cheryl
Administrator
Staff member
Deep Dive: Travel, Hospitality Get A Millennial Makeover - PYMNTS
Millennials have long been sought-after travel and hospitality customers, partly because they are perfectly placed to seek such experiences. They are old enough to have disposable income, but young enough that they can travel without major health and wellness risks. This unique status creates both opportunities and challenges for firms in the space, as millennials search for the experiences they crave.
Furthermore, millennials are set to spend $1.4 trillion on travel annually, and make up more than 50 percent of hotel guests worldwide by the end of 2020. This means crafting experiences that satisfy them will require travel and hospitality services to go beyond merely supporting digital and mobile payment methods. Such payment tools are table stakes for younger consumers accustomed to using connected devices, but they tend to gravitate toward services that provide the same convenience and ease when booking accommodations.
Hotels have traditionally relied on their loyalty programs’ discounts and perks to lure customers, but many are finding it difficult to win millennials’ business with these offerings alone. Younger consumers do not exhibit the same brand loyalty as previous generations, and this trait extends to their interactions with hotel and travel companies. Industry players that want to earn millennials’ revenue must, therefore, determine how to generate loyalty among a consumer group faced with more hotel, transportation and travel options than any previous generation.
Millennials have long been sought-after travel and hospitality customers, partly because they are perfectly placed to seek such experiences. They are old enough to have disposable income, but young enough that they can travel without major health and wellness risks. This unique status creates both opportunities and challenges for firms in the space, as millennials search for the experiences they crave.
Furthermore, millennials are set to spend $1.4 trillion on travel annually, and make up more than 50 percent of hotel guests worldwide by the end of 2020. This means crafting experiences that satisfy them will require travel and hospitality services to go beyond merely supporting digital and mobile payment methods. Such payment tools are table stakes for younger consumers accustomed to using connected devices, but they tend to gravitate toward services that provide the same convenience and ease when booking accommodations.
Hotels have traditionally relied on their loyalty programs’ discounts and perks to lure customers, but many are finding it difficult to win millennials’ business with these offerings alone. Younger consumers do not exhibit the same brand loyalty as previous generations, and this trait extends to their interactions with hotel and travel companies. Industry players that want to earn millennials’ revenue must, therefore, determine how to generate loyalty among a consumer group faced with more hotel, transportation and travel options than any previous generation.