According to a recent Booking.com study, social media is increasingly influencing the choices users make when booking a holiday.
Another study by Schofields Insurance found that 40% of consumers under 30 prioritized how Instagrammable the potential destination was in driving purchasing decisions.
There is no doubt that social media is now deeply imbedded in the travel sector’s DNA; however, this does not mean travel brands can rest on their social laurels.
Up until recently, travel’s social media activity has thrived on text and images, but we are now seeing a shift as an increasing number of people opt for voice over text search.
Of course voice makes complete sense: The average human can speak 150 words per minute, but only type 40 words during that time. Voice conveys emotion, tone and subtleties that text is unable to capture, and it allows users a hands-free, eyes-free experience.
Little wonder it is already impacting how travelers are searching their next holiday, a new travel experience or a trending hotel or resort.
According to Comscore, by 2020, over 50% of all searches will be done by voice, and Gartner predicts that 30% of web browsing sessions will be done without a screen by next year too.
But speed of adoption is only one side of the coin. Google claims that voice searches are 30 times more likely to be action queries than text searches.
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In essence, people want to find places and buy things through their digital assistant. Standard desktop searches may indicate that people are simply looking for information, whilst mobile searches and voice searches are more likely to be from people who are trying to do something specific with the information they have to hand.
Voice search aspires to break away from the traditional approach of delivering mass results by allowing users to refine the search process based on exactly what they’re looking for, such as “a 4-star hotel in central London with a balcony, within walking distance of Buckingham Palace for under £150”.
Being able to search by such a specific set of criteria will offer users a more curated and personalized selection of results. This, in turn, should deliver more qualified potential guests to a travel brand’s website, and ultimately, increase conversion rates.
Certainly, if harnessed correctly, voice search has the power to significantly enhance the overall travel experience by saving customers time and hassle, particularly when it comes to searching for inexpensive flights or last-minute deals.
Travel brands now need to recognize voice-enabled devices as an impactful new entry point to reach more customers, and this starts with understanding that this shift in human-computer interaction brings with it new customer expectations.
To meet these expectations, travel marketers need to be asking themselves a new set of questions, such as how will flight searches differ from hotels? How will varying demographics search differently? And, importantly, what content should we create to make sure we’re at the end of those queries?
Travel marketers then need to ensure the content at every touchpoint from their websites to their social media platforms is geared to follow a conversational tone, to offer responses to anticipated queries, and to optimize for longer keywords that voice searches are typically characterized by.
Let’s take a closer look at some of the more salient points travel marketers now need to address;
Voice search queries are usually longer than text searches, and they are generally characterized by a question - typically three to five keywords long and starting with who, what, when, where, why and how. Harnessing this shift in search means going from a focus around a specific keyword, such as “Greece,” to long-tail keywords such “family-friendly island in Greece”.
When a marketer is targeting a long-tail keyword such as this they can more accurately predict the searcher’s intent, and with a clearer understanding of what the user is searching for, they can better tailor their content to those people who actually want their products or services.
Voice search ushers in the need for a new style of content, one that mirrors how the target demographic speaks, this may include slang and abbreviations through to specific terminologies. In many cases this shifts away from a travel brand’s own language, but it is one of the best ways to personalize search and make a destination, resort or hotel feel like the right fit.
This goes hand in hand with high-quality content that is seen as informative and authoritative enough for Google to select. The ultimate goal being an opportunity to be the answer to the questions voice searchers are asking.
The key for the travel marketer is to find out what their audience wants and repurpose it in ways that they can consume this content, irrespective of the platform, device or format. This requires honing all branded content to answer all searches more efficiently.
For instance, if a prospective customer asks, "Do you have cheap flights to Skiathos?' the answer should not be, "We fly to all Greek airports."
There is no doubt that voice is set to become integral in more complex, multi-step activities.
Voice search queries typically fall into four categories: 30% general information, 27% personal assistant, 22% local information and 21% fun and entertainment.
To make the most of this, travel marketers need to consider the user experience across the entire journey. This means being at least a step ahead of the consumer, anticipating their on-the-go scenarios to adapt their messages to fit in with what the consumer really wants.
A new era of flexible, agile travel marketing is already emerging to keep step with these consumers.
Conclusion
Voice search is still in its infancy as far as the development of the technology, however it is already marking the beginning of a new voice-enabled era of travel.
Brands who want to remain ahead of the travel curve now have a new opportunity, with a particularly consumer-friendly technology to accurately target audiences and, as a consequence, reduce media wastage.
Connecting consumers with the travel brands they already love and helping them find new ones to engage with is about ensuring a travel brand’s voice is clear, concise and always listening.