The Berlin Buzz

Last week Phocuswright@ITB gathered global travel leaders to discuss the latest trends and topics that are shaking up the travel industry. For those who were not able to make the trip and did not follow the action on Twitter or the travel industry blogosphere, below we review the hot topics of the event. Join the conversation about these topics on Facebook or learn more by reviewing new and upcoming research from Phocuswright.

Here is the buzz from Berlin:

"Tough times are a cyclical reality for travel and while they are always difficult to endure, our industry always comes out better for it. Companies are forced to get leaner and meaner—they find ways to do it better, faster and cheaper than they ever did before."
- Philip C. Wolf, president, Phocuswright Inc. - opening comments from 12 March

The Bloggers Summit kicked off Phocuswright@ITB and social media experts presented their top social media trends for 2009. They are:

• 2009 will be the year that executives make a serious commitment to social marketing
• Social marketing becomes an important part of companies' public relations efforts
• New hires will be made for social marketing experts

Twitter was the hot topic at the Bloggers Summit—not Google or Facebook. Twitter was used so heavily during the event to share comments, communicate and connect that the hashtag #ITB09 ranked as high as the 5th hottest Twitter topic of the day.

OTAs are competing head-to-head as Expedia enters meta search and Kayak goes after TripAdvisor. When news broke of Expedia's promotional fee cuts, attendees debated the outcome and implications of the next OTA shake-up.

Destination marketing organizations (DMOs) are in a dilemma to facilitate demand in their markets. Some European DMOs are ahead of the curve - emerging as travel retailers and utilizing social media to create buzz about their destinations.

European companies are debating how to invest in mobile applications and whether to utilize Web-based platforms or downloaded applications.

Make sure to join us 10-11 March next year at Phocuswright@ITB and the Bloggers Summit for more poignant topics and the travel buzz of 2010.

Auf Wiedersehen.