The Internet has changed many things. On area where it is having a particularly marked impact is the field of travel. Over the last 50 years travel and tourism has undergone many changes. Prior to the introduction of jet airlines and inexpensive package tours in the 1960’s foreign travel was for the few. The Internet has sparked a similar revolution within the sector as well as beyond it.
The Office of National Statistics in the UK revealed last year that nearly 7 out of 10,or 69% of UK Internet users go online to use services related to travel and accommodation. Also, according to a survey carried out by OxIS an incredible 87% of Internet users go online to source information when they are making travel plans. At first glance it would appear that everything was looking very positive for the travel sector online, however when you look deeper you can see that this is not the case.
Further statistics on UK Internet use reveal profound failures from those involved in travel within the digital realm. A Greenbe.com survey in January of 2009 revealed that 34% of British internet users will spend an entire day trying to find the best holiday deals online. The same survey revealed that 20% of Britons will spend at least 8 hours trawling the Internet for a cheap travel related deal. The message of this is very clear – the necessary information is many cases are taking a long time to find by those who need it.Travel companies need to wise up to the behaviour of this segment of the market. The need to be doing everything they can to ensure that the deals that they are offering can be found quickly and easily by those looking for them. An example of a company that seem to be doing this well is Easycar, who are very effective at promoting their international offering of car hire digitally.
Consumers as well can help improve the prospects of finding the right deals on-line. An incredible 1 in 3 UK holidaymakers are posting holiday reviews online. The future surely lies in harnessing the power of this force. Social media are creating a new paradigm of interactivity.The world of true consumer power is on its way, and travel companies who fail to grasp the social concept will be left behind by those that do.
All statistics taken from http://www.google.co.uk/intl/en/landing/internetstats/a>
`Glass Shelving
Aug 20th, 2010i always look for travel deals to save money and also time’,.
camping vastkusten
Jan 25th, 2011There are many options available to the traveler wishing to plan a holiday . At these times cruises will always offer the deepest discounts off the retail price because they always want a ship to have a 100% occupancy rate. I highly recommend browsing online and for the latest deals.