user experience in the travel and tourism industry - ucd2013 conference talk by chris rourke
DESCRIPTION
One of the great ironies of the web is that researching and booking a relaxing holiday can be one of the most stressful things you can do online. Before you can flop yourself on a beach in a far-away clime you need to consider and navigate through a choice of options that all begin to look the same and hope that you get through the long booking process without making a critical mistake. We have worked with airlines, luxury hotel chains and regional tourism bodies performing usability testing, user needs research and iterative user centred design. We’ve seen and heard usability test participants do everything from looking dreamily at gorgeous foreign beach hotels to clenching their fists in frustration at barriers they hit booking their flight. We’d like to share these experiences with you and identify what are the key elements that make or break the user experience in researching, booking and managing travel & leisure online. This talk will cover The psychology of booking travel : known unknowns and unknown unknowns Primary and secondary choice parameters in travel, tourism and leisure Typical barriers in researching and booking travel The role of mobile UX in the complete travel customer experience Innovative ways of presenting information for the travel & leisure context International aspects – what works for one audience may not work for anotherTRANSCRIPT
Supporters Sponsors Organiser
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Chris Rourke
Make it easy to take it easy : User experience in the Travel, Tourism and Leisure industry
Session A5
@crourke @uservision
@ucduk #ucd2013
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..and more pages for payment
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The UX challenge for travel, tourism & leisure
Travel is emotional - expectations are high
Relaxation
Entertainment – self & family
Service
Catering for special circumstances
Travel booking is complex - many parties involved
Flight operations & parameters
Third parties & partners
Site and booking process may not be fully controlled
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Control, confidence and come back
High
Medium
Low
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Main usability and UX challenge areas
First impressions
Workflow of the search & book process
Page level interactions
IA and categorisation
Search
Date selector
Form interactions
Smart defaults
Geolocation (mobile)
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Choice Parameters - flights
Date/ time
Price
Secondary parameters Loyalty points Service level Connections
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Choice Parameters – hotels, holidays, leisure
Date
Price
Secondary parameters Quality, Service level Room size Images Facilities (gym etc) Restaurants Kids? Loyalty points Accessibility Dietary needs
Location
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Workflow – Flights
Previously
Put in some info
And some more
And more to specify
Press submit
Scroll through huge results list
Start again or revise
Now
Put in little info
Submit
See the results
Filter & refine
Not in control In control & confident
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Workflow – Hotels, holidays & leisure
Offer options to let customer learn & decide by what matters to them
Price – location – hotel – room
Hotel – price – room
Location information
Inspiring photos
Clear differences between room options
Facilities
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Browsers
Browsers Not sure what they want Seek inspiration as much as information Open minded Visuals and offers
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Hunters
Hunters Know roughly what they want Compare and contrast to convince Analytical Use sort and compare tools
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Buyers
Buyers Know exactly what they want Get it as quickly as possible Speed and minimal distractions Use search
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First impressions matter
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First Impressions Count
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Simple Date Selector
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Welcome indecision and offer options
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Welcome indecision and offer options
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Allow graceful revelations and previews
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Allow graceful revelations and previews
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Innovate & exceed expectations
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Innovate & simplify
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Innovate & simplify
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Take advantage of maps
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Satisfice your customer
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www.newzealand.com.
If no results, query relaxation allows me to choose options slightly outside my original search.
Satisfice your customer
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Be Persuasive
Reciprocity – If you do something for them (offer a discount, give a free sample, add in an optional extra) people are more likely to do something for you
Commitment and Consistency – If people commit in writing to an idea or goal, they are more likely to honour that commitment. So the more people type in details, the more invested they are in proceeding
Social Proof – If other people are doing it, people become much more confident that they too are doing the right thing
Authority – People will tend to obey authoritative figures. These can be classic authority figures, celebrities, or official ratings and scales
Liking – People are easily persuaded by people “just like me”, as demonstrated by the power of viral marketing
Scarcity – If something is short supply, or time-limited supply, it will generate demand and pressure to buy in case you lose out on a bargain
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Persuasion in Action (2)
Commitment and Consistency Social Proof Scarcity Liking Authority Reciprocity
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Be honest
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Be mobile
Mobile is the glue for the user experience
Can make – or break - experience
Allow customisation in settings
Usual airport
Usual payment card
Usual seat etc
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UX Research for the sector
Recruit specifically for credibility
Experience - What people bring with them is important
More “let off the leash” tests – let the user set their own parameters
Remote
moderated testing
self moderated testing
unmoderated testing
A/B & Multivariate testing for conversion funnels
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Content & journey inventory
INFORMATION NEED
Price
Weather
Latest deals?
What is included in price?
How does XXXXX compare?
What is there to do for kids?
What is there to do locally?
What’s new with XXXXX ?
Special deals for customers?
Chart describes a typical research journey and where the information needs are met
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Key takeaways
Recognise – and foster – the emotional aspect of travel
Discover your target users’ parameters
Let the user play by their own rules, be in control
Allow previews, avoid pogosticks
Research in context
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Thank you
Chris Rourke Managing Director
0131 225 0850
@uservision
@crourke
www.uservision.co.uk