Planning and budgeting for social media marketing in 2012

By Ritesh Gupta

IN-DEPTH: Budget planning should be built around supporting initiatives, campaigns and applications that provide users beneficial information, help achieve business goals and are interesting enough that people will want to engage, says Jennifer Stafford, Social Media Manager, HomeAway.com.

By Ritesh Gupta

The challenge that social media platforms posed for marketers in 2011 was about how to deliver value in the long term: for social media strategies to have longevity, they need to engage the users with stimulating, relevant content, and/or provide them with the tools necessary to meet their needs over time.

There also needs to be a seamless flow between channels and a cohesive user experience that adds value, not just a duplication of information in each channel.

There is a certain tendency to follow suit and just embark on a strategy because everyone is talking about it without really thinking it through.

The past one to two years have seen many travel brands grow in their knowledge of how to better use social media to effectively communicate with their customers and prospects, says Jennifer Stafford, Social Media Manager, HomeAway.com.

Many companies are now more versed in targeting content to the various social audiences they communicate with on the different social networks through past experience and social network analytics that have become more advanced. Also, the value of having a fan base that is interested in your brand, versus just trying to get as many fans/followers as possible without regard to their connection with your company is becoming much more apparent as marketers shift focus to engagement.

"Similar to targeting content to different social networks, synchronising the look and feel of social media accounts and the tone of the messaging has also improved," says Stafford, who is scheduled to speak at the forthcoming Social Media and Mobile Strategies for Travel USA 2012, to be held in San Francisco (March 5-6) this year.

Stafford says most brands now have apps that are built in to their Facebook pages and are experimenting with Facebook ads and contests to draw users to their pages and increase engagement. On Twitter many travel companies have refined their strategy for engagement and offer deals to gain new followers. YouTube is being utilised for customer testimonials, highlighting corporate culture, site usage how-tos and videos of important events and announcements.

"While not all travel companies have reached a fully diversified social strategy that encompasses all of the major social networks, they are moving in that direction and I expect to see more diversity in engagement, content, promotions and apps throughout 2012 as they try to stay ahead of the competition. But no matter where your company is in terms of social marketing maturity, developing a social marketing strategy if you don't already have one should be a priority for all brands," Stafford told EyeforTravel.com's Ritesh Gupta in an interview.

Planning and budgeting

Social media is playing an increasingly important role in the way consumer access travel information and share their experiences online.

On how should travel companies go about planning and budgeting for social media marketing in 2012, Stafford says trip planning, engagement and sharing activities are moving deeper into the mobile space so ensuring that your brand has a strong mobile presence with an easy to use app is important.

"In terms of the social networks, and in addition to the mainstays of Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, Pinterest has emerged as a favourite among mom's who lead the charge in most travel planning activities. If your business has photos or digital marketing materials it would be a worthwhile investment of time to be an early adopter of Pinterest," says Stafford.

In terms of planning for 2012, according to Stafford, the key is to ask: What reason do users have to engage with us? Are you offering deals, do you have a useful or fun application, do you offer fan only information on your social channels, are you running Facebook ads to your page?

"Budget planning should be built around supporting initiatives, campaigns and applications that provide users beneficial information, help you achieve your business goals and are interesting enough that people will want to engage. You should budget for running ads on social networks (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and StumbleUpon) that support your campaigns and branding materials, application building, promotions/prizes, social media management tools and design work if this isn't available internally. We've found that these are generally the areas where you should bucket for the bulk of your social media spend," explained Stafford.

Participation

It's important for brands to monitor conversations and look for opportunities to engage current and potential customers, but before you try to insert yourself into a discussion ensure that you've got a clear picture of the context of the conversation. If someone is clearly asking for help from their friends and connections, then stepping in as a brand might not result in a positive outcome. However, if someone is directly discussing your company or asking a general question where you can provide valuable information then it makes sense to jump in to the discussion.

Stafford said the social network where you are trying to engage with users is something to be mindful of.

She added, for example, sending a tweet to someone is generally less intrusive than engaging in a discussion on a forum or other network where there is a closer sense of community. The tone and intent of the messaging is also important. If you're only trying to sell something it'll be less welcome than providing meaningful information to the user.

"You need to use the time that you spend engaging in social conversations effectively so choose situations that will provide benefit to the users and are more likely to result in a positive interaction for your company. We've found engaging with customers and prospects online has been rewarding in terms of relationship building and identifying brand advocates so as long as it's done with the intention to help solve a problem engagement from brands is usually accepted by users," she said.

Evaluation

Travel companies are attempting to tap into online conversations around their brands, products or services to understand what their core audiences are saying and determine the influence they have on their brands.

As the travel industry is one of the most talked about on social media, the ability to find data should not be an issue for most companies, says Stafford. Travel companies can easily monitor likes, dislikes, requests, issues and more from their customers as well as customers of competitors through social media conversations. By tracking the conversations brands can gather public information from customers previously reserved for focus groups and surveys.

According to Stafford, many companies are using this data for improving customer service on social media channels and build social apps in addition to internal product and process improvements. Utilising social conversations to learn what content your followers want to see from your brand is also a great benefit so you can deliver valuable information to users.

Additionally, conversations can provide you with information that can be used to more accurately craft messaging used in social advertising.

"Social data also gives brands the opportunity to identify who your brand advocates and social media influencers are so you can engage with them if they're providing feedback to your company," concluded Stafford.

Four Tips to Keep Your Website Ahead of the Curve in 2012

By Lauren Hockenson

Sure, having a website for your business serves a practical need: to draw net-surfing users to your product or service. However, it's also much more than slapping on a run of the mill two-column template and calling it a day. Nothing kills an online buzz like a poorly designed or drastically outdated website. Dry and boring default templates, broken assets, confusing pages and invasive widgets do nothing but harm a page's style, which in turn reflects poorly on the company.

2012 is heralding a new wave of innovative Web technologies and design, and a page that stays in step with these trends is bound to pique interest and lower your bounce rate. Even more, a well done and on-trend website remains effective well after the year is over, reeling users in with thoughtful design and building a design-conscious and taste-making reputation. Keep these tips in mind when you clean up your company's website, and stay ahead of the curve for the new year.


1. Don't be afraid to be bold

Mail Chimp. Instagram. Pinterest. All of these websites are joined together by a commitment to bold designs and layout. Whether it's an exaggerated footer, a turn to minimalism or a bold and new typeface, incorporating a key graphical element to a website speaks volumes about the overall composition of the layout-and a keen level of attention to detail. Opting for a bold design element is a great way to modernize a website and keep it on trend in the coming years.

A bold design can be obtained with very little money, especially for those who aren't necessarily experienced in coding. For example, Web pages operating on a WordPress can find a host of free templates that offer a wide range of customizable options to suit any business. New and exciting fonts can be found via Google's open API font styles and require a simple set of code to be dropped in for compatibility with a website. Inspiration and how-tos for more hands-on DIY upgrades can be found at coding/design blogs like A List Apart, One Extra Pixel and Mashable's Dev and Design channel.

For those with a little more cash to burn on a proper contractor, 99 Designs relies on crowdsourcing to gather great designers for companies looking for a reliable and cutting edge renovation. Companies on 99 Designs are allowed to name their own price, which means a promising design on a budget.

However you choose to go about it, a bold design dusts off the cobwebs on your old page and keeps it fresh for years to come.


2. Use HTML5...with care

For the last couple years, people have been buzzing about HTML5, and it's not just chatter; HTML5 offers a lot of exciting flexibility that can make a website truly interactive. Seamlessly embedded videos, drag-and-drop interfaces and dynamic message posts are all achievable via HTML5, and with relatively little code work.

But it's not enough to just call up your freelance Web designer and throw up some HTML5 features. As with any programming language, there's always an issue of browser compatibility. While your new and shiny UI outfitted with dynamic HTML5 might look stunning to a user running on the latest version of Chrome, your high-tech page may look like a series of broken features-or nothing at all-to a less tech-savvy user running Internet Explorer 7 (and there's a lot of them).

This issue has been longstanding in the Internet world, but there are precautions to take in order to ensure that every user has a pleasurable experience on your website without you making a major investment. Modernizr is an open-source, JavaScript-based tool that offers feature detection for HTML5, and it's just-as-snazzy brother CSS3. Instead of doing simple browser detection, Modernizr will figure out just what features the user's browser can support and react accordingly. If a user is operating on an incompatible browser, then Modernizr will automatically decide whether to switch to a JavaScript-based fallback of the features or just create a downgraded version.

Make no mistake, this solution shouldn't be implemented by a newbie to code, but it does provide a simple way to implement exciting and revolutionary features while still providing support for the little guys.


3. Cut the fat

The traditional layouts for websites often call for separate pages that encapsulate the "About," "Contact" and other informational areas of the website. 2011 saw minimalist designs from multiple websites, and that often translated to cutting these pages in favor of a sleeker overall design (think Tumblr). Some companies chose to forgo nearly everything to produce a strongly graphical one-page website-blogs like One Page Love and successful networking tools like Flavors.me show that people are drifting towards a bold singular statement that makes a big impact on fellow users.

As we move forward in 2012, further exploration into one-page websites is a given. But a single-page website has both its pros and cons. HTML5 can help create a one-page website that cleverly contains all necessary information via pop-up boxes or other media, but the amount of information that can be on a one-page website is still relatively limited. Do you want your website to make a bold statement about your company and focus less on a blog-style format? If so, a one-page website could be right in your wheelhouse. Are you more interested in showing off testimonials, case studies and blogs from your employees? If yes, then this trend would be worth passing on.

However, that doesn't mean you should forgo trimming entirely. Culling the best parts of your website and truncating the rest will result in a sleeker, more intuitive design-and sleek never goes out of style.


4. Tie in social media intelligently

This tip could also be titled "Quit it With the Widgets." Announcing your social media presence on your own website is an absolute necessity, but it needs to be done with care. Automatically updating widgets that stream in social media presence seems intrusive and outdated, not to mention that they can be a hassle for a DIY designer to install and maintain.

To put it simply, social media should definitely be a presence on a business website, but it should not be a dominating presence. Integrating social media, whether in graphic links or a social ticker, should be done with the user's eyes in mind. It's simple on paper, but can be difficult to execute. When social media is done intelligently and with consideration, your website instantly will look socially connected and organized.

Are there any other ways you're keeping your website ahead of the game?

12 Communications Resolutions for 2012

By Jim Hartigan

The confetti has settled, and the champagne bubbles have fizzled. It's back to the grind stone and time to get down to the business of 2012. January is a time for making resolutions and setting goals, and what better topic to resolve to improve than your Communications! So without further ado here is our 12 Orgwide Communication Resolutions for 2012 - they might just revolutionize your communications too!

12 Communication Resolutions for 2012

1.More is...well, more!-How many times have you heard someone say, "Didn't I tell you" or "Oh, I told Sally Jo but forgot to tell you." More communication is critical as your team works together. It is important to check and recheck that everyone has received the same information.

2.Use spell check

3.Like a train - Stay on schedule-Regular communication helps your team members from becoming overloaded by "popcorn" e-mail messages. Having a standard communications schedule also gives you the ability to highlight the importance of some information compared to other messages. Click Here to see how we can keep you on track and on schedule!

4.DISABLE CAPLOCK

5.Can you hear me now?-Beyond hearing, is your audience listening and really understanding your message? Are your team members interpreting your messages how you intended them to be? Do they understand their goals and objectives? Click Here to see a sample of our team member survey and Manager's Interpretation Guide.

6.Clean out the inbox - failing to respond is... just plain uncivilized.

7.Keep it real-In a world of e-mail and smart phones, it can become easy to hide behind technology. When launching a new project or handling a conflict, direct communication gives both parties the opportunity to explain themselves and always for both parties to seek immediate clarification.

8.Complete sentences

9.Plan your work, Work your plan-As organizations grow and new technology becomes available, we are often faced with new communication challenges. By including communication strategies in the planning phases, organizations elevate their efficiency and limit possible issues. Click Here to see a sample of a successful communication campaign

10.One should avoid talking about oneself in the third person

11.More than annual Check-ups-Is one of your team members having problems with part of the project? Are two team members duplicating effort on a project? Checking in with team members on the status of projects can build team member engagement and allow you to prevent problems and streamline efforts.

12.Me, myself, and I - They asked Sally Jo and me to help. I finished the project myself. Sally Jo and I went to the meeting.

Mini-Bar, Maxi-Profits

By Larry Mogelonsky, MBA, P. Eng. (www.lma.ca)

One aspect of a hotel room that definitely merits more discussion from a profitability and customer satisfaction standpoint is the minibar. Truth be told, I seldom use the minibar when I travel. I like to eat out and experience the city that I'm in, plus there's the stigma of having to pay exorbitant fees for staple goods. All said, the minibar is one aspect primed for reimagining, and to help kick start the call to action, I sat down with Sandeep Sharma, VP Account Management at Minibar Systems (www.minibar.ch), the pre-eminent supplier in this segment, to address the issue.

PKF's 2011 annual Trends® in the Hotel Industry report examined minibar utilization. With 727 hotels (out of 6,500) reporting minibar revenue in 2010 and 2009, the results indicated:
•In 2010, minibar revenue averaged $152 per available room, 60 cents per occupied room, or 0.24% of total hotel revenue.
•In 2009, minibar revenue averaged $143 per available room, 61 cents per occupied room, or 0.23% of total hotel revenue.

Therefore, it appears that minibar revenue grew 6.3% as a source of revenue for the sample of hotels, but much was attributable to the increase in occupied rooms. For reference purposes, room service at these hotels averaged $775 per room in 2010, or 1.2% of total hotel revenue.

Sandeep, I noticed from the latest PKF data that minibars represent only a minor revenue source for hotels. Yet, I can't remember a hotel that does not have a minibar. What is your take on this data?

It is true that the average hotel guest at a full service, reputable hotel expects his/her guestroom to have a minibar. From the hotel's perspective, besides offering the convenience of a minibar to make the guest's stay more pleasurable, there also is an opportunity to generate incremental revenue. That is why minibars are found in most reputable hotels and hotel chains.

While it is also true that minibar revenue is a minor source of revenue (when compared to rooms, restaurants or banquets), those hotels that have our equipment averaged a Sales Per Occupied Room (SPOR) of $2.01 in 2009 and $2.41 in 2010. This was largely a result of higher ADR and occupancy trends in the industry. In our opinion, a hotel that is doing $0.60 SPOR really should not have minibars because at that revenue level, it is impossible to make a profit given the fixed and controllable expenses of a minibar department.

You mentioned that automatic bars were becoming an increasingly important business. Can you explain the impact of this phenomena and where it is most prevalent.

One of the biggest expenses that a hotel has is labor. With honor bars, labor expense (in high labor cost cities) can run as high as 80% of revenues. Automation drastically reduces a hotel's labor expense. A minibar attendant can service 130 occupied rooms in a hotel that has honor bars. That productivity goes up to 350 occupied rooms in a hotel that might use our SmartCube automated bar system.

I noticed a move towards minibars with automated accounting: remove a bottle and the guest gets computer charged. What is the feedback from the hotels? Have you seen a lot of complaints from guests?

A hotel that has a well-run minibar department will ensure that the daily routine includes the process of refunding to the guest account all such charges where the attendant identifies that the guest has not consumed the item. Educating the guest about the new amenity is also critical in keeping guest complaints down. This is done by the Front Desk on guest check-in as well as by having signage and collateral in guest rooms which provide information about the automated nature of the bars.

There are some growing pains when a hotel that has had honor bars switches to automated bars. However, if properly managed, automation actually has the ability to cut down on minibar related guest complaints for the following reasons:
•You are not disturbing those guests who have not moved anything in the minibar. Compare this to honor bars where you have to knock on every occupied room.
•Billing takes place in real time, so the chances of a guest being billed in error are minimized.
•Because all activity in the bar is stamped with a date and time and saved on our SmartCube S3 Software, it acts as a deterrent against employee theft from the minibars.

With a trend towards healthier products, how have you guided your hotels in planning their product selection?

Our studies indicate that the trend towards healthy options in the general marketplace does not transfer over to minibars. With the exception of Spring Water and Orange Juice, ‘healthy' items perform poorly in minibars. While we advise that hotels have one healthy item (such as a granola bar) offered in the minibar, for a hotel where profit is the main objective, our advise is against loading the minibar with ‘healthy' items. The 10 top selling and most profitable items sold in minibars have mostly remained unchanged over the years.

Despite the reasons given above, we always engineer menus based on the hotel type and guest demographic. For instance, if a hotel is a spa resort, we will engineer a menu that focuses on that particular theme.

What can a hotel do to maximize return on their mini-bar capital investment?

This is a very interesting question and one that hotels often struggle with. A majority of the hotels do not treat their minibar department as a profit center and never provide the focus and attention it needs. As a result, they have unprofitable minibar departments. The key to success consists of three simple steps:
•Procure equipment from a well established and reputable company such as Minibar Systems.
•Ensure that the company just does not install the minibars and disappear. It is critical that the company provides technical and operational support for the minibars as well as the point of sale system that it installs.
•If the hotel does not want to dedicate the time and resources needed to manage the operation then partner with a company, such as Minibar Systems, who have an established track record of providing minibar consulting and management services to the hotel industry.

What is the funniest or most unusual minibar story that you can tell us?

This story comes from Garrett Warren, our Senior Account Manager and minibar expert-at-large.

A guest was checking out of her hotel room and had been automatically charged for all of the minibar items in the external snack basket. When the guest realized she had already been billed, she said she had all of the items in her suitcase and opened it up to retrieve the items. As she pulled out all of the snacks, she also pulled out guest towels, hair dryer and hotel room iron. When the Front Desk Agent asked if she wanted to return these items as well, the guest replied, "No, why should I return them if I haven't been billed for them?" The Front Desk Agent fell over laughing.

What is the future of minibar systems? Do you see expansion within the accommodation marketplace? What are the latest trends in minibar management and marketing?

While the viability of the minibar concept is often debated, the fact is that guests of upscale hotels expect minibars in their rooms. They like the fact that some of their favorite beverages and snacks are available at an arm's reach in their guest room and they can get what they want immediately without having to call or talk to someone.

With the advent of new technology, the way minibars work will continue to change. For instance, Minibar Systems now offers a communication platform called PowerPlus that enables our SmartCube Minibars to work over the hotel's electrical infrastructure. Hotels no longer have to spend on costly wiring and cabling infrastructure to have an automated minibar in their guest rooms.

The latest trend is for hotels to outsource the operation of individual departments to companies that have the expertise, and this is happening with minibars as well. The fact is that the F&B Director at a hotel has too many things going on and really does not have the time to focus on an operation that contributes limited revenue to his division. That is where Minibar Systems steps in and takes over the operation and ensures that the right focus and direction is provided to ensure the minibar department is profitable. We give our customers different options that they can choose from depending on how much they want to be involved.

Some properties retain us to provide them with consulting services for their minibar department. We assign one of our experienced Regional Account Managers to the hotel who makes periodic onsite visits to audit the operation and make specific recommendations targeted to improve revenues and reduce expenses. Some hotels enter into revenue sharing agreements with us wherein they have no capital costs. We provide the hotel with the equipment as well as technical and operational support and recover our costs by sharing the revenues generated by the minibar department. Some hotels do a full ‘outsource' of their minibar department to us, wherein we provide the equipment, the product that is sold in the minibars and an onsite manager to operate the hotel's minibar department.

5 Tips to Making Web Strategies 'Fresh'

Lodging Interactive Offers

With the recent roll-out of Google's 'Freshness Update,' hotels can maintain a high search ranking if they follow five steps outlined by hospitality's social media marketing agency

If visitors to your website are receiving stale information from random search engines, Google's new "Freshness Update" (which effects how the popular search engine brings up results for searches) may be your hotel's new best friend. Lodging Interactive, an award winning interactive and social media marketing agency exclusively servicing the hospitality industry, is offering five simple strategies that hotels can incorporate into their online marketing plan that will make it easier to obtain or maintain a high Google status. By using these strategies and publishing accurate and entertaining date-stamped material, hotels will increase their Google ranking and be at the top of a user’s search results.

"Just because a hotel updates or makes corrections to its webpage doesn't automatically increase its freshness value," said D.J. Vallauri, Lodging Interactive President and CEO. "Google determines the freshness the first time it crawled the page. The goal of Freshness Update is to deliver the most recent or current information to users when they enter a query. It does this by searching for web pages that are time stamped, which indicates when the information or webpage was created. Sometimes web pages can be time stamped in days or even in minutes. This is crucial for businesses in the hospitality industry that covet the top spots in Google’s search results because it underlines the importance of presenting and maintaining up-to-date information on their websites."

To take advantage of Google's Freshness Update, Lodging Interactive offers the following five strategies to incorporate into an online marketing plan:

1.Publish more press releases. Keep visitors informed of the latest happenings within your hotel. The information in press releases is time sensitive and Google will pick up on this. Coming out with new press releases on a weekly basis is a good idea because each press release will probably lose its “ranking” within a few days. It’s an easy and fast way to get a property name and website out there in the top search results.

2.Create a blog for your website. Display information on a host of different topics that is fun and interesting for people to read. Starting a blog is easy. If you already have a blog, make sure to keep adding entries on a regular basis. Be sure that your blog contains link bait pieces that tie into your content. Not only will you keep your website at the top of Google’s search results, but you’ll keep your regular followers intrigued with new and interesting tidbits of information.

3.Become familiar with popular social media. It's important to use top social media sites such as Facebook, Google +1 and Twitter to market your hotel. The good thing about these social media sites is that your hotel's followers and customers are able to assist you with your “freshness” by adding their own comments or content and promoting your site to others. As long as your business is monitoring outside content, it’s a great way to establish current content every day.

4.Get picked-up by Google News. It can have a huge impact on your ranking in Google.

5.Contact CoMMingle by Lodging Interactive for a free Social Media Marketing Audit. CoMMingle will review each hotel's Internet plan to ensure that social media channels, word of mouth marketing, experiential marketing, reputation and consumer sentiment monitoring and social search engine optimization are being properly managed and maintained.
As hoteliers implement these strategies to improve their property's freshness status, they also need to make sure they are using time-stamps correctly and using the following dating format Google recommends: YYYY-MM-DD, or 2011-12-31. It's also imperative that hoteliers update XML sitemaps regularly every time they publish new information on the website.
"Think of your website like a cup of coffee," Vallauri said. "Topping-off your cup (adding new photos only to your webpage) may make it more satisfying (visually appealing), but if the joe isn't fresh (adding proper time stamps/dating formats), you could end up with a bitter taste in your mouth (turning off visitors because your site doesn't appear in top search listings due to old content, thereby sending them to your competition). Remember, adding a little sugar (press releases and blogs) goes a long way (customers will talk you up via Facebook, Twitter, Google +1, and Google News will pick you up). If you're not sure what kind of coffee suits your taste or that of your customers, ask a Barista (CoMMingle).

For more ways to more effectively market your hotel, call Richard Walsh, Lodging Interactive VP of Business Development at (877) 291-4411 or visit www.lodginginteractive.com.

Facebook and Twitter Build Up Their Defenses as Hackers Attack Social Networks.

Spam Finds New Target

Facebook and Twitter Build Up Their Defenses as Hackers Attack Social Networks.

By GEOFFREY A. FOWLER, SHAYNDI RAICE and AMIR EFRATI

Facebook Inc. and Twitter Inc. are building up their forces to fight an emerging enemy: "social" spam.

Facebook Inc. and Twitter Inc. are building up their forces to fight an emerging enemy: "social" spam. WSJ's Geoffrey Fowler reports on digits.

One of their foot soldiers is Tao Stein, a Facebook engineer. At 4 a.m. one May morning, Mr. Stein was jolted out of bed by a spam alert on his cellphone. Facebook was being inundated with messages that read, "hey check out this link FREE IPAD." But there was no free iPad—just malware that caused Facebook users who clicked on the link to unintentionally rebroadcast the annoying message to friends.

Mr. Stein switched on his coffee pot and logged on to his computer, launching a program to filter out the iPad offers. He adjusted his filter as the spammers quickly modified their come-on to evade it. "We have to continue iterating until we find their Achilles' heel," says Mr. Stein, whose efforts stemmed the tide only for about a day.

Spam, one of the Internet's oldest annoyances, is gearing up for a second act. Unlike traditional email spam, which usually comes from strangers, this new form—dubbed "social" spam—often appears to be from a friend. Criminals find social networks alluring because they can spread messages though a chain of trusted sources.

Such spam puts the usefulness of social networking at risk. Facebook says less than 4% of the content shared on its site is spam and Twitter says just 1.5% of all tweets were "spammy" in 2010. But Facebook adds that the volume is growing faster than its user base. On any given day, spam hits less than 0.5% of Facebook users, or some four million people.

Related
Identifying Spam Is Tricky for Twitter

"It's an arms race, and our goal is to be one step ahead," says Pedram Keyani, a Facebook engineering manager in charge of the effort.

In 2008, Facebook had just four engineers like Mr. Stein working on site integrity. Today, he works with a team of 30, plus a separate security team of 46 and another 300 focused on user issues. In all, some 1,000 of Facebook's 3,000 employees—including engineers, lawyers, user-operations managers and risk analysts—play a role in fighting spam in some capacity, the company says.

Meanwhile,Twitter says that by the end of the year, it will have five "spam science" programmers—up from two such employees now—and nine account-abuse specialists on its staff of about 750.

Social spam is growing as attacks launched via traditional email come-ons appear to be declining. In November, 70.5% of all email was spam, down from a recent high of 92.2% in August 2010, according to security-software maker Symantec Corp. Improved filters and law enforcement have made email attacks increasingly difficult.

"Spammers have decided to move where the people are and where the defenses are weak: Facebook and Twitter," says Chester Wisniewski, an analyst at security firm Sophos Ltd.

Hackers commonly sow social spam by creating false Facebook profiles and then "friending" people they don't know. Once the new friend clicks on a bad link, the spam begins propagating as his other friends do the same. And it can get started through nefarious third-party apps, or when people download malware outside Facebook or Twitter that gives hackers control of their computers.

A common social-spam attack on Facebook, known as "like-jacking," involves duping users into clicking on an image that looks as if a friend has clicked the "Like" button, recommending it.

More nefarious are come-ons for seemingly irresistible posts—like getting a free iPad—that lead people to run malware that can take over a Web browser, or even entire computer. Some social malware impersonates users, starting eerie one-on-one Facebook chat sessions with friends. Security experts also warn that a growing volume of sophisticated hacker attacks take information gleaned from social-networking profiles to trick people with convincing targeted messages.

San Francisco resident Clint Wilson discovered firsthand that his Facebook account was spamming his friends when his co-worker, who shares Mr. Wilson's account for work purposes, clicked on an offer for free dinner vouchers at the Cheesecake Factory. The offer was fake, and included a link that installed Web-hijacking malware.

Mr. Wilson, chief executive of software maker Cazoomi Technology Corp., quickly posted a note onto his Facebook account warning his friends to ignore the spam. "It's worse than email spam, because it's hard to stop," he says. He eventually figured out how to uninstall the malware from his Web browser, but estimates it cost him $500 in lost productivity.

Fighting social spam requires manpower because spammers move quickly. At Facebook, the company's site-integrity team spends its days and nights scanning for spikes in what users report as spam, and other unusual activity, such as friend request rejections. Every day, Facebook says it blocks 200 million malicious actions, such as messages linking to malware.

About once a quarter, Facebook gets hit with a big attack—and it's all hands on deck until the spam is destroyed, say employees. Weeks like that turn into "a very intense battle," says Mr. Stein. A poster on his team's wall features a unicorn slaying a spam monster.

Spammers' weak spots are typically things that cost them money, such as Internet addresses to house malware or the human effort required to set up and manage accounts. Facebook can't prevent spam, but it is stepping up measures to make it harder to create and use fake profiles.

When Facebook is suspicious about an account, it asks the owner to prove his identity, even if he has the correct password. Sometimes it does this by asking users to identify their friends. The point is to ensure that a real person—not a computer—will have to complete the test, thereby increasing the costs of spamming.

Some of the combat efforts may be working. Twitter says its "spammy" tweet rate of 1.5% in 2010 was down from 11% in 2009. Those being affected by spam and the number of spammer accounts escaping detection are "not tracking in an upward direction," says Del Harvey, Twitter's head of trust and safety.

Facebook's Mr. Keyani says he is taking the long view: "This is a game where there is never going to be a winner or a loser. We're just going to be battling it out."

Business travelers to remain busy in 2012

Business travel finishes 2011 with stronger growth than expected and the industry will see steady expansion in 2012 that is greater than anticipated GDP growth, according to the latest Business Travel Quarterly Outlook – United States from the Global Business Travel Association.

2011 closes with what turned out to be a stronger year than expected for business travel. Person-Trip volume is up 3.1% in 2011 Q3 while total business travel spending is up 8.3% for the quarter. Total Person-Trip volume will hit 446.5 million and total spending on business travel will reach $251.9 billion in 2011, up 2.1% and 7.6%, respectively.

2012 will continue to see more measured growth as economic headwinds persist. GBTA forecasts that business travel spend will increase by 4.6% in 2012 on a slight (0.8%) decline in person-trips.

"Although the economic recovery is still modest, we see business travel remaining healthy and growing at a steady rate that outpaces GDP growth," said Michael W. McCormick, GBTA executive director and COO. "We'd like to see these record corporate profits trickle down through the rest of the economy, but as the European economy teeters on the brink, corporations remain cautious. But because business travel drives corporate growth, we should expect road warriors to remain busy in 2012."

GBTA predicts U.S. business travel price inflation to be 2.2% in 2012, compared to price inflation of 4.3% for 2011. Lower levels of travel demand and lower fuel prices will be the leading causes of this improvement.

GBTA Business Travel Index -- Steady as we Go

The GBTA Business Travel Index™ (GBTA BTI™) for Q3 2011 reached 117, just slightly higher than previously projected, and is expected to grow at the same pace for Q1 2012 to reach 119. 2011 is likely to wrap up as a comeback year for business travel as corporations were resolute about increasing their investment in travel.

Looking farther out, the GBTA BTI™ has been revised to climb at a slow and steady pace as the global economy continues to struggle, with a forecast of hitting the pre-recession high of 120 by Q2 2012.

The GBTA BTI™ provides a way to distill market performance and the outlook for business travel into a single metric that can be tracked over time.

International Travel – Delays Expected

International outbound business travel is expected to remain stronger than domestic travel; however, it will face new challenges in 2012. Challenges in the Eurozone will continue to plague the global economy for the foreseeable future. Additionally, there are some struggles in the developing world as many high-growth economies that have experienced strong growth over the last few years face their own challenges in 2012. The number of total U.S. initiated international business trips is expected to hit 6.8 million in 2011, a 3.2% increase over 2010, followed by 2.4% growth in 2012.

"For the last few quarters, international travel has been a bright spot in business travel, due to the higher cost of travel and the steady growth in the number of trips," McCormick said. "However, it looks like the pressure building in growing economies will cause slower but steady growth in 2012. Road warriors should still expect to be traveling, especially as the business climate remains uneven. No company will want to risk giving up the competitive advantage of in-person meetings, as each and every sale will become all the more important."

Group Travel Spend Dips

Group travel had a very strong 2011. Spending on group business travel is projected to finish up 7.6% year-over-year. However, in 2012, group travel spending will be hard-pressed to repeat that performance. Growth is expected to fall back to only 4.2%, a significant drop from the Q3 prediction. Group travel in particular will feel the brunt of the cloudy economic future.

Google+ just got a new killer app: Search

By Janko Roettgers

Google has begun to integrate Google+ posts, pages and profiles into its Google.com search results. The move is meant to personalize search, and offers some interesting opportunities for content discovery – but first and foremost, it’s gonna be a big boost for Google+ itself.

Google fellow Amit Singhal introduced the new integration on the company’s search blog Tuesday morning, explaining that search shouldn’t be just about billions of web pages from perfect strangers:

“Search is pretty amazing at finding that one needle in a haystack of billions of webpages, images, videos, news and much more. But clearly, that isn’t enough. You should also be able to find your own stuff on the web, the people you know and things they’ve shared with you, as well as the people you don’t know but might want to… all from one search box.”

The new Google+ search integration comes with a kind of on-off switch, making it possible to switch back and forth between the classic Google view of the world and a more personalized version. Users who opt for the personal approach will get to see relevant posts from the people they have added to their circles as well as pages from brands and celebrities relevant to their search results.

Google has also added Google+ profiles to its auto-complete results. Search for a name, and a direct link to a person’s Google+ profile will show up after entering just a few letters. This works for both people you’ve added to your circles as well as blog authors and others that are part of Google’s authorship pilot program, and whose Google+ headshots have been showing up in search results for a while.

This kind of tight integration of Google+ and Google’s search is a remarkable step for the company, because it once again shows how Google+ is becoming a centerpiece of its web strategy. But more importantly, it could give Google+ a huge boost and finally help the social network to catch up with millions of consumers that have been holding out on giving it a try. I’d suspect there will be two key factors driving a sharp uptake of Google+ usage as personalized search becomes available to everyone: Photos and celebrities.

Google+ has been offering some great photo sharing functionality, including its auto-upload function and its tight integration with Picasa. But there is something incredibly powerful about seeing photos from your friends, as well as photos you have taken yourself, show up prominently featured in search results. Check the screenshot on the side to see what I mean.

The second part to the puzzle are celebrities, and Google has gone to great lengths to court people like will.i.am and others to come to Google+. Their pages will be featured in a special sidebar when relevant, and users will be able to dive into these results or add celebrities to their circles right then and there — which will then impact their future search results, but also get them to pay more attention to Google+ in general.

I’ve long argued that Hangouts are a kind of killer app for Google+. With the launch of personalized search, the service just got a new killer app.

Related research and analysis from GigaOM Pro:
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NewNet Q3: Facebook remakes headlines in social media
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How publishers must adapt to multiple content discovery options

8 Hotel Website Mistakes

By Matt Landau
Author of Boost Hotel Occupancy - DIY tips for hotel owners on a shoestring budget
Your hotel website is a vital tool in generating more bookings as well as presence online: but not all sites are created equally. Having reviewed hundreds of hotel websites, here are the Top 8 Mistakes I see along with quick and free clues as to how to avoid them. 
Not choosing one keyword: Most hotel websites fall into one of two categories. Either they are optimized for way too many keywords or they are not optimized for any. Using the industry standard Google Keyword Selector Tool, select the one search phrase with the most global searches, the least competition, and the highest relevance to your hotel. Sprinkle this keyword on your homepage, tag your images with it, acquire your backlinks using it as link text...etc. Organically ranking well for one, highly-targetted keyword is far more effective than spreading your efforts thin over many.
Forgetting title and description tags: The title and description tags are the invisible secrets to ranking better in Google.  They speak the search engine language and make your site accessible and relevant to users.  This bit of code only takes some small adjusting to immediately start generating better organic web traffic. Avoid title tags longer than 66 characters and when creating your description tags, think of them like advertisements for your property in a newspaper's classified section: short and to the point.
Pictures are not professional or prominent: When it comes to tourism and choosing a place to stay, pictures say a million words. Many hotel websites are using sub-par photos that don't do their properties justice. Hiring (or trading for room nights) a professional photographer is almost as imperative as displaying those quality images front and center on your homepage. I've seen cases in which hotels boost their traffic (and occupancy) by more than 25% simply by publishing better photos of the exact same property!
Hiding, faking, or forgetting testimonials all together: Authentic testimonials from prior guests are able to validate your hotel experience better than anything else. Make your testimonials accessible and allow them to convey your selling points: if your property is a ski resort, post a testimonial that features comments about the great skiing. If you just invested in great mattresses, feature a testimonial that mentions how comfortable the beds are.
Missing a call to action: Users tend to view a homepage up to 5x more than any other page on a site, yet many hotel websites don't allow that call to action (whether it is a contact form or an availability check) to hit their user over the head. Don't make your visitors search for the booking process! Place a "CALL NOW" or "BOOK NOW" or "INQUIRE NOW" feature on the top right of your homepage will boost bookings, guaranteed.
Not using a footer: The footer (bottom portion) of a hotel website is the perfect place to offer your contact information. Listing your email, phone number, and address makes contacting you easy and painless and simple from any page on your website.
Selecting ugly color schemes: The color of your background and text plays a pivotal role in the message you're getting across. Avoid bright and neon colors as well as drab browns and blacks. If in doubt, use a white background with black text. Illegible font is also a common mistake: when it doubt, stick with Sans Serif.
Featuring too many outbound links: Outbound links on your homepage (linking to other pages or sites) not only detract from your organic rankings, but actually send business away from your rental! Think of your hotel website like you would a little retail shop: why would you send clients anywhere other than directly to your product? Links to external sites like Trip Advisor, Google Maps, and Facebook is offering users the chance to pass on making a reservation with you. 

Learn to surf!

"We can't stop the waves, but we can learn to surf."

Positive...

Positive thoughts, lead to positive actions, and feelings. If your first waking thought is, " Its going to be a GREAT day!", it usually will be.

Social Media Impacts Business Value, Marketing Operations

by Ekaterina Walter


Social media created a lot of buzz and controversy in the past several years. But the main question remains: “Does it have an impact on sales?” And what effect does it have on marketing?

Two studies that were done this year aim to answer this question. According to Ogilvy’s recent study “Does investing in social media create business value?” social media indeed has a strong impact on sales as well as brand perception.
It found:

Social media exposure is directly linked with increases in sales.
Integrated social media (social content + one or more channels) exposure is linked with significant increases in spend and consumption. For example, social media + PR exposure was associated with a 17% spend increase compared to the prior time period without these.

*Those exposed to social media + PR increased their spending by 17% over the previous time period.

*Those exposed to social media + TV were twice as likely to buy.

*Those exposed to social media were 7 times more likely to spend more.

*Social media + OOH exposure was linked to 1.5X higher likelihood of increase in spend.

*Exposure to multiple channels was most often associated with sales impact.

*Integration matters. Exposure to social content was most consistently effective when it was combined with exposure to other types of media channels.

Social media is the top driver of impact.
Out of 20 channels analyzed, social media was number 1 or number 2 in magnitude of impact on spend and consumption.

Social media exposure is directly linked with changes in brand perception.
Social media by itself is particularly effective and appears to be most effective at rapidly impacting brand perception.

As marketers we consistently ask ourselves what value social media brings to us internally. According to eMarketer, a recent study by CMO Council and social CRM firm Lithium aimed to answer those questions.

The study found that in addition to building loyalty among customers, social media outreach has influenced marketing operations. Of those marketers surveyed, 55% said social media improved customer listening, engagement and conversations, and another 55% said it opened new avenues to gather and further market insights. Five percen said it helped lower the cost of customer service.

Done right, social media does have a positive impact on business value, as well as helping marketers build meaningful approach to relationship-building with their customers.

There are two sides to the ROI. The hard numbers in one. And if you measure it right, you will see increase in sales through social media -- like Dell saw on their @DellOutlet account. Or there will be a reduction in costs, which multiple brands are seeing as they introduce blogs and communities that help answer questions with higher accuracy than your customer service ever could.

But there is also the soft side to it. Although that is where the value is very hard to measure, this is the most important, the most emotional, the most lasting attachment you as a marketer can help build for your brand.

I believe that social brings enormous amount of value to us marketers. In addition to the reasons listed above, it also helps change our sometimes ‘drive-by’ thinking and allows us to focus on building long-term relationships.

At the same time, it urges us to shift to agile, real-time marketing. In the new social economy the best marketers are those that are not spending more than a month to build a campaign and are savvy enough to take advantage of hot trends and opportunistic approaches. Successful marketers are also those unafraid to reach into the wisdom of the crowd and co-create their brands together with their customers.

Wisdom through Mistakes

The mistakes of our past are the wisdom of our future!

Os erros do nosso passado são a sabedoria do nosso futuro!

Six Secrets To Overcoming Burnout

By Mike Michalowicz

Feeling a little burned out in your job or career? Perhaps you are feeling it and don't even realize that's what it is. Whether you already recognize burnout or not, it's a good time to evaluate whether you have it, and what to do it about it. Burnout can be disastrous for both you and the company, so the sooner you spot it and address it, the better off everyone will be.
First, however, it's important to identify exactly what burnout is. My definition of burnout is when you feel your efforts are fruitless and that you have lost all enthusiasm for work over a sustained period of time. If you have just a few lackluster days, or even a few weeks of them, it could just be a simple anomaly. But when that "lacklusterness" goes on for a month or more, you, my friend, are burned out.
Here are six tricks to overcoming burnout.
Take an extended break. There is a saying, "everything in moderation." That includes work. Burnout is often a loud and clear signal that you need to take a break. Take a break from work, even if it is a few days. But here is the key: it must be a complete break. No laptop, no iPad, no cell phone, no nothing.
Start relaxed. Too many people jump out of bed, race through breakfast and on to work. In other words, stress, stress and more stress. Instead, start relaxed. Adopt a morning ritual that includes stretching, exercising, relaxing, meditation and/or reading. Just like you slowly warm up before exercise, you want to slowly warm up your mind and body before working.
Regular breaks. Working straight through the day is not productive and has even been scientifically proven to be ineffective. Change your schedule to work in a short burst (ideally 60 to 90 minutes), then take a 15 to 20 minute break. Make sure the break allows your mind to totally disconnect from work. Go for a walk, talk with friends about the past weekend, or read your favorite magazine.
Avoid the news. In some cases, burnout is a result of depression. The constant negativity perpetuated by news reports, over time, gives many people the false belief that all of life is horrible. And with that comes depression and burnout. Try not watching or reading the news for 30 days. It may be the perfect burnout cure.
Change what you eat. Similar to keeping negative junk out of your mind (as in the previous point), you need to keep junk out of your stomach. A poor diet can not only suck the energy out of you, it can also mess with your mind. Improve your diet and, in many cases, you will see a rise in energy and a rise in your attitude.
Write down why. Spend the time necessary to figure out why you are doing what you do. Is it a stepping stone to another goal? Is what you do serving a greater purpose than just making money? Once you know why you do what you do, the passion may return and the burnout out will go away.
If all else fails, it may be an indicator that you need to permanently leave the situation you are in. When this is the case, you need to figure out your escape path. Specifically, determine where you ideally want to be in life (not just monetarily, but also what you wand to be doing, etc.). Then determine all the steps you need to take to get there. Can you find a career in that field? Can you take a small immediate step in the right direction? Can you take a night class? Whatever you do, once you have the "escape plan," start working on it immediately. After all, it is your best means of escape to a better, more fulfilling way of life.

New Year, New You – A Self Assessment Tool

By Enda Larkin

The end of one year and the beginning of another is always a time for self-reflection. Maybe over the holidays you spent some time thinking about your life - be that personal or work-related.
No, I don't mean the kind of late-at-night analysis, having downed too much wine, or whatever your favourite tipple is; that's more correctly known as 'The Fear' and is probably best avoided, I find.
Funnily enough, on The Fear issue, years ago when I was not long out of college, there was one guy who was part of our crowd, a real nice chap too - slightly odd it has to be said - but a genuine sort all the same.
Anyway, one night in the pub, after a fair few it has to be said, he told us that every time he arrived home drunk, he would start talking to his dog: about life and stuff.
Yes, attempting to work through his issues with the family pet.
I did say 'slightly odd'.
What's more, he said that he was convinced that the dog sort of understood him too.
Needless to say, we laughed a lot when he told us that.
Apparently, if he was a bit unhappy about something - the guy, I mean, not the dog - then he could spend hours off-loading on the poor animal.
After that night, it became a sort of running joke between us all when we would meet him, and we would always ask whether the dog had any good advice for us.
You know, one bark yes, two barks no, kind of thing.
Then, one time when we raised the matter about his late night tête-à-têtes, he said he had stopped doing it.
Naturally, we were more than a little intrigued by this, but he wouldn't tell us why. For ages, we kept at him to let us know the reason, until eventually - yes after a few drinks - he told us.
And why had he stopped off-loading on the family pet?
Because the poor old dog had suddenly started to run away all the time.
I kid you not.
Now, I would be lying if I said that we didn't fall around the place laughing when we heard that, but, truth be known, we were a bit unnerved by it too - what the hell must he have been saying on those drunken nights.
Anyway, when I say New Year, New You, I am not talking about The Fear.
What I am referring to, though, is that personal reflection is a normal activity at this time of year; to a greater or lesser degree.
Whatever the extent of your desire to tread a new path in the months ahead, it is important to recognize that a desire to change and the ability to actually follow through on that are two different things entirely.
Think back to last year, for example.
How many resolutions did you make and keep?
Can you even remember what they were?
I know I can't.
So this year, why not try a new approach.
Rather than just vague navel-gazing, I have developed a set of 50 questions which might help you think about how you can improve in the year ahead. These questions address aspects of who you are, how you think or what you do in a work context.
Sure, this is a form of self-assessment which clearly has limitations, but if you are totally honest with yourself (and not blinkered to your own shortcomings), then it's of value.
To strengthen the impact, why not ask colleagues whom you know and trust for their feedback on some or all of these areas:
Anyway, have a coffee and really think about each of the following questions:

Performance and Results Focus
1. Do you set personal goals and work hard to achieve them?
2. Do you consistently produce high quality results within agreed deadlines?
3. Do you show real commitment to your organization's mission? How?
4. Do you cooperate well with your colleagues to achieve results?
5. Do you constantly exceed performance expectations?

Values and Integrity
6. If asked, would people who know you at work say that you were renowned for telling the truth and having high levels of personal integrity?
7. Would your colleagues say that you have strong personal values and ethics?
8. Do you treat everyone equally, fairly and with respect?
9. Do you maintain the highest standards of personal, professional and organizational behaviour?
10. Would people who know you at work consider you to serve as a role model for others in terms of values and integrity?
Relationship and Team Orientation
11. Do you believe strongly in the importance of teamwork and work hard to build team spirit amongst your people?
12. Are you good at making others feel at ease by being warm and welcoming when approached?
13. Do you show a genuine concern for people and make a real effort to help others?
14. Are you known for communicating openly and honestly with others, even if you have tough things to say?
15. Are you able to really empathize with the needs and feelings of other people?

Self - Motivated & Determined
16. Do you constantly seek to improve personally and take proactive steps to learn new skills?
17. Are you good at not letting personal or family problems affect your work performance?
18. Do you use your initiative and not always wait to be told what to do?
19. Do you make a conscious effort to keep up-to-date on matters relating to your job?
20. Are you the type of person who never gives up, but instead confronts challenges and copes well with setbacks and failures?

Self - Awareness and Control
21. Are you consistently seeking out opportunities to increase your self-awareness?
22. Do you know, and then make a conscious effort, to minimize the effects of your personal weaknesses? Do you know what those weaknesses are?
23. Would people who know you at work say you are good at demonstrating consistency and stability in responding to different people and situations?
24. Are you confident and assertive without being arrogant or aggressive?
25. Do you allow yourself to be intimidated by difficult situations or people?

Flexible & Open to Change
26. Do you have the ability to be flexible in how you respond to different situations or problems?
27. Would people around you say that you are good at adopting varied leadership styles which meet the needs of others?
28. Are you good at coping well with uncertainty?
29. Are you open-minded and willing to change?
30. Do you view change as an opportunity or a threat?

Analytical and Insightful
31. Are you good at recognising personal knowledge gaps and then making a genuine effort to keep up-to-date about work-related trends and developments?
32. How strong are you at analyzing and understanding complex data and then making sound decisions?
33. Would people who know you at work say that they believed you were well able to make rational decisions quickly or when under pressure?
34. Do you regularly attend courses and other learning events, even outside of work hours?
35. Are you good at thinking ahead and developing effective plans?

Creative and Innovative
36. Would your colleagues say that you constantly challenge the status quo and look for better ways of working?
37. Have people told you in the past that you are good at not just accepting things ‘because we have always done them this way'?
38. Do you frequently propose new methods of working, or ideas that have never been tried before?
39. Would people who know you at work say that they admire you because you are good at finding creative solutions to problems that arise at work?
40. Do you make an effort to encourage others to make suggestions or propose new ideas?

Energetic and Enthusiastic
41. Do you maintain your personal health and well-being to a high level?
42. Are you good at coping well with a heavy workload and long hours, when required? Do you get stressed?
43. If asked, would your family and friends say that they considered you to be a happy, positive person most of the time?
44. Would your colleagues/employees at work say that they believed you had strong ability to excite and inspire others?
45. Do you get a real sense of personal satisfaction from your work?

Structured and Organized
46. Are you good at planning and organizing the workload effectively?
47. Do you manage the available resources well, in order to achieve objectives?
48. Would people who know you at work say you were good at providing clear direction and guidance to others?
49. Are you good at ensuring that the work is consistently carried out to a high standard?
50. Do you constantly strive to improve overall quality and promote continuous improvement?
Hopefully, these questions will give you some food for thought as you plan your personal development for 2012.
What you do with any insights that might arise is, of course, entirely up to you, but standing still should never be the preferred choice.
Is it possible to change or improve your performance?
Absolutely, it is.
Is that likely to be easy?
Well, you already know that absolutely it is not. Even more so if it relates to intangibles such as increasing self-awareness, changing mindsets or building personal characteristics.
Whatever you decide to do in terms of change this year, take small steps, take them consistently every day and that, over time, will lead to big changes for the better.

Believe, receive, achieve!

"BELIEVE IT! (in your mind) RECEIVE IT! (in your heart) ACHIEVE IT! (in your life)"

"ACREDITAR! (em sua mente) RECEBÊ-LO! (em seu coração) ALCANÇÁ-LO! (em sua vida)"

Be vigilant for Details

"Never neglect details. When everyone's mind is dulled or distracted the leader must be doubly vigilant.”

"Nunca negligenciar detalhes. Quando todos mente é dulled ou distrair o líder deve ser duplamente vigilante."

Demanding Vision

"Have a vision. Be demanding.”

"Ter uma visão. Ser exigente."

Perpetual Optimism

“Perpetual optimism is a force multiplier.”

"Perpetual otimismo é um multiplicador de forças".

Try yourself FIRST

“Don't bother people for help without first trying to solve the problem yourself.”

"Não incomodar as pessoas para obter ajuda sem primeiro tentando resolver o problema-se."

Re-elect our Mayor Jack Seiler!

The right choice for Fort Lauderdale!

Top Five Tips for Travelling Safely with Pets

Travelhoppers - a website dedicated to providing free travel planning resources coupled with travel expert insight and advice - is pleased to unveil its "Let Us Mail You a Cat (or Dog)" campaign and reveal five tips for encouraging safe travel with pets. As part of the campaign consumers can register for a chance to win a dog or cat of their very own!

Travelhoppers' "Let Us Mail You a Cat (or Dog)" campaign features a monthly drawing being launched today where five lucky winners each will receive a $75 gift certificate or credit at their local animal rescue shelter to adopt a dog or a cat. Consumers can register at Travelhoppers.com and/or like the Travelhoppers page on Facebook at facebook.com/travelhoppers for a chance to win. The site will also be running a series of articles on pet traveling such as its current offering entitled 10 things you should not do when traveling with pets!

Due to the high costs of overnight animal boarding and an increase in the number of pet-friendly hotels and travel destinations, more people will be bringing their pets along on their winter vacations than ever before. While traveling with pets can be a wonderful experience for both pet owners and their animals, there are several precautions that should be taken to ensure the safety, health and well-being of your animals while traveling domestically or abroad. The contributing travel writers and niche travel experts at Travelhoppers.com have compiled the following five helpful tips for planning safe pet-friendly travels, from their personal experiences and important lessons learned along the way:
1.
Avoid "Pop-Up" Pet Carriers: One common mistake that travelers make when purchasing their animal carriers before a trip, is falling for the "deal" and purchasing the super affordable "pop-up" pet carriers that are advertised as being ultra-lightweight and compact as they can be easily folded and tucked away at the end of the day. While it's true that these carriers are more affordable than traditional plastic crates, carriers and kennels, they are in actuality a real safety hazard for animals both large and small. What the advertisers DON'T tell you, is that these budget pop-up carriers are extremely flimsy, nearly impossible to carry and can collapse while your animal is inside of them at the drop of a dime. If you are planning to travel with pets, spend a little more money to purchase a durable kennel (preferably made of water-resistant plastic) with wire doors and windows for extra security and ventilation. Not only are these plastic kennels more easy to clean and maintain, but they will not collapse when luggage slightly shifts in your car or onboard a plane, they have carry handles for easy transport, they come in all sizes and will be a life-long investment that is well-worth the extra money spent. If traveling by plane, call the airline in advance to request their animal crate requirements and specifications to ensure you'll have no difficulties boarding your animal.

2.
Pack A Pet First-Aid Kit/Travel Bag: Prior to departing on a trip with your pet, preparation is key. Pack a separate bag for your pet that contains drinking water, enough food for several days, an extra leash, plastic bags to pick-up after your pet, cleaning supplies, first aid kit and one or two of your animal's favorite toys from home. Don't assume that the destination you're visiting will have a pet supply store within a short driving distance or will have your pet's specific food brand in stock, so pack these "travel essentials" for your pet just in case. Some important things to have on hand for first aid kit supplies include clean towels and cloths, nonstick bandages, adhesive tape, gauze and clean water.

3.
Obtain Veterinarian Records In Advance: Ask your veterinarian for copies of your pet's medical records and proof of vaccinations (especially a valid rabies certificate) that you can keep close on hand, should any emergencies arise while you're away. You'll want to call at least one month in advance to ensure your veterinarian has enough time to make these medical record copies for you. If traveling with an exotic animal, ask your veterinarian to provide your pet with an exam and health certificate and make sure you have the appropriate documentation in order to cross state or country lines with your animal.

4.
Do Your Destination Homework: When traveling across state and country lines, it's essential to have a valid rabies vaccine certificate on-hand. It's also important to ensure your animal is in good health - as many countries require a signed certificate of health and some will even require an automatic veterinary inspection for all pets crossing the border. Do your research before traveling with a pet abroad. Some countries quarantine pets (for days and even months) before allowing the animal into their country. Some cities, states and countries also have restrictions on the types of exotic animals you're allowed to bring with you, so contact the individual destinations you're planning to visit (or those you will be driving through) to ensure that you have the proper documentation for your pet as well as to learn more about their possible quarantine procedures, exotic animal restrictions, mandatory microchip policies and more. It's also recommended to microchip your animal prior to your trip, to avoid losing your pet while traveling.

5.
Research Animal Restrictions & Fees for Pet-Friendly Hotels: Many hotels advertise as being pet-friendly these days, however, that does not mean that all animals will be warmly welcomed upon their arrival. Before booking rooms at a hotel that claims to be "pet-friendly," call the hotel in advance to find out if they have specific animal restrictions, a maximum number of allowable pets per room and fees associated with pet stays. Additionally, have one pet-friendly hotel "back-up" plan for each destination on your travel itinerary should any problems arise with your original hotel reservations or their pet policies upon arrival. If traveling across country and making nightly hotel reservations on a whim, one great resource to keep in your car is "The AAA PetBook" - which is an on-the-road-guide for traveling with pets that has more than 13,000 pet-friendly hotels and campground selections by destination location across North America.


This roundup of pet travel tips was compiled by Travelhoppers' Founder, Richard Earls, and his team of highly knowledgeable travel experts and travel writers that regularly contribute to the Travelhoppers blog.

Travelers looking for insightful information about travel, personal tips and expert advice can benefit from visiting the Travelhoppers blog to delve into interesting and unique aspects of travel with new articles, excerpts, and content added daily. From facts and figures to firsthand traveler reviews and so much more, Travelhoppers gives travelers the information they need and want - as well as providing free access to the largest, most frequently updated database of travel companies, brochures, and specialists on the Internet.


About Travelhoppers.com

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Growth, Analysis and Opportunities in Hotels and Lodging Stock - January 2012

The hotels and lodging industry shaped up pretty well in 2011 thanks to the gradual global economic recovery, and seems to be poised for long-term growth. With the return of business as well as leisure travelers coupled with decelerating supply growth, pricing power remained steady in the year.

Improvement in the U.S. economy and the consequent rise in operating metrics helped most of the hoteliers report strong quarterly results. Group bookings appear to be gaining momentum and the companies registered strong advance bookings and pricing for 2012 and beyond. Booking windows are also lengthening. However, macro headwinds can partially restrain the booking momentum in 2012.

International Growth

Owing to the saturation in the U.S market, major hoteliers are exploring growth opportunities abroad. Some international markets offer greater potential based on the prevailing higher pace of economic growth. The operating environment in those markets enabled hoteliers to grab a bigger share of the overseas pie.

A number of U.S.-based companies are targeting fast-growing emerging economies, with Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide Inc. (HOT) and Marriott International Inc. (MAR) eyeing the Asia-Pacific and Latin American regions.

The stellar performance from the Asia-Pacific region is expected to continue in the near future. Hotels in the Asia-Pacific region have been registering significant upside across all three key performance metrics, according to Smith Travel Research.

The region's Occupancy, ADR and RevPar increased a respective 2.1%, 6.9% and 21.3% to 71.9%, $143.08 and $102.89 in November 2011. Major growth markets within Asia-Pacific, China and India, remained more or less unaffected by the global economic turmoil and are enjoying rising economic growth rates. The availability of local capital is another positive factor.

China is set to bring about a recovery in global tourism, and by 2020, is expected to be the world's largest travel destination. Both Starwood and Marriott derive their second largest revenue chunks from that country.

In the past, hotels in China were mainly occupied by Western travelers, but today, more than 50% of the guests are Chinese. This is indicative of China's fast growing domestic travel market. Moreover, according to an analysis on the enrollment and travel trends of Starwood Preferred Guest members, around 100 million outbound travelers are expected to visit China by 2015 but the country has only a fraction of high-end hotels ready to serve them.

Apart from China, India is another hot spot for the western hoteliers. India has a compelling investment proposition with its rising importance as a global business hub, where the demand for moderate-tier as well as upscale branded hotels will considerably outpace the supply for the next three to four years. Moreover, western hoteliers also find the built-cost to operating returns favorable. All these factors testify to the longest development pipeline that the hotel companies have in India.

“They Can’t Get No Satisfaction.”

By John Hendrie

There are Patrons who never are satisfied with a Hospitality Experience.

I knew one of those selfish characters quite well. There are others lurking about. Dissatisfaction is part of their DNA, whether they are looking for attention, condescension, “I am smarter than you” mentality, or whatever. They exist and should be avoided, if possible.

These folks will always have a negative comment, typically leading to a visit by Management to assuage the situation. Naturally, nothing in the Hotel Guest Room is up to par. It might be the lights, temperature, television or the bed. Give me fresher towels, I need more soap, change my room. On the dining front, the dissatisfaction commentary ranges from a poorly stirred martini, cannot read the menu, return of the entrée, there is a draft. Airline counters entertain hundreds of these a day.

So, our staff whirls about, trying to correct the deficiencies, never understanding that no matter what they do, it is not enough. You simply will not please these people. They sometimes are loud, even screamers. Their faces become florid with distain and contempt. We try to draw them to the side, but it is their show. We can only soften and shield the noise and minimize disruption.

Interestingly, others in their party are just as horrified with this type of behavior. Yet, they are not enablers, just captives, for the behavior will not change. The association is embarrassing, and you just expect some scene will take place. It's coming, you just do not know what the focus might be. That's unnerving.

We do know that the loud and obnoxious always get attention, and we react, if for no other reason than to contain the outbursts from contaminating our space. That is the real lesson for our employees – placate the interruptions. Use all your skills to diffuse the situation, because we have other Guests who are watching and wondering.

And, these folks do get away with murder. Upgrades to suites, complimentary cocktails and gift cards, even free meals and “comped” services. They know exactly what they are doing, moving beyond the squeaky wheel to the shrieking monster. Their dander is up; the blood is coursing; they will have their moment.

If one of these Patrons arrives at your establishment, and you can identify the characteristics or are aware of prior history, mollify them if you can and then simply tell them they are no longer welcome. Retail does this quite effectively with those who abuse return policies. Maybe, that is the right term – abuse. Why take it, for running a business is tough enough. In-depth Customer Service Training can also give your staff some much needed expertise to diffuse and deflect. The Customer is always right, but not all the time!

Four Sustainability Trends to Watch in 2012

The worldwide movement toward sustainability has made significant progress over the past half-dozen years as companies and cities have pursued strategies that balance future and current societal needs. Now, sustainable development is entering a new phase, characterized by greater alignment within and between the public and private sectors.

The road to sustainability has been plagued with roadblocks, including an unprecedented global financial crisis and attempts by entrenched business and political interests to deny climate science. Perhaps the greatest obstacle has been the lack of consistent and comparable standards for defining and measuring sustainability. Although these issues have yet to be fully resolved, many well-coordinated initiatives in recent years have pointed the way forward for companies and cities.

In 2012, major trends shaping the sustainable development movement include:

Transparency – Buildings, companies and cities are measuring and disclosing energy usage, carbon emissions and other information relating to sustainability. Commercial building owners don’t always have a choice: Five major U.S. cities and two states have enacted energy performance measurement and disclosure policies to date, and nine more cities and states have bills under considerations, to help tenants and investors make better informed decisions. Buildings in Europe are required to display energy performance certificates, and Australia is implementing similar requirements.

Corporations don’t require legal mandates to encourage disclosure. In 2011, more than 3,000 companies, including 404 Global 500 firms, voluntarily reported their carbon emissions, water management and climate change policies to Carbon Disclosure Project in 2011, perhaps swayed by CDP’s 551 investor members, who use the information in deciding where to place more than $71 trillion in investment capital.

Transparency is also on the rise at the city level. CDP invited 58 cities worldwide to report sustainability related data for the first time in 2011, and 42 responded, with 38 of them making their responses public. This year, CDP Cities is expanding its request to 150 cities and continues to see a high response rate, as well as extraordinary awareness and commitment on climate change issues by city leaders. These leaders recognize that managing energy, water and waste not only helps attract residents and business growth but also enhances quality of life in a variety of ways.

Global Consistency – Deeper sustainability reporting by cities and multi-national corporations has intensified the need for consistent ways to measure the effectiveness of energy, water and other sustainability strategies on a worldwide basis. Given the wide regional variation in environmental priorities around the world, the end goal may not be a single global standard, but a way to translate local government and business practices into a common global vocabulary for measuring effectiveness and recognizing achievement.

LEED, the building sustainability rating system originated in the U.S., is now frequently pursued in many countries with their own systems, as owners seek to attract international tenants. ENERGY STAR, the U.S. EPA energy benchmarking standard, will soon be able to provide accurate ratings across North America, thanks to a new cooperative agreement with Canada. And in 2011 the International Organization for Standardization released the ISO 50001 standard for energy management systems, which includes specifications for measurement, documentation and reporting on energy consumption.

Consistent measurement is important to corporations as they focus on sustainability not only in their own operations but, increasingly, throughout their supply chain as well. And while CDP Cities is not attempting to rank the sustainability of cities, it is developing a globally cohesive framework for understanding the effectiveness of sustainability strategies pursued by different cities.

Public/Private Collaboration – 2011 stood out as a year when government and business organizations explored their shared green goals and realized that public-private partnerships and collaborative initiatives are often the best way to overcome obstacles to sustainability. Some of these joint efforts will start to bear fruit in 2012.

A clear example is the December announcement of a $4 billion energy retrofit commitment by the U.S. federal government and 60 CEOs, mayors, university presidents, and labor leaders. Called the Better Buildings Challenge, the eight-year initiative includes $2 billion in energy upgrades of federal buildings and another $2 billion of private capital to improve energy by 20 percent in buildings totaling 1.5 billion square feet. (Jones Lang LaSalle joined the Challenge with a commitment to work with owners on improvements at buildings totaling 98 million square feet.)

The Better Buildings Challenge illustrates the alignment between business and government goals in seeking energy and carbon reduction. Achieving those goals also requires cooperation; for example, groups ranging from the World Economic Forum to Greenprint Foundation have called for changes to loan underwriting guidelines set by governmental bodies to facilitate financing of energy retrofits. More directly, U.S. states have found they can increase renewable energy installations at buildings by offering incentives that would make solar power cost-effective for owners within a relatively short period.

As a firm that serves government and business entities, Jones Lang LaSalle sees tremendous untapped synergy between the two groups in achieving energy and sustainability goals, particularly in the area of public-private partnerships. As just one of many examples, airports and other government entities often have surplus land that’s unsuitable for commercial property development but could be leased to private companies for development as large solar energy installations;

Focus on Solar Energy – Speaking of solar power, 2011 was a breakthrough year for new installations in the U.S., and continued growth is seen for 2012, albeit at a slower pace. More than 1 gigawatt of photovoltaic solar energy capacity was installed across the U.S. in the first three quarters of 2011, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA). By comparison, 887 megawatts came online in all of 2010, which represented a doubling of the total installed base at the time.

Solar energy installations at commercial properties drove much of the market growth in 2011, but the pace of new installations dropped significantly in the third quarter, SEIA reported. The big story going into 2012 is the unprecedented rise in utility-based installations, which jumped by 325 percent from the second to the third quarter.

The strength of the solar market in 2012 and beyond will be affected by several variables, including basic supply and demand economics, technological improvements, and the amount and type of available incentives. It is clear, however, that interest in solar energy continues to grow as payback periods grow shorter and fossil fuel costs continue to rise.

2012: Taking Sustainability to the Next Level

The common theme to all these trends is of an industry poised to break through to the next level. The industry has moved swiftly through initial phases of understanding the basic costs and benefits, implementing low-cost initiatives, exploring more sophisticated strategies, and navigating around roadblocks. Today, it is easier to see the opportunity for dynamic progress by cities, property owners and corporate tenants that have laid the groundwork for growth and success.

Dan Probst is Chairman of Energy and Sustainability Services at Jones Lang LaSalle, a financial and professional services firm specializing in real estate, with operations in 1,000 locations across 60 countries. In addition to more than 100 professionals dedicated to energy and sustainability consulting, Jones Lang LaSalle employs several hundred engineers skilled in energy management as well as sustainability accredited professionals in more than 25 countries.

About Jones Lang LaSalle
Jones Lang LaSalle (NYSE:JLL) is a financial and professional services firm specializing in real estate. The firm offers integrated services delivered by expert teams worldwide to clients seeking increased value by owning, occupying or investing in real estate. With 2010 global revenue of more than $2.9 billion, Jones Lang LaSalle serves clients in 60 countries from more than 1,000 locations worldwide, including 185 corporate offices. The firm is an industry leader in property and corporate facility management services, with a portfolio of approximately 1.8 billion square feet worldwide. LaSalle Investment Management, the company’s investment management business, is one of the orld’s largest and most diverse in real estate with more than $47.9 billion of assets under management. For further information, please visit our website, www.joneslanglasalle.com.