Guideline will host a complimentary webinar on “Building Brand Equity Online in the Travel & Leisure Market.” The webinar, which will be held Wednesday, August 23 at 11 a.m. ET, will reveal the findings of Guideline’s latest Trend Report.

The webinar, which is co-sponsored by The Advertising Club, will focus on why the travel and leisure market is faced with the challenge of building brand equity with web savvy consumers. This is despite the fact that more than a quarter of all leisure and unmanaged business travel was booked online in 2005 and is expected to grow to 35 percent in 2006. Guideline’s study reveals that half of all mainstream and luxury travelers visit four to six websites before booking a trip, and 54 percent of typical travelers are influenced more by the recommendations of friends and family.

To shed new insight on the purchasing patterns and motivators of consumers that book travel online, Guideline recently conducted an exclusive online survey of more than 400 consumers with household incomes of at least $100,000. In addition, those surveyed had taken a domestic or foreign vacation in the past two years. Furthermore, they segmented the respondents into “luxury travelers” and “mainstream” travelers, based on the average dollar amount spent on vacations.

Webinar attendees will be able to participate in a question and answer session with Guideline’s Business Research analysts Jessica Hogue and Karen Daenen, who recently presented the survey findings at a sold-out breakfast event co-sponsored by Forbes.com and the Advertising Club of NY at the Harvard Club in New York City. In addition to online travel purchasing patterns and motivators, she’ll share with webinar participants, how travel and leisure providers can build virtual relationships with consumers while improving their bottom line.

“Guideline’s study affirms that while many consumers are beginning to migrate from online suppliers to branded airline, hotel and car rental sites, more than 80 percent of consumers rely on online agencies like Expedia, Orbitz and Travelocity for their travel research,” said Hogue. “This indicates significant opportunity for branded travel sites to win over the hearts of consumers to ultimately build brand equity.”

Those who participate in the webinar also will learn:

The purchasing patterns of people who book travel arrangements online

What motivates travelers to choose one supplier over another

How travel/leisure providers can attract travelers’ attention

The differences in preferences between luxury and non-luxury travelers

“In looking at consumer preferences and buyer behaviors, it’s clear that marketers have a significant opportunity to engage consumers throughout the entire travel process and make it easier for them to navigate and book travel online,” said Hogue. “Travel suppliers also need to take note of how online travel agencies are becoming more “consumer-friendly” and further differentiate themselves as experts and a trusted travel resource.”

To register for this complimentary webinar, visit http://guideline.webex.com/event.
——-