Google Looks Beyond Review Sites: Now Aggregates Posts from Loca. When you search for a local business on Google Maps, Google displays general information like address and opening hours about this business. Since December 2009, Google Place Pages also present a sentiment analysis based on comments on sites like CitySearch, Zagat, OpenTable and TripAdvisor. Now, Google has started to display reviews from hyperlocal blogs and news sites as well. As Mike Blumenthal, whose excellent blog focuses on analyzing developments related to Google Maps and local search, points out, it isn't quite clear how Google defines 'hyperlocal' blog and how the company decides which blogs and news sources to include on Place Pages.
Blumenthal was able to get confirmation from Google Maps product manager Carter Maslan that this is indeed a new capability of Google Maps. For users, this means that Google's meta-analysis of customer reviews is now able to look at a broader base of reviews. Should Review Sites be Afraid? Best Women's Travel Tips. Individualization of Travel – ITB Berlin Convention : Tips from. Who's Doing Social Media Well in the Travel Industry? Almost No. Are consumers getting tired of travel websites? Two recent studies point to some interesting potential trends in online travel. If you are involved in travel in anyway – read on. I believe that the hard line between online and offline is rather losing its luster. The consumer of travel products does not have a single interaction. Buying travel is not like buying paint. It is a highly emotional experience and the inspiration to purchase chain requires many interactions along the way.
So travel and the acquisition life cycle is something that defies categorization and structure. Those wanting to play in it – they need to be very careful to heed the diversity of interaction and frequency. In general, for commodity purchases, the web is ideal. Complex and higher priced items do not do so well. I still would like to challenge that the TMCs publish statistics showing not the online purchase but the complete touchless transaction. Similarly the percentage of OTA bookings that generate a phone call or interaction should be reported.