More consumers are using calling travel companies to book trips than before, according to a data analysis released today.
If true, it means smartphones are replicating the travel industry's extraordinary challenge to convert visitors into paying customers in a very old-school place: call centers.
The research was done by the Marchex Institute, the research arm of Marchex, a call-based ad network that has a vested interest in promoting the notion of a growth in voice calls.
Using technology that scans for key phrases, Marchex says it "analyzed more than 15,000 phone calls placed to hotel properties and national call centers from mobile and desktop ad campaigns."
The study can be downloaded, here.
Its conclusions:
- Mobile callers convert into customers at a higher rate than desktop users.
- The conversion rate is consistently "over 25% for rental cars and over 20% for hotels."
- Mobile consumers call hotels more often in the evening than desktop consumers.
- Consumers are in "purchase mode" on the phone and have an urgent intent to book.
- That said, 62% of the calls analyzed for this study "were not destined for a sale." These calls were either intended for customer service – such as confirming reservations – or they were misdials and disconnects.
- Consumers most often call because of special requests having to do with, for instance, an event or room location. These requests require talking to someone.
- More than a third of callers had questions about room locations, views, and nearby events, such as how far of a walk it was to President Obama’s inauguration.
- The travel industry trails other industries in converting voice calls to sales.
How should travel advertisers take advantage of this data? Marchex offers these ideas:
Route calls through a voice response prompt for proper call handling and management of ad campaigns.Create better agent scripting and training based on call intelligence. This study revealed a high degree of price sensitivity, for instance, among the Deal-Seekers. Presenting this group with more expensive options actually decreased conversions.Employ more staff at call centers and reception areas according to the volume and types of incoming calls. Based on our findings, rental car companies should staff more heavily in the morning.Run promotional offers tailored to certain customer subsets. For example, to gain The Deal-Seeker, hotels could offer free breakfast or a complimentary spa service. Hotels could also attract The Special Requestor by offering a free upgrade to a room with a view.