Twenty-seven million adults shopped online for travel and leisure services
last year, doubling 1998’s total of 13.4 million, according to a new study.
eCRM company Cyber Dialogue said that travel
shoppers now make up more than one-third of the total online population, and
nearly half of all men online (44 percent) turn to the Web for travel and
leisure purchases.
Cyber Dialogue found that online travel shoppers spend $2,517 in online
purchases a year, which is $500 more than the average online adult shopper
spends. In addition, online travel shoppers spend an average of $705 per
transaction, which is nearly $200 more than that of the general online user
($517). Online adults make an average of 3.3 online travel arrangement
transactions per year.
The issues surrounding a proposed travel portal from four airlines —
code-named T2 — are amplified by Cyber Dialogue’s finding that more than
three-quarters of online travel
shoppers agree or strongly agree that brands are more important online than
off-line, the company said.
Specifically, online travel shoppers are said to be twice as likely as the
general online population to make a different airline purchase based on
information found on the Web.
“Established travel-centric Web properties such as Travelocity, Expedia and
Priceline must focus on understanding their customers to overcome the brand
equity the major airlines will be able to collectively leverage online,” said
Qaalfa Dibeehi, director of Cyber Dialogue’s Internet Consumer Practice.
“With the online travel shopping segment growing so rapidly, having the
ability to establish lifelong customer relationships will be the key factor
in reaching this affluent, brand-sensitive and shopping-intensive group.”
The survey results are from Cyber Dialogue’s Internet Consumer Practice, a
syndicated research service featuring detailed attitudinal and behavioral
data and analysis.
