Viva Brasil!

Brazil is going strong and the future forecast suggests more of the same!  This South American powerhouse is on a very short list of countries experiencing double-digit hotel revenue growth for the last several years and the trend is likely to continue for the next several years, at least.

I’ve just returned from Sao Paulo where I spoke to a group of over 100 Brazilian hoteliers from one of the country’s leading hotel companies.  I was amazed at their thirst for knowledge and exuberance about engaging with guests and potential customers through social media.

Hosting the FIFA World Cup in 2014 and the Olympics in 2016, Brazilian hoteliers are excited to welcome thousands of visitors to their homeland.  And, as you might expect, most of these visitors will be booking their travel online, often via social media channels.   (Tangential thought – check out this terrific infographic showing the Evolution of Online Travel from Mashable.com.)

Anticipation for hosting these world events is building and is all the buzz in the country’s social media, which is experiencing an even stronger growth spurt.   Check out these stats gleaned from a great presentation from Steven Van Belleghem:

• Facebook achieved 192% growth last year and has now overtaken Orkut as Brazil’s number one social networking site.
• Brazil leads all countries in Twitter reach at 23% (compared to a reach in the US of 13%)
• 76% of Brazilians log into social media at least once per day, compared to 67% in China and 63% in the US

Brazilians are emotive people.  As such, you’ll see vibrant dialogue in Brazilian social media channels which may not be the norm in some of the more reserved nations (but can be very entertaining if you speak Portuguese).  The stage is set, the hosts are listening and the Brand Karma team is delighted to be a part of it as we join millions of others in shouting “Viva Brasil!”