European travel companies lagging behind in Web 2.0 adoption

Friday, 02 Aug, 2007 0

Travel companies that streamline the usability of their websites will be the winners in the future.

That is the conclusion of a study of websites run by European travel businesses which found that many have been slow to fully embrace the internet.

The 12 companies are not named in the report by marketing services and IT strategy firm Sapient but TUI and lastminute.com were highlighted as starting to experiment with Web 2.0 while hotels and airlines could benefit from adopting the same best practice.

The report suggests that travel firms need to incorporate more Web 2.0 technologies into their websites, capitalise on mobile services, improve cross-selling opportunities, present information in different languages and improve and increase website search tools and help features for users.

The Reality of Online Innovation report says that many travel companies have been slow to fully embrace the internet.

Customer loyalty to a website increases if there are tools that consumers can use to personalise their access to the site, according to the report.

Sapient business consulting director Stefan Hirsch said: “The online travel market is highly competitive and the consumer is in charge for one simple reason – they have the ability to switch from one agency to the next in juts a few clicks if they do not like what they see.

“To win and retain customers, travel businesses must strive to get an edge over the competition, however slight – not just with the range of products they offer but also with their services.

“Those businesses that tap into the best new features and streamline the overall usability of their websites will ultimately prevail.”

by Phil Davies

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Phil Davies

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