Blog homeWoot is a website that has intrigued me for a while.
In essence, they have a single product website - however every day that single product changes. Today it is a rather nice looking mouse… (but I am happy with mine!)
A whole community has sprung up who “pounce” on the site when a new product appears - and then decide whether to purchase or not.
Running this website must be a bit of fun although I imagine that finding a succession of products would, after a while, begin to tire. Besides as a commercial person you would have to spend a great deal of time doing analysis on what products work on what days etc….. (as opposed to the travel industry where people tend to put their products up on sale….. and hope that some of it sells - and it doesn’t matter if it sells on a Sunday or a Tuesday)
One interesting advantage though is that I am sure it would allow you to approach a product supplier and get a great commercial deal.
So can you do a woot for leisure travel?
The difference between desire based, low price, electronics where many people could want to buy that day vs travel may be too great for it to work in the travel industry.
However maybe this isn’t too different to TV travel shops….. you basically present a product, tell people the price and hope enough turn around and buy it.
If I were going to do this online maybe something like this would work:
- Offer goes up in the morning - Should have lots of product information - photos, videos etc
- At lunch time (aimed at office workers who eat at their desks) - you put up an interactive question & answer session….. probably between the people selling the product and some kind of facilitator
- At early evening - you have an interactive, and public, ”community chat” with anyone out there who is interested in buying the product…. the advantage here is that one or two people may be asking the questions…. but many others will be lurking and “listening in” - so will benefit from the answers….. (Another advantage of doing this on a single product - or perhaps a single destination - is that you can have your destination expert on the web that evening)
- Take online bookings that evening! (or subsequently, now that interest has been raised and the key questions answered)
- Repeat the next day for a different product (or destination)
Would this work?
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Hello!
there is one woot concept in Germany. Every day there is a new trip on the page and every trip is bookable for 3 days.
We wrote about that concept on tourismuszukunft (http://www.tourismus-zukunft.de/index.php/2007/12/05/abedi-erstes-deutsches-reise-woot/ )
the page is called: www.abedi.de
Starting next month I am trying that kind of concept here in Finland in one major Finnish website. I will let you know if it will be a success. (if I will remember;)
Hi Alex,
Interesting question, to make such a fast decision making process work I think the trip on offer should have a “last-minute” character, or be pitched like that. This way it might work. Otherwise I would think people take more time than just 1 day to research the destination (online), organize the timing of the trip and compare the offer with other sources.
Rob
Hi Rob
I am not sure that the actual booking has to be on the same day…. but perhaps in the following week. The key point of this idea is that it raises interest, answers the key questions - and gets a customer excited about a particular product. If they book a week later that is OK
Hi Alex,
Ok, but wasn’t the question: could you do a woot in the travel sector? The Woot concept of selling 1 product for 1 day only is no longer applicable if the trip can be booked a week later.
If you want to use the 1 day 1 offer philosophy to bring destinations to the attention of the prospective travellers, I think it can most definately work from a marketing point of view. A popular website with interesting content which is new every day is bound to attract some attention. But there is a practical problem if you want to use the Woot concept for travel: having 365 interesting products/packages per year, is a hurdle that seems to be a bit high.
I agree with you Rob that people being exposed to an offer and buying - all in one day - is a bit unlikely.
However, one of the largest “overheads” is getting people informed (including getting their detailed questions answered) - and this could be done in one day. The fact that it is only 3 days later that the booking actually takes place is not important? (to me?)
If you look at my original suggestion I did mention that bookings could be received subsequently!