TravelMuse is excited to launch Ask Friends where TravelMuse users can tap into their network of Facebook friends to ask for suggestions and tips for their next trip.

People planning trips regard recommendations from friends, family and co-workers as the most influential factor in making travel decisions¹. Also, people trust online recommendations less because they come from strangers they know nothing about. So with more than 300 million active users² on Facebook, you're sure to find a few friends who’ve been there, done that and are eager to share their personal recommendations with you!

We’ve also implemented Facebook Connect, so you can easily sign in to TravelMuse from Facebook and sync up your accounts. To sync an existing TravelMuse account, sign in to TravelMuse first, then go to your profile page and click the "fconnect" button.

To round out our Facebook release, we added a simple TravelMuse app that lets you start a New Trip or Get Advice within Facebook, or jump straight to TravelMuse to Get Inspired or view My Trips.

How does Ask Friends work?

Once you’ve entered your chosen Trip destination on TravelMuse you’ll reach Step 1.of the planning process where you can begin finding and saving information to your Tripfolio. Click on the new button “Ask Friends”.

You’ll be prompted to connect through Facebook Connect where you can then add a personal note and ask for travel advice on your Facebook wall.

Friends can respond to your call for advice by clicking on the Help link and following a few easy steps to recommend specific items for your trip.

Friends can choose to post results they enter to your wall.

Most importantly, recommendations and notes from your friends are automatically added to your Trip on TravelMuse.

More about the TravelMuse app

The TravelMuse app can be found at http://apps.facebook.com/travelmuse/ and provides a handy way to start a New Trip or Get Advice for a trip. It can also link direct to TravelMuse so you can Get Inspired or view My Trips.

We hope you enjoy these newly integrated Facebook tools and that they help you to plan even better trips this holiday season!

Let us know what you think!

Information Sources:
1.     US Online Planning and Booking, eMarketer, August 2008
2.     http://www.facebook.com/press/info.php?statistics

What’s next on the calendar? Now that it’s May, we’re gearing up for the Association of Travel Marketing Executives (ATME) conference in Las Vegas! It runs May 27 to 28, 2009, at the Green Valley Ranch Resort. 

Henry Harteveldt (vice president and principal analyst, Forrester Research) will kick things off with a keynote speech addressing comsumers’ thoughts on the economy, travel and marketing in general. Over the two days of the conference, there are a number of informative sessions planned.

My top five session picks include:

1.    What Is the Role of Advertising in a Recession? 

How to plan out the rest of 2009 and what to think about 2010, moderated by Rob Torres of Google.

2.    Taking Social Computing From the Edge to the Center

Susan Black (managing partner, Susan Black Associates) will moderate a panel with Tim Simmonds (vice president, United Airlines) and Adam Rugel (president, Trazzler.com). Unsurpisingly, Twitter seems to be a hot agenda topic!

3.    Improving the Online Selling Process

Kevin Fliess (CEO, TravelMuse) will join Josh Steinitz (CEO, Nile Guide) and Alex Wilcock (CEO, Imagini) in a session moderated by Jeff DeKorte (vice president, Travel Ad Network) in rethinking the way travel firms engage customers and address selling shortfalls.

4.    Improving Your Advertising and Promtion ROI

I’m always on the lookout for new tools. This session peaked my curiosity and includes former Yahoo general manager Brad King, now managing director, BlueKai Channels, who intend to build the world's largest database of intentions.

5.    Profiting From Design

Optimize your Web site from a design and usability standpoint with Dean Kakridas of Frog Design.

There are various registration packages, but ATME members can register at the special rate of $495 (which ends May 15, 2009). Find out more here.

And keep an eye out for Kevin in Las Vegas. Be sure to steer him away from the tables and slot machines—that’s not the way to improve our ROI!

Blog post written by Marissa Klein

TravelMuse has had much to celebrate in the past month: the two-year anniversary of the company’s founding, the re-design of the TravelMuse Planner and the launch of the Yaycations Calculator. To celebrate our accomplishments and all of the team’s hard work, we wanted to do something out of the ordinary: indoor skydiving.

Last Thursday afternoon (Apr. 30), we cleared out the office and headed to iFly in Union City, Calif., for indoor skydiving in its vertical wind tunnel. First, we watched a video and learned the hand signals: legs bent, legs straight, chin up and, of course, “relax!” Next came the suiting up: full nylon flight suits, kneepads, goggles and helmets for all. Finally, we took turns flying with an instructor’s guidance for a minute or two at a time.

So what does indoor skydiving feel like? It’s hard to say, since it’s difficult to equate it to anything other than what it is: hovering on your stomach above a wire grate that is not unlike a giant hairdryer-like turbine. We’d all joked before the trip that this would be the closest any of us would get to real skydiving, but I think after the indoor version went so well, there may even be a few among us who are ready to try the real thing!

Although Kurtis thought a fear of heights would compel him to stay on the ground, once he saw how safe and controlled it would be to fly in the tunnel, he was persuaded to give it a try, and had a great time. Kids as young as 3 can try iFly, and after seeing how much Russ’ daughter loved flying during our trip, Kevin and Dana plan to return with their own kids.

Our iFly outing was great, and we would definitely recommend it for group and corporate events—we can even relive it with the DVDs we got to take home with us! We wrapped up our celebration with beers and hot wings at Jack’s Brewing Company in Fremont before heading home to work the tangles out of our hair and call it an early night. Spending three minutes in a wind tunnel really takes a lot out of you!

Here’s to two amazing years, and on for many more!

With the Dow at its lowest yesterday in 11 years, the economic prognosis in the United States may not look bright. What does this mean for travel? We know the industry is hurting and taking a huge hit on revenue, however, what we found in a survey (2009 Travel Trends) we conducted last month here at TravelMuse.com, was that the majority of travelers are actually still saying yay, not nay, to vacations in 2009. 

Travelers Still Assert Their Right to Travel

A full 62.2 percent plan on taking the same number or more leisure trips in 2009 as they did in 2008, with 22 percent saying they will take more trips!

People Prefer to Cut Spending Rather Than Sacrifice Leisure Travel

Consumers will be more value-conscious than ever—but will still assert their right to travel: 77 percent of respondents said they were willing to cut spending in other areas to avoid having to cut back on travel. Travelers are making their own lunches and espresso; canceling the daily paper and cleaning services; driving less to save money for their vacations; forgoing tickets to events; and planning camping trips instead of staying in hotels or staying abroad fewer days to save money while they continue to travel.

One TravelMuse user said “I just gave myself a travel/expense test—and I have 1) curtailed going out to dinner (a lot) and 2) stopped shopping for clothes for a few months now, 3) but there is NO WAY that I would give up travel—even in a recession. It is tooooooooo important. I booked a trip to Chile for my family in August and to Maine/Boston in July … plus will book Mexico soon!”

Travel is Important, Especially in Tough Times

Nearly 65 percent of respondents said that vacations are very important. The benefits to health, wellness and state of mind can be greatly improved by taking a break, even if it’s a mini vacation, as highlighted by the U.S. Travel Association in its Benefits to Travel survey (2008)

Where are People Traveling in 2009?

There is still a healthy desire for travelers to travel: 68 percent of respondents said they planned to vacation in other U.S. states, with a staggering 52 percent still planning to travel internationally on a leisure/personal trip. So people are not just staying at home, or staying in their own state, for that matter.

Other Industry Research and Comments in Support of YAY to Travel in 2009

TravelMuse certainly is not alone in its belief that travelers will keep asserting their right to travel.

The U.S. Travel Association* showed that for 2009, consumers are pursuing “good values” in the trips they plan —76 percent of respondents expected to book a packaged vacation to save money, while 67 percent planned to stay fewer nights and/or spend less on food and entertainment when traveling.

Forrester vice president and principal analyst, airline and travel research, Henry Harteveldt, agrees that people would rather “trim around the edges,” and as a result, travel sellers need to “help travelers find ways to stick to their budgets.” 

Peter Greenberg**, travel guru and New York Times bestselling author told us, “No matter what the economic conditions, there is something that transcends the current financial malaise—and that’s travel itself,” … “It’s part of our cultural DNA. We really can’t help ourselves. We will find a way to travel, no matter what. We may deny ourselves an expensive dinner or a new fashion purchase, but we will not deny ourselves the opportunities to travel. And where there’s a will—especially with travel—there are many ways.” 

Say YAY to Vacations in 2009

Our CEO, Kevin Fliess said “There is strong data to support the notion that people are continuing to travel despite the challenging economic times,” ... “While people are more focused on value, travel continues to play a vital role in our lives. Travel is rejuvenating—and people cherish this experience even more during tough times.”

Don’t deny yourself the right to travel, take a break and say YAY to vacations in 2009!

Tell is what you think? Yay or Nay to vacations in 2009? Are you cutting back on anything so you can take your vacation this year? 

The full press release is available and for more information, including full survey results, email us at marketing@travelmuse.com.

*Ypartnership travelhorizons™ survey (October 2008)

**Peter Greenberg’s latest book, Tough Times, Great Travels: The Travel Detective’s Guide to Hidden Deals, Unadvertised Bargains, and Great Experiences, released today (March 3), features tips for today’s traveler, such as the best day to buy airline tickets, trips you can take on just one tank of gas and destinations where the dollar is still king.

If you haven’t already answered our 2009 Travel Survey, this is the last week to do so. Answer our short survey for a chance to snag a free Peet’s Coffee or Starbucks gift card!

All of us at TravelMuse are avid travelers and interested in the travel plans of our users. We’d love to know if you’re planning any getaways in 2009.

We’d also like to find out if you are giving up or cutting back on anything (e.g., your morning latte or other items) in order to save for your vacation this year.

Simply answer a few questions by Friday, Feb. 27, and you’ll be entered to win a week’s worth of lattes on TravelMuse! We’re giving away 10 Peet’s or Starbucks gift cards (you choose which one), valued at $25 each.

Take Our Survey

Thanks a latte!

Earlier this week we presented at The Travel Innovation Summit at the PhoCusWright conference in Hollywood, Calif. Along with 31 other innovative companies, we gave a 10-minute demonstration of our product, which you can see here. Some of the other innovations we found interesting include:

Dealbase.com—launching at the conference and run by Sam Shank, DealBase provides the largest hotel deal Web site and clearly presented its easy to use search and filter tools. In this economy, who’s not after a deal?

Rezgo.com—run by Tips from the T-list publisher Stephen Joyce, Rezgo also launched at the conference and provides an online distribution platform for tour and activity suppliers, as well as managing payment and fulfillment. It’s a winning idea and reminds me of WorldRes when it provided a platform for the long-tail bed and breakfast market.

UpTake —Yen Lee clearly explained the semantic search capabilities that UpTake provides to simplify the travel research process through creating a comprehensive database, analyzing travelers feedback and filtering preferences. Sounds like you’d need a Ph.D. to work at UpTake—impressive!

Yapta—Tom Romary launched its frequent-flier award seat alert service, enabling travelers to be notified when they can use their frequent-flier miles to book an award seat that becomes available on a specific flight. Again, in this economy, who doesn’t want to leverage their air miles—smart move.

Of the innovators who made it through to the five minutes of fame on center stage (Home & Abroad, Wandrian, Yapta, TripIt, Triporati and IM@), it was IM@ who grabbed the attention of the judging panel. You can watch the demo featuring its mobile content management platform and mobile applications here.

In addition to presenting, we seemed to talk non-stop—to our peers at the innovation summit, interested potential partners, and press and bloggers. In the pavilion, we enjoyed the company of newly launched TravelBeen.com and particularly enjoyed Technorati’s supply of Charles Chocolates. Also, it was fun to catch up with BootsnAll, OffBeat Guides and to compare notes with our friendly Austrian competitors Tripwolf.

At the Bloggers Summit, the panel of seasoned bloggers discussed a number of topical areas relating to blogging and business—some useful tips and pit falls to avoid. It was interesting to meet up with some of the industries most respected bloggers, including The Boot, Jen Leo (Los Angeles Times), Travolution and the Cranky Flier to name a few. If you’re not following these guys, then you should be!

It’s great to see so much innovation in the travel industry up close and to be a part of it. We’re back home with many more new ideas, now it’s just a case of implementation!

At the PhoCusWright Travel Innovation Summit, Hollywood, Calif. We’re excited to be making a couple of new announcements.

1.    Plan-It! Widget for Bloggers

Bloggers can add the Plan-It! widget to individual blog posts, enabling their followers to save and share relevant content within the TravelMuse Planner.

The Plan-It! widget provides a solution to help travelers easily collect and centralize their research—while also increasing visibility for bloggers. Blogs that feature the Plan-It! social bookmarking widget allow visitors to quickly save content from the blog by simply clicking the Plan-It! button on any page. The content is then stored directly into the TravelMuse Planner—a centralized place to collect, organize and share travel research. Within the Planner, individuals can easily create trip plans and share the research they’ve collected with friends, family and fellow travelers—driving more traffic back to the blog postings they’ve saved. Bloggers can visits Plan-It! for Bloggers to find out more and easily add the Plan-It! button.

Sites using Plan-It include: UpTake, Ciao Bambino, Compulsive Traveler and TravelingMamas.

2.    Crowd Sourcing

This new feature provides insights into the hottest travel destinations and topics on the Web. As individuals save content into their TravelMuse Planner from TravelMuse.com and from around the Web, lists of most popular destinations and topics are generated and dynamically updated based on trip-planning behavior—view this example destination page for Barcelona to see popular bookmarks. By capturing the actions of crowds, TravelMuse can provide valuable insight reflecting the interests of travelers in real time.

See TravelMuse at the PhoCusWright Conference on stage at 10:16 a.m. on Monday, Nov. 17, or visit us at our table on Monday or Tuesday in the Laurel-Doheny rooms.

For full details click here.

TravelMuse kicked off September with our appearance at DEMOfall 08 on Sept. 8, where we launched Social Trip Planning. Thanks to all the press and bloggers who covered us, we were excited to meet you and share our story so far.

Edward N. Albro from PC World said, “It looks valuable as a way to come up with initial travel ideas and plans” and included TravelMuse in the “12 Promising New Web Sites and Services” out of all DEMOfall 08 and TechCrunch50.

Dean Takahashi of VentureBeat listed TravelMuse in his top ten company picks of DEMOfall 08 and also wrote specifically about how TravelMuse plans to simplify travel planning.

Business Week’s Carmine Gallo took a look at the DEMO presentations from a slightly different angle and wrote about how to deliver a presentation under pressure, highlighting TravelMuse’s presentation and comparing it to advice from Moore—the need to create a new place in my brain to hold the information you’re about to deliver.

Troy Wolverton of San Jose Mercury News listed TravelMuse in his Top 5 picks from DEMOfall 08 and referenced the pain he feels when planning his own vacation with his wife … and how TravelMuse aims to solve that problem by providing a work space where multiple people can swap travel ideas and research.

Michael J. Miller from PC Magazine listed TravelMuse in his “My favorite DEMOfall 08 Products” saying, “I very much like the look and features of TravelMuse. I like the idea of gathering and collecting information on the trip from any Website in one place, and letting multiple people work together to plan a trip.”

Rolf Potts of Vagabonding said, “TravelMuse makes a nice way to bookmark and store your research, and it’s definitely a must-have for groups planning to travel together” , adding  ”you’d be hard pressed to find a travel site that looks as slick and is as easy to use as TravelMuse”.

PLing of TripHow said, “TravelMuse is the best thing on the market right now.”

Thrillest said, “Organizing a killer trip with friends can be a serious pain--open up the planning to everyone and prepare for a parliamentary stalemate, but leave one person in charge and risk visiting MimeFest, again. Make group trip planning frighteningly easy, with TravelMuse.”

To read more, visit our press page.

Now while most of our attention was on DEMO, our Interns, Hannah and Marissa, managed to score free passes at TechCrunch50, by volunteering—here’s what they had to say:

“Our volunteer duties included everything from building a bunker of backpacks on Sunday, to manning the registration tables—in between we managed to listen to company presentations and check out the booths in the Pit. Our favorite companies included Swype, which we had a lot of fun trying out, and GoodGuide – we’re glad to know what’s in our shampoo! Marissa also learned a lot from the lunchtime panel about Venture Capital firms and loved hearing Mark Cuban’s keynote discussion.

We managed to do a little TravelMuse guerrilla marketing on the side, before heading to the after-party, where we ate our weight in canapés and watched TechCrunch attendees network up a storm. Hannah returned to TechCrunch on Wednesday to see Joss Whedon and loved handing him his name badge as he checked into the conference."