After last week’s conversation with Bill Beckler, I was
interested in learning more about Priceline and Kayak’s digital marketing
strategy and how they are able to effectively compete. In November, 2012,
Priceline proposed to buy Kayak for $1.8 Billion. Ever since, competitors have
been interested in understanding how this acquisition will impact the digital
marketing strategy of both companies.
One of the main reasons for this acquisition was the launch
of Google Hotel Finder. As we have learned, Google is an incredibly powerful
search engine and Hotel Finder could become a serious competitor as it tries to
grow market share. Travel suppliers have always fought for browser space by
paying Google for ads and investing in SEO efforts. However, recently Google
has been pushing organic results below the screen fold and promoting
advertisers and their own content from Hotel Finder according to a Tnooz
article. In response Priceline has decided to fight Google by acquiring Kayak
and bypassing the Google search engine, consequently saving nearly $1 Billion
annually.
For travel related companies, it is now imperative to have a
strong multi-channel digital marketing strategy and not rely on just Google,
Bing, or dominant Online Travel Agents. Additionally, having a strong Social
Media presence, especially in the travel industry is imperative, as customers
are relying more and more on peer-to-peer reviews and Word of Mouth marketing.
A well-constructed and responsive Facebook, Google+ and Twitter profile can
help to diversify communication channels to customers.
Sources: http://www.tnooz.com/article/what-does-the-priceline-kayak-deal-and-google-lurking-in-the-background-mean-for-hotel-marketing/, http://www.tnooz.com/article/rip-search-engine-optimisation-in-the-new-world-of-google-travel/, http://skift.com/2013/09/18/where-did-kayak-disappear-to-after-the-priceline-acquisition-it-went-to-school/
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