“It’s not the strongest or the most intelligent of the species that survive; it is the one most adaptable to change.” ~ Charles Darwin
Most credit Darwin with promoting the concept of survival of the fittest. Although fitness and strength are clearly important in business, it is adaptability and flexibility that generally prove to be the greatest assets. And now is a time when these skills are essential, as change is rampant in our industry – on all fronts but most of all in travel marketing and distribution. [more]
This week, four years from the time that LeisureLogix was originally formed, I am finally having to put RoadEscapes.com to rest.
For those of you that know me personally, you will know that RoadEscapes.com was a strong concept, an intelligent approach and that it was adaptable to the change in our industry. But two years ago after we launched the first iteration of this product on Travelocity under the name RoadTripWizard, the funding that we needed to take the product to market and to further develop the product for global distribution had not yet been secured.
The curious thing is that less than 30 days after launching on Travelocity, we were the first winners of the now coveted PhoCusWright Innovator of the Year award for the product, a vote from our peers in the travel industry. And less than 30 days after that, the company was all but shut down, with just a skeleton team left to get the company sold.
In 2008, in the 9 months before we let the last person go, as the crash of the economy made it clear that getting further funding or selling the company was not likely, we accomplished amazing things.
My colleagues [and dear friends] Rebecca McGoye, Connie Goscinski-Smith and Kit Cox helped to completely retool the business model to shift from eCommerce to advertising, as well as to position us for social media and social commerce. The site was relaunched as RoadEscapes.com in September of 2008, but was used primarily for demos to potential partners and investors.
Although we were not driving traffic to the site (on purpose that is), we were still experiencing astounding page views per unique visitor. In 2008 we had 30 pages per unique visitor and in 2009, that went up to 36.7. And in 2010, with a lot of the key functionality like profiles and saving trips no longer functional, that number actually went up to 38.4 pages. These numbers are enviable for anyone that understands the ad model, particularly since the site also supported the eCommerce model for air, car, hotel and attractions bookings.
Now mind you, from the time the idea was conceived to the time that we let the last person go in the fall of 2008, we had raised $7m. Not too shabby, particularly since none of that was raised with the help of an investment banker. But it was not enough.
So today I would argue with Darwin, that it isn't survival of the fittest, or those most adaptable to change, but survival of the funded that matters most in today's business environment.
At least that is true for RoadEscapes.com. This week, it will join the other great, underfunded applications in that great innovation graveyard in the sky. But one thing is different with this one.
The idea will NOT die. We are still awaiting U.S. patent approval for our industry changing ideas and are confident that we stand alone in what we conceived and what we built.
The LeisureLogix team cracked the code on multi-dimensional, contextual, filtered search. We delivered multi-faceted results in a single search result based on who you are at the time of search, not based on past performance or a single dimensional profile or even the contents of a CRM system.
We succeeded in knitting together location-based content, journey planning, travel booking, mapping and navigation. We created the next generation of dynamic packaging - taking a story from ANY medium (TV, radio, magazine, newspaper, web or just word of mouth) and made it "adoptable" and "customizable". Amazing stuff really.
The whole experience from start to finish, although one of the most difficult of my life, was richer for me than any other thing that I have experienced in my 30 year career. I wrote about it in my contribution to Bootstrap Business, co-authored with Tom Hopkins, Jack Canfield and John Christensen.
To order, click on the imageWhile operating in an uncertain business and economic environment is uncomfortable at best, ignoring change is not an option for travel and tourism companies, or the technology companies that serve the industry.
We are moving forward. The dream will live on. It too will be richer for the experience - with full integration of mobile and social. Interested in being a part of creating the true industry game changer? Tap into the mobile generation. Join Project 85 by clicking on the image below. To learn more, see our
website.