Travel industry counts cost of negative search comments
Published: 17 Jun 2007
Seven out of ten British consumers decide not to continue with a travel booking if online search results include negative comments about the travel company in question, according to the 2007 Search Attitudes Report commissioned by Tamar, the Search Conver
As a result the travel industry risks losing a significant proportion of potential business as a result of negative comments appearing in search engine results courtesy of the rise of blogging and social networking.
The travel industry invests significantly in web site usability and ensuring that once potential visitors are delivered to their web site they make a booking, however they have so far failed to address the potential custom being lost, and the reputation damage being inflicted as a result of negative comments in search results.
The industry’s over-reliance on paid-search and keyword bidding also threatens to undermine future success as the 2007 Search Attitudes Report reveals that consumers lack trust in paid search and are turning overwhelmingly to natural search results when making purchase decisions.
Negative search results take toll on bookings
The rise of social networking and blogging has presented travel brands with a significant new problem for managing their online reputations. Ryanair is one major brand suffering from negativity in search results for the term ‘Ryanair’. The first page of Google results includes negative comments such as, ‘Ryanair – the world’s least favourite airline’ and details of dissatisfied customer experiences.
The 2007 Search Attitudes Report reveals that negative comments in natural search results have a profound impact on click-throughs and bookings for the company in question. Faced with negative comments about a particular company, 58 per cent of consumers put off by negative comments would visit a competitor’s web site instead. The remaining 42 per cent abandon their search completely.
Travel brand owners must implement online reputation management strategies to minimise the impact of these negative comments. This is achieved through natural search optimisation to ensure greater exposure of official web sites and minimise the profile of negative comments by pushing them off the first page of search results.
Neil McCarthy, director, Tamar comments, “Consumers who click on natural search links are far more likely to become better customers and leading brands are beginning to place a greater emphasis on their natural search optimisation strategies. Brand owners are only just beginning to actively manage their reputations online as negative comments in search results do drive potential customers into the hands of the opposition. Natural search optimisation should be part of an overall reputation management strategy to ensure negative comments are suppressed and your official links are featured more prominently.”
British travellers don’t trust sponsored links
The 2007 Search Attitudes Report reveals that almost half (43 per cent) of British consumers are now aware of the difference between natural and paid-for search results and 92 per cent prefer using natural search results when looking to make a holiday booking. Awareness of the difference is a clear generational issue: more than half (55 per cent) of 16-24 year olds are aware of the difference compared with 51 per cent of the lucrative 25-34 year old age group, and less than one in three (32 per cent) of those aged 55 and over.
When asked why they preferred natural search results to sponsored links, women trusted natural search results to be the most relevant while men turned out to be more cynical. Cynicism over the independence of sponsored links increases with British consumer’s age.
McCarthy adds, “Consumers are wising up to how sponsored links work and as the cost of paid search continues to grow, so does consumer scepticism. Travel companies need to take a joined-up approach to marketing their brands online and avoid over-reliance on paid-search. The most effective online campaigns strike a balance between paid and natural search.”
Better optimisation leads to more bookings
The 2007 Search Attitudes Report also found that almost eight out of ten (79 per cent) consumers would be more likely to make an immediate booking if a search link takes them directly to the page of the flight, hotel or service they are looking for. Over a quarter (27 per cent) of 16-24 year olds say their biggest issue when booking a holiday is that they cannot easily find what they are looking for. The report’s findings reinforce the case for travel firms developing multiple, optimised landing pages on their web sites for specific travel options and destinations. This will ensure potential customers find exactly what they are looking for more easily and are taken directly to the specific travel option or destination’s landing page, avoiding any risk of getting lost while attempting to navigate through a company’s web site.
Ensuring that the booking process is clear is the next most important step after ensuring potential customers are not put off by negative comments in search results. When entering the booking process, British consumers are most likely to give up if the prices are not clear (37 per cent) and if the web site is slow and takes too long to return relevant results (24 per cent).
McCarthy concludes, “The majority of travel companies continue to be preoccupied with fighting for prime position in paid-search rankings in order to drive traffic to their web sites without considering how to better convert those visitors into paying travellers. The travel industry needs to take a joined-up approach to treat the search engine strategy and web site sales strategy as one integrated process, rather than two distinct entities. The joined-up search process is all about learning from testing and ensuring the focus is completely on the customer’s requirements. Joined-up search is the process of bringing someone to your shop, showing them the options they want to book and taking them right through the checkout.”
Comments
You must be logged in to post comments.