Research conducted on more than 1,000 travel consumers and 61 travel companies revealed that 81% of travel companies believed their customers were loyal, in contrast to just 51% of customers who felt they were loyal to their current travel company.
The report indicated discrepancies between the views of travel companies compared to customers.
These include: Underestimating the worry of getting to the airport ? Just 5% of travel operators believed that getting to the airport was a cause of stress, compared to 35% of customers; overestimating fears over bigger threats ? 51% of travel operators believe their customers are worried about factors they can?t control, such as strikes or terrorism, yet only 31% of customers agree; preparation is vital ? Consumers are more likely to rebook through a travel operator again if everything was well organised and went to plan (49%); and, ignoring post-holiday stress ? a quarter of consumers experience stress after their holiday, only 1% less than the number of people who feel stressed right before their holiday. Worryingly, only 5% of travel companies know that their clients feel stressed after their holiday.
Tony Bean, director at Vamoos, commented:?Our research showed that tour operators understood that their customers were likely to feel stressed prior to holiday, and both placed an importance on the need for everything to be well organised, in addition to the holiday going to plan. However, the similarities appear to stop there, with significant differences in the perceptions of tour operators compared to their customers
on a number of different factors, and at various stages of the customer journey. It indicates that tour operators may need to re-evaluate what they think they know about their customers, how loyal they are, and what really matters to them in terms of a value-add proposition.?
