COMMENT: How to tweak your website

The online travel industry is going through a second revolution. We previously witnessed the online revolution, which saw travel retailers having to change, adapt and take advantage of what the web can now enable. We are, however, now going through a data revolution.

In the current climate, billions of pounds are being put into creating algorithms which can recognise patterns and in turn creates significant benefits for the travel industry. By analysing customer behaviour, companies are able to determine what people want to buy, how and when. In such a fast-moving and competitive industry this insight is vital for staying ahead of the game. The challenge these companies face is to take this data and to maximise its value in optimising their site.

From QuBit’s experience of working with some of the largest travel sites in the UK including Low Cost Holidays, Expedia, Virgin Holidays and Iglu, there are a number of ways companies can benefit from embracing this new approach to data and accelerating their business further online.

No matter how big the company you should start small when analysing online data. It sometimes might feel like the best solution is to rip and replace whole systems in order to make fundamental change. However, careful data analysis can often indicate small changes that can make a major difference to the performance of the site. We’ve had situations where just small tweaks to things like payment process, delivery information or product descriptions have improved conversion rates by in excess of 100%.

For example, Iglu, the Internet-based travel agency specialising in the sale of ski holidays and cruises, wanted to improve website inefficiencies and boost lead generation. We analysed on site user behaviour to identify where customers were potentially being lost.  By simply improving the layout of information and making a more prominent enquiry button, enquiries doubled. Then by placing a phone number next to the enquiry button it was possible to simultaneously boost enquiries and calls. 

By making the price more prominent users will be more willing to engage with the product offered and more likely to make contact with the sales team. Doing other simple things such as keeping discounts at the front and removing hidden credit card charges will also decrease user abandonment before buying.

Combining data and creativity is a great opportunity to improve customer interaction. Though data can tell you what you need to do to your site, you still need the creative minds to bring it to reality. You might see that people are dropping off in the payment section of the site or are being put off by product descriptions and images. However, by not developing appropriate creative solutions to those problems, then the data isn’t driving value.

While working with Iglu we saw the greatest opportunity for improvement was measured in the product pages where customers were not engaging with the content available. By making a few simple design changes and tabulating the key facts the bounce rate was reduced by 50%. Likewise with Virgin Holidays, by allowing people a variety of options the user feels more in control which substantially increased site dwell times.

Companies should be keen to look for new data- every website has a basic analytics package, some CRM and other customer data tools. However, don’t be restricted by traditional data types, there’s a whole range of new places you can look for data that can tell you about your site. Huge amounts of information can be obtained with every click from the location of the hit, to the time of day, geographical location, products browsed and journey through the website. Using these new data points and combining with existing will enable the business to generate a new depth of insight into the customer which is vital when competing in such a competitive market.

By implementing our customer analytics tools we were able to help Lowcostholidays to see what their users were doing on the website and their online behaviour. By structuring the web data based on page type and traffic type we were able to identify which pages were performing and where the highest traffic was being sourced from. By identifying quick wins on the website such as providing targeted messaging which directly clarifies product and pricing presentation, whilst also creating a sense of urgency it helped to drive conversions by 15% and incremental revenue. 

In conclusion, travel companies will be able to make the most out of their data and increase their sales by implementing the three main points highlighted: starting small; combining data and creativity; and always keeping an eye out for new data. It is vital for the travel sector to make the most of the huge amount of digital information now readily available to them to gain insight into what customers want and make a lasting impression in this highly competitive market.