Owning a Tourism Business is awesome

21 Jul 2012

Social Signals Explained – What are they and how are they important?

Great article explaining in simple terms : Social Signals Explained – What are they and how are they important? — Social Metrics Pro

Social signal has never been so important. Now, how often do we take recommendations from people in our network? Quite often, right? Whether it is for an investment, an online purchase or a personal issue , we often consult our friends or other experienced people and experts in our network. We do it to get good advice from all parties so that we can arrive at the best decision to act on. A recommendation is like a VOTE that allows you to take a step in that direction. This recommendation, in the eyes of the search engines, is a social signal.
The concept of recommendation has now come to search engines in the form of “SOCIAL SIGNAL”. What does this mean? The inclusion of the human component, YOU, in the search engine results in a more organic and dynamic manner than ever before. How does it work? Based on your recommendations through Likes, tweets and Google +, which act as social signals.

17 Jul 2012

10 Tricks to Optimize Your RSS Feed for SEO


rss optimizationA good number of you already use Feedburner to syndicate your blog posts via an RSS feed. Let us discuss how to best optimize your RSS feed to provide the best value to your subscribers at the same time reap maximum benefits from your feed.
RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication. Its a technology that is being used by millions of web users around the world to keep track of their favorite websites. Darren has explained RSS in plain and simple English. Following graphic illustrates how RSS works. If you have never used an RSS Feed reader, try Google Reader.

Is Your Feedburner RSS Feed SEO Optimized?

If you aren’t already using Feedburner to syndicate your feed, now is the time to do so. Go ahead and sign up to burn your feed. And if you are already using it, read on to find out if you are using your RSS Feed to its best potential.

Full article here: RSS Feed Optimization Tips for your Blog SEO

8 Jul 2012

Twitter Advertising: Twitter Ads for small businesses

Twitter Ads can offer a great way to get attention on Twitter. The ad formats are quite unique and the Start Advertising section provides detailed explanation about their advertising products. Twitter allows you to set a budget, choose run dates and your target locations. Once you submit your request, it will be added to the advertising queue. There are three ways to advertise on Twitter.

First is Promoted Tweets. Promoted Tweets are displayed in Twitter search results or in user timelines. You only pay when someone retweets, replies to, clicks or favorites your Promoted Tweet. You don't pay for impressions on retweets and can extend the reach and cost-effectiveness of your campaign.

Trending Topics let users find out what's hot on Twitter right now and join the conversations. With Promoted Trend, you can purchase a trending topic. Your tweet will be displayed on the top of the trend search results. It is important to note that Promoted Trends are visible to all users, instead of a targeted group.

Lastly, Promoted Accounts can be used to quickly grow your followers. The Promoted Account is featured in search results and within the Who To Follow section. It will be shown to users who are most likely to have interests similar to your account. You can also target the campaign to specific geographical user base.



Twitter Advertising:

5 Jul 2012

How To Respond To Online Traveler Reviews - The Good, The Bad And The Ugly

In an increasingly technologically savvy world, it has become second nature for both business and leisure travelers to turn to the internet to research for a hotel destination, whether through a search engine, social media channel, brand website or online travel agency.  The internet has made it fast and easy to research properties, view photos, read traveler reviews, and compare rates from virtually anywhere--at desktop computer in their own home, on their mobile phone or on a laptop computer.  With the increased availability and access to information, hotels are not the only ones controlling their brand image and the content available to travelers and consumers.
The growing sophistication of online marketing in the travel industry has created more sophisticated consumers, who cut through the hype and marketing provided by a hotel and seek out independent opinions and reviews as their most influential source of information.  In a recent survey conducted by TripAdvisor and Forrester Consulting, 81% of travelers said reviews were important when deciding which hotel to book, and almost half said they wouldn't book a hotel unless it had reviews.
The relationship between OTAs, review sites and hotels has always beencomplicated, but with the proper knowledge and practices, the hotel and third party sites can grow to have a loving, successful relationship!  A major part of regaining control of the content about your hotel and making a significant impact in the minds of travelers is to respond to the reviews that travelers have posted online, often known as reputation management.
Here are Blue Magnet's top tips on how to respond to online traveler reviews of all types--the good, the bad, and the ugly!
Full article here: 
How To Respond To Online Traveler Reviews - The Good, The Bad And The Ugly | ehotelier.com