• by Harvey Chipkin , Columnist, September 15, 2014

The hotel business used to be about location, location, location. Now it’s about data, data, data. Unlike location, however, data alone might not ensure success. A strategy has to go along with it. That’s the position of Michael Wilson, senior director of product strategy for Webtrends, a 20-year-old company that was early in the data game “You won’t be collecting the right data if you don’t have a strategy for using that data,” said Wilson. “Once you have a strategy, you can use the data to optimize customer experiences. If you don’t have the expertise to use data correctly then find someone who does.”

Webtrends has transitioned from an analytics company to being more of a measurement and optimization company because data collection is not enough – not at a time when the most valuable customers for a travel company encounter so many touchpoints on the way to their booking. You have to look into how your campaigns are working across many channels and platforms; you have to stitch it together to understand how and why customers are behaving as they do. 

Once you have that measurement, optimization is the next step – making targeting more relevant, according to Wilson. You have to have a customized way to engage every segment of your audience to increase conversions. Say it’s going to be a family vacation; then you have to use emotion to reach them. Marketers have to know what pages travelers visit within the site. You have to keep refining how you engage with each segment; that allows you to target consumers with the right content.

Here’s the Webtrends approach to a data strategy:

1. Discover what matters to each individual traveler. In order to deliver relevant and personalized experiences to visitors, travel sites must take a sophisticated approach to the digital booking process by knowing each visitor on an individual basis. This allows brands to create the most relevant user experiences. By leveraging visitor-level measurement and optimization tools, brands can personally assist each traveler with his or her search and avoid the risk of that visitor booking elsewhere.

2. Understand travelers across their entire journey and on all devices. While you can’t control how consumers interact with your site, you can learn from that interaction – and learn to read between the channels. It’s not just about what a consumer did on a website or a mobile device, it’s about the journey and interaction between devices. For example, research may be done on a smartphone, but the user may ultimately book using a tablet. By painting a cumulative picture of consumers that includes both action and intent, brands can understand cross-channel flows and make informed decisions on where to invest both effort and spend.

3. Test everything across all channels. Whether it is flight/hotel booked or Average Order Value, metrics are essential to the travel industry. Constantly testing and measuring results allows brands to improve the booking experience and drive up KPIs – ensuring brands get the most yield for every dollar spent on marketing optimization programs. Evaluate your campaigns constantly and make adjustments regularly to see which messages result in the greatest return. Brands should continue to evolve the booking process because there isn’t a one-time fix. Channels should evolve depending on season, visitor demographics, travel pricing and other criteria. 

4. Take immediate action. Every traveler has a purpose when visiting a site and historical data only tells part of that story. Real-time data is the clearest indicator of current intent, and using those in-the-moment insights to see what travelers are searching for and clicking on is the best way for brands to provide a relevant experience while the traveler is still engaged, regardless of channel or device. By reaching out to a visitor while that person is still thinking about the purchase, whether it’s through a pop up ad, an email immediately after he’s left the site or an offer for a lower fare, conversion becomes increasingly more likely.

5. Leverage technology that plays well with others. Booking sites must have the flexibility to change and adapt in order to improve experiences for travelers across digital channels. When selecting tools, make sure you are leveraging technologies that are compatible and open. Otherwise, you may be forced to make compromises in your strategy in order to conform to a closed system. 

It’s all sound advice. It may be a lot tougher to develop and execute a strategy than to simply collect data – but the latter is no longer — if it ever was — an option.