Weekly stories curated exclusively for digital tourism marketers
Instagram’s head of product says, “We pivoted.” The platform started rolling out two big new features for iOS and Android in late November. Disappearing live video and messaging are kind of an intersection between Snapchat and Periscope, suggests TechCrunch. To learn more about the Instagram update, click here.
What length of Facebook video ad performs best? The latest research published by WelkerMedia indicates that 30-60 seconds is optimal. Read more here.
Note: eTourism LABS in Philadelphia in March features a Video Storytelling Track.
The holidays remind us to think of airports, cruise ports, bridges, bus, and rail authorities and terminals as destination partners.
From its launch, “I Love NY” partnered with The Port Authority of NY & NJ for a decade. On TripAdvisor, the Golden Gate Bridge is currently ranked #2 of all landmarks in the USA, Grand Central Terminal is ranked #5, with the Brooklyn Bridge coming in at #9.
We love the following two examples of eminently shareable campaigns that infuse personality to transportation authorities by triggering emotions. Learn more about what works best and why at our Video Storytelling Track, eTourism Labs, March 14-15, 2017 in Philadelphia.
1. To steal some ideas from SNCF, a brilliant 2013 experiential activation by French national railroads to remind Parisians that Europe is just next door, click here.
2. Watch for the surprise ending in Heathrow Airport’s Christmas advert for 2016, a cuddly 70-second video that tugs at the heartstrings of all travelers. For “Coming Home for Christmas,” click here.
OK. Basically round sunglasses with video cameras imbedded that upload your Snapchat app.Wearers can take 10-second videos that automatically upload to the Memories part of Snapchat’s app. The spectacles (in black, blue, or coral) connect to your phone via Bluetooth.
You’re limited to a purchase of two at $130 plus tax…if you can get them. A New York Times finance and tech reporter waited 6.5 hours last week after seeing on Twitter that a pop-up shop with bright yellow vendor machines had opened near Apple on Fifth Ave. He got one of the last three pairs sold that day as hundreds were turned away.
Watch this page: Snap, the company that runs the social media service Snapchat, having rebuffed a $3 billion offer from Facebook in 2013, is expected to generate $1 billion in revenue next year and is headed for a blockbuster IPO (rumored at a $30 billion valuation) in 2017.
Read the summary of Snapchat’s path to a big payday here.
To hear all about Snapchat Spectacles on Facebook Live, NYT journalists Michael de la Merced and Brian X. Chen share their impressions of the smart shades here.
To get some insights into what makes a post irresistibly shareable, eTourism Summit invited attendees to submit their best examples from 2016 for our competition, “Post With the Most (Organic) Shares.” Two dozen responses from cities, states, regions and attractions across the USA included both images and videos seen on Facebook and Instagram.
What works best? What triggers people to share? We’ll discuss what we learned from these examples in upcoming November issues of The Travel Vertical. And we’ll be featuring a deeper dive into Video Storytelling and Digital Advertising on the agenda at eTourism Labs on March 24-15, 2017 in Philadelphia.
The eTourism Summit winner video has a lot to do with local pride — the passionate resident ambassadors in your own destination, in this case, Fort Collins, Colorado. Mother Nature’s been kind to this good-looking, fresh air, blue skies, college town nestled at the base of the awesome Rockies where locals are no doubt proud of an award winning healthcare system, top rated public schools, green sustainability leadership, entrepreneurship, bicycle paths, craft beer, a vibrant downtown. (Did you know? Fort Collins’s main street in Old Town was the inspiration for Disneyland’s Main Street USA.)
Visit Fort Collins gets it and nourishes it. Their website has a link called “I Live Here.” A 2-minute destination video was shared by 15% of the Facebook audience of 9,000, ultimately reaching nearly 103,000 for $0.00. Congratulations!
See the winning video submitted by Andrew Woerpel, Digital Marketing Coordinator at Visit Fort Collins, here.
