As Arctic winds sweep the country, bringing yet more snow (what happened to the sunny spring days of just last week?), Focus PR’s thoughts are turning to holidays…and no doubt yours are too!
Recent research shows that the travel industry is facing a social media revolution with almost 70% of people surveyed preferring to book their holidays online rather than through a travel agent â no real surprises there. However, what is more surprising is that middle-aged travellers are the trendsetters in shaping consumers’ views on the best holiday destinations and accommodation. Even more surprising is that the 16-24 year old age group is most likely to visit a travel agent to book their holiday.
Brits have greater trust in recommendations from complete strangers than experts in the travel industry, holiday brochures, journalists or TV travel shows (it’s enough to make Judith Chalmers weep). We rely on recommendations online as an extension of word-of-mouth advice from our friends, family and colleagues.  And it seems that everyone’s a critic these days: 30% of over 16s have written a review of a holiday online, increasing to almost 40% of over 25s. The majority of these reviews have been about hotels and places to stay (34%), followed by countries to visit (25.6%) and airlines (24.7%).
A great example of people power in action and woe betide a holiday company (or any other kind of business) which doesn’t monitor online buzz about its products and service.  Social media can be a great way to listen to and engage with consumers; get it right and it could be transformational.
