A new study commissioned by global travel retailer Travelport has revealed that there are considerable trust gaps among travel consumers, which travel suppliers would do well to address as the industry tries to regain traction in the wake of the pandemic.
As it turns out, when it comes to companies' pricing transparency, information credibility, data privacy, and adherence to COVID-19 health and safety measures, travel consumers have their doubts. The study, conducted by Edelman Data & Intelligence, surveyed 11,000 travelers from 10 different countries, including the United States.
"The travel industry needs to sharpen its focus on trust," said Travelport's CEO, Greg Webb. "This study has shown, as an industry, we are not as trusted as we would like. The good news, however, is that we now know what the issues are, and we also have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to hit reset, as countries re-open and travelers eagerly get back on airplanes. If we move quickly to address these issues, we can accelerate industry recovery, as well as the modernization of travel retailing."
Trust is an essential element of travel sales and customer service. Forty-six percent of those surveyed said they prioritize trust over everything else when choosing a travel provider. And, if trust can be established, nearly half said they would readily purchase trip add-ons (48 percent) or upgrade a package (42 percent).
The Four Trust Gaps:
Information Credibility
Trust levels surrounding U.S. travelers tended to gauge the credibility of travel-related information gathered while researching a trip on the basis of perceptions that their own interest and the source's align. For example, 73 percent would trust information passed on by friends and family, whereas trust levels are low when the info source is a celebrity (19 percent) or social media influencer (23 percent) with a vested interest in selling travel products. Customer review websites landed roughly in the middle, with 46 percent believing the advice there can be trusted.
Consumer ratings (52 percent) and written reviews (46 percent) seem to be the most trusted type of travel-related information among U.S. travelers. But, they're most skeptical when it comes to product photos from travel companies (37 percent), third-party certifications (34 percent) and third-party ratings, such as hotel star-rating systems (39 percent).
Price Transparency
Post-COVID travelers have clearly had enough of an industry where hidden fees and non-refundable bookings are commonplace. Among U.S. respondents, the two most important factors when cultivating consumers' trust are having 'no hidden costs' (64 percent), and offering 'fully flexible or refundable products' (55 percent). Yet, when asked about industry players' current performance in these two aspects, participants largely answered 'poor' (67 and 61 percent, respectively).
"The importance of price transparency can't be overstated", Webb opined. "To put it into context, having no hidden costs is a full 18 percent more influential on trust than an airline's long-term safety record. The request from consumers here is clear; the time has come to eliminate hidden fees, and improve the overall transparency of pricing and communication."
Data Privacy
The industry also lost out when it came to another key issue that's debated among consumers in the digital age: data privacy. Only 35 percent of U.S. participants (versus 40 percent globally) reported feeling confident that they can trust travel companies to use their personal information only as they should.
When it comes to data sharing to personalize their experiences, U.S. travelers are more comfortable with some practices than others. They're most comfortable with companies using information that has expressly been shared through one-on-one conversations (46 percent), and gleaned from their past booking behavior (44 percent) and loyalty activity (44 percent). Fewer consumers are comfortable with travel providers sourcing their information indirectly, such as by monitoring social media activity (26 percent); accessing their public records or credit scores (31 percent); or tapping into their search history or past booking behavior with other companies (35 percent).
COVID-19 Protocols
More than half of the U.S. travelers surveyed (52 percent) felt that the travel industry had done a good job in developing and implementing new health and safety measures in response to COVID-19. However, roughly half of respondents also said that, moving forward, they would like additional reassurance on just how robustly some of their advertised or stated COVID-19 measures are being enforced or applied. Some of the elements that scored lowest for consumer confidence were social distancing, managed queueing or boarding practices, and improved air filtration.
"The travel industry should be proud of how quickly and effectively it responded to COVID-19," remarked Webb. "What we learned from the study, however, is that travel suppliers and agencies will benefit from being clearer in their communication on certain measures, like social distancing."
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