Sojern has released a new report on the modern travellers’ path to purchase, confirming that it isn’t viable for hotel marketers to address the lowest common denominator. The report finds there is no such thing as an ‘average’ traveller. All are unique and approach their planning and booking in many different ways, across multiple verticals.
In ‘Sojern Uncovers the Modern Traveller’s Paths to Purchase’, eight random holidaymakers are studied to see how they dream about travel, how they behave during the planning stage, and how they make their final bookings.
The results are fascinating and incredibly varied, emphasising the need for marketers to be personal in their targeting of potential customers.
Let’s look at the findings from the report, including all eight traveller paths:
Note that a touchpoint refers to online activity within the relevant travel categories discussed.
Traveller Path to Purchase #1
“Eric” – the mobile-first, family vacation planner
Typically a mobile user, “Eric” books travel for himself, his partner, and two children. He’s an amusement park loyalty member who saves his luxury travel for leisure and stays economy when on business.
Touchpoints
Across the dreaming, planning, and booking phases “Eric” hits 451 touchpoints over a period of five months. The majority of these were for amusement parks (241) and hotels (113), with 99% of his research conducted using his mobile.
Traveller insights
“Eric’s” loyalty to his preferred amusement park sees him book four trips across his five months, but each one had radically different lead times, demonstrating the importance of knowing your traveller and their behaviour. As soon as he returns from his trip he begins dreaming of the next one, indicating the path to purchase never truly ends.
Marketing insights
“Eric’s” path to purchase highlights the importance of building brand awareness and engagement early so you can reach travellers before, during, and after their trip. If you know more about their motivation, you can find better ways to target them with advertising about your hotel’s specific amenities.
