Online travel sites have discovered that where there's a brand, there’s traffic. Marketers can take their brands farther by recognizing the different reasons why users approach these sites.
Brand equity plays a vital role in driving traffic to travel sites like Travelocity and Expedia, the two most recognizable brands in the category, says ACNielsen.
A new study, based on data by Nielsen//NetRatings, shows a strong correlation between brand equity (the effect that brand knowledge has on consumer response to marketing activity) and the number of unique visitors to a travel site. As difficult as quantifying brand effectiveness is, ACNielsen has managed to establish a way of measuring brand equity with its proprietary Winning B(r)ands model, which analyzes survey, retail, media and other research data.
"Strong brand messages that resonate with consumers are very important to the online travel industry, and can make a big difference in the success of a travel Web site," says Deepak Varma, senior vice president at ACNielsen International Research. "Online travel marketers need to better understand their brand equity so that they can either strengthen their already strong brand positions, like Travelocity and Expedia, or take actions to boost brand equity and drive more traffic to their sites."
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Source: ACNielsen International Research and Nielsen//NetRatings (July 2002 - June 2003). (*) Site traffic ranking are relative in that they compare only the five sites studied for brand equity, not all travel-related Internet sites
The study reviewed more than 80 travel sites that ranged from agents like Orbitz.com to more specialized sites like Hotels.com. Researchers found that brand drivers in this industry depend on the travel category—air, hotel, car rental, vacation package or cruise—and the particular needs of travelers who book online.
The reason why general sites like Travelocity and Expedia are so popular may be because the air travel category is so driven by consumer awareness—thus, ad recall from continuous exposure to these brands is high, and their names are the first to emerge to people who seek airfare. Yet beware specialist sites. Travelocity and Expedia are one-stop solutions, but when it comes to hotel and accommodation services, they scored lower than lodging specialist Hotels.com in some areas, such as range of hotels, accuracy of confirmation/booking and reliability of site.
"Travelocity and Expedia have become household names in online travel through very effective advertising," Varma says. "However, when booking air travel or making hotel reservations, consumers have very specific needs and expectations, which often differ from category to category. This is where online travel category specialists such as Hotels.com can compete effectively with the generalist sites and build brand equity with consumers."
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Source: ACNielsen, Winning B(r)ands Brand Equity Model, 2004.
Varma suggests that online travel providers should develop marketing strategies that are tailored to each area in which they compete, as key drivers vary by the users’ needs. For example, a cruise seeker would weigh quality of customer communication more heavily than someone who seeks air travel.
"The brand marketing strategy for each online travel provider should be unique for each of the categories in which it competes, and tailored to the importance consumers place on differing brand aspects," Varma says. "For instance, Southwest Airlines' Web site provides the customer with simplicity and ease of navigation, a unique point of distinction from other airline travel sites and one that resonates well with online air travelers."
ACNielsen International Research will continue to measure the brand equity of online travel sites during 2004.