NEWS BROADWAY TRAVEL SERVICES CONFERENCE 2015
Broadway Travel Services held its annual conference last week. Juliet Dennis reports from Funchal, Madeira
Google chief stresses rise in travel search via mobile
Over a third of holiday enquiries made through Google come via smartphones, according to the search engine’s Paul Godman.
Speaking at Broadway Travel’s
2015 conference, Google’s travel industry manager said it was critical that travel firms kept pace with the shift in the way customers are using technology to research and book holidays. “The rate of change driven by mobile phones is astonishing. Mobile is not the future: it’s here and now. If you are not there with a good mobile experience, you are missing out,” he warned. Godman said technology was constantly evolving, with new trends such as wearable and in-car technology likely to shape future usage, as well as new markets set to open up in destinations such as Africa and India.
Smartphones accounted for
10% of all Google searches in 2010, a figure that rose to 30% in 2013 and now stands at 40%. While 34% of holiday searches on Google are now via mobile
“If you are not there with a good mobile experience, you are missing out”
phones, Godman admitted the figure for online travel transactions was lower. “Transactions (via mobile) are much harder,” he added. “But if you are not there for the 34%, you are driving out [possible buyers] and giving them to a competitor.”
EMAIL ANALYSIS: Waldron WARNING: Paul Godman 14
travelweekly.co.uk 29 October 2015
He urged companies to put themselves “in your customers’ shoes” to understand their behaviour, tap into customer data, automate marketing campaigns and make the most of digital promotions to “tell your story”. Jason Waldron, Broadway Travel Services’ product and marketing director, said more than 65% of customers now opened emails sent to them by the group on their mobiles. Three years ago, 80% of Broadway’s customers opened the group’s emails on their desktops.
Broadway Travel Services: Annual report
Figures for the 12 months to September 30, 2015
l Turnover: £204 million Up 23% year on year from £165m; 2016 target: £230m
l Gross profit: £15.4m Up 24.9% from £12.4m; 2016 target: £17.3m
l Most profitable brand: Inspired Luxury Escapes Turnover for Broadway’s direct-sell, five-star, European tour operation was up 26% year on year
l Other brands:
Holidaydeals2go.com Turnover up 59%
Broadway Cruise Turnover of £2m in its first year; targeting double that next year
Bedswithease.com Sales up 36%
Broadway Travel Consortium Turnover: £65m
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