Can Facebook influence guest loyalty? Hotel brands are working harder than ever to secure the long-term loyalty of guests. Technology advancements and social network innovations have impacted how travel experiences are chosen and what makes consumers devoted to certain brands. To help better understand today’s travelers and how loyalty is gained in today’s travel market, Facebook IQ commissioned a survey of 2,079 people in the US ages 18 and over, who have traveled domestically or abroad in the last year. Combining this data with insights from other sources, they uncovered some important trends impacting the hospitality industry today. Reasons for Staying Loyal to a Travel Brand Of the 2,079 participants surveyed, 87% participated in Loyalty programs and 70% agreed that being part of a program made them feel more loyal to a company. The top three reasons indicated by Facebook survey respondents for staying loyal to a travel company were Quality of accommodation (91%), Consistency or consistent reliability of service (87%), and Convenience (85%).
results to stay loyal to a brand. In today’s tech-driven world, consumers stick with brands that offer convenient purchasing processes. Take a look at these statistics from the survey: • 61% said that they are more likely to stay loyal to a Hotel that has an easy to use website or mobile app •
52% said they utilize OTAs to book their hotel rooms due to convenience; it includes all hotel brands & their availability plus it has guest reviews/comments all in one place
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47% said they are looking for “ease” across all sites and apps when they are doing their travel planning
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41% of 18–34-year-olds saying they stopped a booking because the website or app was too slow or confusing.
Future of Loyalty and Facebook Fit In analyzing the data from this survey, we believe that social media will play an even bigger part to keep someone loyal to a travel brand. So, what should hotels take into consideration when managing their Social channels? Here are the data points from this survey to keep in mind:
These answers significantly outranked “quality of the rewards program” which was only chosen by 65% of those surveyed as a reason to stay loyal. This shows that travel brands can certainly use rewards as a tool to drive loyalty, but they shouldn’t ignore practical factors that travelers who are less able to benefit from accumulated points may consider.
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86% stated that they would find it acceptable for a travel brand to post in an online group that was started by someone they consider a peer - a traveler that is like them
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48% of those surveyed agreed that they still value a recommendation from a family and/or a friend when choosing a destination
It’s interesting that Price was only a consideration for about half of the survey respondents when deciding whether they would stay loyal or switch brands. Only 48% of those surveyed said they had changed travel brands in the last year because of price.
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42% welcome a “tailored product recommendation” based on their past purchases, likes and interests – and finds it to be valuable to them
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What does this mean for hoteliers?
Interestingly, 79% of those surveyed stated that they use at least one of the Facebook Family of Apps on a regular basis
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In addition, 76% of them do use Facebook for their travel-related activities
1. Quality: Provide remarkable quality so that guests have a stronger reason to commit longer-term. 2. Consistency: Offer a consistent, outstanding customer service experience in all areas of your hotel that draws guests back. 3. Convenience: Provide a simple booking experience and make all steps of the travel journey friction-free It’s All About the Booking Experience Convenience was the third highest reason from the survey
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Become a go-to brand by having a considerate presence on consumers’ social networks. They are more likely to book with a brand that is already on their radar. Connect with travelers on social channels and provide personalized recommendations of things to do at and around your hotel. An example would be a post about a museum near your hotel that resonates with museum lovers. Or a post about great outdoor activities for nature lovers.
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