Fewer than half of travelers consider themselves to be highly consistent in their travel brand patronage, whether it be the exact providers they use or the booking sites they frequent. The mixed consistency levels also extend to preferred travel brands. 39% of those who flew on a recent leisure trip and 42% of paid accommodation users claim they gravitate towards one or two “go-to” brands in their planning according to Phocuswright’s research report Beyond Points: Rethinking Loyalty and Brand Consistency in Travel. The remainder of travelers find themselves open to many brands, or they use the category so seldomly that they don’t feel familiar with the brand landscape.
There are times when travelers have everything go right for them: Booking is convenient and transparent, customer service interactions are positive and services are delivered smoothly and without incident. A traveler will sing a brand’s praises, perhaps leave strong reviews and still not use a brand the next time they have opportunity to book with them.
For many travelers, novelty and intrigue are a critical part of the travel experience. It is important for brands to deliver consistent experiences around aspects of quality, such as strong customer service, cleanliness in hospitality environments or timeliness in transportation. Variability in these key markers of quality is generally unwelcome. But once the fundamentals are accounted for, there is a set of travelers who view variety across travel experiences positively—they want to switch up their experiences “just because.”
