Spending, Research and Content Consumption Patterns for Travelers Revealed in New Study by Expedia Media Solutions and comScore

BELLEVUE, Wash., Nov. 20, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- A new study from Expedia® Media Solutions, the advertising sales division of global online travel leader Expedia, Inc., provides an in-depth look at the content journey of today's traveler including platform and device usage patterns, purchase trends, and how content influences the decision-making process.

Commissioned by Expedia Media Solutions and conducted by comScore, the study demonstrates the expansive opportunity that the leisure travel market provides for marketers – at $58 billion, travel accounted for 37 percent of total e-commerce through the first half of 2013[1]. The study tracks content consumption and sharing patterns before, during and after a trip is booked to help marketers understand how, when and where travelers are seeking and sharing digital content, both travel and non-travel related. 

Online travel spending and mobile travel content consumption is rising, but not replacing the PC, creating more opportunity for marketers to engage with travelers.

• Online content consumption is growing at a rapid pace, as consumers are spending 93 percent more time with online content than they did three years ago.
• Online travel spending is up eight percent year-over-year (YoY).
• Total mobile travel minutes have increased by 45 percent YoY and PC travel minutes have increased by two percent YoY.

Content is available and being accessed by consumers across more platforms and channels than ever before and online travel agencies are an important source across all platforms and throughout all stages of the booking process.

• During the booking process, 26 percent of travel buyers were exposed to travel-related content on Facebook, with 23 exposed to paid content and nine percent exposed to organic.
• Twenty-eight percent of total travel minutes are consumed on mobile devices and 24 percent of travelers access travel content exclusively on their mobile devices.
• Online travel agencies (OTAs) are visited by 80 percent of travelers during the booking process and the average number of OTA visits during each phase exceeds that of any other category.

Different types of content resonate with and will be shared by consumers at specific points and on specific platforms throughout the content journey.

• Fifty-five percent of travelers seek hotel and accommodation information, and it is the most commonly sought content across all decision stages when taking PC and mobile consumption into account. Information about weather/climate, airfare and activities follow at 46, 45 and 42 percent respectively.
• Weather and climate information, followed by restaurant reviews, are most likely to be accessed on mobile, at 46 and 44 percent, respectively.
• Image content is used 37 percent of the time during the travel decision process, which is more than twice as much as videos, at only 18 percent.
• Upon return, 45 percent of travelers will post travel-related content on social media or write reviews.
• At 64 percent, social media photos are most likely to be published from a laptop, followed by smartphones at 45 percent and tablets at 16 percent.

The study provides a 360-degree view of the traveler's content journey, allowing marketers to understand the consumption habits of their potential customers. Using these insights, brands and advertisers can develop creative and effective content and distribute it across appropriate channels to reach a vast and content-hungry audience.

"Rather than a linear path to purchase, the research and booking process of today's traveler looks like an ongoing and multi-directional flight map, with each stop providing an opportunity for brands to reach and engage with travelers," said Noah Tratt, global vice president of media solutions at Expedia, Inc. "At Expedia, we work with our partners to make sure they have the necessary knowledge and tools to develop effective marketing and advertising strategies that maps back to their business goals."

To view the full study please visit: http://bit.ly/17fgWar 

About Expedia Media Solutions
Formed in 2007, Expedia Media Solutions is dedicated to building online and offline media partnerships for travel and non-travel brand advertisers and to enable them to leverage the unique media value of Expedia's network of leading travel brands and global points of sale. For more information, visit www.advertising.expedia.com.

About Expedia, Inc.
Expedia, Inc. (NASDAQ: EXPE) is the largest online travel company in the world, with an extensive brand portfolio that includes some of the world's leading online travel brands, including:

• Expedia.com®, the world's largest full service online travel agency, with localized sites in 31 countries
• Hotels.com®, the hotel specialist with sites in more than 60 countries
• Hotwire®, a leading discount travel site that offers opaque deals in 13 countries on its 12 sites in North America, Europe and Asia
• Egencia®, the world's fifth largest corporate travel management company
• eLong™, the second largest online travel company in China 
• Venere.com™, the online hotel reservation specialist in Europe
• trivago®, a leading online hotel search company with sites in 39 countries
• Expedia Local Expert®,  a provider of in-market concierge services, activities and experiences in 18 markets worldwide
• Classic Vacations®, a top luxury travel specialist
• Expedia® CruiseShipCenters®, one of North America's leading retail cruise vacation experts

The company delivers consumers value in leisure and business travel, drives incremental demand and direct bookings to travel suppliers, and provides advertisers the opportunity to reach a highly valuable audience of in-market travel consumers through Expedia Media Solutions. Expedia also powers bookings for some of the world's leading airlines and hotels, top consumer brands, high traffic websites, and thousands of active affiliates through Expedia® Affiliate Network. For corporate and industry news and views, visit us at www.expediainc.com or follow us on Twitter @expediainc.

Trademarks and logos are the property of their respective owners.  © 2013 Expedia, Inc.  All rights reserved.  CST: 2029030-50

[1] comScore e-Commerce Measurement, H1 2013

SOURCE Expedia Media Solutions

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