Abhiram Chowdhry

About Fractional CMO Back in 2014, we brought on a fractional PR Director who worked just a few days each month. Her extensive experience and connections were invaluable, proving that sometimes less is more when it comes to executive roles. This positive experience led us to offer fractional CMO services, starting with our first major client, Subway, in 2016. Our team took charge of brand-building and managed all marketing touchpoints from Shanghai, allowing the local HK office to focus on their franchise business. Today, we continue to serve as fractional CMOs, crafting strategies and executing plans that let our clients focus on what they do best. #FractionalLeadership #MarketingStrategy #BusinessGrowth

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In this short video, Jai Maw, President and Co-Founder of Betting Hero, dives into how building personal connections and relationships fosters long-term customer loyalty.  Jai also compares the transactional nature of many affiliate relationships to standout examples like Expedia Group, and explains how Betting Hero aims to revolutionize customer loyalty in the sports betting space.  #DataArt #DataArtMedia #sportsbetting #customeracquisition #customerretention #BettingHero 

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What I picked from Web In Travel: Reasons to be in travel (as if we need any!) 🌍✈️ - Travel is growing faster than GDP - An industry full of colorful characters! APAC’s unique travel scene: - 65% of all air passengers worldwide (see Iata data in the pix) - 60% of APAC seats are on Low-Cost Carriers, with the only LCC long-hauls! 🌏✈️ Video Shopping: The next evolution in retail travel – Launch of YouTube shoppable videos 🎥🛒Sapna Chadha Space tourism: Virgin Galactic for $600K/pax, 3 minutes in space (only 200 seats left) 🚀 OR a stratospheric balloon ride for $100K/pax, with a gentle ascent... and a Tarantula BBQ? 🕷️... Marvyn Lim Seng Jess Yap 3 types of entrepreneurs: The Gambler (all in 🎲), the Promoter (the “butterfly catcher” 🦋), and the Maker (gets things done 🛠️) Chris Hemmeter India’s rise: Soon to join the top 3 travel markets 🌏. The biggest payment market thanks to UPI (free QR codes). Middle class will reach 47% by 2030 (vs. 30% today). Aloke Bajpai Google vs. TikTok? Travel giants are investing in social media to counterbalance Google 🥊 Sustainability challenges for airlines: - Offsets—are they legit? 🌱 - SAF (Sustainable Aviation Fuel) is only 0.5% of today’s fuel, hoping for 3% in 5 years. Won't move the needle! - Improved operating profile of aircrafts (but slow delivery). A bit gloom but very excited by electric flights like Eviation Alice and Lilium ⚡🛩️ Peter Harbison #Travel #Innovation #Sustainability #SpaceTourism #APAC #WIT

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Makes sense, it's safe, has the best FnB and venues, is the best connected and has the best logistics: "Singapore is APAC’s top business travel destination: report". "The city was the most visited country in the region last year. Singapore ranked as the top destination for business travellers in BCD’s latest Cities & Trends report. BCD’s rankings showed that Lion City has retained its status as the leading destination in APAC to conduct major meetings, conferences and exhibitions post-pandemic. It said government support has also been crucial in ensuring the city-state’s appeal for corporate travel. A major contributor is the $870m OneAviation Support Package for the aviation sector in 2021 and about $300m worth of aid extended to help its tourism sector bounce back from the pandemic. Trailing behind Singapore is its Asian financial hub rival Hong Kong, followed by Bangkok in the third spot, Tokyo (4th) and Kuala Lumpur (5th). Rounding out the top 10 are Shanghai, Seoul, Taipei, Jakarta and Manila, respectively. Based on BCD flight transactions, Singapore was the most visited country in APAC last year, surpassing China and Japan. The most frequently traveled routes for APAC flights also primarily depart from Singapore, while the city-state was also the most popular arrival hub for APAC routes. It was also the top city for layovers on APAC flights thanks to its location and connectivity. “The APAC region is set to play a significant role in global business travel spending this year, accounting for 42% of the total,”. What do you think? If you’re an entrepreneur and would like help finding new clients our Ultimate LinkedIn marketing and personal branding services can do this for you, our premium and highly recommended service details are here on this LinkedIn SmartLink: https://lnkd.in/dqWRi6EZ https://lnkd.in/ga3BrgzZ

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I’m happy to share Booking.com’s 2025 Travel Predictions research, where we reveal the trends we see shaping the travel industry in the year ahead. I always look forward to this report because it not only brings fascinating and sometimes surprising insights (and a reminder that not all travelers are like me!), but also helps us better understand our customers as we work toward our mission of making it easier for everyone to experience the world. This year’s research shows how Americans are taking travel in new directions. While some are still planning for more traditional getaways, many travelers want to find deeper connections, not only with their destinations, but with those they travel with, and even with themselves. Here are a few key insights from the report that show these trends: •Passport to Longevity: More than half (52%) of American travelers would pay for a vacation focused entirely on improving their health and extending their lifespan.  •NocTourism: Over half (59%) of Americans are considering visiting darker sky destinations and one-third (33%) are choosing cooler vacation spots with concerns about climate change helping drive this shift.  •Boyz II Zen: Many American male travelers are embracing the introspective guys’ trip to use travel to focus on rest (27%), personal growth (27%), mental health (18%), and taking a break from daily stress (19%).  •The Gate Escape: More than a quarter (27%) of Americans said they were interested in visiting a destination because of its airport, with 57% curious about airports that offer more unique experiences or facilities. What I called out here is just a peak—check out our full report for a deeper look at what we see as some of the exciting possibilities that lie ahead in the travel industry in 2025! https://lnkd.in/eXpmYPSb

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Start and Grow Your Own Business Singapore– Take the 30-Day Challenge! 8 Circle is proud to unveil its first-ever entrepreneurial challenge, an innovative event designed to inspire and empower the next generation of business leaders. Avoid the costly mistakes that cost money and time. Why do you want go through the trial and error alone when you can learn directly from seasones founders that have gone through the process many times. • 💡 7 Critical Steps: Starting a business from experienced founders and professionals. • 🤝 1:1 Session to tailor your journey and provide expert guidance on your success. • ⁠💡Learn how to validate your business idea, getting your first customer and key to building your founding team. • ⁠👂Learn how to incorporate, regulatory requirements, essential accounting, taxes, reporting and ACRA/ IRAS filings. • ⁠🏆Learn how to build your website, social media platforms and other essential softwares. • ⏳ 3 Months of Ongoing Support from expert moderators. • 💬 Exclusive Bonus Sessions with industry leaders. • 🥇 Networking with fellow founders for support and growth. • 🎁 SGD 1,000+ in Discounts & Offers to help you recoup your investment in the challenge. David Lau Sharesz T. Wilkinson 🔒 Secure your spot for the FREE information session on December 20 and take the first step towards launching your business in 30 days. Register Here https://lu.ma/ikmlps8x

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🌎 Travel is social, but the booking process remains solo. 📱 Social media is an important part of the inspiration phase for travelers but when it comes to finalizing a booking, insight is lost when conversations happen away from the travel site. ➡ Vendors miss out on important information that enables sentiment analysis. And travelers miss out on an engaging, social booking experience that unfolds from the vendor site. ➡ That's why social revenue is the most effective solution to bridge this gap - boosting engagement, customer loyalty and enjoyment in the process! #socialmedia #socialrevenue #sentimentanalysis

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It's been a while since I spoke at Web In Travel biggest travel tech conference in Asia, and it feels like coming home. There are four main trends in the travel industry now. Thank you to Siew Hoon Yeoh Kei Shibata & Ayaさん First is EQ and organization management. It often focuses on rules and operations, but now it's more about trust and understanding between people. Second is globalization. Travel around the world is recovering very fast. (But only Japanese people are left behind in international travel because of the weak yen. On the other hand, the weak yen is making Japan one of the best travel destinations.🤯) Third is sustainability. Many countries face problems like too many tourists and climate change, and the push for zero-carbon tourism is still strong. Fourth is the field of LLM (Large Language Models). Travel involves a lot of complex data and customer interactions, so the potential for using LLMs is huge and full of opportunities. With totally 400 people attending, one-on-one meetings in English, and a 20-minute speech, it was an exciting experience. I'm very thankful to everyone at WIT for always supporting me. We will continue to go global💪✈️

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Travel hiccups like a seat that won’t recline- are always the last thing we want to deal with. Yet, this small glitch was quickly turned into a pleasant moment of excellent customer experience (CX) with Singapore Airlines. Here are three CX lessons we can all take away when things don’t go as planned 💺: 1. Monitor for issues and address them proactively. 2. Empower your frontliners to serve your customers. 3. Remedy the root cause to prevent future reoccurrences. While my seat didn't recline, the customer service experience was truly uplifting, highlighting important lessons that can elevate customer retention and loyalty. ✈️ For actionable insights on these CX principles, dive into the ServiceNow Customer Experience Intelligence report 👉🏼 http://spr.ly/60479lW1H #CustomerExperience #CustomerService #CXTrends

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Sharing Jan Popovic’s thought-provoking post. 🤔 It’s true—hospitality’s current OTA guest acquisition model seems to prioritize profit margins for OTAs and Big Tech rather than delivering meaningful value to the consumer. But what if we shifted the paradigm? Instead of working against each other, what if hotels and OTAs truly collaborated to redefine consumer experiences? Imagine reinvesting media and ad spend—currently used for a zero-sum competition—into innovations that delight travelers in unimaginable ways. From AI-enhanced personalized travel experiences to seamless booking integrations that reward loyalty beyond price. This kind of transformation would require a new mindset: scale, trust, and long-term commitment from both hotels and OTAs. But in doing so, we’d move beyond merely competing for the same guest and instead elevate the entire travel ecosystem—serving the consumer first, profits second. It’s a bold vision, but one worth exploring. What do you think—can hotels and OTAs co-create a better future? https://lnkd.in/g6S9PNyy

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Interesting statistic from AMEX's 2024 Global Travel Trend Report. 68% of respondents agree they leave 'unplanned time' in trips to experience local culture/activities. Travel brands that are able to form effective localised partnerships with community-based leisure businesses and blend this with clear sign-posting in the marketing funnel + on-site / in-app experience will be in a stronger position to monetize bookings and retain customers across destinations. #consumerbehaviour #travel #experience #bookingvalue

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So true Matt Garman ! I founding the first Apple Federal VAR in 1983, MicroSage, with Vince Nicolosi. We took a chance and risked $2,000. Over 7 years, we trained 11,000+ scientists and engineers at the Los Alamos National Laboratory how to use DOS and Wordperfect. With Apple, refined their first Just In Time Tempest assembly process reducing“PO to Desktop” from 4 months to 3 weeks for the DOE laboratories. As a VAR, we had to innovate to compete during the “Hockey Stick” of micro computing. We won Minority Sub-Contactor of the Year from the Department of Energy in 1987 and Small Business of the Year Region VI from the SBA in 1990 and. Awards on my profile. #innovationISthegame #supplychain #logistics #whyretirewhenyoulovewhatyoudo Life’s a journey don’t be a hitchhiker My passion continues to be “Discovery of the Unknown” Amazon Web Services (AWS) rocks.

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While everyone’s talking about AI these days, there’s another kind of AI to get excited about—Alternative Itineraries! 🤖✨🌍 It's my favourite prediction from Booking.com's 2025 travel trends. In the year ahead, smart tech will help us craft unique experiences that not only match our interests but also respect the places we visit. Imagine using AI to find hidden gems, avoid the crowds, and even keep those secret spots untagged for a more mindful journey. 🏞️🤫 Explore all nine predictions in the link below! #Travel2025 #AI #BookingCom #TravelTrends

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***Malthi SS (Product Coach) very kindly invited me to a podcast recently where we spoke at length about all things AdTech and monetization. Link to podcast - https://lnkd.in/gkvz597a *** I got a lot of follow ups on the right kind of resources and content to understand this space. Here are 3 resources that I would recommend - 1. AdTech 101 & 102 - This is my own attempt at a super comprehensive yet jargon free introduction to AdTech. If there is only one piece of content you will ever read on this topic you should start here, - https://lnkd.in/dXT7YQd3 https://lnkd.in/gnq_Wkcs 2. Amazon's advertising blog - https://lnkd.in/gr4Dpu5y Super sophisticated stack gives you a peek into the latest and greatest 3. AdPushup's blog - I have worked with them in the past and everything they do is super hi quality including the blog https://lnkd.in/gtKM8hQB Follow me for high quality content https://lnkd.in/gHweK_q7 AND https://lnkd.in/ggUKftFq

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I had the pleasure of meeting with Linda Fox during the WiT conference in Singapore, and among many things, we discussed the applications of AI in travel. Here’s my hot take - travel will never disrupt technology, but the right tech can truly transform travel. As an industry, we may not be developing new language models, but we can certainly be early adopters of innovations that enhance the customer experience. We have the ability to bridge consumer data and tap on technology to build new features that enhance the customer experience, whether through itinerary planning or digital concierge services via chatbots. As part of our commitment to elevate the customer experience, we recently announced our expanded partnership with Google Cloud to help customers differentiate between similar experiences, summarize customer reviews to simplify decision making and transform them into key business insights for our partners. At the end of the day, its all about people and the customer experience. Technological innovations should be purposeful and intentional in improving the journey of travelers. Check out more details here: (https://lnkd.in/g5BzScNE) #klook #TravelTech #CustomerExperience #Innovation

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OTA sales have been increasing YoY but now with Ai in the picture I wonder what’s the future of retail travel agents.

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The Rise of Fractional Marketing: Cass’s Bold Leap from Layoff to Building Otterhalf Today, we have a dynamic and inspiring guest on GeekSpeaks: Cassandra Ong, Founder of OtterHalf a fractional marketing agency specialising in the growth of B2B2C tech companies. Known fondly as the "Chief Everything Otter," Cass brings over 12 years of experience in marketing and partnerships, having worked with renowned brands like foodpanda Chope and Tripadvisor. Cassandra's journey is nothing short of remarkable. With no prior experience in running an agency, she took a bold leap and founded Otterhalf - a venture that has now flourished for over a year, proving her resilience and innovative spirit. Cass is passionate about everything marketing and loves discussing her journey as a founder, including the highs and lows of entrepreneurship, the lessons learned, and the future of fractional marketing in the tech space. She’s no stranger to the podcasting world, having previously shared her story on other platforms. Get ready for an engaging conversation with Cass, where we'll dive deep into her experience, the power of fractional marketing, and how she’s making a mark in the tech world, one otter step at a time. #FractionalMarketing #WomenInBusiness #TechEntrepreneurship #StartupJourney #MarketingInnovation #BusinessGrowth #Otterhalf #CassOng #MarketingLeadership #PodcastGuest #GeekSpeaks #WomenInTech #EntrepreneurLife #InspiringWomen #FromLayoffToLeadership #MarketingStrategy #B2B2C #TechStartups #FounderStories #MarketingSuccess #ResilienceInBusiness #FutureOfWork #PodcastCommunity #StartupMindset #BoldMoves #WorldofWork #GeekLtd Cassandra Ong OtterHalf geek ltd Rahal Kansara

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For folks building in Travel & AI Klook has been promoting a newly launched cruise a lot in Dubai this season but the buying experience for that cruise is just bad, confusing, & seems like they don’t know enough about selling this cruise these high touch products are pretty great for AI sales agent. but just like a true travel agent this ai agents needs to be multi channel - Phone, WhatsApp, & email - sometimes even simultaneously this ai agent needs to have the ability to even get on a zoom call with the customer - co-browse with her. imagine if it could show a 3D deck design of that previous cruise! I know it’s tricky and after doing all these interactions - if this agent doesn’t have real time access to not only the inventory but also the meta data - it’s a wasted lead as it won’t be able to answer finer questions. this isn’t a training problem but an access problem to meta data an ai agent telling you Southwest has 32 inches of leg room for your US trip from India has no meaning. you have to tell the person that it’s 2 inches more than indigo; chances are that she will get it when you book a ticket with a full cost airline like emirates - you get something called as fare rules along with your booking which can run into 14 pages, covers many scenarios, & pretty much answers all the questions - yet they aren’t written for normal traveller the most complex of these are hotels. today you can make a search, “find me all the hotels in Phuket which has a sea view & accessible by wheel chair” only with a booking.com some other large ones like MMT & Trip.com return error or either only capture Phuket from it. Booking also doesn’t recognise wheelchair in the query; but that’s how we filter in our mind all these issues need to be solved with AI for AI - this i feel is like the opposite of straw that broke the camels back or death by a thousand cuts. it’s an amalgamation of soo many small things that come together to make a trip successful. I would like to term this as ‘The Golden Thread’, the more you weave it together - the stronger it gets if you are someone trying to build something in AI for travel at the top of the funnel & trying to get access to availability, inventory, rates, & meta data via fine-tuned LLM - come talk to us OnArrival, as part of our effort to rebuild the travel stack from ground up, we are adding one more statement to our vision - getting travel inventory ready for AI. we will start onboarding new customers from late Jan or early Feb’25 to help you build something which can truly compete with top online travel agents in the world DMs are open. email & phone number are public. we are here to help :)

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