SINGAPORE, 18 April 2023: According to new independent research commissioned by Travelport, a technology company that powers bookings for travel suppliers worldwide, consumers want the travel industry to deliver an easy, modern travel retail experience.
The study, entitled “What Consumers Want,” revealed multiple gaps that explain customers’ lack of trust in travel retailers, namely the lack of simplified and intuitive experiences, easy support and transparency.
This insight offers valuable considerations and opportunities for the travel industry to generate more sales and customer loyalty.
“Commenting on the challenge to get modern and give consumers the simple, easy and supportive experience they expect,” Travelport chief marketing officer Jen Catto said: “According to new research commissioned by Travelport, customers prefer shopping in every other retailing sector over travel. Now that the industry is recovering, there is an enormous opportunity for travel brands to reinvest in their customer experiences, earning them customer loyalty while increasing their revenue simultaneously. It’s a win-win.”
Key Study Findings
Time and transparency prioritised over price
Supporting the belief that ‘time is money,’ Travelport’s study confirmed consumers spend more time online searching rather than buying — consulting reviews, seeking recommendations, and looking into other factors of what an offer includes. The study revealed that the majority (69%) of consumers research a purchase online daily or weekly, with very few (only 2%) stating that they never research a purchase online.
Travelport also found that nearly all consumers (93%) believe that the best modern retailers make it easy to find what they want. Full transparency is what most consumers (90%) desire most, meaning modern retailers must share full product information upfront to help consumers save time and gain confidence in their purchases. Doing so will pay off for retailers. Most respondents (59%) said that getting what they want is more important than how much they pay for it.
Even Gen Z wants convenient, human-led customer support
Most study respondents (77%) have interacted with a chatbot regardless of age. However, just a quarter of theoretical “digital natives,” ages 18-41, use them frequently. Three-quarters of all respondents prefer to speak with a human (via chat or phone) when something goes wrong, but what was unexpected is that more (83%) of younger consumers ages 18 to 41 want more human support than their elders, age 42 and above. Furthermore, consumers in this study shared the importance of easy returns and exchanges (43%), filtered options (40%) and personalised offers (29%). These factors indicate more personal support is valued at every stage of the retail journey, from research to purchase and post-purchase experiences.
Consumers will travel longer and spend more for sustainability
Climate change and sustainability are top of mind for consumers, especially those passionate about travel. Travelport’s study revealed that nearly half of all consumers surveyed (49%) would choose to spend more and even more (60%) would take longer, indirect transport routes to their destination to save on carbon (CO2) emissions when travelling. This varies by age group, as the study results show (33%) of consumers ages 18–41 would travel two to three hours longer to save on CO2 emissions, compared to only (19%) of consumers 42 and older.
For additional modern retailing insights from Travelport, please visit https://www.travelport.com/what-consumers-want.
