture are intended to be inspiring, and seeing yourself there
The origin of Roam International, wanting to see them all over the world
Viewing Roam spaces them as your home, housing from a different perspective instead of hospitality
Connecting with people via private social media groups
The 2,000 alumni (“Roamers”), and how they get stamps on their “passport” for going to all properties
Next properties in London and Tokyo
A cornbread story
The company’s financial model, and how they started with leasing properties,
Benefitting from the idea of AirBnB being around for years, and how they set precedent for how similar models work
How Roam has a hotel license, which allows people to stay
Marketing for the company, as somewhere between an apartment an a hotel
Andrews’ first trip as a child, and finding oneself, finding a Phoenix local in the “dodgiest” place (Athens)
Never about being exclusive, and always about inclusive