Trust over trends
A flexible future for travel
Whilst we’re trying to avoid the C-word as much as possible in 2022, there is no denying that we’ve all learned a lot about ourselves over the past two years and the type of people we want to be in a post-pandemic world and beyond.
And as travel experts, we’ve learned a lot about the industry too. We’ve kept our eyes on all four corners of the bigger picture – seeing how brands act and react to every changing regulation and how consumers are navigating a new way of living, thinking, and travelling.
So as the future shapes up to be a bright one, what have we discovered? Forget top 10 trends, forget fleeting fads, in fact, forget COVID-19 - the one common denominator that isn’t going anywhere in travel is flexibility.
Flexibility is a flexible term in itself, but in this sense, its flexible cancellation, aka clear and simple messaging that reassures people they can cancel up until departure should a bump in the road get in the way. What once used to sit in the teeny-weeny small print of the T&Cs or be sold alongside a hefty premium is now centre stage in travel advertising.
And it’s not just the holiday market that is moving towards a more flexible future. Take hybrid working - a COVID-born solution for office workers that looks as though it’s here to stay. In short, we’ve all had the time to recognise the value of having more options and more control over the uncontrollable. Free cancellation travel simply ties in with our new lifestyles.
Over the past couple of years, we’ve noticed how brand messaging has shifted against the backdrop of a pandemic. At the start, health and safety information was leading the way in campaigns; brands were plastering their COVID-19 regulations in paragraphs on print ads, footage of their staff sanitising surfaces in their social media videos and pledges of promise in big red letters on their homepages. But as 2020 drew to a close, and we shifted our way into a ‘new normal’, flexibility and peace of mind came forward. Moving through 2021, many brands were leading with the same style ‘book/plan now, pay/go later’ messaging.
Recent findings from Expedia provide proof that flexibility is creeping up to top of the priority list for travellers moving forward. Their January 2022 outlook report found that 84% of people agree that a discounted fee is influential when booking a flight online. But a nearly identical percentage (83%) say flexible fare options make a world of difference.
Observing outward communications, we’ve watched brands gradually and increasingly bring reassurance into the foreground, more so than the usual reduced price tags and special offers. It begs the question: is flexibility the new signifier of good value rather than total cost?
Uncertainty has undoubtedly been the biggest hindrance for the travel industry during the pandemic. It has meant that people have navigated their way through their buying journey with a lot more trepidation, as identified in our research white paper from last year: The Great Escape - Rethinking the Traveller’s Path to Purchase. Within our research, we unearthed a new behaviour within this journey; a ‘period of pause’ that sits in between planning and booking as people hold tight for brighter green lights. Flexibility knocks this nervousness on the head. With financial protection and peace-of-mind guaranteed, there’s strong hope that a ‘nothing to lose’ mantra will take people over that line, converting those anxious bookers into paying customers.
But flexibility doesn’t have to come at the cost of losing financial return. The market research specialists, Mintel, found in their latest Airlines report that flexible cancellation policies are the highest ranked perk a customer would be willing to pay a premium for – more so than spaced-out seating or priority boarding. This offers brands the option to position flexible cancellation as an added benefit.
And it seems that this notion of ‘if something comes up, we can cancel’ is becoming as much of a draw as scenes of sun, sea and sand these days. Recent turn of the year campaigns from big players like British Airways and Kuoni have prioritised peace-of-mind, using it as an emotional trigger to relax and entice those sitting in the dreaming stage.
British Airways’ latest TV ad features very little of the holiday experience itself but instead is centred around the satisfaction and reassurance that comes with booking with BA and their flexible policies. Kuoni, who have cleverly created a ‘travel is on’ message using the middle letters of their brand name, have built OOH and press ads devoted to their Which? Provider status - showcasing proof that listening to customers gets you moving in the right direction.
And Kuoni do practise what they preach. Their Flex system is a new feature that enables users to cancel or change their holidays for any reason up to 35 days before travel. Similar to Kuoni, Black Tomato have created a State of Flex solution, enabling travellers to cancel or postpone holidays free of charge up to 30 days before departure. Both of these brands are great examples of the industry listening and reacting – flexing their offers for the new cautious consumer and doing so with pride.
And that’s exactly what brands should take from this movement - be proud of your policies and shout them from the rooftops (and the billboards). Lead with flexibility in your marketing messaging, ensuring that these unique offerings are not just an add-on to your campaign creative, but the star of the show. And don’t be afraid to play with emotion in getting your message across - British Airways employed a humorous approach to in their ad, which will resonate well with customers looking to let off a little steam by getting away. The fact is that flexible options are no longer are a nice-to-have, they’re a minimum requirement and how you communicate them is how you can differentiate your brand in 2022.
Remember, a little legroom really does go a long way.
#BrilliantlyJoinedUpMarketing
Eloise Pates
Contributor
