Senior leadership Watch the Laura Lindsay interview Here for the journey Laura Lindsay, director of global The consumer communications at Lonely Planet, is always the says theatheritage brand has centre of Francesca transformed Davies plans itself for the 21st century by always putting the traveller first L onely Planet was founded in 1973 by Maureen and Tony Wheeler and our first book, Across Asia on the Cheap, was written on a kitchen table. Today, were the largest travel guidebook brand in the world, and in the 21st century weve gone through an enormous transition to become truly content first. This has involved much technological change to get the best information to consumers as quickly as possible. Lonely Planet is also now a business with many facets. Were a guidebook publisher, amagazine business and an online organisation, which means we have many different kinds of expertise, but what is common across the company is that everyone loves travel its the unifier. With this in mind, every year we hold an event, Lonely Planets Travel Hack, which runs across every office around the globe, and in those of our international licensees, too. It involves everyone sitting down at the same time and talking about where theyve loved travelling in the past year, where theyd like to go most, and the places theyre hearing about from friends and relatives that they would be excited to travel to. The event brings everyone together, whether theyre a writer on the ground, part of the sales team or a developer, and it helps build a strong sense of our brand. At Lonely Planet, exploration is a mindset, not just an action. We encourage every person in the business to broaden their horizons, and to remember that theres always something out there to discover. We encourage people to explore every day even where they live or work. Its an important part of our culture. What we learn from our own exploration and discoveries is that there are so many different types of travel and traveller, and each has different needs. If someone is taking a city break in New York, they might be seeking bar and restaurant recommendations. But for a road trip across America, people might want practical details about where you can stop to get fuel. All these types of considerations are important when were devising the product, and also when were helping our audience to understand how Lonely Planet can aid them. Laura Lindsay, global communications director Putting the traveller first Lonely Planet was founded on the principles of independent travel, and it remains core to our offering today The company was founded on the principles of independent travel, and it remains core to our offering today. We still offer budget recommendations for first-time backpackers, but weve also grown with our audience and know we need to offer a good service for as wide a demographic as we can. Our Travel for All project, for example, ensures we supply accessible travel information, not only for those with a disability, but for anybody with access issues, while Lonely Planet Kids looks ahead to the next generation of travellers. Some of the most intrepid travellers are those who have retired and have more time on their hands. It reminds us that sometimes it can dangerous to categorise by demographic. Instead we talk about styles of travel adventurous travel, independent travel, or active travel such as long-distance bike rides, or road trips. Combining travel and food has been increasingly popular in recent years, and we launched Lonely Planet Food to meet the needs of this growing trend. Todays consumer also expects choice in the way they discover information, and we need to cater for this. That means producing many types of online content as well as books and magazines. Marketing is key in understanding audience behaviour across all of these channels. When we launched our video channel on lonelyplanet.com we had to work out what our content would look like in video format. It couldnt be the same as the magazines there needs to be different styles of content for different spaces, which all remain appropriate for the consumers needs. We always talk about putting the traveller first, and if you constantly apply that lens, it means you tailor everything to the particular context. Watch the Catalyst interview with Lonely Planets Laura Lindsay For example, we know our mobile app is designed for use in cities, where Milestones in people want information fast, on their content and smartphones. Delivering information technology about border crossings in multiple countries is a completely different context, and for it to be useful, it will need a different logic applied to it. Its also very important that the brand remains strong across our various product streams and that, when someone sees the Lonely Planet logo, they know its information they can trust, whatever the format. Our tone of voice differs across destinations because having a local expert on the ground, who knows a place better than anyone else, is what Lonely Planet is all about. But, there needs to be a balance between those authentic voices and the unifying aspects of brand. Brand is key to product diversification. It can also help inform the many conversations we have with our product development team, or sales, or an editor in Founded by Tony SanFrancisco, or any of the many other stakeholders in the organisation. and Maureen Innovation and experimentation Wheeler in 1973, the brand stays true to its roots At Lonely Planet, innovation is part of our DNA. The companys first-ever guide book was literally designed at a kitchen table, and this start-up mentality remains. We have always been a content organisation, but how we get that content to travellers is where innovation comes in. We were one of the first brands in the sector to have a website and, for example, at one point produced an SD card that slotted into a mobile phone as an early version app. Today, its voice technology thats relatively new to the consumer space, but how it will benefit our own consumers is something that needs digging into. We dont want to place content where its going to annoy people or be out of context, which means we need to put the traveller first and deliver content that makes sense for them. We asked in what scenarios our audience was likely to be speaking to a voice device to discover information about a destination. If someones son comes home from college, for example, and announces that he wants to spend three months in Colombia, a parent might wonder whether its safe, turn to the voice device and say let me speak to Lonely Planet. Tell me about Colombia. We can deliver that information from our experts on the ground, as its needed. However, what wouldnt be useful is for the device to list every hotel in Colombia, how much they cost and what services they offer. Its about determining what information people need, the context in which the question is being raised, and the best way to deliver the answers. Were really fortunate that we have a CEO who is excited about embracing new technology such as voice. Travel is about trying new things, so its part of who we are. Of course, there will always be questions around the cost of new technology to the business, and whether it is something you should do, but if you make decisions based on the consumer and what they want, youll be making decisions with the right priorities and know that youre growing the business through understanding your audience. Sometimes things might Trips is one of Lonely Planets recently launched apps not work. We launched an augmented reality mobile app six years ago and the consumer wasnt ready for it. Now, its uses are starting to become second nature applying filters in Snapchat or Instagram, for example so accessing destination information through your camera doesnt seem so foreign. Its about being experimental and innovative, but making sure you listen to the consumer, and if the consumer isnt ready for something, then park it, come back toitlater, and do it differently. But, most of all, what is key is not to be afraid to have these conversations. Be a listening organisation One of the best pieces of advice Ive ever been given is, simply, to listen. Marketing is often thought of as being to do with communicating a brands messages. But its also about hearing what your audience needs, and then communicating it appropriately. It shouldnt be a one-way conversation. Conversation between human beings is a twoway dialogue, andmarketing needs to be thought of like that as well. Our Talk2US team helps with this. It answers consumers questions and takes in feedback. We want to hear what people need. Whatever type of organisation you work for, it should feel satisfying for marketing to be able to help people solve their problems. If you listen to them and understand what those problems are, your messages will become much more powerful, because youre speaking to someone who wants to hear them. Youve got to be able to shift and flex, according to what your audience is looking for. Sometimes, you also need to look beyond your existing audience to the wider market and understand what itsneeds are, and how you could help offer answers. Organisations approach marketing in many different ways, but Ive always been an advocate of the idea that marketing is not found at the end of a process. It needs to run through it, helping to inform the products you create by understanding the audience. If it occurs in isolation, you have to make a lot of noise to reach only some of the people you want. But, if you know who they are and target them accordingly, it makes everyones lives easier. cim.co.uk/exchange