As we begin to understand the value of endorsements and recommendations on the social web, it will be interesting to see how hotels incentive these.

One concept proposed at PhoCusWright@ITB 2011 townhall brainstorming: What if you offered a discount code that people could only receive by scanning a QR code with their mobile phones, opting in to receive updates via SMS text message, checking into the establishment using Gowalla or Foursquare, and notifying their friends via Facebook and Twitter?

How much of a discount would you provide to gain that level of permission and coverage on the social web? Would the discount be tied to influence scores like Klout?

Today I spoke with Roger Marquis – a 2D bar code strategist – on the application for bar codes in hospitality marketing, and how he sees this area developing in the future.

First, what is a 2D bar code?

One-dimensional (1D) barcodes, the codes that we are all familiar with and see on most every retail product, stores information horizontally. Two-dimensional (2D) barcodes also store information, but they do so horizontally as well as vertically.

Because 2D barcodes store information in this manner, they can hold that much more data than a 1D barcocde and can be used for applications above and beyond price scanning and inventory management.

How are QR codes and 2D bar codes related?

2D barcode is a generic term used to describe a wide variety of barcodes that store information in both the horizontal and vertical plane.

The QR (Quick Response) Code, one of the most popular 2D barcodes used by companies and individuals around the world, was developed in 1994 by Denso-Wave, a division of Toyota. Originally, the QR Code was used to track car parts and supplies, but now it has found its way into a variety of mobile-based applications.

What are some practical applications you see of this technology?

In a hotel setting, there are a number of applications that make sense and can help to enhance a guest’s on-site experience.

For example, a 2D barcode can be scanned at the concierge desk, which links to an interactive map that the guest can load onto their mobile device. The map can provide information for local restaurants, theaters, sports arenas, historic sites, etc.

A 2D barcode can be placed on a sign that sits on the front desk and when the code is scanned it can enable the guest to either write a review about their stay or post a comment to a Facebook or Twitter page.

In the hotel’s restaurant, there can be a code placed on a table card which, when scanned, links to a video that describes items on the menu or interviews the head chef.

What about using bar codes in advertising?

In advertising, 2D barcodes offer a great way to bring potential guests from the printed page to the digital page, where so much more information and a richer interactive experience can be delivered. The trick, however, is the execution of the advertising campaign and use of the barcode.

Using 2D barcodes in advertising also lends itself to being able to track and analyze campaign results, more so than traditional advertising.

What’s the best way to deliver content to the user?

Because 2D barcode technology is mobile phone based, it stands to reason that the content that the barcode scans or links to should be optimized for mobile phone viewing and access.

This is where a lot of companies and their creative agencies drop the ball and, as a result, the whole 2D barcode experience is less than ideal. Companies need to invest the time, effort and resources in developing a mobile site, because this is one of the keys to success.

Thank you, Roger!

If you have not yet created a mobile friendly website, here are a few reasons you should make this a top priority as we head into 2011:

Mobile-friendly websites help avoid platform issues

Rather than worry about creating applications for each of the mobile platforms – iOS, Blackberry, Android – a mobile friendly website will make your hotel accessible regardless of the device your guests are using.

It’s easier to develop

Tools like Mofuse make it possible to create a mobile friendly website in a fraction of the time it takes to develop application.

Engage more people

While a single property may have difficulty encouraging people to download a separate mobile application, everyone can access information via a mobile device via the web. It’s likely you’ll reach more people.

Some research on why mobile is so important

I know many of you don’t need any convincing on why mobile communication is so important – both for service and for sales. A Priceline study indicated that 82% of mobile customers booking a hotel do so the same day of arrival. So it’s an opportunity for immediate sales.

But if you’re talking to management about your mobile strategy, you might find some statistics from the most recent eMarketer survey (October 2010) interesting – there’s a strong preference for mobile websites vs. applications:

• 81% (to 19%) prefer mobile websites to mobile apps for researching products and prices
• 71% prefer mobile websites for comparing products and prices
• 68% prefer to read customer reviews via a mobile website
• 63% prefer to make the purchase via a mobile website

Do you have a mobile-friendly website up yet for your hotel?

It’s always good to look for ways to bridge the offline to online gap. When you can use mobile to do this, all the better. That’s why I like what Tailor Made Hotel is doing here:

I asked their marketing manager, Manuel Alba, about this:

What inspired you to add a QR code & Facebook sign to your door?

We already had before a QR code in one of the windows of the lobby. We were inspired by many examples first in Japan, and recently many companies in NY that are adding QR codes + FB signs to attract locals.

What was the development process for building it?

The QR code is generated online in (http://qrcode.kaywa.com/)

And the FB “LIKE” badge, as you know you can download from facebook site.

After generating the code and the FB Like badge, we hired a plotter specialist.

Have you received any feedback from guests?

A lot. Many people stop on the lobby window at TMH, and take photos of the code.

Have you noticed an increase in facebook fans?

We had a little increased, but we are working hard on it. We considered important the quality of new fans, and not just quantity, our idea is to make a space where people who love TMH and love Buenos Aires could share his experiences.

Are you using QR codes elsewhere in your marketing?

For the moment we have only one QR code (the one of the photo) and you can go directly to our FB Fan Page.

Thanks, Manuel!

Josiah’s note: This is a guest post from Marco Saio, one of the event directors at EyeForTravel. (You can see some of my thoughts from the Chicago event here.)

Here’s a brief round-up of lessons learned and ideas shared at Chicago’s EyeforTravel Mobile in Travel conference at the Travel Distribution Summit North America 2010.

With presentations and panelists from fifteen different companies, the amount of experience and hands-on knowledge was hard to replicate and – we hope – useful for the audience.

Given the nature of such events – listening to so many people over so many hours – it’s sometimes hard to recap everything, but here’s a run-through of the main points, as delivered by the speakers and discussed in the panels.

The Time for Mobile is NOW!

This fact was demonstrated in two different ways by two very different presentations. Jared Miller from Continental showed the traction generated with the brand-new Continental iPhone app; within weeks of release, the application was providing services to tens of thousands of passengers and generating significant ancillary revenue.

Tripit’s Gregg Brockway took the 30,000 feet approach, presenting mobile as part of another wave of change which will alter whole industries, and which you should ride, rather than allow yourself to be crushed.

According to Gregg, the interoperability between current offerings – mobile and social capabilities – allows for a new traveler-centric service approach. Similar thoughts were reflected by Max Starkov of HeBS in his talk about the “hyper-interactive travel consumer.”

This is an opportunity for disruption, which could come from start-ups, incumbents, or companies not traditionally involved in travel, who decide to step in (esp. mobile giants).

… A video recording of Gregg, Max and Chris’ session is available online here.

Mobile Creates New Touch Points with Customers

Jim Davidson of Farelogix moved the audience with his question, “What is the first thing that happens once an aircraft touches down?”

The answer: hundreds of cellphones are turned on all at once. The potential for a revenue or other-value-generating interaction with the arriving passengers – right there and then – is easy to understand. Delivering relevant content and transactional opportunities at this time is totally feasible (to wit – it’s a feature of WorldMate on BlackBerry).

Many such examples exist – based on location, context and immediacy. Jim predicted that “In 2012, 50% of all ancillary transactions will be made on mobile devices.” While this may sound like a tall order, Jared from Continental presented a chart showing that weeks after their iPhone app was released, check-in transactions on iPhone were generating more ancillary revenue than on any other medium (web, kiosk or mobile web).

In the hotel domain, similar data points are emerging. Tony D’Astolfo quoted a Priceline report which states that 82% of their mobile customers book their hotel within one day of arrival, compared to only 45% who do it on the web.

The Platform Story is Complicated, and Will Remain So

It’s a complication from multiple aspects; first, the multitude of different mobile platforms (iOS, BlackBerry, Android etc. – see my previous post) and approaches (apps vs. mobile web).

And no, it doesn’t look like the platforms are consolidating soon, nor does it seem like HTML 5 will replace apps in the foreseeable future. TripAdvisor’s Mike Putnam suggests a hybrid approach, with an app that presents the main user interface but uses an integrated “browser window” to present most of the online content.

Second, some experiences call for platform-wide solutions. For instance, mobile boarding passes are a sub-par experience that can be improved with an airline app, but only for boarding passes from that same airline; do we really want to download and sign up for an app for each of the airlines we use?

More likely, we want the platform to provide a solution, styled after Kerry Kennedy’s “save the screen shot” idea, but a little more direct.

Tablets are a Separate Opportunity

Tablets (e.g. iPad, PlayBook) are great travel research tools, unlike smart phones, which are great immediate-info retrieval/action tools. As some of Orbitz’ Chris Brown’s stats demonstrated, this market is growing quickly.

It’s a different mode of interaction; similar to the desktop, but with a different user interface. If you’re an online marketer, these, too, should be on your roadmap and, unfortunately, what you deploy on these should be different from what you build for smartphones.

… In retrospect, we’ve barely scratched the surface. Mobile continues its run as the ‘enfant terrible’ of the travel industry, and its enormous influence will only grow as social readiness and technology bound forward in giant leaps. Watch this space!

In spirit of the event, I did not bring my laptop to this event – only sent out tweets to summarize the ideas.

Interestingly, one of the keynotes that interested me most wasn’t directly tied to mobile. It was Adam Brotman introducing the Starbucks Digital Network, summarized here on GigaOm by the writer I ate lunch with, Ryan Kim. There were so many useful concepts there that I’m writing a separate post about it. But the big takeaway was that you can become a content curator by partnering up with publishers trying to reach the same audiences. It’s a win/win/win proposition that yields a great customer experience – while providing opportunities for you to make money.

Which leads right into the first idea…

[To see all my tweets from the event, go here]

I do most of my technology previews on Friday, but since that was Digital Down Day for us, we’re doing it today….

Bryan Bruce is a hospitality technology marketing professional from Orlando, and today we talk about the future of mobile apps for meetings – and how your hotel can benefit.

• The benefits of mobile apps for users
  • More efficient enjoyable attendee experience
  • Reduce printing costs (green initiative)
  • Increase sponsorship via banners (sponsor to attendee)
• Why mobile meeting apps helps users
  • Agenda info on smartphone or ipad
  • Easily connect with everyone at the conference
  • Have easy access to post event content
  • Carry less folders, papers, etc.
• How it can benefit a hotel
  • Could be a value add offering to earn business
  • Could help promote outlets (restaurants, spa, etc)
  • Could drive revenue (local area partners pay for exposure inside app)
  • Ability to move last minute group space to accommodate another incremental banquet)
• What’s in the development pipeline for the future
  • Incorporating a Spotme type navigation right into the app (find people in large space)
  • Use GPS analytics while users are inside app to track movements on a tradeshow floor
• How much does it costs to mobilize a meeting?
  • In the end we believe the apps should be free.  The cost to develop a simple functionality app available on the iphone, droid or blackberry can range from 10k to 100k.  However depending on the size of the conference and the amount of app functionality, we should be able to offset development costs with sponsorship dollar generation.  Earning much more than the app development costs is normal.

Here’s the conversation:

If you want to try some of this technology for your next meeting, I recommend you get in touch with Bryan via his website, Twitter, or Facebook.

Last week I met with Lawrence Coburn, CEO of San Francisco-based software company RateItAll, and an expert on location-based mobile services. His company is developing a new mobile application – DoubleDutch – that I think could significantly change the way hotels think about mobile marketing.

I frequently receive questions from people asking what their mobile strategy should be. Should they develop their own app? Should they rely on an online travel agency such as Expedia or Travelocity? Usually, neither of these paths is optimal. Creating a brand new application is impractical for the vast majority of hotels, and using another company’s tool doesn’t provide the level of branding and customization needed.

Plus, the principal opportunity I see in mobile is in service and cross-selling – not in new room bookings.

As I mentioned in a previous post, the primary business benefit of a service such as foursquare is that it drives loyalty and repeat customers. Users can check in whenever they visit a location: a new extension of the traditional hotel loyalty model. Management can reward the specific activities they’re trying to promote.

This is where a  tool such as DoubleDutch may come in. Designed to be white labeled for individual hotel groups, it could be completely branded and customized to yield the experience you want to provide. Lawrence describes it as “a mix of Yelp and Foursquare.” (Two of the hottest geo-location platforms in US mobile right now.)

Geolocation services are perfect for travel. When I arrive in a new city I want to know which places are best in my neighborhood.

Lawrence envisions the tool being used as a concierge application. Something that people can take around with them as they explore the city. The advantage of DoubleDutch over foursquare is that it is a completely branded experience. It allows you as a hotel to connect with the guests even when they’re not on your property. Relationships could be developed with local businesses for cross promotion. It lets you help guests discover new places, and even connect guests with each other. It’s all about discovery.

Additionally, the hotels could keep info on separate tabs in the application. This might be used to share special promotions, or just updates from your hotel blog.

The application can update  Twitter and Facebook, so there is a viral component built in to encourage word-of-mouth buzz.

I guess I like this so much because it combines next-generation technology with my core value: a concierge-approach to marketing. This new service-based style of mobile promotions is the future, and I expect it to go mainstream in the months ahead.

I’d really like to create a case study on this could work for a hotel, and Lawrence has agreed to arrange this. We need a few early adopters to give this a test.

Anyone here want to try this out for your hotels?

Over the past few months, I’ve had the opportunity to talk with product managers at all the major travel industry mobile players.

Interestingly, their preference for distribution options ranges from “it doesn’t really matter” to “it really DOES matter”. Without naming names, there seems to be agreement on the advantages to both platforms:

Mobile websites:

• Updates are instantly available to the user (you can’t force updates with apps)
• Cross-platform functionality
• In-house developers can use existing skill sets
• Development time can be faster

Mobile phone apps:

• People don’t usually want to inccur data roaming charges when abroad
• Can be a higher level of functional reliability (no cross-browser issues)

For many hotels – especially independent properties – it’s a resource issue. A simple mobile website can be the most effective option.

Tip: If building an app isn’t a realistic option for you, consider OTAs to be a good partner for you on this.

Mobile marketing is going to be increasingly important for hotels in the months and years ahead, so this is something to plan now – if you haven’t done so already.

What is your mobile strategy?

[Photo credit: The Lightworks]

Google and Microsoft explain how consumers are interacting with mobile…and how suppliers can reach them.

Thomas O’Neil, Google Travel

Mobile landing pages: designing the user experience

• landing pages are evolving
• 4 great examples
  • Hotels.com/iPhone
    • being first moving has big advantage
    • have 1 million+ app downloads
  • m.toyota.com
  • m.cnn.com
  • iPhone.fandago.com
• key take-away: there needs to be optimized landing pages for the consumer
• not everyone has an smart phone…design for less
• search google webmasters: “mobile seo”
  • search algorithm is different for mobile sites

Mobile search: what consumers are doing

• not usually willing to do more than one search
• probably won’t go beyond top 2-3 search result listings
• they search for roughly the same amount of words…but search less often
• SEO is extremely important. If you’re not in the top 1-3 results, you may as well not even be there.

Advertising on the go: opportunities to reach individuals

• 4 types of Google advertising opportunities
  • WAP search
  • HTML search
  • content network (on other sites)
  • YouTube videos
• understand which apps your audience is using to choose advertising opportunities
• Google provides a high level of reporting options

Read more…