Millennials travel more than any other demographic. On average, they take 35 days of vacation each year, and they’re also bucking the trend by increasing their annual travel spend as other generations intend to be more conservative with their cash.
As it turns out, OTAs are the ones benefiting the most from this lucrative market segment: studies show that over half of Millennials book through OTAs. That means hotels are losing out on a big chunk of potential direct booking revenue.
Adding to the challenge, Millennials are also generally averse to traditional loyalty programs, making it harder to retain their business once won.
But it’s important to bear in mind that 31% of them are still booking through a hotel website. It’s not that Millennials are particularly loyal to OTAs, rather they are most driven by convenience. So how can your hotel website work harder to ensure you capture a piece of this direct business?
In the following post, we’ll dive into that topic by outlining the specific ways Millennials research, browse and book their trips. We’ll also offer a series of strategies you can use to implement this knowledge and get ahead of the competition.
Mobile discovery
Millennials do a lot of initial research on their smartphone. According to a leisure travel study from Google, around two-thirds are comfortable planning their entire trip on a smartphone—compared to around one-third of those aged 35 and older.
Millennials are also more likely to book via a smartphone, with 64% stating that they typically book a hotel room on a smartphone after they shop on one. For comparison, 42% of those aged 35+ say the same.
This mobile-first mindset means having a mobile presence should be considered an absolute necessity. How does your own mobile experience stack up? It’s worth giving it a thorough road test to identify possible weaknesses.
As a basic guide, start by asking yourself the following questions:
