Introduction. Benefits of the tool are summarised as follows:

Transcription

1

2 Introduction This e-kit has been produced by The Australian Tourism Data Warehouse, is an initiative of the National Online Strategy Committee, and has been funded by all of Australian State & Territory Tourism Offices. It incorporates a series of easy to consume tutorials that equips tourism operators with effective knowledge about online marketing. The tutorials in this kit provide an extensive education of online marketing starting with an initial assessment of your current online marketing status to more complex issues such as online booking systems. Each tutorial includes a helpful header with information about how much time the tutorial will take you to complete and the level of difficulty. This tourism e-kit resides on the ATDW corporate website You can download the entire e-kit or one tutorial at a time depending on your bandwidth and time constraints. If you have received this tutorial via another channel such as your State Tourism Office make sure you check the ATDW website for latest updates and other useful information. Benefits of the tool are summarised as follows: Smarter e-marketing knowledge Insight into what online marketing strategies will suit your business Greater understanding of ATDW and its products and services Hundreds of references to resources

3 Topic The basics Tutorial 1 Internet Planning My Success This tutorial will give you an overview of why you should use the Internet to promote your business. This tutorial also references all the tutorials you might want to read. Reading time: 15 minutes Prerequisite: None

4 Internet Planning My Success 1. Who is this document designed to assist? These tutorials have been put together to help small and medium Australian tourism operators successfully market their business online. If you don t have a website for your business or have one that is not performing to your or your customer s expectations, these tutorials are for you. 2. Roadmap to success What do I need to do and in what order? Each tutorial can be read independently and no technological background is required to understand their content. You are also welcome to print all the tutorials and read them chronologically. Each tutorial should not take longer than 45 minutes to read. You will find a list of all the tutorials organised in different sections on the following page. Tutorial 1, Page 1

5 Internet Planning My Success The basics Tutorial 1: Tutorial 2: Tutorial 3: Tutorial 4: Tutorial 5: Tutorial 6: Tutorial 7: Internet: planning my success Initial assessment of my website Web strategy: assessment and components Web strategy: cost and timings Finding a good web professional Planning for a new website best practices Website Tutorial 8: Registering a domain name 101 Tutorial 9: Domain name: advanced Tutorial 10: Organising hosting for my site Tutorial 11: The Internet, web 2.0 and the tourism industry Tutorial 12: Target market 101 Tutorial 13: Website 101: visual design and content Tutorial 14: Website 101: usability and technology Tutorial 15: What is a content management system? Tutorial 16: Images 101 Tutorial 16a: Videos for my website Tutorial 17: Images: going online Tutorial 18: Security and backups Search engine optimisation Tutorial 19: Search engines 101 Tutorial 20: Critical components of optimising a website Tutorial 21: Keywords Tutorial 22: Understanding inbound links to my site Tutorial 23: Sourcing inbound links Tutorial 23a: Travel and tourism links Tutorial 1, Page 2

6 Internet Planning My Success E-marketing Tutorial 24: Bringing people to my site with e-marketing Tutorial 24a: Converting a prospect into a guest Tutorial 25: marketing Tutorial 26: Pay per click 101 Tutorial 27: Setting up a PPC campaign with Google AdWords Tutorial 28: Social media for tourism Tutorial 29: Customer reviews and TripAdvisor Tutorial 30: Blogging Tutorial 31: Australian Tourism Data Warehouse Tutorial 32: Tourism Exchange Australia Tutorial 33: Google tools Online booking Tutorial 34: Online booking systems 101 Tutorial 35: Online booking systems: advanced Analysis and statistics Tutorial 36: Tracking and reporting Tutorial 37: Google Analytics Online distribution Tutorial 38: Online distribution 101 Tutorial 39: Online distribution: advanced Glossary Tutorial 1, Page 3

7 Internet Planning My Success 3. Why the Internet? The Internet is a network of computer networks, which anyone can access and participate in using a web-enabled computer. Users turn to the Internet to search for information and interact with other users such as friends, peers and communities. It comes as no surprise that travellers use the net extensively to plan and organise their trip. Latest international research shows that more than 80% of travellers do so This signifies that- as a tourism business - you need to move your Internet strategy to the centre of your business model. Having a website that sits on the side will not be sufficient to compete in the online world. Tutorial 1, Page 4

8 Topic The basics Tutorial 2 Initial Assessment Of My Website Think about your business website. How well does it match the requirements your ideal customer might have? Reading time: 15 minutes Prerequisite: None

9 Initial Assessment Of My Website 1. Visibility and findability SCORE.. / 10 What group of keywords would people use to find your product / service (e.g. backpacker accommodation Brisbane, winery Barossa valley). Give two examples (e.g. backpacker accommodation Brisbane, cheap hostel in Brisbane). This question has no points but your answers will be used in the next question. First example:. Second example:. Can you find your website on the first 3 pages of a search engine for the keyword groups you wrote above? Google the above two examples and see if your website comes up. YES NO (value= 5 points per each keyword group) IF YOU CANNOT FIND YOUR WEBSITE IT MEANS THAT IT IS NOT OPTIMISED FOR SEARCH ENGINES. YOU ARE GOING TO MISS OUT ON A LOT OF POTENTIAL BUSINESS. 2. Visual design and content SCORE.. / 10 Now have a closer look at your website. Tick if it meets the below criteria: A professional, elegant design (2 points) Varied and up to date quality photos that are relevant to your business (1 point) Recent video footage of the property or tour (1 point) Audio (e.g. guest interview, sound of native animals) (which can be switched off) (1 point) Maps and itineraries in a compressed and user-friendly format (that the customer can download, print and take in the car) (1 point) Customer reviews and testimonials (from TripAdvisor or other sites) (2 point) Newsletter subscription and newsletter (1 point) Fresh, interesting content that is regularly updated and easy to read (1 point) 3. Functionality and accessibility SCORE:.. / 12 Tick if your website meets the below criteria: An evident navigation menu (3 points) Every main category can be accessed from the home page (3 points) Tutorial 2, Page 1

10 Initial Assessment Of My Website Images load very quickly and are not missing (2 points) The look of your site doesn t change when the site is opened on a different computer or browser (2 points) The look of your site doesn t change when the site is accessed from a mobile device such as mobile phone or iphone (2 points) 4. Technology SCORE: / 10 Tick if your website meets the below criteria: You are able to change the content of the site and add new pages using a system called a content management system (2 points) You check your s at least 3 times a days and respond promptly (3 points) A client can book the product on your site and pay with a credit card (2 points) You have a reliable web host and your website has never been the victim of technical problems or viruses (1 point) You have access to, and can monitor, the visitation statistics of your website (2 points) 5. Customer engagement SCORE: / 10 Tick if your web strategy includes the following: You have claimed your TripAdvisor listing, ask the majority of your guests to leave you a review and respond to at least every negative review (3 points) Your TripAdvisor reviews are accessible from your website (1 point) You have a Facebook group or Fan page, ask the majority of your guests to join it and interact with your fans via Facebook (2 points) Your Facebook group or Fan page is accessible from your website (1 point) You have a YouTube account, take short video reviews of your guest and post them on YouTube (2 points) Your YouTube videos are visible (embedded) on your website (1 point) Tutorial 2, Page 2

11 Initial Assessment Of My Website 6. My total score: Visibility and findability:.. / 10 Visual design and content:... / 10 Functionality and accessibility:.. / 12 Technology:.../ 10 Customer engagement:.../ 10 Your score:.. / 52 The chart below will highlight where your next focus should be based on your results. Tutorial 2, Page 3

12 Initial Assessment Of My Website Assessment results 0-25 points points points Your website is not up to standards. You are missing out on business Some components of a performing website seem to be in place. You are on the path to success Your website meets the requirements of today's Internet savvy traveller Work on your website as a priority. You will greatly benefit from printing the whole Tourism Ekit and reading each tutorial in ascending order. You have to work on your website to improve it and start to put together an action plan for your online strategy. Read the first tutorial and select the topics you need to address. Focus on your online strategy. Read the first tutorial and select the topics you need to address. 7. Related material a) Related tutorials Web strategy: assessment and components Web strategy: cost and timings The Internet, web 2.0 and the tourism industry Target market 101 Search engines 101 Critical components of optimising a website Understanding inbound links to my site Sourcing inbound links Tutorial 2, Page 4

13 Initial Assessment Of My Website Customer reviews and TripAdvisor Google Analytics Google tools Tutorial 2, Page 5

14 Topic The basics Tutorial 3 Web Strategy Assessment and Components Description This tutorial will help you assess your e-readiness level. It will also review the different components of a successful online strategy. It is recommended you first read the previous tutorial which conducts an analysis of your existing website. Reading time: 25 minutes Prerequisite: Initial Assessment Of My Website

15 Web Strategy Assessment and Components 1. Where am I now? The below chart will assist you defining the level of your business online-readiness. Four levels, from having a very simple webpage to a manageable online strategy have been identified. Assess which level you best fit in by reviewing the dot points. Very simple webpage I don't have access to my website's files People can contact me via but I can't tell if it is because they saw my website I have no idea if my website is really performing I feel that I am not computer savvy I am left in the dark with regards to how to tackle the online world Basic website I have access to my website's files and can modify my content s from the website are rare I am not quite sure if I show on search engine listings I have very limited knowledge of online marketing Standard website I add new content regularly and add pages using my content management system I can track who visits my site but need assistance to utilise this knowledge to improve my site I get regular enquiries/bookings from my site I understand basic search engine optimisation principles Manageable online strategy I update my website weekly using a content management system I have a structured plan with goals and objectives to increase the conversions from my website My website is search engine optimised I show up on search engines for the keywords my target market uses A large proportion of my bookings come from my website Tutorial 3, Page 1

16 Web Strategy Assessment and Components 2. What is the next stage I can reach? Tick your current level in the first line of check boxes and aim to increase it by one within the next 12 months. When you read the other tutorials the abundance of information could be a little overwhelming. Come back to this tutorial and re-focus: you are only going to aim for the next level. Level my web strategy is currently at: Level I am planning to reach in the next 12 months: 3. Components of an online strategy Now that you have assessed your current level, let s look further into the elements of a successful online strategy. A web or online strategy is achieved by balancing three components, which will be further analysed in the paragraphs below: Tutorial 3, Page 2

17 Web Strategy Assessment and Components Website & Content management system Search engine optimisation Online marketing Graphic design of website Programming of website Copywriting Integration into a content management system Hosting Domain name Initial keyword research and search engine optimisation of content Monthly link building campaigns Monthly development of new content Monthly assessment of search engine rankings marketing Customer reviews Photo and video sharing Online advertising Other online marketing 4. Component 1: Website and content management system The cost of fully customised and professionally designed websites for small tourism businesses can vary between $3,000 to $20,000+ dollars. This generally includes a custom design, the programming into an open-source user- and search engine friendly content management system and the population plus basic search engine optimisation of your content. If your website has a lot of pages (for example more than 25-30) you may want to work with your web developer to populate the content yourself to lower the cost of the site. a) Design options The graphic design component can increase the cost of the website as it involves a long consultation process with a specialised web designer. Depending on your requirements and the number of revisions required, this cost could easily reach up to a third of the cost of your new site. To minimise the cost of the design process, many web development firms offer the opportunity to modify existing website templates. Some firms might simply get one of their inhouse templates and customise it for your site without mentioning to you that it is based on a template. More customer-focused companies might give you broader options and ask you to choose amongst a series of templates they own. They could also refer you to a templatededicated website such as and let you decide which template you like best. Template Monster offers templates that suit small tourism and hospitality businesses. Below are two screenshots. Note: many templates exist that are already formatted for the major content management systems (CMS). For instance, if you select the WordPress CMS you can choose amongst many different templates (called themes in WordPress). Many of the free WordPress themes are Tutorial 3, Page 3

18 Web Strategy Assessment and Components available here: Hotel Template from Template Monster Tour Template from Template Monster Talk to your web development company to assess the options they offer. They generally offer both. Choosing a template-based design could not only save money but also a lot of your time! b) Summary: website technology and content management system Below are the key points to consider in terms of web programming and content management system. Your website should be developed in XHTML and table-less CSS. You do not need to understand what XHTML and table-less CSS are but need to ensure your web developer is programming using these languages. If they don t, seek a new one. We recommend you stay away from Flash, as it is not a search engine friendly technology. Web developers will sometimes quote you a price for your website based on the number of pages it will hold. If this is the case, you need to ask for clarification. Ask your web company two questions: Will your site include a content management system? In our experience developers who quote on a per page basis generally do not use a content management system (unless they are referring to copywriting or content population) Content management systems allow your websites to have as many pages as you wish as adding a new page is only a click away. Does the per page cost include copywriting, population and search engine optimisation of content or simply the creation of the page itself, without the content population? If your web company offers to do the copywriting, content population and search engine optimisation of each page it justifies an increase in cost based on the number of pages your site holds. The content management system installed on your website should be search engine Tutorial 3, Page 4

19 Web Strategy Assessment and Components friendly. The tutorial about content management systems will help you assess this. 5. Component 2: Search engine optimisation Search engine optimisation is to a website what wheels are to a car. A non-optimised website could provide you with a very low return on investment and therefore with very little business. An easy way to find out if your website is optimised for search engines is to look at your website s data which is captured by analytics programs such as Google Analytics. If your website is optimised for search engines there should be a lot of traffic referred to it from search engines. Let s look at the pie charts below to see which one of the two examples is an optimised site. This diagnosis is available in the majority of web analytics programs. The first picture below shows that the bulk of traffic is coming directly to the website (e.g. users enter the address of the website in their browser directly). This website is missing out on a lot of business that could be brought by search engines. It is not search engine optimised. The second picture reveals that the majority of the traffic to the website is brought by search engines. Search engines are promoting the website for free! This is the sign of a well optimised website. Screen captures copyright: Google 97% OF SEARCHES START WITH A SEARCH ENGINE, AND GOOGLE IS BY FAR THE MOST WIDELY USED IN AUSTRALIA. WE RECOMMEND YOU WORK WITH SEARCH ENGINES. When sourcing quotes for a web developer or an online marketing agency it is crucial you ensure they are familiar with coding a website for search engines. Web developers are not always aware of key search engine optimisation principles. This is why it is important to work with a company that has expertise in both fields. Tutorial 3, Page 5

20 Web Strategy Assessment and Components Lastly, be aware that search engine optimisation is not a one-off but a continuous process. Make sure you put a plan in place to manage what needs to be done for your business to continuously appear on page one of search engine rankings. PROVIDED YOUR WEBSITE S CONTENT IS OPTIMISED AND YOU HAVE A CONTINUOUS SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMISATION STRATEGY IN PLACE, YOUR WEBSITE SHOULD START TO RANK HIGH ON THE SEARCH ENGINE RESULTS PAGE WHEN PEOPLE TYPE IN YOUR KEYWORDS. Imagine you are a bed and breakfast offering a romantic getaway near Brisbane. The keyword research done by your optimiser reveals that romantic getaway near Brisbane is a phrase often searched on Google. You should then rank on the first few pages of Google for that keyword. The screen shot on the right shows the results of a search for romantic getaway near brisbane. The third, non-commercial listing Romantic getaways near Brisbane for couples is s small bed and breakfast website that has been optimised for those keywords. Screen capture copyright: Google 6. Component 3: Online marketing Online marketing encompasses all the online activities you can undertake to promote your website. They are generally separated in two categories: free or involving payment. The paragraphs below will summarise these activities. a) Free activities Social marketing: in 2010 it is crucial you at least passively engage in social marketing. You need to at least monitor what is being said about your destination and business on mainstream social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Flickr and TripAdvisor. Ignoring social media would not be wise as they are the mediums your potential travellers use to research and book travel. Search: appearing in search engine listings is free. All it requires is a solid search engine Tutorial 3, Page 6

21 Web Strategy Assessment and Components optimisation strategy and an investment in terms of your time. Linking strategy: getting other relevant sites to link to your website does not involve money but relies on the content provided on your website being relevant to the sites linking to you. Having quality and relevant websites linking to you will make a positive difference in your search engine rankings. Sourcing links is part of your search engine optimisation strategy. b) Paid-for activities Search engine marketing (SEM), also known as pay per click (PPC): paying search engine to promote a website. The key difference with unpaid (also known as organic) search engine results is how they are positioned on the page. The key players in PPC are: Google: Google AdWords Yahoo: Yahoo! Search Marketing MSN/Bing: Microsoft adcenter The search engine results in the below image are a combination of organic search engine rankings (which directly result from a well-executed search engine optimisation strategy) and search engine marketing rankings. The organic results are on the left, below the yellow sponsored links results. The SEM results are above the organic results as well as in the right column. Screen capture copyright: Google Other online marketing activities that a small tourism business would have to pay for would be for instance: marketing Having a banner advertisement on another site Paying for a link from a travel or other directories which are not free of charge 7. Key learning outcomes A website is not a web strategy Your website needs to be designed in a search engine friendly format Many online marketing activities are free. They however take time. Tutorial 3, Page 7

22 Web Strategy Assessment and Components 8. Related material a) Related tutorials Initial assessment of my website Web strategy: cost and timings Target market 101 Search engines 101 Bringing people to my site with e-marketing Tutorial 3, Page 8

23 Topic The basics Tutorial 4 Web Strategy Cost And Timings This tutorial will review the cost and timings of a successful online strategy. Reading time: 25 minutes Prerequisite: Web Strategy: Assessment And Components

24 Web Strategy Costs And Timings 1. How do I work out how much a web strategy costs? It is not always straightforward to work out the cost of a web strategy as it depends on the website s requirements, the level of search engine optimisation and marketing. It will also depend on how much of your time you are ready to invest and how much professional assistance you will require. The only certainty is that the cost of technology has decreased over the past 10 years. The hardware required is affordable to all businesses and most of the software is free or has free equivalents such as the ones listed below: Programming languages, application frameworks and databases: Open Source content management systems: Photo and video hosting: Photo editing software for your computer: Word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, graphics, databases: HTML ( CSS ( PHP ( ASP ( MySQL databases ( Microsoft SQL server ( Joomla! ( Drupal ( DotNetNuke ( CMS Made Simple ( WordPress ( SilverStripe ( For a full list please visit: Flickr ( Photobucket ( Picasa Web Albums ( YouTube ( Gimp ( Irfanview ( Open Office ( a) Pricing the 3 key components of my online strategy The website will be the most important outlay; even though most of the programming software is free, you will still need a professional to put it together for you. Search engine optimisation and online marketing are components, which can attract a one off fee (such as initial keyword research) and then a monthly or bi-monthly maintenance fee (such as monthly search engine optimisation). You should aim at developing your knowledge of key search engine optimisation principles to minimise the requirement for professional assistance. Tutorial 4, Page 1

25 Web Strategy Costs And Timings The graphic below indicates the cost of each component of a strategy. $3,000 - $20,000+ $200 2,000 a month plus your own time as investment To keep the cost down you can conduct many of the above activities yourself. b) What cannot be outsourced? Each component of your marketing strategy can be outsourced to a web professional. However, no one is more suited to draft your online content than yourself. Content is king. Please note: if writing for the web isn t your thing it is important you use the services of a copywriter. Your product or service can be the best on the market but if you cannot translate how great it is using words, pictures, videos and audio there is little chance anyone is going to book you. Your online visitors will only contact you if the content appeals to them. You need to be aware that web development companies will generally not write your website content. Your online marketer will guide you to best write your content, however the copywriting role usually remains yours. You can decide to outsource the copywriting to a web copywriter but you will still need to spend time letting them know about your business. 2. How much time will I need to dedicate to my strategy? There are two components to a successful online strategy: Setting it up Tutorial 4, Page 2

26 Web Strategy Costs And Timings Continuously assessing it, managing it and developing it. This paragraph will give you an overview of the timings. a) Setting up an online strategy The most difficult part when setting up a strategy is making the decision and putting together a plan addressing: What to do, who is to do it, when to do it, and how to do it. The one-month schedule below is aimed to assist small to medium organisations like yours setting up an online strategy. 30 minutes every day over 4 weeks is all you need to set up your strategy. Day 1: Weeks 1 and 2: Week 3: Week 4: Assess your current level of online-readiness and aim to reach the next level up within 12 months. Research best practices by familiarising yourself with the Tourism E-kit tutorials and reading the ones you believe most relevant. Make notes of how you will best address each component of the strategy (web, search engine optimisation, online marketing). Now that you know what needs to be done to improve your existing strategy, assess the different components of your existing website and strategy and make a note of how you are currently performing against these. Define a 12-month plan by setting up monthly objectives and tasks that are both manageable and achievable. Start by defining your objectives on a monthly basis and then define the weekly tasks involved. If you have chosen to work with an online marketing company it is also important you go through this exercise by yourself as it will help you explain your requirements in the brief to your online marketer. If you have decided to fly solo, it is recommended you get an online marketing professional to read over the key points to ensure all your efforts are rewarded with more business. A consultant might charge you between AUD dollars for an hour of their time but you can be certain the knowledge you will gain is well worth the money spent. b) Managing my strategy Once your plan is set up, you should expect to spend 1-2 hours at least, each week, working on the tasks you have set. You will also need to review your analytics to see if your efforts are paying off. The key success factor is regularity. Below is an example of what your strategy schedule could look like: Tutorial 4, Page 3

27 Web Strategy Costs And Timings My strategy: Daily Weekly Fortnightly Monthly s: Check and Newsletter marketing acknowledge s 3 times a day, respond at least once a day. Content: As required. Use guest feedback to improve your website. Successful tourism businesses update their content once a week and build new pages every time there is a new event in their region from which they could get business. If you have set up a blogging strategy, ensure that you blog regularly and respond to comments. Photos: Be prepared to take action shot photos Add new photos to website, Flickr Change photos if they are not relevant (clients, staff, scenery) when required account Videos: Be prepared to take videos (clients, staff, scenery) when required Add new videos Social media: E.g. Facebook Online reputation: E.g. TripAdvisor Website analytics: Backups: Twitter (monitoring) Facebook Page (monitoring) Ask or incentivise clients to leave reviews Respond to reviews Backup computer (Automatic) Twitter (posting) Facebook Page (posting) Monitor your reviews Keywords Call to action Source of visitors Monitor new groups Pages most visited Revamp content according to the results of analytics (e.g. if a page s bounce rate is over 50%) Backup website on server Inbound links: Check if there are any new incoming links to your site Source one new link a month Check who links to you 3. Key learning outcomes Ensure you consider Search engine optimisation when you budget for a new website An online strategy is not a one off but needs to be conducted throughout the year It is therefore very important you have an online plan and follow it. Tutorial 4, Page 4

28 Web Strategy Costs And Timings 4. Related material a) Related tutorials Web strategy: assessment and components Target market 101 Website 101: visual design and content Website 101: usability and technology best practices Images 101 Understanding inbound links to your website Sourcing inbound links Bringing people to my site with e-marketing Social media for tourism Customer reviews and TripAdvisor Google Analytics Security and backups Tutorial 4, Page 5

29 Topic The basics Tutorial 5 Finding A Good Web Professional This tutorial will give you tips to find a great web professional. It will help put a brief together and will review the different costs associated with an online strategy. Reading time: 25 minutes Prerequisite: None

30 Finding A Good Web Professional 1. What are the different job roles in the web industry? The Internet has evolved dramatically over the past decade and forced web professionals to specialise in key web disciplines. As a small or medium tourism business owner, you cannot solely rely on working with either a graphic designer or a web developer if you want to give your online strategy all the chances to succeed. You need to partner with a football team of web experts. Choose a company that specialises in web design, programming and search engine optimisation and ensure that the project manager you will be dealing with is familiar with all key areas. Do not simply choose a web developer who is not au fait with the best search engine optimisation practices as your website may never get indexed in Google and therefore bring you inadequate return on investment. Your ideal web team Graphic designer Web programmer Search engine optimiser and marketer Social media expert Copywriter Trainer a) How will an online marketer work with me? The online marketing consultant (or company) will be your first point of contact. They will: 1. Assess your existing online strategy and website as a whole 2. Recommend and work with you to outline your future online strategy 3. Work with you to achieve a design that a) meets the expectations and needs of your target market b) will be easily programmable by the web developer c) is aesthetically pleasing d) is search engine friendly e) is within your budget. 4. Work with the web designer and the web developer to smoothly integrate the design into HTML and CSS and ensure your site is designed to integrate any future marketing needs. 5. Provide you with tips that will help you write your website s copy. 6. Work with you to implement the future online strategy so that you website is not Tutorial 5, Page 1

31 Finding A Good Web Professional only visible but also attracts bookings. ONLINE MARKETERS SPECIALISED IN TOURISM WILL IMPLEMENT KEY SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMISATION FACTORS BUT ALSO LIVE AND BREATHE THE ONLINE TOURISM WORLD EVERY DAY. THEY WILL KNOW HOW THE ONLINE TRAVELLER THINKS AND UNDERSTAND THE CHALLENGES THAT YOU FACE AS A SMALL BUSINESS OPERATOR. THEY WILL HAVE TESTED BEST PRACTICES, BE PROFICIENT AT HELPING YOU GET LINKS FROM RELEVANT TRAVEL WEBSITES, BE ABLE TO SET UP SUCCESSFUL TRAVEL MARKETING CAMPAIGNS SUCH AS HELPING YOU INTEGRATE YOUR TRIPADVISOR COMMENTS ON YOUR WEBSITE FOR INSTANCE. THEY WILL KNOW WHAT YOU DON T KNOW YOU DON T KNOW. b) Why can t I just work with a designer or a programmer? If you work with a web graphic designer only, your website s design is going to hopefully look spectacular. However, there is a reasonable chance that no new consumer will come across it while searching for your product! The graphic designer will probably have a basic knowledge of coding (programming) in HTML but they might end up using a technique that is 5 years old and not know how to install a content management on your site. If you solely work with a web developer, the design might not meet the requirements of your target market. Even if your website s code is up to today s requirements, you will still need to work with a search engine/online marketing specialist to ensure your website s copy is written in a search engine friendly manner. This is crucial for when someone searches for what you offer your web address comes up on the first pages of the search engine rankings. 2. How to select a knowledgeable web professional or company a) How do I find web professionals? It is always best to first contact your regional tourism organisation or association and ask to talk to the person in charge of the e-marketing department (also called digital) for advice. They will be able to put you in contact with people who are not only tourism web specialists but who are aware of the latest developments and practices. You can also get on the Internet and search for tourism website design, websites for tourism, tourism search engine optimisation, web developer for tourism, online marketing for tourism and other similar keywords. Don t be put off if the company is not local, as everything will be done via or the web! If you come across websites that you like, look for a link to the company that designed and programmed it. It is usually located at the bottom of the homepage. Then don t be shy to pick up the phone and call the owner of the website for feedback about their experience! Tutorial 5, Page 2

32 Finding A Good Web Professional But remember; design is not everything! The below paragraph is going to assist you sort the good from the bad. b) First step: how to differentiate amateur from professional Before even writing a brief, there are a few questions you can ask to separate the web amateur from the web professional. You don t even need to understand the meaning of the question! What version of HTML do you use? Should be XHTML 1.0 or 1.1 Do you use tables or table-less CSS? Should be table-less CSS (using tables is an old practice) Do you use Flash? If they are very positive about Flash technology and don t warn you of its many search engine restrictions, stay away. Flash is not search engine friendly. Do you use HTML Frames? If YES or even the slightest hesitation, stay away as Frames is not a search engine friendly way of programming a website. Frames is a technique used ten years ago. How do you make a website SEO friendly? (Use the acronym on purpose instead of Search Engine Optimisation as you are testing to see if they know its meaning) They should mention keywords, developing inbound links to your website, optimising the content, using a search engine friendly content management system and setting up a monthly strategy. More importantly, they should push that search engine optimisation is an integral part of a successful website and that it should be given great consideration at the very initial stage of the project. How will you redirect my old pages to my new pages? This is a very important question as it is very usual for web developers not to redirect your old pages to your new pages. The consequence of this is a sudden drop in visitation which can be critical for many businesses. Your web developer should reassure you that they will redirect every single page of the website to the new one using a 301 redirect (not a 302 or other method). They should of course do the same for the domain name. c) Second step: the brief A quality brief will provide the web professional with a greater understanding of not only your requirements but also of the outcome you are after. The brief should be done in writing and answer the following questions: What: Do you require a website from scratch? Only a search engine strategy? A content management system? Integration with YouTube? Photo gallery? Ask the company you are approaching for testimonials or similar past projects that they have done. Tutorial 5, Page 3

33 Finding A Good Web Professional How: How are you planning on working with the web professional, how is your website going to integrate with your traditional marketing strategy, how do you plan on updating your website? How can they help you? How is the company you are approaching planning on working with you? Are there going to be weekly briefings and updates? Where: Where is your website going to be hosted? If you already have a domain name, let them know what it is. Where does the company recommend your website be hosted and how much is it going to cost you? Who: Who is your target market and who is going to be the point of contact at your end? Ask the company you are approaching for contacts or references that you can call. Ask who you will be your direct point of contact at the company; will it be an account manager or an online marketer? When: When is your deadline? When will the company you are approaching be able to start on your project? How much: Specifying a ballpark figure of how much you are prepared to spend on your project will enable your web strategists to provide you with a well-suited and realistic plan. If you do not feel confident to write a brief, simply ask your web specialist to send you a blank brief to fill out. d) Third step: sending the brief out Aim to send at least 3 briefs via and expect a 2-week minimum turnaround. e) Final step: deciding Review the proposals you would have received. Consider them as if they were job applications. A personalised, creative, proposal addressing the points discussed in your brief demonstrates the interest and expertise of the company. If you receive a templated, dull proposal outlining what the company does and not responding to your questions you should source other proposals. Why don t you also Google the name of the people who will be involved on your project? If they are well known in their industry they should come up in search engine results which in turn demonstrates they practice what they preach. 3. How much should I expect to pay? Working with an online marketing strategist is not any dearer than working with a web designer and a web developer separately. It will not only save you time as you will not be the organiser between them both but it will also ensure your site and strategy meet the requirement Tutorial 5, Page 4

34 Finding A Good Web Professional of today s traveller. The chart below breaks down the different aspects of an online strategy which includes: website design and content management system, search engine optimisation and online marketing. You will find an indication of price below: Lower bracket: AUD3,000 initial (simple website) + AUD300 per month This corresponds to an investment of AUD132 per week over 12 months. Higher bracket: AUD6,000 initial + AUD500 per month This corresponds to an investment of AUD240 per week over 12 months. Carefully review each offer you receive based on the brief you sent before making any decision. $3,000 - $20,000+ $200 2,000 a month plus your own time as investment To keep the cost down you can conduct many of the above activities yourself. 4. Why shouldn t I do my website myself? Designing a website yourself might seem like a good idea at the time, and perceived as one that will cut down the expenses. You will certainly know some operators who have tackled it themselves. Ask them how long it took them. Was it a good return on investment or should have they focused on the content and let a professional look after the development? Can they accurately measure the business they Tutorial 5, Page 5

35 Finding A Good Web Professional are getting from their homemade site? Professionals know the tricks of the trade. A web strategy is an integral part of a successful business and not something that stands alone on the side. THE CREATION OF A SUCCESSFUL WEBSITE AND STRATEGY DEMANDS GREAT KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERTISE. LEAVE THE SURGERY TO THE SURGEONS BUT WORK WITH THEM TO GIVE THEM AN ACCURATE DIAGNOSIS. LASTLY, FOCUS YOUR EFFORTS ON WRITING COMPELLING CONTENT, AS NO ONE WILL BE ABLE TO DO IT AS WELL AS YOU DO! a) I am still convinced I can do it Is it as simple as it looks? Microsoft Word allows me to save a page as a webpage even! Creating a website for it to bring the results it is supposed to bring is complex and demanding. MS Word and other programs such as FrontPage let you build basic websites but are not web programming tools. Design: are you a professional graphic designer specialising in web? Usability: are you aware of all its implications? Marketing: are you able to build your website to meet future marketing needs? Technologies: do you know about all the technological requirements (HTML, CSS, and PHP)? Search engine optimisation: are you familiar with the best practices? Content management system: will you be able to add it to your site? If after reading all the above you are still very keen to develop your website yourself then you may want to try setting up a WordPress site from WordPress.org and apply a free theme to style your WordPress website. 5. My friend/neighbour/friend s friend is good with computers; shall I trust them to do my website? Being good with computers doesn t necessarily mean that the person has got the skill set required to design a website and web strategy that will result in successfully marketing your business. As a rule of thumb, any good online marketer, graphic designer or web developer has at least 5 years industry experience. Is this something your friend can provide you with? It is your business you are talking about, not a personal website. Your website should soon bring you at least one third of your bookings. A well-planned and executed site will pay for itself in the first year. Moreover, a web professional will be more objective than a friend who might not want to point out flaws or challenge your opinion. 6. Key learning outcomes Tutorial 5, Page 6

36 Finding A Good Web Professional Arm yourself with a football team of web professionals to ensure your web strategy is geared for success Avoid designing your website yourself but work with qualified professionals. 7. Related material a) Related tutorials Organising hosting for my site Registering a domain name 101 Tutorial 5, Page 7

37 Topic The basics Tutorial 6 Planning For A New Website This tutorial will present a roadmap of the steps required when planning a new website or site redesign. Reading time: 5 minutes Prerequisite: None

38 Planning For A New Website It is important you do not solely rely on a web company to develop your website. Your site will be your full time, dedicated sales person. It will attract search engines, meet visitors expectations and convert visits into sales. It will talk to more people than you will on a daily basis ( on average). It is therefore crucial to view it as an integral part of your sales and marketing team, and not as something on the side that should bring you business. It will need to be briefed and trained to really be able to appeal to the visitors and encourage them to buy. Week 1 & 2 Picture your website as the central component of your online strategy Week 3 Assess your target market Research websites in your sector Week 4 Define structure of site based on content Review what media (photo, video, sound) will be used in strategy Week 5 Write a brief with the above Contact 3 web companies for quotes Week 6, 7, 8 Select a web company and write your content Web developer to build site, organise hosting and domain name Week 9 Finalise your content, photos, video, install tracking Web optimiser to optimise site for search engines and train you Once your website is up and running, you have to keep developing its content, monitor your online statistics and manage your SEO and online marketing strategies. Tutorial 6, Page 1

39 Planning For A New Website 1. Key learning outcomes It is important you don t perceive a website as something that can be built without your involvement. Your website will become your tourism business key marketing asset and it is therefore crucial you are involved in each key phase of its development process Ensure you document your requirements in a clear brief that you send out to more than one web development company. 2. Related material a) Related tutorials Initial assessment of my website Registering a domain name 101 Organising hosting for my site Web strategy: assessment and components Web strategy: cost and timings Finding a good web professional The Internet web 2.0 and the tourism industry Target market 101 Website 101: visual design and content Website 101: usability and technology What is a content management system Search engines 101 Bringing people to my site with e-marketing Google Analytics Tutorial 6, Page 2

40 Topic The basics Tutorial 7 Best Practices Responding to enquiries is essential but time consuming when you are running a small business and need to balance all your other daily activities. Following the key points in this tutorial will ensure your responses to s meet the expectations of today s traveller. Reading time: 10 minutes Prerequisite: None

41 Best Practices 1. Background Research show that travellers shop around via when you receive an there is a good chance that your direct competitors have also received the same . Moreover, travellers expect an answer within their working day. Therefore, time is of the essence when dealing with s. As a rule of thumb you have maximum 24 hours to respond to s before credibility is questioned or the client will give up. a) When should I check my s? Check your s at breakfast, lunch and dinner. If you cannot respond there and then, make a point of sending an acknowledgement to confirm you received the and inform the client when you will get back to them. Hi John, this is Emma from 4WD adventure tours. I am just in the middle of changing the tyres on the 4WD but I will get back to you with availabilities before 5pm tonight. Cheers for contacting us! Book one hour of your time every day (early to mid afternoon is best) to answer all daily s you haven t yet responded to. If you leave it too late people will look elsewhere. If you can, also try and answer overnight s first thing in the morning. b) How shall I respond? Include the original message as a reference. If it was a form from your website, use the your website sent you as reference and include it in the response to the client. What type of person are you writing to? Their initial will give you an idea of what type of person the sender is. Use similar language they used. Did they ask for examples? Then use examples. Do they want facts only? Then be brief. Structure your response, aim for a great one instead of a good one. Use headlines, bold important words. Your competitors might not! Have a call-to-action that will entice the sender to act and respond to your If you book this week I will make sure I give you priority for a room upgrade Direct the client to your page on TripAdvisor where they will be able to read past client s recommendations. Avoid adding attachments other than PDFs or images as servers could consider them as spam and block them. Direct the potential client to a document they can download from your website. Check out our breakfast menu on our website Ensure you answered all questions and offered a solution or options to address all concerns the customer might have. Tutorial 7, Page 1 Version6 Last updated March 2011

42 Best Practices Ask the sender how they found you. Was it through Google? A link from another website? Word of mouth? Make a list of how everyone found you and use that information to fine-tune your marketing. Thank the sender. Have an signature that highlights upcoming local events or special deals. 2. Case study: example of a great response In the example above, Joan provided a great, enticing response to Emma. She has also: Adopted the same language and tone as Emma, the potential customer Answered all her questions and gave her options Tutorial 7, Page 2 Version6 Last updated March 2011