Social networks have leapt from a technology to a social phenomenon.
Hotel referrals from social networks growing rapdily
Traffic to these sites – including the popular Facebook – is up 60 percent in the past year, with 2.5 billion visits logged in February 2009 alone.
Helping to drive the growth are older age groups, whose imaginations have been captured by the ease of connecting to friends online. In the past year, baby boomers (45 years and older) have flocked to Facebook and other sites faster than their younger peers.
With all this attention, it makes sense that companies will eventually find ways to benefit from social networks through the placement of advertising and marketing.
It is not surprising to me that the travel industry might be the first. The business is certainly in the right spot to try. According to Compete, referrals from social networks to hotel websites are up 151 percent since February 2008.
And why not? What better way to get a hotel suggestion than ask a friend?
The challenge is figuring out how to capitalize. Traditional ads flogging an inn or resort might be easily overlooked. Creativity will be needed, such as offering coupons for future travel to site members who describe trips (and accommodations) they enjoyed.
The benefits might be considerable. According to Compete, the conversion rate for hotel referrals from social networking sites is growing rapidly as well: up 98 percent since last year.
Posted by Mark Boslet 
