Consumers – They'll Always Take The Easy Option

2 September, 2008 by Martin Kelly

By Martin Kelly, Editor, Travel Trends

Search engine optimisation for travel sites also emerged as the key theme in website usability study by Global Reviews, which gave 98 consumers two online tasks: 1) find the cheapest flight from Tullamarine Airport Melbourne to Perth; 2) find the cheapest Brisbane hotel near the Botanic Gardens.

Half the users went straight to a search engine, 37% of these entering the actual website name rather than a search term. “Some behaved as if search engines are the web,” presenter Karen Grinter told the audience.

In other search engine findings, 18% clicked on paid search advertisements while nobody looked further than the first results page.

Grinter said 44% of users went to an aggregator site first. Webjet (12%) and Flight Centre (6%) were the most popular airfare sites; Wotif (13%) and lastminute (5%) well in front when it came to accommodation. These results reflect Hitwise market share research.

“It’s quicker (to do it this way) than visiting individual sites and you can compare instantly,” said one user.

But after finding a flight on an aggregator site, 45% would actually go to the airline website. A typical user said the aggregator site gave a good summary “but to avoid paying extra for this service I book directly from the airline site”.

For the hotel task, a high proportion of users (38 of 98) went to Whereis or Google Maps to find the best hotel option. Many who visited Wotif didn’t realise it offered map search, potentially due to poor positioning.

In summary, Grinter said:

 Users rely on Search (SEO is crucial)
 Users may ignore your key tools (must be emphasised)
 Users will not work hard to get the right option (comparisons must be simple and obvious)
 Users need trust and confidence to purchase (you must earn the transaction).

Travel Trends: September 3, 2008

Share and Enjoy:

Events

'REAL TIME - Sydney, March 30'

When: March 30, 2012
Where: Amora Hotel Jamison
Program: Real Time
Bookings: $499 + gst Early Bird

BOOK now to get the Early Bird rate for the No Vacancy accommodation industry conference in Sydney.

Real Time is the theme of No Vacancy 2012, reflecting the fact that we live in a world where everything happens now, or not at all.

In no business is this more obvious than tourism. Booking lead times are now measured in hours not days or weeks.

To succeed requires a new way of doing business, a fresh mentality and a fair amount of nerve.

The program is packed with the information you'll need to thrive in today's just-in-time world with a focus on distribution, marketing, innovation, consumers and technology.

Speakers confirmed so far include the following, and there are a few more on the way...

Rachel Argaman, CEO, Toga Hospitality
Dave Audley, Heading of Consulting, Experian Hitwise
Quentin Briard, GM Australia & NZ, Club Med
Daniel Bridges, Head of Travel, Trade Me (NZ)
Julio Bruno, Global Vice President Sales, TripAdvisor
James Cassidy, HomeAway.com.au
Robbie Cooke, CEO, Wotif.com
Will Deague, CEO, Art Series Hotels
Dean Dransfield, Director, Dransfield Hotels and Resorts
Bob East, CEO, Mantra Resorts
Leah Lipman, Area Director Reveneue Management Australasia, IHG
Simon McGrath, CEO, Accor Australia
Bryon Merzeo, Analyst, STR Global
Bernard O’Keefe, Group Online Marketing Manager, Hamilton Island
Todd Parker, Founder, Parker Travel Collection
Nikolai Pitchforth, Head of Online Travel, Google
Brett Pointon, Founder, Oaks Hotels and Resorts
Anton Stanish, GM, The Stayz Group
Janet Wilson, Managing Director, Nationwide Hospitality

It'll be a great day. As usual, the focus will be on distribution, marketing, sales, innovation and technology for both hoteliers and Online Travel Agents.

Sponsors:

Program and Speakers
Bookings

Returning September 17, 2012

The date has been set for TRAVELtech 2012 - Monday, September 17.

Meanwhile, thanks to everyone who attended TRAVELtech: Best of Enemies in Sydney recently.

It was a fantastic event, lots of fun with a touch of controversy.

Please check out the photographs or use this link to see great 360 degree panorama shots of the conference from Panedia.

TRAVELtech is Australia's original web travel, marketing and distribution event, featuring a compelling program, great speakers and fantastic networking.

Program and Event Info