Slides from a one-hour workshop on the role of digital influencers in destination marketing, given at the ATECH16 conference in Aruba to tourism and small hospitality businesses and local influencers on Instagram. Sept 2016.

1. ©Guidrr, Inc.® 2016
Aassia Haq, Founder & CEO
@aassiaharoonhaq
Aruba Hilton, Marketing Workshop
Sept 15, 2016 2-2:45 pm
ATECH Conference 2016
Digital
Influencers
& Destination
Marketing
#ATECH16

2. @GUIDRR
My Story &
My Goal
Today

3. @GUIDRR
Life & Career of
Travel=Perspective
HK
KHI
LHR
LGA
ORD
DFW
BOS

4. @GUIDRR
Digital Influencers:
True Blue Ocean Strategy For
Savvy Destination Marketers ….
 Less costly
 Potentially less competitive
 More authentic
 More trusted
 Ability to scale and serve

5. @GUIDRR
Meet Negin
2.4M Followers
NYT (1.3M Circ)
Business Traveler

6. Lost In Florence,
A Back Story@GUIDRR
Experiences,
Not Things
 100M Millennials Who Travel
 Spend about 1K per trip
 Travel in groups
 Experience seekers
 Gain Information P2P

7. @GUIDRR
Question 1:
Does your brand have
an authentic
experience
to offer?
ACTION: Write It Down:
What is It? 78% of
Millennials
choose to
consume
an experience or
event over
buying
something
(Harris study).

8. @GUIDRR
Question 2:
Can you be an authentic
destination
influencer?
ACTION: What’s human about you?
Your brand?
What is your niche? Write it down Think small
& trusted
The opposite of
Big brand
thinking
No matter the
size of your
brand!

9. @GUIDRR
Why I’m
Bullish on Destination
Influencers In Travel
$1.4 Trillion Industry Is Human Again
FROM
People & Data Mover..
TO
Life & Revenue Enabler…
Javier,
Madrid Artesan, Malasana

10. Guidrr’s Destination
Marketing Back Story
@GUIDRR

11. Nardia – Blogger
Florence
Gaia – Blogger/VJ
Sao Paolo Brazil
Stew, Writer –
Nashville
Bea, Blogger –
Dublin
Sean, Yasmin – Nomads
Austin/Japan
Dawn, Teacher, Foodie
Dallas
Dwayne, Photographer
Alaska
@GUIDRR
What we learned from digital influencers
“Guidrr is already building a roster of influencers
to help guide people through the coolest places
around the world.” – Killer Startups

12. Anne – Blogger in
Paris with
Pret a Voyager –
Read It!
@GUIDRR
The right way & the wrong way to engage
 Keep it simple
 Be Authentic
 Learn about the blogger
 Is there mutual value?
 Pay or perks or both?
ACTION: WRITE DOWN A BLOGGER YOU ARE
INTERESTED IN; IS THERE MUTUAL VALUE?

13. Digital Influencers Are
Also Destination Brands@GUIDRR

14. Peer-to-Peer Influencers
Can Be New Gatekeepers
Empower & Engage & Partner
As Co-Equals in the Destination Story
Destination
Marketing
Has Left
the Building
@GUIDRR

15. Social Marketing
Secrets
@GUIDRR
 Wasted social posts
 Influencer access & success
 Where to drive the visitor
to engage further
QUESTION:
Are you posts going beyond the like?
Can you measure results?

16. @GUIDRR
Question: Do you know your audience?
ACTION: Which influencers appeal to your
audience, not you!
Action: ASK! IT’s as simple as that.
It’s a Fact: Influencers Can Unlock
Deeper Destination Funnels

17. Case Study: Downtown Dallas, Inc.
 SaaS marketing solution
 Positioned DDI as savvy marketer
 Scaled entry of city influencer
content
 Branded Mobile content to reuse
 Promotion of local brands

18. Step 1: Guidrr Ran DDI Live Like A Local Contest:
Community Created Travel Guides
Unique URL for Contest Entrant Period (April-
June): http://www.guidrr.com/live-like-a-
local/
Powered For DDI on Mobile &
Social by Guidrr, Inc.

19. Step 2: DDI’s VP of Marketing Shalissa Perry
Engaged with Contestants Privately
DDI Photos (Entrants’ Private Reception at Americano, The Joule Hotel):-
http://www.thomasgarzaphotography.com/Other-1/DTD-Inc-Blogger-Event

20. Case Study: Downtown Dallas, Inc.
 SaaS marketing solution
 Positioned DDI as savvy marketer
 Scaled entry of city influencer
content
 Branded Mobile content to reuse
 Promotion of local brands

21. DDI Contest Objectives & Results
(Powered by Guidrr)
Entrants: 36 Locals
Guides Created: 18
Start of Contest (Soft Launch): April 2016
Close of Entrants: June 17 2016; Guide Submission Deadline: August 22 2016
Entrants’ Private Reception 6/22: 25+ Attendees at Joule Hotel (Local Business)
Business PR Perks: Perks from 12-15 Businesses, Finalized & Added To by DDI
Combined Instagram Influence of Entrants: 174,511
DDI OBJECTIVES: Update Legacy Web content on DDI Web Site To Authentic Mobile
Dallas Content By Engaging With Local #MyDTD Destination Ambassadors On
Instagram; Promote Dallas Downtown Districts; Benefit Downtown Businesses

22. Key Analytics To Note
Zero Paid
Marketing
Dollars Were
Applied to
Campaign
36 Destination
Ambassadors
Engaged With
174K Combined
IG Influence Size
18 New Fully
Mobile Multi-
Step Experiences
Created- With
More Coming
53 Authentic,
Unaided, Unpaid
Local Business
Mentions + 21
Local Attractions
44% of
Entrants
Created 1
or More
Guides
+
Additional
Guides
Still In
Progress

23. @GUIDRR
Case Study for Festival Marketing & Fan
Engagement
Case Study: Guidrr & #DFWSAFF
 Engaging Content Ambassadors
 Guiding Fans (Discounts, Tips)
 Delivering sponsor added value

24. @GUIDRR
Partnership
 Written by Internal Ambassador
 Excitement & Sales build
 Serve Partners & Vendors
 Post-sale & event – Donation/CTA

25. Varelie_Croes
On Guidrr
Creator.Guidrr.Com
Or Guidrr.com/subscribe

26. 5 steps:
Just
start
@GUIDRR

27. @GUIDRR
Create, Share & Discover
Destination Experiences
• Mobile First
• Authentic & Trusted
• Influencer & Brand Roles
• Niched to Followers
Guidrr®

28. @aassiaharoonhaq
Muchos
Gracias!
谢谢 Thank
you!
©Guidrr, Inc.® 2016