One in four travellers rage-quit online hotel bookings, putting an estimated £3.5bn of tourism spend at risk
An estimated £3.5 billion* in UK hotel revenue could be at risk each year as frustrated travellers abandon online hotel bookings, according to new research from Profitroom.
The study found that more than one in four travellers (26.4 per cent) have “rage-quit” a hotel booking after encountering problems during the booking journey and never gone back to complete their reservation.
The findings reveal widespread frustration with fragmented hotel booking journeys.
Almost seven in ten (69 per cent) said they had restarted or abandoned a booking because of confusion or technical issues.
More than half of travellers (55 per cent) have completed a booking through an online travel agent because a hotel’s direct booking process felt clunky or outdated.
The research found that nearly six in ten travellers (59 per cent) open Booking.com or another OTA while completing a hotel booking, while almost a third (32 per cent) have switched to another provider because the booking process was easier.
More than half (59 per cent) have abandoned a booking because the process took too long, while 63 per cent said they become frustrated when additional charges appear late in the booking journey.
The findings suggest many hotels are successfully attracting prospective guests to their websites, only to lose them at the point of conversion.
According to Profitroom’s latest Booking Breaking Point whitepaper, fragmented guest journeys and booking friction are pushing travellers to abandon reservations and switch providers.
For hoteliers investing in direct booking strategies, the data highlights how quickly guests can be lost when friction is introduced into the booking journey.
The impact extends beyond room revenue.
Hotels are increasingly looking to ancillary spend to grow revenue beyond the room rate.
Yet Profitroom’s research suggests many guests never reach that stage because booking journeys are too complicated, preventing them from purchasing upgrades, dining packages, spa treatments and other add-ons.
Two-thirds (65 per cent) of the 2,000 UK adults surveyed said they had struggled to add extras online, while more than half (55 per cent) said a simpler booking experience would make them more likely to purchase additional services.
A separate study of the more than 300 hotels in Profitroom’s UK portfolio, found that an estimated £32.6 million was missed in ancillary revenue compared with industry benchmarks, equivalent to approximately £154,000 per property each year.
Patryk Luszcz, UK regional director at Profitroom, comments: “Hotels are investing significant time and money to attract guests to book direct, only to lose many of them to OTAs at the point of conversion.
“We knew anecdotally that booking friction was an issue, but the scale revealed by this research is striking.
“The findings show that guests do not necessarily prefer OTAs. When direct booking journeys become fragmented, confusing or time-consuming, travellers often abandon their reservation or book elsewhere, reaching what we describe as the Booking Breaking Point.”
“Today’s traveller typically interacts with between 17 and 19 touchpoints before making a booking. Every additional click, unnecessary form field, confusing room description or unclear rate adds friction to the journey and that friction can have a significant impact on conversion rates.
“We want to reassure hoteliers that cart abandonment isn’t inevitable and many of the barriers are entirely fixable.
“Our goal is to create one brand, one storefront and one connected ecosystem, making every booking journey simpler, faster and more intuitive.”
For more information view Profitroom’s Booking Breaking point whitepaper https://shorturl.at/lrgJC or visit: www.profitroom.com
The post One in four travellers rage-quit online hotel bookings, putting an estimated £3.5bn of tourism spend at risk appeared first on Hotel Speak.