Expedia is gathering increasing data on customers and their behaviour using a "test and learn" process on its sites.
The thinking behind "test and learn" is that anyone in the company, across all disciplines, can propose an idea, explain the hypothesis behind it and it will get voted on to decide whether it is tested.
Speaking at last week's Streamline Connections event on travel retailing, Andy Washington, Expedia's UK and Northern Europe managing director, said the online travel agency could, for example, test a tab on the home page with nothing behind it (except some "pretty pictures").
Then, if consumers click on it, the OTA can put a white label behind it to get online consumer data.
Washington went on to say that the process was a departure from how the OTA used to act.
"In the past Expedia made big bets but it becomes like an oil tank and you can't move."
Washington went on to talk about not second guessing customers but instead letting the data inform companies on what customers want.
"Everyone is different and wants different things. We let the data tell us what we need to do. The data is the customer speaking."
The panel, which also included Momondo Group CEO, Hugo Burge, Travelzoo UK managing director, Joel Brandon-Bravo, and Gett head of growth, Chris Lamontagne, was later asked how online travel might look by 2020?
Lamontagne, meanwhile, predicted new entrants who gather masses amount of data might be the travel retailers of the future.
He also said APIs would make the idea of seamless travel possible.
Washington said the world is changing too much to make wide predictions but that through "instantaneous data" customers would tell travel companies what they want.
Burge said the best product would win and that personalisation would play a significant role.
Brandon-Bravo brought the theme back to data by saying that Travelzoo had seen conversion rates improve 4,000% by using click behaviour to put the right product in front of customers.
"Maybe companies will trawl your Facebook page to see what holiday photos you have put up and make suggestions based on them."
NB:Test online Expedia image via Shutterstock.