For eBusiness & Channel Strategy Professionals

Hotels Will Rely On The Web To Survive 2010

by Henry H. Harteveldt, November 3, 2009

The global financial crisis hit the hotel industry particularly hard in 2009. A survey of 27 hotel professionals shows an expectation that business will have to be "bought" with low pricing for the balance of 2009, but cautious optimism exists for room . . .

For eBusiness & Channel Strategy Professionals

The Online Travel Brands That Win With US Leisure Travelers

Expedia, Priceline, And Hotels.com Stand Out As Favorites

by Henry H. Harteveldt, Elizabeth Stark, October 21, 2009

Forrester data shows that 56% of US online leisure travelers research travel using online travel agencies (OTAs), 34% use discount travel sites like Hotwire, and 18% use metasearch sites like Kayak.com. When we asked leisure travelers what sets online . . .

For eBusiness & Channel Strategy Professionals

How To Improve Searchable Self-Service Online

eBusiness Professionals Must Focus On Site Search And FAQs To Deflect Call Center Calls

by Diane Clarkson, September 11, 2009

Searchable self-service and frequently asked questions (FAQs) are among the most commonly accessed customer service touchpoints, but there is a lot of room for improvement. Poor performance plaguing searchable self-service and FAQs surfaced in a recent . . .

For eBusiness & Channel Strategy Professionals

Poor Content Could Cost Travel eBusiness Money

Hotels Are Particularly Vulnerable Due To Inadequate Online Content

by Henry H. Harteveldt, Elizabeth Stark, September 8, 2009

Online travel content is in true need of a makeover. What written and visual content there is on travel sites — in particular, hotel supplier Web sites — is generic, poorly organized, and confusing. Travelers have had enough: Just half of US online leisure . . .

For Consumer Market Research Professionals

Technographics® Survey Highlights: Leisure Travel In Asia Pacific  (500 KB PPT)

by Olesia Klevchuk, September 3, 2009

This highlight deck summarizes the key findings related to travel from Forrester’s Asia-Pacific Technographics Survey, Q2 2009. This is the third survey highlight in a series from the Asia-Pacific Technographics Survey, Q2 2009.

For eBusiness & Channel Strategy Professionals

Europe's Online Travelers Challenge European Online Travel Success

by Henry H. Harteveldt, September 3, 2009

In Europe, 73% of travelers are now online, up from 64% in 2007. They, however, feel the brunt of the recession — 38% of European travelers are financially worse off now than they were a year ago. Europe's online leisure travelers use technology but don't . . .

For eBusiness & Channel Strategy Professionals

How To Make Travel Customers Feel Valued Online

by Diane Clarkson, August 19, 2009

Making leisure travelers feel valued is more than a "warm and fuzzy" objective. There are significant business benefits to making leisure travelers feel valued — namely, these travelers are more likely to be loyal brand advocates. However, most travel . . .

For eBusiness & Channel Strategy Professionals

Using Digital Channels To Calm The Angry Traveler

by Henry H. Harteveldt, August 4, 2009

Travelers are fed up. There are 15% fewer travelers who enjoy using the Web in 2009 than there were in 2007. Just one in three US online travelers feels that travel Web sites do a good job presenting travel choices, down from 39% in 2008. Travelers feel . . .

For eBusiness & Channel Strategy Professionals

Travel Web Site Customer Service Is Far From Perfect

Travel eBusiness Customer Service And Support Benchmark, 2009

by Diane Clarkson, Elizabeth Stark, July 27, 2009

As part of a larger analysis of 90 Web sites, Forrester evaluated the accessibility and availability of online customer service and support among 30 leading travel Web sites. Only 12 of the travel Web sites we reviewed received a passing score, and overall . . .

For eBusiness & Channel Strategy Professionals

Travel eBusiness Must Champion Mobile Booking Benefits

by Diane Clarkson, July 22, 2009

One in three US online business travelers and nearly one in four US online leisure travelers own Web-enabled mobile phones. Roughly one-half of these travelers have used their mobile devices for travel-related mobile data services such as flight alerts . . .

For eBusiness & Channel Strategy Professionals

Multichannel Is Still A Myth For Retailers

Companies Continue To Struggle With Cross-Channel Contact Strategies

by Sucharita Mulpuru, June 29, 2009

Retailers have been striving to provide seamless multichannel shopping experiences in order both to stay ahead of the market in an increasingly interconnected world and to align themselves with consumer multichannel behavior. In a recent report, Forrester . . .

For Customer Experience Professionals

Best And Worst Of Email Interaction Design, 2009

Forrester Applies Its Email Interaction Review Methodology To 16 Major Firms

by Adele Sage, May 27, 2009

Forrester applied its Email Interaction Review to the email interactions of 16 firms: four each of the largest auto insurers, discount retailers, footwear manufacturers, and online travel agencies. Only one of the 15 companies that actually responded . . .

For Customer Experience Professionals

Online Travel Agencies' Cross-Channel Experience, 2009

An Industry Look At This Year's Best And Worst Of Cross-Channel Design

by Adele Sage, May 22, 2009

As part of a larger analysis of 16 firms, Forrester evaluated the cross-channel experiences of four large online travel agencies — Expedia, Orbitz, priceline.com, and Travelocity. Overall, the travel agencies ended up with the highest average score compared . . .

For Customer Experience Professionals

Best And Worst Of Phone Self-Service Design, 2009

Forrester Applies Its IVR Review Methodology To 16 Major Firms

by Adele Sage, May 20, 2009

Forrester applied its IVR Review methodology to the phone self-service experiences at 16 US firms — four each of the largest auto insurers, discount retailers, footwear manufacturers, and online travel agencies. Among the generally weak phone self-service . . .

For eBusiness & Channel Strategy Professionals

Who's Traveling Internationally In This Economy?

The Demographics, Travel Behavior, And Economic Views Of US Long-Haul International Leisure Travelers — And How To Use eBusiness To Succeed

by Henry H. Harteveldt, Elizabeth Stark, May 20, 2009

Despite the current tumultuous US economy, more than 24 million US online leisure travelers traveled internationally in 2008. These travelers are relatively young, quality-focused, and highly engaged with technology and travel when compared with travelers . . .

For Customer Experience Professionals

Best And Worst Of B2C Site Design, 2009

Forrester Applies Its Web Site Review Methodology To 16 Major Firms

by Adele Sage, April 14, 2009

Forrester applied its Web Site Review methodology to the site experiences at 16 firms — four each of the largest auto insurers, discount retailers, footwear manufacturers, and online travel agencies. While Expedia received the highest score, all 16 sites . . .

For Consumer Market Research Professionals

Technographics® Survey Highlights: North American Technographics Travel Online Survey, Q1 2009  (401 KB PPT)

by Ina Mitskaviets, April 9, 2009

This highlight deck summarizes the key findings from Forrester's North American Technographics Travel Online Survey, Q1 2009.

For eBusiness & Channel Strategy Professionals

US Leisure Travel Sale Seekers Are On The Rise

Travelers Seeking Deals And Discounts Online Have Increased 55% Since Q4 2007

by Henry H. Harteveldt, Elizabeth Stark, March 30, 2009

The effects of the US recession are painfully visible in the increase in leisure travelers looking for travel deals and discounts online. Sale Seekers — US online leisure travelers who use sales and specials sites like TravelZoo to research leisure travel . . .

For Consumer Market Research Professionals

Technographics® Insight: In Asia Pacific, Australia Leads For Online Travel Research And Bookings  (248 KB PPT)

by Dia Ganguly, March 20, 2009

This Technographics Insight takes a look at the uptake of the Internet for travel research and bookings in the Asia-Pacifc market.

For eBusiness & Channel Strategy Professionals

Western European Online Retail And Travel Forecast, 2008 To 2014

We Expect Consumer eCommerce To Reach €203 Billion By 2014

by Victoria Bracewell Lewis, March 16, 2009

Online retail and travel in Western Europe will reach €129 billion in 2009 and is projected to grow to €203 billion by 2014. The European eCommerce market, which includes the EU-17 — Austria, Belgium, Switzerland, Germany, Denmark, Spain, Finland, France, . . .

For Customer Experience Professionals

Best And Worst Of Cross-Channel Design, 2009

Forrester Applies Its Cross-Channel Review Methodology To 16 Major Firms

by Adele Sage, March 6, 2009

Forrester applied its Cross-Channel Review methodology to the experiences at 16 firms — four of the largest auto insurers, discount retailers, footwear manufacturers, and online travel agencies. While Expedia, Nike, and Orbitz received the top overall . . .

For eBusiness & Channel Strategy Professionals

Spanish Online Retail And Travel Forecast, 2008 To 2014

We Expect Consumer eCommerce To Reach €17 Billion By 2014

by Lauriane Camus, Victoria Bracewell Lewis, March 6, 2009

eCommerce in Spain lags well behind other Western European countries. Today, a mere 17% of adults regularly shop online — that is only around 8 million people. Spanish Net users are still hesitant to shop online, and few Spanish retailers and travel operators . . .

For eBusiness & Channel Strategy Professionals

This Ugly Recession: Higher-Income US Online Travelers And Their Planned Travel Cutbacks

The Top 30% Of US Online Travelers Account For 45% Of Leisure Travel Spending

by Henry H. Harteveldt, March 5, 2009

Higher-income US online travelers — i.e., people who report household incomes of $100,000 or more per year — represent nearly 30% of all travelers but 45% of total US estimated leisure travel spending. Normally, this group is less affected by economic . . .

For eBusiness & Channel Strategy Professionals

UK Online Retail And Travel Forecast, 2008 To 2014

We Expect Consumer eCommerce To Reach £56 Billion By 2014

by Victoria Bracewell Lewis, Lauriane Camus, March 2, 2009

With more than one in two UK consumers shopping online today — that is about 28 million consumers — online shopping and travel booking are mainstream. UK online shoppers outspend their European and even their American counterparts. Despite the current . . .

For eBusiness & Channel Strategy Professionals

French Online Retail And Travel Forecast, 2008 To 2014

We Expect Consumer eCommerce To Reach Nearly €28 Billion By 2014

by Lauriane Camus, Victoria Bracewell Lewis, March 2, 2009

French online shoppers — or cyberconsommateurs — are now surging to the Internet. Their number has roughly quintupled since 2002, with 35% of French adults projected to buy products online in 2009. Clothing is the most popular retail category that French . . .