Branding | Digital Crosstalk

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Brian and team, who work for a digital marketing agency run this Digital Crosstalk blog.
Occasionally we might blog about companies and people we work with but for the most part we'll simply be blogging about stories and events which we find interesting.

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12th
JUN

Hotels.com announce ‘nanobreak’ competition

Posted by Brian | Filed under hotels

Image via Wikipedia

Ever wanted a holiday but can’t manage one, perhaps due to finances or simply not having enough holiday time due to you from work? Well, don’t let either issue stop you from enjoying some time away!

Indeed, you don’t have to wait for your annual two weeks away come summer time, or even your spring or winter week to come around. You don’t even have to take time off from work to enjoy a holiday as now any day can be a holiday simply by indulging in a ‘nanobreak’ – a one night holiday break designed to keep the holiday spirit in full swing.

So popular has the ‘nanobreak’ become that Hotels.co.uk has announced a competition for British nanobreak holidaymakers to win the chance of a holiday to Rio in return for the best nanobreak story.

To enter the competition, holidaymakers simply have to tell Hotels.co.uk about their nanobreak by way of a short review, imaginatively called a ‘nanolog’. This can take the form of a photograph and short description of your nanobreak or a 90-second video of your best nanobreak moment uploaded to YouTube. Alternatively, tweet a review or recommendation for your nanobreak, but whichever method you use could see you in the running for that ticket to Rio.

The winner of the first prize for the best nanolog will win an extended nanobreak to Rio de Janeiro, including two return tickets (economy class) with TAP Portugal and 3 nights’ stay at the 4* Caesar Park Ipanema hotel, while three runners-up will each receive a £200 Hotels.com voucher.

So, whether your nanobreak involves a Scottish golf break, or a rummage around the Camden markets or overlooking the Giant’s Causeway, Hotels.com wants to hear about it.

Full competition rules can be found on the Hotels.com competition page, and the contest will close on 1^st September 2009.

Tags: branding, hotels.com

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15th
MAY

Sex Theme Park set to open in China

Posted by Brian | Filed under tourism

(Photograph: AFP/Getty Images)

Sex may be a taboo subject in China, but one Chinese city has taken steps to heighten residents’ awareness of the issue and improve sex education.

Love Land, China’s first-ever sex theme park is due to open in October this year, in the south-west Chinese city of Chongqing but many of the city’s residents are far from happy about the development.

The park has been inspired by South Korea’s popular sex theme park, situated in Jeju and according to the park’s manager, Lu Xiaoqing, the park aims to improve sex education and to help adults develop and enjoy an active and happy sex life.

“Sex is a taboo subject in China but people really need to have more access to information about it,” Lu told the state newspaper China Daily.

”We are building the park for the good of the public. I have found that the majority of people support my idea, but I have to pay attention and not make the park look vulgar and nasty.”

Visitors to the park will be able to view such spectacles as giant replicas of male and female genitalia, naked human sculptures and attend exhibitions about the history of sex and sexual practices in other countries, as well as workshops designed to improve sexual technique and safe-sex practises.

The park has not met with universal approval, however, and the Chinese web portal SINA has attracted a host of comments both for and against the idea of the park.

Tags: branding, china

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1st
MAY

Hotels.com announce discount offer through Twitter

Posted by Brian | Filed under blogging, hotels

Twitter has been in the news recently for finally unveiling its integrated search function for all its members – something many people feel should have been available long before – but people and companies are still finding innovative ways to use the service.

Hotels.com today announced a nice little 10% discount through their EU Twitter account – intended to be only available to their Twitter followers, but rather than send a direct message to all those who follow their profile the hotel chain has made the discount code publicly available on their website.

It’s not quite as glaring a faux pas as those made by Skittles or the Telegraph – who published live Twitter feeds on their site that attracted a lot of questionable comments about their services – but it still shows that not all Twitter users are using the site to its full potential.

The 10% deal can be used on any of Hotel.com’s “Low Price Guarantee hotels” and can be used more than once per user and in conjunction with other deals, which is quite nice.

Many businesses have been using Twitter to help spread the word about their deals and offers while others have been using it to help give better customer support – something the new integrated search function will greatly help with.

The offer is valid until 17 May.

Tags: branding, hotels.com, twitter

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21st
APR

WAYN to encourage daily use

Posted by Brian | Filed under blogging

Social networking site WAYN has stated its ambition to take on some of the big players in today’s online world.

WAYN – which stands for Where Are You Now? – plans shift from solely travel-based to include all leisure activities. While Friends Reunited focuses on the past, Twitter and Facebook cover the present, WAYN hopes to nail down the future. Unlike other sites are designed for users to stick to speaking to people they know, WAYN encourages people to find like-minded strangers to share encounters with – whether it’s a foreign trip in a few months or going to the cinema later in the week.

Many people don’t all of their time travelling so their need for a site dedicated to that aspect of their life is limited. This new move hopes to encourage daily use from its members.

Co-founder Peter Ward said: “The idea is that you can effectively plan what you are up for doing in the future. So you can talk about what you are doing this evening or that you are up for going snowboarding or up for learning a language. It will be a micro blogging platform like Twitter but it’s not about what you are doing now.

“From a social networking paradigm, if you know that one of your friends is up for going to Brazil in July, you might want to join them, give them tips or put them in touch with friends. There’s a lot more reason for engagement.”

The site is also looking at its design, after deciding that some of the content on the site was too hard to find for some of its users and includes the removal of the logo that has been with WAYN for the past four years.

Tags: branding, digital