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Customer experience rankings for online travel sites

June 16, 2008 | Online Travel

A new study provides an in-depth examination of the online customer experience and service levels (responsiveness and reliability) of leading travel sites. According to the study, Marriott.com and Hotels.com are the leader in the lodging market.

Keynote Competitive Research announced the topline results of a series of competitive research studies examining the online travel industry, including studies of airline, lodging and rental car Web sites. Collectively, the studies provide an in-depth examination of the online customer experience and service levels (responsiveness and reliability) of leading travel sites.

There was no single leader that spanned the different travel markets this year. Each travel type had their own unique group of top performers as denoted by the 250+ customer experience metrics measured in each study. In the Airline Travel study, among the 11 online travel and airline Web sites examined, Expedia ranked #1 in customer experience followed by Southwest Airlines and Travelocity. In the Online Lodging study, Marriott ranked #1 followed by Expedia and Hotels.com. In past studies, Marriott has been the highest ranked site operated by a lodging supplier, however the latest study marks the first time a direct supplier has out-performed any travel service aggregator. Travelocity took the #1 ranking in the Rental Car Reservation study, with Budget following close behind as the highest ranked direct rental car supplier.

“Keynote continues to see travel service aggregators compete with price & selection against suppliers who have increasingly effective customer support and booking features,” states Stephen Foster, director, competitive research at Keynote. “The lodging market is especially notable for the rise of Marriott and Hotels.com as leaders in customer experience.”

Get the full story at Keynote

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