May 2, 2006
FatWire aims to help marketers get the message right

Most online travel sites today operate reasonably well in the transactional sense, but "they're not doing a good job of providing inspiration and recommendations," according to Jeff Ernst, vice president of marketing for FatWire Software.

"They are fairly static brochures with booking engines." A traditional travel agent will tailor messages for different clients, he said: Two couples may be shopping for a cruise, for example, but one couple may be experienced cruisers in their 60s who like sailing on new ships, while the other pair is seeking adventure in exotic ports and is less concerned about cabin amenities. The agent will present very different options to them.

"Web sites today don't take into account that people have differences," Ernst said, but FatWire's Content Server will help them suggest and recommend the right content for the right client."

Those varied messages can take into account the customer's demographics or actual purchase history or clickstream history, Ernst said. "The history comes out of the company's CRM system, but we integrate with them in real time."

"Content Server is designed for the marketer, not the programmer. We've extracted it into a marketer's user interface," Ernst said. "The market can build recommendation rules through a wizard-based interface. He cautioned, however, that Content Server is not a cure-all. You still have to be a good marketer, and you have to have a message that matters," he said.

He cautioned, however, that Content Server is not a cure-all. "You still have to be a good marketer, and you have to have a message that matters," he said.

Just how important is it to deliver the appropriate message at the right time?

One of FatWire's clients, Loyalty Management Group of Canada, reports that on average, a visitor to its Airmiles Web site who does not see a compelling offer within 10 seconds leaves the site.

So if a visitor to a travel site is searching for a Florida vacation, it's important to know whether that visitor is a college kid looking for some spring break action (and wants to see photos of bars and parties) or an empty-nester couple looking to escape cold weather (and will be attracted to photos of couples playing tennis, quiet beaches and sunsets).

Content Server also can help tailor messages to where the client is "in the travel life cycle," Ernst said.

"If you've booked a cruise 90 days in advance, you might get an e-mail 70 days in advance that suggests an upsell, such as a cabin upgrade or a shore excursion," he said.

Ernst said the market for Content Server includes cruise lines and midsized to large hotel and resort companies.

If a company knows its customers, "we can get it up and running for about $150,000," he said. "We try to price it to reduce barriers to entry."

Publication: Travel Technology Update