I N T E R N A T I O N A L , I N C
HOSPITALITY CUSTOMERSBEHAVIORS & INFLUENCES
I N T E R N A T I O N A L , I N C
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4 KEY LEARNINGS The road to consumer decisionsin the hospitality industry.
2 in 3 travelers book hotels
online
Internet is the leading source
for planning and booking hotels.
Travelers are increasingly
well informed
The average traveler visits more than 20
websites prior to booking.
ValueLocation
Quality of Life
85% of booking decisions are influenced by
these 3 factors.
Mobile is an essential tool for consumers
Travelers increasingly turn to mobile to research and book hotels.
I N T E R N A T I O N A L , I N C
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The Internet is the leading source for travel planning and booking hotels.
Internet
Family, friends, colleagues
Informational brochures
Magazines
TV
Travel agents
Books
Newspapers
800 or free-toll number0%
20%
34%
27%
24%
35%
32%
54%
85%
23%
19%
19%
36%
26%
25%
28%
38%
81%
11%
12%
18%
18%
22%
24%
32%
60%
82%
Personal
Business
Affluent
Source: Google/Ipsos OTX MediaCT “Traveler’s Road to Decision”, 2012 - Q: “Which of the following sources do you typically use to plan personal or leisure trips?”Source: “Customer Loyalty in the Hotel Industry” - Deloitte, 2013
of leisure travelers
consider the Internet their
main source for travel planning.
85%
of travelers reported that the Internet prompted
them to book - more than any other channel,
37%
The Internet is the most influential channel throughout the entire hotel purchase funnel.
I N T E R N A T I O N A L , I N C
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Travelers are more informed than everand frequently comparison shop for hotels.
Source: Google/Ipsos OTX MediaCT “Traveler’s Road to Decision”, 2012 - Q: “Which of the following sources do you typically use to plan personal or leisure trips?”Source: “Customer Loyalty in the Hotel Industry” - Deloitte, 2013
of leisure travelers always/frequently comparison shop
64%
of business travelers always/frequently comparison shop
57%
of affluent travelers always/frequently comparison shop
77%
Expedia
Hotels.com
Travelocity
Priceline
Orbitz
Hotwire
Hotel Brand
Kayak
AAA 15%
24%
25%
26%
31%
27%
25%
34%
36%
44%
15%
17%
23%
25%
29%
32%
35%
37%
39%
42%
Personal
Business
OTAs and search are the most common websites used to comparison shop for hotels.
Top 10 sites used when comparison shopping for hotels
I N T E R N A T I O N A L , I N C
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22THE
AVERAGE TRAVELER
travel-relatedwebsites
9.5researchsessions
visits
Source: Compete.com, 2011
during
BOOKING A HOTEL
prior to
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Guest discovers the hotel and is either happy or
disappointed.
Guest shares his experience whether online or offline, to
friends, families and strangers.
This impacts the Stimulus and ZMOT stages of
someone else(friends & families, etc.)
Guest reviews + experience account for
55% of new guests.
SECONDMOMENT OF TRUTH
Guest’s experienceof the hotel
Make reservation
Find hotel info
Compare rates
View/cancel reservation
Other 27%
7%
20%
20%
26%
Purpose of visiting a hotel website:
85% of booking decisions are influenced by 3 criteria:
location, value, quality of life.
FIRSTMOMENT OF TRUTH
Guest visits The Hotel Website
Friends & Family
OTAs
TripAdvisor
Article/Magazine
Travel Agent
Other
Facebook 3%
4%
4%
6%
23%
28%
33%
Reviews are important for 81% of travelers when deciding
which hotel to stay at.
STIMULUSGuest finds outabout hotel andgets interested
Search Engines
Map Pages
Review Sites
Travel Guides
Social Media 1%
3%
7%
10%
73%
Top referring sites for bookings:
92% of decisions are influenced here.
Consumer is in charge.
ZEROMOMENT OF TRUTH
Guest goes online to research the hotel
4 essential steps in the road to hotel guests decisions
Source: Google/Shopper Sciences Study, 2011 - Q: “When you were considering purchasing a product what sources of info did you seek out to help with your decision? + WIHP, 2011Source: iPerceptions, “Hospitality and Tourism Industry Report”, 2011 | Source: Forrester Research, 2011 + PhoCusWright's “Social Media in Travel 2011”: Traffic, Activity & Sentiment
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The effect of online sources on hotel booking
Search engines provide travel information, hotel sites prompt bookings.
“Helped melearn more”“Helped melearn more”
“Helped medecide”
“Helped medecide”
“Prompted meto book”
“Prompted meto book”
Leisure Business Leisure Business Leisure Business
Hotel Websites 30% 39% 39% 49% 24% 36%
Search Engines 49% 43% 43% 37% 10% 13%
Online Travel Agency 27% 33% 34% 39% 23% 27%
Online Video Sites 16% 20% 13% 15% 3% 6%
Social Networking Sites 14% 18% 13% 14% 3% 5%
Source: Google/Ipsos OTX MediaCT “Traveler’s Road to Decision”, 2012 - Q: “Which of the following sources do you typically use to plan personal or leisure trips?”Source: “Customer Loyalty in the Hotel Industry” - Deloitte, 2013
Hotel websites prompt bookings
Search engines provide information
I N T E R N A T I O N A L , I N C
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3 pillars in booking decisions: location, value, quality of life
Source: TripAdvisor Traveler Trends Survey, 2011. Q: “When booking a hotel, which one of the following will be the single biggest influence of purchasing decisions?”
of hotel booking decisions are influenced by these 3 criteria85%
7%
2%2%
4%
14%
34%
37%
Will it save me time?Is it near my destination points?
Will it be enjoyable(comfort + vibe + guests)?
Will it save me money?Is this the best value I can get?
Location
Qualityof life
Value
Chart: “what is the single biggest influence on purchasing decision when booking a hotel?”
34%
37%
14%Official star-rating
Room/Property Size
Activities Available
Other
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Price
Hotel Website
Promotions
Specific accommodation
Online Reviews
Virtual Tour & Pictures
Can earn reward points/miles
Online videos posted by the lodging
Posts, comments, reviews on social
Hotel Website (mobile)
An app on mobile phone 9%
20%
18%
19%
58%
32%
39%
49%
51%
55%
81%
6%
16%
18%
21%
33%
42%
50%
50%
57%
58%
90%
Personal
Business
Importance of features when choosing a hotel
Social, mobile and video/photos areimportant to hotel guests when booking
Visual content creation is an essential part of the marketing process for hotels & lodging.
Source: Google/Ipsos OTX MediaCT “Traveler’s Road to Decision”, 2012 - Q: “Which of the following sources do you typically use to plan personal or leisure trips?”Source: “Customer Loyalty in the Hotel Industry” - Deloitte, 2013
I N T E R N A T I O N A L , I N C
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4 KEY LEARNINGS= 4 KEY LESSONS
How RDA can help you throughout all steps of the consumer decision process
2 in 3 travelers book hotels
online
WHAT RDA OFFERS
Website Design
Website Development
SEO
Email Marketing
Online Advertising
Travelers areincreasingly
well informed
WHAT RDA OFFERS
Search Engine Marketing
Search Engine Optimization
Social Media Marketing
Community Management
Facebook apps/tabs
ValueLocation
Quality of Life
WHAT RDA OFFERS
Design and Branding
Positioning & Core Values
Art Direction
Video Creation
Mobile is an essential tool for consumers
WHAT RDA OFFERS
Responsive Website
Mobile apps / websites
Mobile Marketing
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