OTA Rankings Show It’s Not All About Price

Even in the price-driven world of mega-OTAs, customer satisfaction depends on more than rock bottom prices, and that gives the veterans an edge, according to a new ranking of OTAs.

That’s the encouraging finding of the latest JD Power Online Travel Agency Satisfaction Report, in which the two oldest OTAs held off seven later arrivals to the crowded field.

Travelocity, Sabre’s site and the very first online booking site, took the gold, with a score of 804 out of a possible 1,000 points. Expedia came in second in the tight race, scoring 798.

Ease of use
While low price was the key driver of customer satisfaction, it was ease of use and a nice design that pushed Travelocity and Expedia to the top.

“The interesting story here is that Travelocity did not score highest on price, but it still won because of its layout and the usefulness of the information it provides,” JD Power global practice leader for travel and hospitality Rick Garlick told Travel Market Report.

“Low prices are necessary, but customer satisfaction also is about the design and ease of navigation of online websites.”

Still, OTAs do not provide the personalized service and help of a traditional agency. The definition of “good service” online comes down to the ability to book with the least amount of effort, he noted.

When booking his own business travel, Garlick said, corporate policy dictates that he book through Concur. But Travelocity is so much easier to use that he goes there first and lays out his trip. Then he goes to Concur and books the options he has already chosen.

Price differentiators
In terms of price, online travel agencies are a “crowded and not particularly differentiated field” when it comes to air, hotel and car rental prices, Garlick said.

Where Travelocity and Expedia differentiate themselves – and where they offer traditional travel agencies the most competition – is in low-price packaged vacations.

Connecting with travelers
At Travelocity, spokeswoman Sarah Engel attributed the OTA’s rise to No. 1 from the No. 7 spot last year to increased marketing aimed at “rejuvenating travelers’ connection with Travelocity.”

She cited the OTA’s focus on gaining visibility through key distribution channels like Google and TripAdvisor, as well as holiday promotions offering $100 off travel packages and $300 off hotel stays.

Mobile & social
But above all, the Travelocity spokeswoman said, “in the new always-on reality of customer engagement and shopping behavior, we made great strides with our mobile and social offerings.”

“We led the industry in social media response time and ensured that our customers had the tools at hand to browse, plan and book seamlessly whether they chose to visit Travelocity.com on laptop, tablet or mobile.”

JD Power survey
The JD Power study surveyed 2,673 customers who made an online purchase from an independent travel website during the previous 12 months.

Following close behind Travelocity and Expedia in the assessment of OTA customers were Booking.com, Hotwire.com and Priceline.com.

They were trailed, in descending order, by CheapTickets, Hotels.com, Orbitz and CheapoAir.