In 2014, the world will see the launch of the World's Largest Online Tourism Event, hosted by the company 3rdPlanet.com. The event called Wonders of the World or WOW for short, is an opportunity for the tourism industry to come together and showcase it's heritage, culture and tourist attractions on a virtual 3 dimensional platform to a global audience.
According to the information provided by 3rdPlanet.com, the company plans to target the "Affluent traveler" possessing characteristics such as:
- Uses broadband internet
- Between 20-45
- Educated
- Tech Savvy
- Buys/Owns latest mobile devices, such as Android tablets & Ipads
With plans to reach 600 million people worldwide, which is nearly a 10th of the world population, 3rd Planet has big plans for their event. By providing a 3 Dimensional virtual space, where consumers can "try before they buy", It can be assumed that 3rd Planet will be able to tap into the needs of their "tech-savvy" target audience.
3rd Planet's event is in fact an event for the travelling consumer, however can benefits be had by the Virtual Trade Show industry whose audience is also tech-savvy, educated and between the ages of 20-45? With both event companies & managers constantly seeking ways to set themselves apart from their competitors in line with the advances in technology, it is probable that creating an online environment that replicates a real-life trade show will be beneficial for audience reach.
As discussed by Harrison (2008), Links can be drawn between the increasing availability of both the internet and broadband, and the creation and development of these virtual worlds which have been used numerous times by businesses to facilitate conferences, meetings and exhibition spaces on platforms like Second Life (which will be discussed further in the blog post "Online Platforms"). Furthermore, it should be considered that companies & managers using these online platforms are able to lower their carbon footprint, whilst still providing the industry with a multitude of different offerings.
3rd Planet's event is in fact an event for the travelling consumer, however can benefits be had by the Virtual Trade Show industry whose audience is also tech-savvy, educated and between the ages of 20-45? With both event companies & managers constantly seeking ways to set themselves apart from their competitors in line with the advances in technology, it is probable that creating an online environment that replicates a real-life trade show will be beneficial for audience reach.
As discussed by Harrison (2008), Links can be drawn between the increasing availability of both the internet and broadband, and the creation and development of these virtual worlds which have been used numerous times by businesses to facilitate conferences, meetings and exhibition spaces on platforms like Second Life (which will be discussed further in the blog post "Online Platforms"). Furthermore, it should be considered that companies & managers using these online platforms are able to lower their carbon footprint, whilst still providing the industry with a multitude of different offerings.
References:
3rd Planet (n.d) Home. Available online at: <http://www.3rdplanet.com/index.php#home> last accessed 23.04.2013
J., Pine & J., Gilmore., 1998. Welcome to the Experience Economy. Harvard Business Journal. Available online at: <http://rushkolnik.ru/tw_files/4995/d-4994348/7z-docs/4.pdf> last accessed 20.04.2013
Harrison, Rodney (2009). Excavating Second Life: Cyber-archaeologies, heritage and virtual communities. Journal of Material Culture, 14(1), pp. 75–106.
World Population Clock (2013) Current World Population. Available online at: <http://www.worldometers.info/world-population/> last accessed 20.04.2013
3rd Planet (n.d) Home. Available online at: <http://www.3rdplanet.com/index.php#home> last accessed 23.04.2013
J., Pine & J., Gilmore., 1998. Welcome to the Experience Economy. Harvard Business Journal. Available online at: <http://rushkolnik.ru/tw_files/4995/d-4994348/7z-docs/4.pdf> last accessed 20.04.2013
Harrison, Rodney (2009). Excavating Second Life: Cyber-archaeologies, heritage and virtual communities. Journal of Material Culture, 14(1), pp. 75–106.
World Population Clock (2013) Current World Population. Available online at: <http://www.worldometers.info/world-population/> last accessed 20.04.2013
Thanks for sharing such an amazing article, really informative
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