Customer Journey of Travel bookersFeeding Impulse in

Hotel booking

Agenda

• What is a customer Journey map?• Stages in Travel• Who are the Spontaneous Travelers?• Micromoments • Enabling Spontaneous Travel• Q & A

My Travel Experience

7 Continents

185 Countries

475 Cities

252 Airports

What is a Customer Journey Map?• Framework that helps you best understand how customers are interacting with you now and

helps you identify areas for improvement moving forward. • Rooted in data-driven research and based on a variety of dimensions such as sentiment, goals,

touch points, and more• Enables you to improve your Customer’s experience• Better Understanding of it More Conversions $$$

Stages in traditional travel

Dreaming Booking Experienci

ng SharingPlanning

ModifyingMagazines, Online Articles, Movies/TV, Social Media shares,Billboards, Ads

Research about Destination, Assess cost, Read Reviews

Metasearch, Airline search, Hotel Search, OTA

Cancel Flight/Hotel, Change dates, Upgrade category

In-Hotel ExperienceIn-Flight Experience

Research data: American travelers visited travel sites 38 times in the 45-day period leading up to booking

Stages in spontaneous travel

Experiencing SharingInspiration +

Booking

EDM, Blogs, Videos, Social Media shares; Embedded Booking

- In-Hotel Experience- Destination Discovery

They just know, they need to getaway, but don’t know where

‘Weekend Getaways” from

Bangkok

The idea might not be entirely new, but saved via previous Triggers & Micro-Moments

Who are the Spontaneous Travelers?Opportunistic deal seekers

● “the person who just wants a bed” is a big portions of this segment

● Dont care about securing the exact type of room they want with all the extras (breakfast, view, wifi etc).

● Excited by the Risk involved to snatch the deals

Millennial ‘Wanderlust’ travelers● Like getting lost, doing something on a whim and

experiencing something new.● The ultimate way to plan on the fly is via

Smartphone. Rely a lot on "near me" or "explore nearby" options

● Crowdsource planning via Social media questions

Typical Traits• Travel is not viewed as Luxury but more as Necessity• Booking a flight with just a few days out• Reserving a hotel only after arriving at a destination• Vacation planning is not an enjoyable experience but causes more headaches than tans.• They think that something is lost when you can anticipate - almost script -- nearly every

component of the travel experience

"Looking for a restaurant in Paris? Put it on Facebook and you may hear back in minutes"

Thrive on ‘Last Minute’

Sample options for Spontaneous travelers

But are they doing

it right?

Micro-Moments Occur when someone wants to find something out Happens throughout the customer journey Start when people begin dreaming of a trip. Happen across planning, booking, and even during the actual traveling When these moments happen, user reach for the device nearest for answers

If your brand isn't there for the moments that mattered in this journey, you missed out on Amy

For travelers, these moments fall into four categories:

i. I-want-to-get-away ii. I-want-this-trip-to-be-perfectiii. I-want-to-book-it iv. I-want-to-make-the-most-of-it

Map closely to the typical stages in travel: dreaming, planning, booking, and experiencing.

Micro-Moments – in Travel planningI want to get away moments: Dreaming Moments• moments when people start thinking about the next vacation• Search for things like: "What to do in [destination]?" and "Where is [destination]?“• Checking places out on YouTube etc

I want this trip to be perfect moments: Planning Moments• moments when people narrow down exactly where to go and when• figuring out all the logistical details. • get to know how long it takes to get there, how much it could cost, best travel times etc

I want to Book it moments: Booking Moments• Critical moments: when people put their dollars behind their decisions. • Need to remove every unnecessary step in the purchasing process from micro-moments• Example: A search on google -> book on google; TripAdvisor ‘Instant’ bookings

I want to make the most of it moments: Experiencing Moments• moments when people are at their destinations. • consumer's behavior is about overcoming unfamiliarity with their current surroundings.• Mobile queries per user from hotel are on the rise with many including the phrase "near me.“• looking either for a place to stay ("hotels near me") or something to eat or drink ("food near

me," "breakfast near me," "restaurants near me," "bars near me")

Be a Source of Inspiration

Be a Travel guide

Be a Booking Engine

Be a Mobile Concierge

Enabling Spontaneous Travel

Experiencing SharingInspiration +

Booking

-Deep Personalization-Intelligent Searches-Social Proof-Recommendation Service-Ratings + Reviews-Ease of Payment

--Seamless Check Ins & Keyless Stay-In-App communication with Staff-On Site special promos via App notificaitons-Connected Food+Transprt booking-Social network share

OTA’s must evolve: cannot be just transactional

Mobile Travel Assistant

Inspiration Stage: Enticing MarketingEngaging

Content

- ‘Triggers’: External & Internal

Create your own “Festivals” or “Special Days”● “Singles Day” by Alibaba - $5 billion in the first 90 minutes of the sale! $14.3 billion in just 24 hours● “Cyber Monday” by Amazon● “Be Spontaneous Day”

Inspiration Stage: Tempt to travel spontaneously

• Digital Video viewing is growing quickly. Integrate Social and Video strategies• Video storytelling on Facebook is a powerful way to inspire

Inspiration Stage: Inducing SpontaneityIntelligent Value-Pricing: User Location based deals that Induce Spontaneous Experiences

• Temptation Rates: Tempt user for a quick getaway to nearby cities extra price cuts [BKK -> Resorts in Hua Hin]• Impulse Rates: Dynamic price cuts to users with close proximity to specific hotels - ‘Escape Rates’

Make spontaneity convenient and enticing• Weekly Special ‘Featured Deals” sent to top users - (like Tuesday only web-fares sent by airlines)• Tempt them to ‘Make a little splurge’ or a ‘little treat for themselves’ • Instead of ”Giving hotels in places where people wanna go” - “Give them places where they we can go!”

Quick Romantic Getaway● Roundtrip flight -> $160 / person● Romantic Hotels -> $130 / night● Total cost of trip -> $500 ● Phuquoc – Special region – no VISA reqd!

• Most users don't even know about this!• Flight deals only for Thursday departure• Phuquoc - Special region, No VISA Required!

Planning Stage: Thinking out of the ‘Box’Intelligent Searches

• “Show me weekend getaways for two for less than $500”• “Places to escape from the haze in Singapore!”• “Heritage towns near Manila”

Tailored Results• Reduce the number of choice proposed to customers + Increase their Relevancy.• Use Past Behaviour Data for personalized results - Tie expression of interest in past to future planning • Recommendation services : Build a Entity graph for Hotels/Flights (like Google knowledge graph)

Personalized Communications• Highly personalized Emails, Social Media, Customer Service• Suggest personalized ‘Trip ideas’ for Spontaneous Escapes [not just hotels]

Contextual lens• Consider Situational Factors like Time of Day, Weather, Location etc.,

Virtual Reality is the new Instagarm• “Try before you Fly” campaigns• Learn about a Destination when planning (‘Virtual honemoon experience’)• Feel how the resort/hotel looks and laid out(Facilities, fittings etc)• Carnival Is Trying Virtual Reality to get new Cruisers on board

Final goal: Help the user find what he is looking for as well as what he doesn't know he’d like easily & quickly

Planning Stage: Thinking out of the ‘Box’

Inspiring the user to think big!

Persuasive pictures

Open Calendar options

Map opens up wide world!

Planning Stage: Thinking out of the ‘Box’ Booking.com recommends

hotels by passion: like gambling or stargazing

wants to sell you a hotel room based on what you like to do — not just where you want to go.

Booking Stage: Innovative Booking FlowsUnconventional Booking channels

• Using Twitter to book via a tweet!• Hilton – Booking via Instagram

Messaging is the next big platform!• Correyvuela is a global flight search engine through WhatsApp• KLM - Use WhatsApp to rebook your cancelled flight

Bidding Based Booking• On-demand bidding based User/supplier matching• Model similar to GrabTaxi, Instacart etc.,• Lets the user pick the best from a real-time competitive pricing

Value Demand PropositionUser Proposes Option and Demands Value

User: “I am willing to check in after 10:00 PM , what can you give me”Supplier: “ If you check in after 10:00 i can give you 20% extra discount or higher floor room with good view for the same

price” Gimme Gimme Goodies: 69% of Millennials see freebies (such as snacks/sandwiches/to-go breakfast) as more important than opportunities for increased loyalty or reward points [Article Source]

Experience Stage: Become a Travel Buddy • Messaging is the new gateway to support the customer During as well as Before the stay• The “Last mile”: the time between the guest arrival at a property through the guest’s departure.

Before Arriving During Stay• Send Text style messages to Front desk• Request a car service from the airport• Ordering an in-room amenity for arrival• Asking for an early check-in. �• Anything else you want!!

• Mobile express check in - Bypass registration and walk directly to their room

• Keyless door entry – just app it!• In-Room food ordering• Any other Guest Service requests.• Mobile Request Platform – Communication with staff via App

• Notify guest about Room readiness • Mobile Concierge• Activities information & Destination tips• Dinner Reservations • Transportation help etc.,

Customers prefer 2 way communication via mobile devices over other types of communication

Improved guest satisfaction: 20% boost in its Net Promoter Score after adopting seamless text-style messaging

Experience Stage: Messaging Nirvana!

Seamless texting tech

Texting is increasingly the preferred mode of communication among the younger generation