Day 1

KEYNOTE: Online success in challenging environments

Its no secret the global economic crisis is impacting the travel sector hardest. Weathering the storm will be a tough task, and the consensus is that there maybe worse still to come. But tough times nurture innovation…

Expedia are no strangers to challenging economic climates, and have emerged from similar situations a stronger brand strategically. As with all travel their strategy has changed recently, but this change should not represent trepidation.

Join us for our first ‘wisdom of crowds’ interactive session, led by Cyril Ranque, VP APAC Partner Services Group for Expedia. Discuss innovative techniques with which to tackle the recession head-on, share your own opinion and hear how Expedia plan to positively leverage off the troubled economy. What from their previous experiences can be applied now to defy the downward trend?

CAUGHT IN TIME - THE WISDOM OF CROWDS

We will be revisiting the results from the wisdom of crowds interactive voting at the 2010 summit. Let’s see if popular opinion really can be a predictor of business trends, and look for ways of practically applying this knowledge in the future!

• Cyril Ranque, VP Partner Services Group APAC, Expedia

Coffee

SESSION:

Channel Management

During tough times optimizing the mix of your chosen channels is essential for placing your product in front of the right audience. Identify which channels will reap you the greatest rewards, and align your product offering across multiple channels.

KEY LEARNINGS:

• Expected benefits from an automated channel management system
• Channel harmony - complimentary marketing campaigns that cut across all your chosen channels
• Shifting third party distribution to more lucrative direct channels
• Should you consider paying higher agency commissions if the agency has an extensive global presence, and the ability to attract cash rich foreign markets?
• Advertising model versus sales model - optimise your channel mix
• Discover the core business advantages to exploring several different channels, versus relying on one or two.

• Olivier Horps, VP Marketing (APAC) & GM Commercial, Club Med Asia
• Tran Kien, Chairman, iVivu.com
• Berthold Trenkel, President APAC, Carlson Wagonlit Travel
• Meraj Huda, Principal Consultant, Forumline

Lunch

PRESENTATION: Distribution using unorthodox and innovative methods

Not all travel distribution has to be as expensive as traditional means. Exploring innovative new channels and partnerships can keep distribution costs down, while casting a wider net to reach new segments.

KEY LEARNINGS:

• New low cost means of distribution that should be on any organizations radar
• Meta Search as a viable and competitive alternative to the OTA model
• What extra expenses does Meta Search add to your marketing and sales compared to merchants, where these functions are largely covered?
• Video content as a distribution tool
• Using social networking sites and online communities as a targeted distribution channel

• Grant Coluqhorn, Director of Hotels, APAC, Travelocity
• George Harb, Commercial Director, Travelport

PRESENTATION: User generated and unmanaged content

Adding content to your travel site is not always going to be about fancy video and emotive imagery. Providing customers with the ability to discuss/critique your product is now a key consideration for any modern travel business.

KEY LEARNINGS:

• Travellers believe other travellers - the argument for providing an outlet for user criticisms and reviews
• Integrating user generated content tools means managing new content at an added expense
• Is there much point including user generated content on your site if you are not monetizing it in some way?
• Turning negative feedback into positive PR - strategies to deal with adverse consumer reviews
• The risk of adding favourable content with an organisational bias

• Nathan Clapton, Senior Director Brand Distribution, TripAdvisor
• Ric Shreves, Founding Partner, water&stone

Coffee

Distribution marketing

We revisit this popular topic in 2009, to decipher some of the key types of Asian travel marketing, With a particular focus on the mysterious Search Marketing. What will bring you the greatest ROI?

PRESENTATION: How to wean yourself off search engines

Oodles.com founder Steve Sherlock believes the strategic use of SEO and SEM can be vital in the early stages of a company´s growth, but businesses put themselves at risk if they fail to evolve more sophisticated brand marketing strategies.

Using Oodles.com as a case study, Steve will explore why a company that is too reliant on search can be a sitting duck, and look at ways in which a business can wean itself off search engines in order to build long-term value to its brand.

Steve will support his argument by comparing direct site traffic metrics with that of paid search traffic. He believes that Google itself is the perfect example of a company using innovation rather than search to build its brand: “Google didn´t rely on other search engines to become Google”.

• Steve Sherlock, Managing Director, Oodles.com

PRESENTATION: Optimizing multi-channel online marketing campaigns

As consumption of digital media increases, companies are increasing their efforts at targeting consumers through emails, SEO initiatives, Pay-per-Click advertising, display advertisements, affiliate marketing, and social networking. In this complex online environment, search advertising has been seen as the most effective channel at delivering results, particularly transactional ROI. However, consumers engage the brand via multiple channels before purchasing, and there are many points in which a company influences them before a transaction.

Are companies paying attention to this brand engagement journey? Do they have an understanding of which combinations of campaigns and channels are contributing to their success events? Ultimately, are they optimising towards the channels that produce the best ROI, or is it simply a shotgun approach?

• Joe Nyugen, Regional Manager SEA, Omniture

Day 2

SESSION:

Forecasting through an economic downturn

Lead times are shrinking, as are travel budgets - from corporate and leisure alike! Forecasting has become both worryingly difficult and increasingly essential at the same time. Can we actually continue to forecast with any degree of confidence or accuracy?

KEY LEARNINGS:

• Understanding your customers and booking validity to increase forecasting accuracy
• The impacts of the volatile economic climate on travel forecasting
• How is forecasting achievable during economic climate and what to be wary of
• Maximize forecasts with shortened lead times
• Under what circumstances should you alter your forecasts - what will be the likely impacts of this?
• Currency fluctuations - their continued influence over long and short haul travel patterns

• William Chua, VP Revenue Management & Distribution, Meritus Hotels & Resorts
• Ricky Ang, VP Sales & Marketing, Hotel Equatorial

Coffee

SESSION:

Optimized third party distribution to stimulate sales

As ominous signs of a price war begin to loom, third party websites as sales and distribution tools take on new importance. Hear the key considerations you should make before offering more inventory for 3rd party sales.

KEY LEARNINGS:

OTAs as a distribution channel

• Identifying what works - What proof is there that a chosen OTA will sell?
• Increasing your reach is essential when times are tough, so will OTAs demand higher commissions?
• Should you be considering dropping less lucrative channels, or expanding your intermediary net to reach as many people as possible?

• Rob Rosenstein, COO, Agoda
• More OTA speaker announcements coming soon

OTAs as a sales and marketing channel

• Tailoring promotions according to the type of OTA being used
• Sourcing local OTAs with better local knowledge depending on the country being targeted.
• Can OTAs fill the sales gap left by corporate bookers who ignore negotiated rates and shop for cheaper rates online? Or are they an instigator of this change?

• Daren Kang, Director of Agency Sales Asia Pacific, IHG
• Janice Chan, Director Online Distribution, Starwood Hotels & Resorts APAC

Lunch

PRESENTATION: Content aggregation with meta search

Mea search is a search concept that we are all very familiar with, and one that is here to stay. Fritz Demopolous of Qunar believes that 2009 will see new meta search offerings that could change how consumers access hotel pricing and travel information.

Hear Fritz provide details on how Qunar plans to aggregate and filter relevant information, and provide context to hotel reviews, pricing information and non-price content. Can classic meta search engines move beyond simple price comparisons, and into the technical realm of content, context and customization? You be the judge...

• Fritz Demopolous, Co-Founder & Managing Director, Qunar.com

PRESENTATION: Using video content as a sales tool

With increased connection speeds, advancements in mobile devices and internet penetration continuing to spread across Asia, video content has become much more viable. As with all forms of content, video can be provided in more than one format - user generated, professional, unbias. This presentation will cover the following issues:

• Choosing the right style of video content for your site
• Where connectivity will still present a barrier for video
• The ROI you can expect from different video formats
• Video as a measurable marketing tool instead of a branding exercise

• David Chambat, VP Asia Pacific, TVtrip.com

Coffee

SESSION:

Enhancing the customer experience using innovative content

A clear website content strategy can add stickiness to your website and engage customers to turn lookers into bookers. Hear how optimized content can bolster your natural search rankings

KEY LEARNINGS:

• A great website reflects well on your brand. Learn the minimum features that are now the common standard
• Customers vs Optimization - should your website content be tailored towards optimizing your site or enhancing a customers experience?
• The expense of upgrading your website with modern functionalities
• Simple features like video content add clarity to your product offering. Hear which consumer demographics prefer rich content, and what text remains essential to conversions
• Does the variable standard of internet connection across Asia limit your ability to integrate rich content? Where will this be most problematic?

• Michael Lee, VP Marketing Systems & Services, Banyan Tree Hotels & Resorts
• Sameer Poonja, VP Technology, Kiwi Collection

PRESENTATION: Usable and enjoyable sites for sales success

Customer expectations evolve, so it is vital to have an ongoing program of analytics merging insights from search, traffic, sales and research data. These insights build hypotheses that can be continually tested, with winning candidates implemented to increase engagement, conversion rates and average booking values.

Keith Timimi explains how to add depth to your website content using this technique, while optimizing both your organic and paid search traffic in the process.

• Keith Timimi, Chairman, Qais Consulting

SESSION:

Tailoring website content to satisfy different cultural needs

Each Asian culture interacts with - and responds to - different types of rich content in different ways. Understand what types of content appeal to the different Asian market segments

KEY LEARNINGS:

• Learn the content preferences and requirements that different Asian cultures demand of a travel website
• At what point should you offer translated language websites, and what ROI can you consequently expect?
• Understand which countries are embracing both the contribution and consumption of UGC.
• Is your content being presented in the way that it was originally intended? Maintaining the quality and consistency of content across different channels

• Edward Perry, Senior Director of eCommerce, WORLDHOTELS
• Dan O'Sullivan, Director of Sales EMEA, Translations.com