Information & Energy Technology

Warning to Hotels - Don't Use Free Link Shortening Services in Your Marketing

PARSIPPANY, NJ - March 11, 2010 - A few months ago we wrote about the many reasons why hoteliers should not be using free link shorting services such as TinyURL and Bit.Ly. While there are numerous free services available, most put your hotel at risk and may cost you dearly in lost business opportunities. The Internet is still a little like the "wild wild west" and our reasons for not using free link shortening services remains true - doing so puts your hotel at risk in many ways.

Free Link Shortening Services Create Security Risks for Hotels -
The biggest issue for hotels presents itself as a serious security threat. As reported by leading virus security company Trend Micro, TinyURL has become a popular tool for spammers and phishing scams. Spammers have used TinyURL to create short non-discript links, which redirect users to malicious websites where unsuspecting users become victims of phishing attacks. Read Trend Micro- http://blog.trendmicro.com/tinyurl-phishing-becoming-popular/

Free Link Shortening Services Provide No Support for Hotels -
If the aforementioned security concerns don't convince you that free link shortening services are risky, maybe our next point will. What happens to all those free links your created if the free service is "down" or out of business? Who do you call...can you call anyone, or do you have to rely on emailing support? In the meantime, those free short links you created are in your printed ads, emails and in online Twitter, YouTube and Facebook posts! This has all happened before, and it's not pretty. Read:
http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/tinyurl_outage_shows_fragility.php and
http://blog.planetaryscale.com/2009/11/04/bitly-tinyurl-fail/

Other Reasons to Never User Free Link Shortening Services:

  • There is no branding. When you see a TinyURL your are clicking blindly. You have no idea what kind of website you're being taken to;

  • Links are forgettable! How do you remember a link like this: http://bit.ly/10HYCo;

  • No control over the URL shortening service. Do you trust TinyURL? How long might they be around for? What happens if they have a massive data outage tomorrow and all your URLs go to 404 error?

The Right Way For Hotels to Create Short Links -

Link2Brand.com enables hotels to effectively and safely create short marketing links and to build online brand equity. More specifically, Link2Brand:

  • is a paid service, thereby eliminating all spam or phishing activities;

  • offers unique branding opportunities with over 20 selectable relevant domain names that relate to hotels and every link created includes the hotel's name;

  • provides real-time click tracking on all links created, enabling link ROI analysis;

  • enables auto-expiring links, which automatically become disabled on a pre-set date managed by the hotel;

  • offers hoteliers an online dashboard to organize and manage all links created;

  • enables the creation of sub-users for each hotel account, allowing for multiple users to share one account;

  • is supported by Lodging Interactive, a multi-million dollar hospitality focused interactive agency.

"Hundreds of hotels worldwide are doing it right and leveraging the power of Link2brand.com in their marketing and communications," said Mr. DJ Vallauri, Founder & President of Lodging Interactive. "Furthermore, Link2Brand.com is a great tool for hotels to use to promote loyalty amongst local businesses and organizations."

Hotel Sales & Marketing Directors, can also use Link2Brand.com to create vanity URL links specifically for local corporate accounts to book reservations without having to remember booking codes or SRP codes.

Interested hoteliers can try Link2Brand for free by visiting http://www.Link2Brand.com

About Lodging Interactive
Lodging Interactive, headquartered in Parsippany, NJ, is a leading provider of Internet Marketing Services to the hospitality, spa and restaurant industries. The company provides a portfolio of effective hotel internet marketing services to hundreds of hotels, resorts, timeshares, spas and restaurants. Clients include branded hotels from nearly every major brand as well as prestigious, landmark independent hotels.

Through its CoMMingle Social Media Marketing Agency operating division, the Company offers hospitality focused and fully managed outsourced hotel social media marketing.

Lodging Interactive is a member of the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) and is a proud supporter of the Hotel Sales & Marketing Association International (HSMAI). For more information contact Richard Walsh, Vice President of Business Development at sales@lodginginteractive.com or at 877-291-4411. The company’s website is located at http://www.LodgingInteractive.com .

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