Swayy, a new service that allows hotels and travel companies to quickly and easily connect with digital influencers, has been named the winner of the 2018 Travel Technology Disrupt Award.
Swayy will be awarded a full-size stand at the 2019 Travel Technology Europe (TTE) conference in London, worth £8,000 plus marketing support. Swayy successfully applied for the event’s Launchpad, which supported 15 of the most innovative start-ups in the travel technology industry this year.
David Gabriele, CEO Swayy commented: “Winning this award is symbolic of the hard work and dedication we have put into providing accountability and transparency to hoteliers and travel companies around the world, both small and large. It’s no secret that the current way in which hotels and influencers work together is inadequate, time-consuming and frustrating. We have streamlined the process and finally given much-needed control back to the hotel industry.”
"A much-needed solution to a difficult problem"
Judge Renee Tsielepi, consultant, Transcendence said: “The finalists all showed huge potential to disrupt the industry, Swayy particularly impressed by offering a much-needed solution to a difficult problem. Swayy’s platform quickly matches hotels and influencers and removes much of the pain for hoteliers in finding the right influencers to work with.”
Judge Martin Cowen, contributing editor, Tnooz added: “Swayy’s algorithm that identifies “fake followers” is a great innovation and one that has massive potential in travel and beyond.”
Swayy’s fellow finalists were Protected Trust Services, Wanup, Live2Leave and Guidewiser – all shortlisted from the event’s 15 Launchpad exhibitors. They were chosen during a three-week online vote, which was open to the public and received over 1,000 nominations. The shortlist was then presented to a panel of judges:
- Walter Toscano, senior advisor, Travel & Telecom
- Martin Cowen, contributing editor, Tnooz
- Renee Tsielepi, consultant, Transcendence
- Sergio Gonzalez, CTO, Regency Resorts
- Lee Hayhurst, head of news, Travel Weekly Group
