MindShift Interactive Social Media Report 2012

Page |2

LETTER FROM MINDSHIFT INTERACTIVE...
I thank all of you for the excellent response to our Social Media Report 2011 on Consumer
Sentiments, revolving around Brands leveraging their association with The Formula One 2011. It
gives me great joy to see brands integrate MindShifts shared in our findings within their social media
strategy.

We are determined to make bold statements and create mindshifts and keeping that in mind, our
Social Media Report 2012 on The Impact of Social Media on Hospitality & Tourism shows the need
for businesses within this booming sector, to be on Social Media and leverage it in an insightful
manner to their advantage. We have focused upon four key sectors, namely Airlines, Online Travel
Agencies, Hotels and Travel Review Sites.

The confidence in which we state things at MindShift Interactive is an indication of our deep
understanding of not just Social Media but also of the consumers and business we touch. Yes, it is
our Metrics that give us this confidence to show the way towards sustained engagements and
innovations. Our Social Media Report 2011 on Consumer Sentiments which was implemented across
brands that conducted Events is clear indication of the value of our findings, or as we call them,
MindShifts. The result for each brand implementing our MindShifts assures sustained digital
outreach that crossed boundaries of innovation and engagement. Try it for yourself if you haven’t
already!

This report is a must read for all those within the Travel & Hospitality Industry, as well as those
wishing to offer Social Media within the Airline, Hotel, Online Travel & Travel review sectors.

This report drives home the point for all to not just being present on Social Media, but making
your presence felt!

As always, I look forward to hearing from you on the MindShift our report creates for you or your
organization.

ZafarRais
Chief MindShifter
zafar@mindshiftinteractive.com

Know what’s happening at MindShift Interactive:
Website – www.mindshiftinteractive.com
Facebook – www.facebook.com/MSInteractive
Twitter – www.twitter.com/Mind_Shifters

• MindShift Interactive • Social Media Report 2012 • Impact of Social Media on Hospitality & Tourism •
• www.mindshiftinteractive.com • +91-9820071517 •

Page |3

Table of Contents
Executive Summary 4
Hospitality& Tourism – MindShift Findings 5-7
Airline Industry 8 - 27
 Airline Industry in India

 MindShift Report Findings

 Consumer Perception

 Platform Wise Distribution

 Sentiment Analysis

 Social Media Metrics

 Key Social Media Findings

 Trend Forecasting

 Key MindShifts

Online Travel Agencies 28 – 44
 Online Travel Agencies in India

 MindShift Report Findings

 Consumer Perception

 Platform Wise Distribution

 Sentiment Analysis

 Social Media Metrics

 Key Social Media Findings

 Trend Forecasting

 Key MindShifts

About MindShift Interactive 45


Page |4

Executive Summary
Over the last decade India has transformed into a popular tourism destination in the world, largely
as a result of various initiatives lead by the government. Campaigns like “Incredible India” and “Atithi
Devo Bhavo” have showed India in a new light to overseas tourists.According to the World Tourism
Organization, India will be a leader in the tourism industry in South Asia with 8.9 million arrivals by
2020, emerging as the second most rapidly increasing (8.8 percent) tourism economy in the world,
according to World Travel & Tourism.Tourism in India is the largest service industry, with a
contribution of 6.23% to the national GDP and 8.78% of the total employment in India. The tourism
industry in India generated about 100 billion US$ in 2008 and is expected to increase to US$275.5
billion by 2018 at a 9.4% annual growth rate.

The increased dependancy on Social Media by
travellers is growing faster than the travel
industry itself. India’s travel category garnered Leader in the tourism industry in
the second largest share (42%) of total Internet South Asia with 8.9 million
arrivals by 2020
visitors in Asia, with 17.8 million average
monthly unique visitors in the 1st quarter of 42 % of Total Internet travel
2011.Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube are the inquiries in Asia are from India
most popular and effective social media
networks for marketing within the tourism and
hospitality industry, catering to the need of consumers to review brands, locations and read user
experiences, whilst also responding actively to queries and comments.

In this report, MindShift Interactive audits & analyzes the Impact of Social Media on Hospitality &
Tourism Industry, tracking leading sectors associated with the industry, namely, Airline, Online
Travel Agencies, Hotels and Travel Review Sites. The basis of selection for these sectors was on the
standard experience of a traveller, starting from chosing his destination, to getting there. Brands
chosen within each sector were selected on the basis of their Active Social Media Presence and the
MindShift Metrics Scorecard© which covers the outreach across the Social Media Landscape.

This Report covers:

 Analysis of social mentions tracked across a months timeframe on Hospitality
& Tourism
 Brand Ranks and their presence on various platforms
 Competitive Intelligence across Sectors
 Key MindShifts to shift the way the industry moves
 Trend Forecasting & Global Benchmarking in various sectors


Page |5

Hospitality & Tourism – MindShift Findings

Social Mentions - The overall mentions tracked during the timeframe of one month were 19,025
across various social media platforms. Conversations were monitored and analyzed across these
sectors: Airline, Online Travel Agencies (OTA), Hotels and Travel Review Websites.

Social Mentions - 19025

Social Share of Voice–Social Share of each industry is calculated on the basis of Industry
Conversations and Overall Conversations tracked.

The below shared statistics highlight that Airlines, with 56% conversations, lead the Social Media
space, followed by OTA (25%), Travel Review Sites (11%) and Hotels (8%).

© MindShift Interactive

Airline Industry dominated the Social Media Presence (56%) due to the crisis revolving
around Debt & Bailout, Safety Issues and Staff Concerns amongst various Airlines.

Social Reach explains the various platforms brands are present on. Twitter, Facebook and Forums
were the leading Social Media Platforms for conversations on Hospitality and Tourism. Given these
platforms are heavily used towards sharing of comments, reviewing products or services, it throws
light upon the usage of Social Media for this sector.


Page |6

+82% Conversations
on Facebook and
Twitter

Top Conversations /
Platform:

Twitter - Current News
on Brand / Industry

Facebook - Brand
Presence

Forums - Reviews &
Queries

Social Reactions–7% of the overall conversations were official updates from the Brand itself,
informing the consumer about the current happenings or offers and news. The remaining
conversations were reactions/ interactions or individual discussions from the consumers. A clear
indication that consumers realize the effect of their voice on Social Media, and a point for brands to
start creating routes of channelizing these opinions on specific platforms and creating engagement
channels that ensure grievances are kept at bay. Truly, the rise of Social Influencers would be key
here.

Hospitality & Tourism
accounts for 93% Social
Media Conversations by
the Consumer


Page |7

Consumer Perception– 83 % of
consumer sentiments were
positive or neutral towards the
industry. Positive conversations
were primarily lead by an
experience that the brand
helped toward enjoying or
happy customer reviews of
their journey. Queries, sharing
of information by the brand
were neutral conversations that
were shared. Negative
sentiments were identified at
17% of the overall ©MindShift Interactive
conversations, with
conversations dominated on issues related to airline delays and crisis.

TG Profiling - Men dominate the social conversations at
79%, with women holding a 21% share of social voice. This is
an indication that men are actively involved in making travel
decisions and reviewers of the experience. Learning for
brands to capitalize on them whilst also creating
experiences for women to ensure participations from them
increase in tandem.

Conclusion - Airlines dominate conversations on Social Media primarily because of the involvement
of brands in various controversial issues along with the start and end of the holiday season for
travellers. The need to ensure this part of the industry creates a positive experience is vital, whilst
also ensuring the overall Hospitality & Tourism Industry provides for positive sentiments.

Brands must provide for experiences to consumers which are favourable towards changing their
sentiment when they receive announcement of a delay or the shift of a room in a hotel. The rise of
Social Media Influencers, the correct usage of every platform & innovating on the basis of
understanding the consumer pulse will help leverage the industry as a whole and help them ensure
consumers interaction is sustained and not contest lead.


Page |8

Airline Industry Analysis

Hospitality & Tourism Industry:
Airline
Online Travel Agencies
Hotels
Travel Review Websites


Page |9

Airline Industry in India
The Indian aviation sector is a major economic driver for prosperity, development and employment,
with a growth rate of 18 per cent in the domestic market expected to open up various opportunities
on the global front. According to Associated Chamber of Commerce (ASSOCHAM), the Indian
aviation industry holds potential to soar high on a growth curve in 2012, poised to emerge as the
third largest aviation market in the world by the end of this decade.

One of the key factors that will define the growth of the Industry is how each brand builds and
nurtures online communities, leveraging social media networks as effective marketing tools. The
Industry can engage with its consumers right from the information stage, leading to quick responses,
sales and also acting as an effective online reputation manager to resolve complaints or
acknowledge customer feedback.

Globally, airlines have integrated Social Media in their marketing campaigns leading to an adoption
of an integrated 360 degree marketing strategy.

MindShift Interactive conducted a study on the top five social media savvy Airlines, tracking
conversations to gain insights on various social media patterns within the industry.

Industry Snapshot
56% Conversations on Airline Industry


P a g e | 10

MindShift Report Findings – Indian Airlines
on Social Media

Air India boasts of being the most
talked about brand on Social Media
with 50 % share

Top 3 Platforms in the Airline
Industry:

1. Twitter

2. Facebook

3. Forums & Blogs

Spice Jet had the highest Positive: Negative (4:1) Conversation Ratio

Conversation Topics on Each Platform

7391
Conversations

2140
Conversations

1151
Conversations


P a g e | 11

Consumer Perception
The chart displays the
positive, negative
sentiments of consumers
towards each brand, along
with neutral sentiments,
displaying that Air India
received maximum
conversations on Social
Media followed by Jet and
Kingfisher.

Although Air India
experiences the highest
amount of conversations,
they rank with more negative than positive experiences. The same is the case for Kingfisher Airlines.
Both the airlines remained in the news due to issues like debt, bailout, frozen bank accounts and
employee/ staff related concerns.

On the other hand, although conversations related to Spice Jet are low, consumers seem to have the
higher positive experience with the brand as compared to others. It is important for Spice Jet to
build upon this by nurturing their influencers, and for others lagging behind to create instances for
consumers to feel good and voice their thoughts about the brand.

TG Profiling– With 83% conversations, men
dominate the social media conversations for Airlines.
Women occupy 17% of the social media space.
Consumer discussions largely show Men being
responsible for taking travel decisions when it comes
to booking& chosing the right airline. Clear indication
that marketing activities need to create targeted
efforts towards both.


P a g e | 12

Ratio of Positive: Negative Conversations – Brand Analysis

The chart below shows the ratio of Positive: Negative conversations by consumers on Social Media.
The findings reflect that the most talked about brand may not necessarily be spoken about for the
right reasons. Key to balancing this is to constantly stay active and ensure you respond to
consumers, even on negative responses, gracefully.

SpiceJet has the
maximum Positive:
Negative Ratio of 4:1
implying that for every
four Positive
Conversations, they
witnessed one negative
conversation. All others
equate the
conversations.

Though SpiceJet was the 2nd least talked
about brand, the ratio of Positive:
Negative Conversations was the highest


P a g e | 13

Platform Analysis
The below statistics help us understand the presence of the top three brands in the Airline Industry,
over various Social Networks. The charts highlight the number of conversations for each brand on
Social Media, strengthening the MindShift Audit and Analysis.


P a g e | 14

Sentiment Analysis -Top Positive Conversations


P a g e | 15

Top Negative Conversations


P a g e | 16

Social Media Metrics
We tracked the Social Media presence of the five airlines, analyzing the objective, activeness of the
brand and the strategic approach chosen, with respect to campaigns, platform integration and
response management, resulting in a thorough Social Media Audit.

The MindShift Metrics Scorecard® shares insights on each brands Social Media presence, via pre-
defined and proven Metrics. The scores aligned to each metric provide for a sustained and insightful
digital outreach for brands which come from an understanding of the consumer and business.
Metrics defined for each platform take into consideration the qualitative (content, creative’s, etc)
and quantitative (fan numbers, outreach, interactions, etc) features of the platform.

The sum of all scores together aligns a Rank to the Brand thus leading us to the insights of which
brand dominates on social media and the reasons behind the same.

The table below displays the MindShift Rank* for Airline brands, highlighting that Jet Airways leads
the social media space followed by SpiceJet and Kingfisher. Air India and Go Airare at the bottom of
the chart, showing their need to get onto the bandwagon and make their presence felt.

Airlines MindShift Metrics MindShift
Rank Scorecard®

Jet Airways 1 52.5

Spice Jet 2 49

Kingfisher 3 41

Air India 4 23

Go Air 5 16.5

©MindShift Interactive

*For a detailed understanding of the Ranking process, please refer to our Research Design – MindShift Metrics Scorecard
Section.

MindShift Metrics Scorecard® and our Social Media Audit helps
you gain deeper insights on the following:

1. Platform Analysis
2. Strengths and Weakness of each brand on Social Media
3. Global Trend Analysis and Forecasting


P a g e | 17

Jet Airways - MindShift ScoreCard®

Rank - 1
Score – 52.5/100

Airlines Social
Reach

Jet 7 19 12.5 4 4 4 2 NA NA
Airways

Jet Airways leads the Social Media Space with the highest rank of 52.5 – MindShift
Scorecard®

Leaders on Social Media with Higher Outreach, Innovators & Active Presence
across Platforms

Facebook Insights – With over 3, 18,000 Fans, Jet Airways leads the way on Facebook –
LOW Engagement Ratio of 2.4%

Content Mix - Intelligent & Interestingly postedAir Schedules, Fares, Corporate
Information, Awards, Jet Privilege, JetEscapes, Festive Wishes, Popular Destinations &
Travel Tips

Campaign Strategy – Big Campaigns are missing, though the brand balances the
presence with helpful information for the customer. Integration of innovative campaigns
could help increase the engagement ratio on Facebook.

Twitter, with more than 11,000 Followers is positioned as a CRM
Key Focus:
Platform.
Redirect traffic to
Objective: Effective Response Management within a Website
Timeframe, taking the conversations off the timeline via DMs and
Customer Care

An active Foursquare Account with over 2700 Followers and 552 Tips shared. The ONLY
ACTIVE airline brand on Foursquare

Early Adopters on Social Media, with usage of QR (Quick Response) for the Smartphone
users


P a g e | 18

SpiceJet - MindShift ScoreCard®

Rank – 2
Score – 49/100

Airlines Social
Reach

SpiceJet 7 20.5 12.5 4 1 2 1 1 NA

Second Most Active Airline on Social Media with a Rank of 49 – MindShift Scorecard©

Creative Innovation on Social Media, with customized look on various Social Media
Properties

Facebook Insights – With over 3,07,000 Fans, SpiceJet is the second highest brand with
a high Facebook Reach – Engagement Ratio of less than One Percent – VERY LOW

Content Mix - The updates are more Informative and more updates are leading to lesser
reactions on each update

Information about Flights, Destinations – Linked to Website

Campaign Strategy – Innovative Travel Campaigns + Interesting Content Mix + Regular
Campaigns could lead to higher engagement on the Fan Page

Twitter, with more than 2200 Followers is positioned as a CRM
Twitter CRM
Platform.
Approach differs
Objective: Handle Queries on the timeline and Public with each Airline
Domain within a timeframe Brand

86,000 Views over 12 Uploads - SpiceJet YouTube Channel includes TVCs and some on
ground videos from the Airlines

Social Media Presence across 7 Platforms – BUT Active only on three platforms


P a g e | 19

Kingfisher Airlines - MindShift ScoreCard ®

Rank - 3
Score – 41/100

Airlines Social
Reach

Kingfisher 5 14.5 12.5 4 NA 4 NA 1 NA

Kingfisher Airline ranks third on Social Media, with a score of 41 – MindShift
Scorecard®

The Social Reach of the Brand extends to FIVE Platforms

Facebook Insights – With over 1, 24,000 Fans, Kingfisher does have a considerable
share of Fans on Facebook – Engagement Ratio of approximately 1% indicates LOW
RESPONSE

Content Mix - Daily 1 -2 informative updates ONLY Brand Specific are done. Information
about Flights, Destinations – Linked to Website

Brand needs to work on Content Strategy with Interesting, innovative & engaging content

Campaign Strategy – Concepts like Wonderful Wednesdays and Earn King Miles are
communicated via the updates.

With over 14, 200 Followers, Kingfisher leads the Twitter
Kingfisher
Presence amongst Indian Airlines
Airlines is the
Content Mix – Customer Care, Facebook Updates synced, No. 1 Indian
Retweeting Quotes from Kingfisher Authorities & Sharing News Airline Brand on
Twitter

The Brand leverages Twitter to keep its customers updated about the current happenings /
clarifications on controversies about the company

No Individual YouTube presence for Kingfisher Airlines, content shared over
Official Kingfisher Channel


P a g e | 20

Air India - MindShift ScoreCard ®

Rank - 4
Score – 23/100

Airlines Social
Reach

Air India 4 7.5 3.5 5 NA 3 NA NA NA

Air India ranks fourth in the Social Media Race, with a score of 23 on MindShift
Scorecard©

Air India is the ONLY Government owned Airline, with a LOW Social Media
Presence

Facebook Insights – With over 770 Fans, Air India still needs to reach out to its TG and
develop a Fan Base on Facebook – An Engagement ratio of 4% is due to low reach on FB

Content Mix – No routine/schedule is followed on Social Media and updates

Latest news from the industry or the airlines is the only shared content on the fan page,
leading to fewer interactions on the fan page

Campaign Strategy – Brand needs to explore the medium and capitalize the medium
with innovative ideas and campaigns. The current approach has Campaigns MISSING in
the plan

A Basic Twitter Presence with over 340 followers and ONLY 5 Tweets till date

No Bio or Description to describe or validate its presence on the platform. Zero Response
Management or Customer Care activities are done via Twitter.

Air India had expressed last year
on April, 2011 to have an Active
Social Media Presence. As we
complete a year after the
announcement, the Airline seems
to be moving at a slow pace


P a g e | 21

GoAir - MindShift ScoreCard®

Rank - 5
Score – 16.5/100

Airlines Social
Reach

Go Air 3 7.5 5 NA NA 1 NA NA NA

Go Air ranks the lowest amongst the Indian Airlines with a score of 16.5 – MindShift
Scorecard©

Brand seems to have an UNDEFINED Approach on Social Media

Facebook Insights – With over 2400 Followers and an Engagement ratio of 2% the brand
yet needs to explore Facebook, with respect to Fan Base and Consistency on the platform

Content Mix – Less Activity & Poor Response Management on Fan Page, leading to a sense
of agitation among the customers

No specific themes or campaigns have been integrated on social media

Campaign Strategy – MISSING Aspect by the Brand

A Basic Twitter Presence with over 445 followers

Unlike other airlines, Twitter does not manage or address any grievances online.

Tweets only redirect followers to Facebook and then to their preferred service, thus
increasing the steps in a consumer’s surfing pattern.


P a g e | 22

Social Media Findings – MindShift
Metrics

Social Media Platforms are a MEDIUM for Airlines Twitter is the leading platform
to lead customers to their WEBSITE with maximum Social Media
Conversations

Jet Airways leads Twitter due to its active
presence and response mgmt

Air India is the most talked about brand
due to Aviation Regulations/ Controversies

Jet Airways leads the Social Media Universe
with an active presence on 7 Platforms

Twitter is primarily used as a CRM platform, though each brand
adopts a different communication route
Consumers
prefer Social
Media
YouTube is the least leveraged Social Media SpiceJet leads the
Platforms
Platform by Indian Airlines Facebook Presence
over Forums,
due to quick through effective
response and integration of
Effective Engagement on Facebook
engaging platforms, creatives
is MISSING!
activities and intelligent
Content Mix


P a g e | 23

Trend Forecasting
Globally, airlines are one of the most active sectors on Social Media. Key business goals such as
Customer Care, identification of loyal customers, increase in sales via E-Commerce and engaging
with fans are catered to on Social Media. The medium serves as a heavy consumer care platform.
Unlike Indian airlines, global players have realised the true potential of the medium and evolved into
integrating it across other marketing channels whilst also adopting innovative campaigns to truly
generate an ROI.

We studied the global presence of a few International Airlines like Southwest, American Airlines,
Delta and Virgin America to share a few insights that could serve as learning by Indian Airlines.

Global Trends-

1. Social Advocacy: Most of the brands track conversations on Social Media, segregating them
into Positive and Negative Conversations. The negative conversations are flagged instantly
but the positive conversations only make it to the reports/testimonials sections. Taking a
leap ahead, Global Airlines have leveraged the concept of Social Advocacy by rewarding their
loyal fans with virtual points, which can be redeemed in the real world. Social actions like
tweeting about your experience, writing
a review or checking in via Foursquare, MindShift Insights – Did you know that
can lead to discounts, free admission to 75% of frequent flyers would fly an
the lounge or various additional airline if it is recommended by a friend,
benefits from the airlines. rather than flying the cheapest one.

Virgin Atlantic revamped its Social
Media Community Vtravelled and
rewarded its frequent flyers using gaming mechanisms to engage with their 1.8 million flying
club members. Air New Zealand incentivized its loyal flyers by free admission to the Lounge
by showing their Mayor Status and Boarding Pass. Virgin America and Jet Blue have also
banked on the same concept. Miles Millionaire was another concept explored by British
Airways & American Airlines where loyalists were rewarded 20,000 Bonus Miles with a
contest connect to the activity.

The Reviews and Testimonials act as
a referral system, extending the
brands reach and trust circle on
Social Media. Thus tapping the
influential network of your loyal and
frequent flyers is one of the
strategies adopted by Global
Airlines.


P a g e | 24

2. Conversations on Each Platform:

Identifying the need and customizing each platform as per its capability is a prerequisite
before aligning social media strategies. Facebook is used as a One Stop Medium for
Information, Innovation and Integration, syncing it with other platforms.

Brands like Southwest and American Airlines have integrated a Recommend Us feature as
soon as an individual ‘Likes’ the fan page, thus leveraging the opportunity and increasing the
fan base.

Campaigns, Contests
and Videos are created
on a regular basis to
create sustained
engagements.

Twitter is used as a
CRM Platform where
each brand has a pre-defined approach. American Airlines has three Twitter handles, each
dedicated to cater to a set Target group:

@AmericanAir - Thanks for checking in! Send your praise, concerns and suggestions to the
link below to ensure an appropriate response from American Airlines.

@AAdvantage - The official AAdvantage Twitter feed, a community dedicated to all the ways
to earn AAdvantage miles!

@AdmiralsClub - American Airlines Admirals Club membership lounges span the globe and
provide a respite from the concourse

The response time taken by Global Airlines to respond to a query on an average is an hour.
The quick response strategy demonstrates that airlines are certainly taking Customer
Service seriously on Twitter.

Tapping the potential of Video networks such as YouTube is seen effectively through
Southwest Airlines who have a dedicated YouTube channel called NutsAboutSouthwest.
With over 316 Uploads, 7 million views and 4000+ Subscribers the airline uploads videos of
their experiences, testimonials, campaign ideas and contests.

Foursquare integration is seen through a successful campaign by KLM Airlines - An
experiment on how happiness spreads to surprise their customers. KLM installed a “Surprise
Team” who would track the Check-Ins at various airports, Counter-Google about the person
via their Social Profiles, decide on a creative gift and surprise them by giving it to them
before their journey starts. One of the most innovative campaigns with an integrated
foursquare plug-in, KLM Surprise Campaign merged online concepts with an offline connect
to spread their acts of kindness.

P a g e | 25

3. Innovation is the key: Southwest Airlines welcomes its Fans on Facebook with a Fare Play
Concept, where the Airlines talks
about its No Change Fees and
Bags Fly Free services. Driving
home the core point and giving
you reasons to join makes for the
perfect welcome tab.

Having been in the social media
space longer than most players
allows them with the ability to
innovate further and use the
medium to greater advantage.
Content created by the brand
also showcases the thought-
through approach and an
underlying reason behind them.
Attributes which truly come out of having matured in the industry.

4. Research & Insights:Global brands understand that Social Media offers vast amounts of data
which could be used to their advantage. They understand that sentiments cannot be
gathered simply through a tool and hence incorporate it with their campaigns and content
which translates into an analysis for future strategic approaches.

A trend worthy of adoption in India by the Airline Industry on Social Media will be towards
customer redressal, with brands enticing them to voice out their positive experiences, even
if it requires constant gratification. This, we feel, will only be possible when brands learn to
understand their consumers on social media before creating strategies towards marketing to
them.


P a g e | 26

Key MindShifts
Social Media Opportunities keep evolving, changing the perception of hundreds of people who
communicate and share information. It would be crucial for brands to monitor this fast evolving
process and leverage the data sourced through Social Networks. Brands would be expected to lead
rather than follow, listen rather than dictate and create a social community of trusted influencers.
Our analysis concludes with 8 Key Takeaways for the Airline Industry that would help brands
leverage Social Media.

1. Be Approachable: Brands need to identify the value that Social Media offers, and
accordingly integrate the medium in its marketing plan. Creating an outreach which offers
consumers with a two-way communication model is the need of the hour and is only
possible when they begin to understand the pulse of the consumer and deliver strategies
accordingly.

2. Different Platforms.Different Objectives: Every social network caters to needs to every
business separately, and hence, it is important to customize usage. For the Airline Industry,
Twitter plays a vital role in customer relations, engagement while their customers are at the
airport as well as while offering specific deals to targeted users. Similarly, YouTube plays a
role in showing consumers an experience visually, prior to experiencing it live, satisfying an
important channel of decision making.

3. Consistency is the Key: Once a brand enters Social Media and creates a considerable klout, it
is important to maintain the same on an ongoing basis, in a thought-through manner.
Brands who get lost mid-way or fail to engage their consumers after the end of a contest
tend to stop activities and go back to the drawing board. This may harm brands more than
they can imagine. Hence, keeping a consistent engagement pattern is the advisable route to
take.

4. Avoid a Crisis! Social Media can help you resolve a crisis and even avoid one. A socially
active presence where queries are heard, complaints are resolved and feedback is used
constructively is key to managing and maintaining the reputation of a brand, whilst also
creating a happy experience with the consumer.

5. Define an ROI: Everything requires deliverables to be aligned with well defined goals and
key performance indicators to assure a satisfactory ROI. KPIs may be Higher Engagement
Ratio, Lower Response Time, High Outreach content, etc.

6. Explore Location Based Platforms: Location Based platforms are the least explored within
India but have amazing potential within the Airline Industry. Looking at global players
leveraging this medium to the optimum, it’s a learning we must adopt and build upon.

7. Listen – Control the medium by listening and analyzing the conversations that take place and
the tonality that suits your brand before you start talking. People will talk to you if you
understand their sentiments and the way they prefer to talk on Social Media. Constant
tracking of conversations via tools and analysing the same through social research specialists
is the way to a successful Outreach.

P a g e | 27

8. Social Loyalty Programs – Your audiences are experiencing your brand day in and day out on
Social Media. Whilst they love to share negative experiences, their mentions of the positive
ones are rare. Create instances for your consumers to “share” via loyalty programs and
special associations. Build a healthy base of influencers & nurture them into the voice of
your brand.


P a g e | 28

Online Travel Agencies –
MindShift Analysis

Hospitality & Tourism Industry:
Airlines
Online Travel Agencies
Hotels
Travel Review Sites

P a g e | 29

Online Travel Agencies in India
E-Commerce in India has been growing exponentially in the last decade and is likely to grow year on
year, leading to a growth in the trade market. One dominant factor in this growth journey has been
the contribution of Online Travel Agencies (OTA). With more than 80% of the transactions in this
sector, Online Travel Agencies contribute a major share in the E-Commerce Industry.

Online Travel Agencies sell travel products and services on behalf of suppliers that include bookings
for hotels, airlines, railways, sightseeing tours, etc. According to Government of India, Ministry of
Tourism, India witnesses more than 740 million domestic tourism visits annually. An avid traveller
always looks for bargain opportunities while purchasing/booking hotel or air tickets, thus
emphasizing the role of Online Travel Agencies that provide services/ offers at competitive pricing.
The term "Online" on its own implies how important it is for Online Travel Agencies to leverage
themselves on the social media arena to stand out from the crowd and, ofcourse, garner new
business. The OTA portals can achieve new heights of conversations in Social Media, bridging the gap
between consumers and travel agencies.

MindShift Interactive conducted a study on the Top 5 Online Travel Agencies in India that are active
on Social Media, observing their social media patterns & social media optimization strategies to
increase traffic/leads/sales, etc.

Online travel
Agencies have
gathered 25% of
the Social Media
Conversations


P a g e | 30

MindShift Report Findings – Online Travel
Agencies on Social Media
Most Talked About - MakeMyTrip
(29%)

Least Talked About - Cox & Kings
(10%)

Facebook, Twitter & Blogs were the
top three platforms that defined
conversations in the OTA Sector

Most Interactive Sector in the
Tourism Industry

Conversation Topics on Each Platform

1690
Conversations

2910
Conversations

27
Conversations

47
Conversations


P a g e | 31

Consumer Perception
MakeMyTrip has the highest number of
conversations in the Sentiment
Analysis. The Positive to Negative ratio
shows higher Positive sentiments,
drafted out of a strategic route of
ensuring consumers share their
experience as well as due to the
consumer acceptance and appreciation
towards the OTA sector which makes
online booking an easy experience.

Positive: Negative Ratio – OTA

MakeMyTrip – 3: 1
Yatra.com – 9: 1
The chart besides shares the Sentiment of each brand, Cleartrip – 2: 1
reflecting that Ixigo had the Highest Positive ratio Ixigo – 16: 1
followed by Yatra and Cox and Kings. Cox & Kings – 12: 1

TG Profiling for OTA – With 77% conversations, men
dominate the social media conversations and women
occupy 23% of the social media space with their
thoughts. A category dominated by men as influencers
and decision makers when it comes to finalizing and
booking online. Identifying & nurturing such influencers
is key to creating evangelists for a brand and standing out
from the massive number of brands offering online travel
solutions.

Most Interactive Sector in Hospitality & Tourism: The
below chart highlights that Online Travel Agencies are the most interactive and responsive, as
compared to Airline, Hotels & Travel Review Sites. When it comes to responding to complaints or
guiding consumers towards specific packages, they were the most active and spontaneous.

Industry leader with 837
conversations with consumers


P a g e | 32

Platform Analysis
The below statistics help us understand the presence of the top three brands in the Online Travel
Industry over prominent Social Networks. The charts also highlight the number of conversations for
each brand on Social Media, strengthening the MindShift Audit and Analysis.

It is visible from the above that Makemytrip.com over powers all social networks but fails to make a
mark as impressive as Yatra.com, on twitter.


P a g e | 33

Sentiment Analysis -Top Positive Conversations


P a g e | 34

Top Negative Conversations


P a g e | 35

Social Media Metrics
We tracked the presence of five online travel agencies, analyzing the objective, activeness of the
brand and the strategic approach chosen, with respect to campaigns, platform integration and
response management, resulting in a thorough Social Media Audit.

The MindShift Metrics ScoreCard® shares insights on each brands Social Media presence, via pre-
defined and proven Metrics. The scores aligned to each metric provide for a sustained and insightful
digital outreach for brands which come from an understanding of the consumer and business.
Metrics defined for each platform take into consideration the qualitative (content, creative’s, etc)
and quantitative (fan numbers, outreach, interactions, etc) features of the platform.

The sum of all scores together aligns a Rank to the Brand thus leading us to the insights of which
brand dominates on social media and the reasons behind the same.

The table below displays the MindShift Rank for Online Travel Agencies in India, highlighting that
MakeMyTrip leads the social media space followed by Yatra.com & Cox and Kings. Cleartrip and Ixigo
are at the bottom with a very basic presence on social media.

Online Travel Agencies MindShift Metrics MindShift
Rank ScoreCard®

MakeMyTrip 1 59

Yatra.com 2 54

Cox and Kings 3 46.5

Cleartrip 4 38

Ixigo 5 36.5


MindShift Metrics Audit below justifies the ranking of the Social Media Presence along with platform
wise content and campaign analysis for each brand.

MindShift Metrics ScoreCard® and the Social Media Audit helps
you gain deeper insights on the following:

1. Platform Analysis
2. Strengths and Weakness of each brand on Social Media
3. Global Trend Analysis and Forecasting


P a g e | 36

MakeMyTrip – MindShift ScoreCard®

Rank - 1
Score – 59/100
Online
Travel Social
Agency Reach

MakeMyTrip 8 22 12 6 3 3 2 1 2

MakeMyTrip has the maximum reach with presence on 8 Platforms

Independent page termed as MakeMyTrip Deals to leverage Social Media opportunities

Facebook Insights– With over 3, 35,000 Fans, the page has an Engagement Ratio of
less than 1% - LOW as compared to Industry standard of 5 – 10%

Content Mix - Packages Information, Just for Fun Updates, Guess the Destination, Photo
Fridays, Offers & Trivia

Campaign Strategy - Concepts like Fan of the week, Top 100 Fans (Integrated
Application) and Trip Planner keep activities alive

Twitter - Combined Reach of over 2500+ Followers through Two ONLY Brand in
profiles (@MakeMyTripDeals& @MakeMyTripCare) OTA to have a
dedicated Twitter
FOCUS – Sharing Information + Website Links + Customer Care handle for
Customer Care

With over 29,000 Views on 136 Uploads, YouTube Channel is updated with TVCs, Hotel
and Destination Videos

An active Foursquare Account with 1028 Followers and 102 Tips shared, further shared by
followers

Presentations & Pictures of Tourist Attractions & Must Visits for Domestic/ International
Destinations shared via Slideshare


P a g e | 37

Yatra.com – MindShift ScoreCard®

Rank - 2

Score - 54/100
Online
Travel Social
Agency Reach

Yatra.com 7 21 14 5 NA 2 1 2 2

Yatra.com has a Social Reach across 7 Platforms

Facebook Insights– Yatra.com has over 2,17,ooo fans on Facebook, with 4% of
Engagement Ratio

Content Mix - Trivia about Destinations, Questions with Options, Campaign updates
linked to Application, Travel Packages Information

Campaign Strategies - Creating #MindShift with ideas Learning Europe (Innovative,
Informative & Relevant), Happy Travel Movie Application, Yatra Travelometer and
Integration with Booking Services

An active Twitter Presence with over 2200 Followers. Synced with Facebook Activities,
with a customized approach for Twitter shows the right balance of cross marketing &
customized marketing.

Popular Hash tags - #HappyTravel & #TravelTip

Platform is leveraged to respond to queries or complaints

YouTube Channel features 36 Videos and over 6,000 views till date with content such as
TVCs, Campaign Videos (Travel-O-Dance), Domestic/ International Destinations. A
platform still awaiting further exploration by the brand, and industry.


P a g e | 38

Cox & Kings – MindShift ScoreCard®

Rank - 3

Score – 46.5/100
Online
Travel Social
Agency Reach

Cox and 6 19.5 12 4 NA 2 NA 1 2
Kings

Cox and Kings India – Social Reach across 6 Platforms

Facebook Insights - 33,000 Fanswith 2 fan pages, Cox and Kings India (for brand outreach)
&Cox and Kings Deals (for promotions), with engagement ratios of 3% & 32 % respectively

Content Strategy is similar on both the pages and redundant at times. Diversification of
properties also leads to Confusion amongst Consumers. Brand needs to focus on one property.

1310 followers on Twitter - Interaction and Engagement is key

YouTube has over 8,000 Views across 29 Uploads with interesting content on domestic and
international destinations.


P a g e | 39

Cleartrip – MindShift ScoreCard®

Rank - 4

Score - 38/100
Online
Travel Social
Agency Reach

Cleartrip 4 20 12 4 NA 2 NA NA NA

Cleartrip has a Social Reach across 4 Platforms

Facebook Insights – +46,000 Fans with an engagement ratio of Approx 17%

Content Mix - Trivia about Destinations with every alternate update focussing on Packages,
Cash Back Offers and Deals.

Innovation is high in linking onto the website, and the brand seems to understand the
consumer pulse although platform integration & campaigns are amiss.

YouTube Channel has the highest views in the OTA Sector, with over 2 lakh views on 52
Uploads due to the Every Trip Has a Purpose video, as well as UGC videos.

4900+ Followers makes their outreach the highest on Twitter.

Twitter Strategy – Content themes on twitter are not travel or package related only. From
latest technology, website designs, innovations and travel news, the brand covers it all.


P a g e | 40

Ixigo– MindShift ScoreCard®

Rank - 5

Score – 36.5/100
Online
Travel Social
Agency Reach

Ixigo 3 18.5 10 3 NA 1 NA 1 NA

Ixigo has a Social Reach across 3 Platforms

Facebook Insights – Ixigo has over 1,54,793 fans with an engagement ratio of Approx 0.1%

Content Mix includes albums, facts and guess about Destinations. Ixigo’s engagement ratio
on Facebook is very low, even after gaining a decent fan base. An increase in updates that push
users towards interaction would be the way forward.

Ixigo doesn’t seem to push their Facebook fans to their website, as there were very few updates
that redirect to their website.

Twitter –2021 followers used for interacting with their consumers and sharing their
experiences via tweets. Unlike other agencies, Ixigo tweets generic updates as well apart from
travel updates on their twitter account.

YouTube has not yet been explored by Ixigo yet.


P a g e | 41

Social Media Findings – MindShift
Metrics

MakeMyTrip has the maximum Social Reach with Facebook& Twitter are two
presence on 8 Platforms priority platforms for Online
Travel Agencies

Cleartrip leads Twitter due to its active
presence and response management

Cleartrip has the highest Engagement Ratio
of 17% on Facebook

MakeMyTrip – Only OTA with a dedicated
Twitter Account for Customer Care

Key Twitter is primarily used as a CRM platform, though each brand
Objective of adopts a different communication route
Social Media:

1. Outreach
Foursquare and YouTube are the least leveraged Platforms
2. Bookings

Ixigo ranks the lowest due to its lesser active presence on various
platforms, apart from Facebook and Twitter


P a g e | 42

Trend Forecasting
1. Personalization is the BUZZ Word – Online Travel Agencies need to integrate a personalized
approach in their offerings. Social Personalization, as a concept needs to be explored to
connect and assure a positive,
customized experience for the
customer.

Integrating a Social Connect on the
Website, where a member can view
his history with the agency as well as
track his travel pattern. The member
can also be requested to share a
review and recommend his friends to
become active members of the site,
leading to a chain of a Social Referral
System.

2. Offer Experiences – Global Travel Agencies follow a creative route to attract the attention
and engage the consumer with
campaigns that allow them to
experience the offers and
packages through applications,
videos or blogs. Creating a desire
to do things versus selling an
offer directly helps increase
engagements and repeat visits
to the fan page. Whilst it is
important to lead consumers to
the final objective, making the
experience fun is of key
importance.

Expedia, with its campaign You
Deserve a GETAWAY this
holiday explored new

P a g e | 43

dimensions via the social media space. Fans were asked to create a Travel wish list on
Facebook and the brand would then share packages that are relevant with the wishes and
make suggestions.

3. Understand the Consumer Pulse – We notice that individuals book trips on websites either
for business trips, to get package deals for friends / family or to review and view vacations
suggestions at the same time. The ability to dive in and understand the consumers’
requirements before creating a strategy for the content and campaigns will ensure higher
outreach and engagement for the brand. Interestingly, brands globally have adopted certain
areas of studying the consumer pulse and delivering on platforms accordingly but a lot is to
be seen out here, in India and globally.

4. Going Niche – With the rapid increase in E-Commerce and growing sales in each sector,
OTAs are opting to emphasize on a Social Media Strategy, where services are catered to
each industry through a different Social Media Presence and Approach. The objective being
to tap each sector, identify its growth pattern along with consumer trends and launch
services which would enhance the services and experience of the customer.

5. Seamless Customer Care – For an industry heavily dependant on referals and consumer
share of voice, responding to angry customers is not the solution to a stable social media
presence, but providing a strong customer support team that is willing to handle situations
at all times is. This, therefore, cannot be a service provided simply via an automated tool and
requires the support of someone who understands the business, and the end consumer.
Creating alternate channels/platforms on social media to specifically cater to consumer
greivances, suggesstions and queries is something Indian OTAs must adopt after having
created a stable presence on their primary social media platforms.


P a g e | 44

Key MindShifts
The Online Travel Agencies, as we’ve seen are actively involved in the Social Media space with
campaigns and content that creates an outreach for them. Our Insights 8 Key Takeaways for Online
Travel Agencies that would help brands leverage Social Media.

1. Innovative Content Strategy – Innovative campaigns are a requisite and so is an innovative
content mix. Brands must understand the content relevant to their business and their
consumers and deliver accordingly. The space you have on their News Feeds is very precious
so deliver content after you listen, analyze and learn what your audiences want.

2. CRM is the Key – Efficiently handling your consumers online is the need of e-commerce
portals. Create a seamless CRM process that ensures your customer resolves his query
online and moves back onto making that purchase. All queries, complaints and feedback
must be acknowledged, responded to and resolved.

3. Social Integration: Connecting your website with social media platforms is an important
integration to allow for a direct flow from one to another as well as allows consumers to sign
in with basic details and progress towards booking their tickets. After all, we do agree
Registration forms are a chore don’t we?

4. Assign a role to each Platform – Brands need to identify the right platforms and prioritize
the same to build an effective Social Media Plan. Goals and approach differ for each
platform and only a sound knowledge of your consumer mixed with an understanding by
your social media consultants will ensure optimization.

5. Evangelists –While you’re busy building a large fan base, don’t forget it is the ones with the
largest share of social voice on your page that need to be gratified and given the maximum
attention as they are probably the best people to convert into Influencers of your brand.

6. Optimize your Presence – Create a presence that appropriately allows your presence to be
searched and disseminated. Create channels high in SMO capability & provide relevant
searched content on them. Social Media success is inevitable for a well optimized social
media presence.

7. Social Loyalty programmes- Recommendation by family & friends is one of the major
contributors in the travel industry that affects a consumers decision while making a travel
plan. Brands need to identify this aspect and have a Social Referral Strategy to encourage
and build a referral program via social networks.

8. Monitor Conversations – OTAs cater the most to active social media users which also gives
them a stronger voice on social media to discuss positive and negative experiences. Learn to
track and respond to these at the earliest, curtailing the issue at hand earliest. Use this data
beyond response management to gain insights on your brand and consumers and work
towards changing sentiments, if required.


P a g e | 45

About MindShift Interactive
“Experience a MindShift to deliver legendary Outreach.”

MindShift Interactive is an Insightful Digital Outreach powerhouse that provides business with a
data-centric approach towards achieving an impactful, innovative and, most of all, sustained Social
Media presence.

We recreate brands in a truly Social environment by gathering insights not only from the outlook of
your people affected by the actions of your brand, but also from a business viewpoint.

Our expertise inSocial Media and Research assures your business an insight on how to honestly
create long-term engagement with consumers that delivers a MindShift.

MindShift Interactive Private Limited is the parent company of MindShift Digital and MindShift
Metrics, our Social Media Marketing Agency and Social Media Research Company respectively.
Combined together, they give your business an insightful and innovative Social Media Outreach.

MindShift Metricshelps you make sense of the data available over digital platforms and MindShift
Digital takes over to convert insights into strategies that ensure arich Social Media presence that is
intelligent, engaging and crosses boundaries of innovation.

Get in touch with us:

MindShift Interactive Pvt. Ltd | 3, Baig Mansion |
Babulnath Road |Mumbai – 400007 | India.

+91 22 2309 3980 | +91 98 2007 1517

contact@mindshiftinteractive.com
www.mindshiftinteractive.com
Join the MindShift:http://www.facebook.com/MSInteractive


MindShift Interactive Social Media Report 2012

Recomendados

Recomendados

Más contenido relacionado

La actualidad más candente

La actualidad más candente (20)

Destacado

Destacado (20)

Similar a MindShift Interactive Social Media Report 2012

Similar a MindShift Interactive Social Media Report 2012 (20)

Más de MindShift Interactive

Más de MindShift Interactive (20)

Último

Último (20)

MindShift Interactive Social Media Report 2012