Consumers Highly Inclined To Purchase Vacation Packages Online, But Frustrated With Lack of Flexibility in Planning.Business Editors SAN MATEO San Mateo (săn mətā`ō), city (1990 pop. 85,486), San Mateo co., W Calif., on San Francisco Bay; inc. 1894. It is a commercial and retail center with some high-technology manufacturing. San Mateo, Spanish for St. , Calif. & SHERMAN, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 17, 2003 Study by Vividence and PhoCusWright Examines Online Vacation Planning and Purchasing Trends Consumers are increasingly open to purchasing vacation packages online, but frustrations with the lack of flexibility in the planning process have kept completion of such transactions low according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. a study by Vividence Corporation, the leader in customer experience market research, and PhoCusWright Inc., the leader in travel intelligence services. The companies today released their syndicated research report "Vacation Packages: A Consumer Tracking and Discovery Study" which takes a detailed look into how consumers evaluate and make travel plans online. The study focused on consumers' response to the growing promotion of vacation packages, which many travel companies are hoping will help boost travel sales. The firms monitored 1,500 consumers as they used the Internet to research and arrange their next vacation. The study discovered that, while only 28 percent of consumers have bought travel packages online in the past, the majority (68 percent) express a desire to do so for their next vacation. Consumers Discouraged dis·cour·age tr.v. dis·cour·aged, dis·cour·ag·ing, dis·cour·ag·es 1. To deprive of confidence, hope, or spirit. 2. To hamper by discouraging; deter. 3. with Inflexibility in·flex·i·ble adj. 1. Not easily bent; stiff or rigid. 2. Incapable of being changed; unalterable. 3. Unyielding in purpose, principle, or temper; immovable. of Most Online Travel Packages Despite the inclination inclination, in astronomy, the angle of intersection between two planes, one of which is an orbital plane. The inclination of the plane of the moon's orbit is 5°9' with respect to the plane of the ecliptic (the plane of the earth's orbit around the sun). to purchase multiple services online, most consumers (73 percent) express frustration at the inflexibility of travel packages currently offered online, particularly with pre-packaged vacations. Consumers most often complain that they cannot select the providers they prefer (50 percent) and that online packages often do not include all the amenities they are looking to include (32 percent). The greatest interest was in dynamic packaging, or the ability to assemble ones' own vacation package. The majority of consumers (68 percent) feel that they can assemble a better package on their own, and often do so at multiple sites. Consumers Consult Internet, Family & Friends in Travel Planning The majority of travelers (56 percent) already use the Internet to research and purchase travel services(1). The Vividence-PhoCusWright research found that one in three users visited the Web more than 10 times when planning their last vacation. In addition, Internet research This article is about using the Internet for research; for the field of research about the Internet, see Internet studies. Internet research is the practice of using the Internet, especially the World Wide Web, for research. is the most influential factor for consumers when considering travel plans next to the personal recommendations of family and friends (59 percent). In comparison, travel agents (31 percent) and travel books and magazines (12 percent) are distant considerations. Diverse Approaches to Online Travel Planning Consumers cast a wide net when planning their travel. While some consumers (18 percent) purchased all their travel services (e.g., air, hotel and rental car) from a single site, most consumers (40 percent) booked travel services at multiple sites. Seventeen percent purchased only one travel service, and 19 percent did not purchase any services online. Although online travel agency sites (such as Expedia and Travelocity) are the most prevalent places for consumers to research and purchase travel services, destination and supplier sites are also widely used. Search engines (such as Google and Yahoo!) and online travel agency sites are the most common starting points Noun 1. starting point - earliest limiting point terminus a quo commencement, get-go, offset, outset, showtime, starting time, beginning, start, kickoff, first - the time at which something is supposed to begin; "they got an early start"; "she knew from the for travel planning. Overall, the most visited sites were Expedia (1), Google (2), Travelocity (3), Orbitz (4) and Yahoo (5). While major travel sites garnered many hits, consumers did not isolate their browsing to only top sites; more than 2,000 different sites were visited by the 1,500 users tracked. Price, Convenience Drive Purchase Perhaps predictably, price and convenience are the biggest drivers of online travel package purchases with 84 percent of consumers reporting price as an important driver and 78 percent mentioning time savings. Interestingly, consumers were not strongly confident that they were receiving a better value when purchasing a vacation package, suggesting that travel firms must do a better job of communicating price savings. Florida, Las Vegas Las Vegas (läs vā`gəs), city (1990 pop. 258,295), seat of Clark co., S Nev.; inc. 1911. It is the largest city in Nevada and the center of one of the fastest-growing urban areas in the United States. Top Winter Package Destinations For their next trip, 60 percent of respondents In the context of marketing research, a representative sample drawn from a larger population of people from whom information is collected and used to develop or confirm marketing strategy. indicated they are planning a vacation to a domestic U.S. destination, 25 percent to an international destination and 15 percent to the Caribbean or Mexico. The top U.S. destinations for 2004 travel are Florida (1), California (2) and Las Vegas (3); however Las Vegas and Florida are the most popular in terms of packages. Researchers hypothesized that fewer travelers choose packages when planning a vacation to California because of a greater need for flexibility in traveling outside of metro areas This article is about the music production team. For the article about population centers, see metropolitan area. Metro Area are a Brooklyn-based dance music production team composed of Morgan Geist and Darshan Jesrani. . About PhoCusWright PhoCusWright is a travel intelligence organization that specializes in strategy, research and forecasting for the world's largest industry -- travel, tourism and hospitality -- with expertise in sizing the market's notable online sector. The company conducts and publishes primary B2B (Business to Business) Refers to one business communicating with or selling to another. See B2B e-commerce, B2C and B2G. B2B - business to business , B2C (Business to Consumer) Refers to a business communicating with or selling to an individual rather than a company. See B2B. and custom qualitative and quantitative research Quantitative research Use of advanced econometric and mathematical valuation models to identify the firms with the best possible prospectives. Antithesis of qualitative research. , provides strategic consulting services Noun 1. consulting service - service provided by a professional advisor (e.g., a lawyer or doctor or CPA etc.) service - work done by one person or group that benefits another; "budget separately for goods and services" , and produces a series of high-profile conferences. Established in 1994, PhoCusWright Inc. is headquartered in Sherman, CT. For more information, please visit www.phocuswright.com. About Vividence Corporation Vividence is the leading provider of customer experience market research for the customer-driven enterprise. By capturing and interpreting the behavior, thoughts and attitudes of customers on the Web, Vividence yields business insights that improve profitability. More than 250 customers, including Compaq, Dell, FedEx, General Motors, Macy's, Microsoft, Pfizer, USA Today USA Today National U.S. daily general-interest newspaper, the first of its kind. Launched in 1982 by Allen Neuharth, head of the Gannett newspaper chain, it reached a circulation of one million within a year and surpassed two million in the 1990s. and more than 150 of the Fortune 1000 use Vividence. For more information, please visit www.vividence.com. (1) PhoCusWright Consumer Travel Trends Survey, 2003. |
|
||||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion