The fundamentals necessary for a more ethical interaction with the world have become a lot more widely understood and accepted within the travel arena over recent years. There was eco travel, responsible travel, green travel, and the latest incarnation – local travel. All fighting the same corner, generally speaking, all attempting to advance the same thinking. Local travel introduces ‘experience’ into the mix of reasons to subscribe to this movement, and invigorates it once again with a nice facelift.
Photo by Darron Raw, Swazi Trails
There’s been a lot of talk and attempts to spread values but the ultimate change will come when the travel experience is transformed through the widespread adoption of new technology on mobile devices. The next major shift in how we travel will come as a result of the growth in geolocation functionality. ’Social travel’ could be a real game changer for the industry and a catalyst for the wider uptake of a more ‘local travel experience‘. We’re already catching glimpses of what’s possible in this space as businesses start to play on Foursquare and Gowalla, travellers share updates on Twitter, Facebook and Google Buzz which we can search by their proximity to us.
Web facilitates real world interactions
Over the last 5 years the number of travellers moving around with laptops, mobile phones and digital cameras as surged dramatically. The next 5 years is sure to see us interacting more with other travellers and local businesses in the real world through the help of social, location specific information sharing. Some people may argue that increasing activity on social networks is isolating us from these real world interactions, but as technology advances it’s likely that this online information will help us meet others, and allow local businesses to grab our attention more effectively in the real world in a far more relevant way.
Work on social not SEO
There’s a growing trend for businesses to display a link to their Facebook page in adverts rather than their own website. Businesses are already beginning to believe that growing social interactions around their brand on stable third party platforms is more important than driving traffic to their own more isolated websites. SEO is not as important as working on the magnetism of your brand in social spaces, word-of-mouth is lightning quick these days and genuinely interested customers are easier to reach through Facebook.
Websites rely on innovative use of APIs
Company websites will likely become simple landing pages detailing ways for customers to interact with the service or product provided, much like the iPhone App sites that exist today. The effective, innovative use of APIs will be common place and necessary for all businesses working online.
What do you think the next 5 years will hold for the travel industry?
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Stephen Chapman, Michelle Rodrigues. Michelle Rodrigues said: RT @maketravelfair: Local travel moves us closer towards social travel – the next travel revolution http://bit.ly/9ozzQ3 [...]
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This post was mentioned on Twitter by whltravelblog: Great article, Stephen! RT @maketravelfair: Local travel moves us closer to social travel, the next travel revolution http://bit.ly/9ozzQ3...
I agree that social media has definitely changed the face of travel! I think social media users can expand their cultural horizons and travel knowledge just by viewing pictures and hearing stories about certain destinations from friends on their favorite social media platforms. You also begin to hear about more off-the-beaten-path destinations which is by far my favorite element about social media. Listening to personal accounts on unique destinations is a wonderful way to open up doors for your future travels and influence your future traveling decisions.