Google’s Latest Insights on Travellers’ Behaviours

Now that we are living in such a digitalised world, with our phones or other connected devices there to answer all our questions, customers worldwide want everything, immediately, and in a personalised way. 

In their recent study, carried out in partnership with Phocuswright, Google let us in the head of travellers to know what they really want when planning a trip or even when experiencing the vacation itself.

In this study, more than half of the interviewees point out the multitude of sources they have to check to make sure they make the right decision for their holidays. Having one website that compares every option for them is substantial for travellers and would comfort them, and what best tool is there to search and book easily than their mobile phone? However, it appears that the travel industry is way behind on that matter: 1 in 3 traveller claims to not be comfortable with booking or even searching for their trip. This might be explained by the fact that mobile versions of websites are not always optimised and do not allow for a fluid browsing.

Even “loyal customers” might not be so loyal when it comes to getting the best deal. The study shows that a significant share of travellers involved in loyalty programmes with specific hotels or airlines still keep an eye on the competition in case they can find a better price with another company. This doesn’t mean that hotels and airlines should drop their loyalty programmes, but it should encourage them to reshape their customer relation management strategies to provide their customers with the high level of assistance they require and entice them to stay loyal customers. Travellers also appreciate when a company can significantly tailor their offer relying on their customers’ preferences or previous experience, and this could even be an attention they would be ready to pay more money for.

Another observation brought up by the study is that digitalisation led travellers to be more and more spontaneous, booking last minute short trips rather than planning for long stays.

Despite the climate of suspicion when it comes to sharing data online, travellers are more and more demanding when it comes to taking a vacation that fits their needs and their needs only. Travel companies have to be reactive and proactive to offer travellers what they want before they even think about it. To overcome the suspicion accompanied by sharing data online, companies should think of a way to be transparent and explain how their customers data is going to be used to fit their needs to reassure and encourage their customers to share them to optimise their online experience.

Written by: Marie Cyrot & Rodolphe Hermann

Sources: 

https://www.thinkwithgoogle.com/consumer-insights/age-of-assistance-travel-marketing/?utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=thinkwithgoogle&utm_source=email&utm_content=age-of-assistance-travel-marketing

Google/Phocuswright Travel Study 2017, Base: Leisure Travelers: US: n=857.

Google/Phocuswright Travel Study 2017, Base: Leisure Travelers who participate in a hotel loyalty program: U.S. n=528.

Google/Phocuswright Travel Study 2017, Base: Leisure Travelers who participate in an airline frequent flier program: U.S.: n=571.

https://skift.com/2017/06/21/mobile-travel-bookings-to-reach-40-percent-of-online-sales-in-2017/ 

How Big Data And Analytics Are Changing Hotels And The Hospitality Industry

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    Travels needs and expectations are ever changing and evolving. With an industry that caters to millions a day, the hospitality and hotel industry continue to require ways to keep up with shifting customer demands in order to keep up with expectations and satisfy their clients. Bernard Marr, a Forbes contributor, talks about how Big Data and Analytics can and do play a large role in helping the hospitality industry to predict customer demand and shifting trends.

      Big data is a new step for the hospitality industry, though one they can adapt to with ease, as with today’s technology there is now an infinite ‘volume and variety’ of data available. As Marr points out, from reservation to check out customers will leave a data trail through their stay and analysts are starting to understand the importance of turning ‘data into actionable insights’.

   

     One of the first ways that analytics and Big Data have aided the hospitality industry is helping them to observe their customers and identify clients that will give them ‘a higher life time value’. Marr identifies two types of hotel clientele – those whose stay will be simple and hassle free and second, those who will spend a lot of money on fine dining, entertainment, sports activities and spa treatments. Observing clients allows hotels to help meet the needs of the each of their segments separately. Those that tend to stay for a short amount of time (business travels) tend to return if the hotel meets all their requirements, creating a higher lifetime value.

    Big Data and analytics is leading the hospitality industry to help improve their marketing reach and yield/revenue management. With the new technological age, hotels (and others in the hospitality industry) must be aware of changing technology that can help them ‘roll with the times’, in order to identify modern customer demand. Hotels must change with the times in order to properly satisfy and attract the modern business and leisure traveler.

    An American hotel chain, Red Roof Inn is an example of the positive use of an analytics system. In the winter of 2013/2014 they had experienced a 10% increase in business after running a new marketing campaign. The company realized the value of having a hotel near an airport. The hotel’s marketing and analytics team worked together, using public database and weather reports, and found out that a large percentage of airline passengers use mobile devices to search for nearby hotel when their flights were cancelled. After discovering this the company held a marketing campaign which was targeted at mobile using passengers.

    Denihan Hospitality, another American hotel brand uses Big Data not just for marketing but in the physical operation of their properties by putting analytics in the hands of their front of house staff. “Armed with dashboards on their smartphones” front of house staff was able to predict guests needs and desires in advance, such as restaurant meals, concierge services or outside activities. Housekeeping staff were able to receive ‘real-time updates’ on whether certain rooms would require an extra pillow or who was more likely to room service for a midnight snack.

    With large data collections which can identify customer segments, the hospitality industry can better coordinate itself to optimize its room occupancy and revenue. Marriott uses analytics and Big data to observe (Unstructured and semi-structured datasets) weather reports and local events schedules that are use to determine the demand and value for “each individual room throughout the year”. It enables Marriot to precisely optimize their room prices. As Marr states this is “vital in an age where customers are used to saving pennies by scanning price comparison services for the best deals.”

    Marr states that once the hospitality gets use to analytics that there will be a large increase in innovation that ‘should result in more satisfying stays for us as customers’. We firmly believe that this new and ever increasing analytics technology is the future, for helping not just the hospitality industry but every industry in staying a step ahead of changing trends and client expectation in order to boost sales and revenue.

                                                                                                                                                                                            Alexa Bailey and Sakshi Bheda

Article reviewed: http://www.forbes.com/sites/bernardmarr/2016/01/26/how-big-data-and-analytics-changing-hotels-and-the-hospitality-industry/#2fcfb8b64b39