The traveler experience continues to be in focus, as more brands pursue a "connected" and "seamless" approach to travel.
This is all according to an extensive new report called the Connected Life by TNS Global.
The survey considers digital attitudes of global consumers by querying 55,000 Internet users across 50 countries. This specific sample considered the 1,000 UK residents, who shared more details about their last 5 vacations.
For the vast majority of consumers, price (90%) and ease of booking (88%) are the most important when booking online. For those that rely on social media and blog posts 68% are motivated by fun and enjoyment when researching travel.
One very clear area for improvement is in tours and activities. In advance of a trip, 1 in 4 travelers plan T&A yet only 1 in 10 book. This means that travelers are spending time researching prices, schedules and itineraries yet do not complete the booking. This cohort is interested but that interest doesn't convert to bookings.
In destination, WiFi becomes an essential part of the trip: 48% rely on free WiFi at their lodgings and 36% on free WiFi at restaurants and cafes. Mapping apps would be more useful, say 44%, if there was more easily available WiFi.
The gender divide relating to apps is interesting, with females more likely to want to stay in touch while traveling and males tending towards mapping apps — interesting, given that the stereotypical man never wants to stop for directions! Perhaps digital mapping resources have indeed been a boon to the traveling man.
Beyond these digital preferences, the report authors most valuable contribution to informing travel's digital marketing efforts for the UK consumer include breaking the demographic down into four key constituencies: Digital Savvy Influencers, Social Media Connectors, Online Traditionalists and Technophobes.
Profiles are one of the most fruitful ways to segment and target consumers, especially because each group should be approached with a unique voice and position in order to ensure the highest level of engagement.
Dive into the full report, handy images and all, here.
NB: Location sharing image courtesy Shutterstock.