TRAVEL INDUSTRY PROFILE + LANDSCAPE

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WHY DO I CARE?

Glad you asked…

In this report you will find a high-level overview of the travel landscape. It is important that we keep a pulse on the industry and CONSUMER BEHAVIORS in order to identify OPPORTUNITIES that transform our businesses.

At Levelwing, we specialize in analyzing the paths that contribute to meaningful BUSINESS OUTCOMES. These paths are illuminated through the analysis of data collected via website analytics, customer relationship databases, consumer research, phone call logs and even recruitment application databases (yes, we actually enjoy working with the HR folks in addition to the marketing teams).

Our team of analysts, statisticians and strategists are obsessed with data and more importantly are experts at TRANSLATING THE DATA INTO A MEANINGFUL STORY that has real business applications and implications.

Please enjoy some of the insights contained within.

TRAVEL TRENDS CATEGORY OVERVIEW

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TRAVEL INDUSTRY TRENDS 4

Not only are travelers planning online and researching from their mobile devices, they are seeking luxury and upscale hotels at a value. Offering a special or discount on upscale amenities may entice these luxury-seeking, price-sensitive consumers to convert.

64% of travelers would like to

stay at an upscale or luxury hotel

if the price is right

“The 2012 Traveler”, Google, August 2012

56% of all U.S. corporate travel dollars will be spent online in 2013 “U.S. Corporate Travel Report: Market Sizing and

Technology Trends”, PhoCusWright, May 2012

83% of leisure travelers and 76% of business travelers

plan online “The 2012 Traveler”, Google, August 2012

Almost 1 in 4 hotel queries

come from a mobile device

“The 5 Stages of Travel”, Google, August 2012

ENROLLMENT IN LOYALTY PROGRAMS 5

Affluent Travelers are most likely to be enrolled in Air, Hotel, and Car loyalty programs, while Business Travelers are most likely to be enrolled in a loyalty program for online travel agencies. Leisure Travelers are least likely to be enrolled in a loyalty program for any aspect of travel. Knowing which traveler segment is most likely to enroll in a particular loyalty program can help fuel strategies and initiatives for reaching these traveler segments.

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

Air Hotel Car Online Travel Agency None

Leisure Travelers Business Travelers Affluent Travelers

Source: “The 2012 Traveler”, Google, August 2012

HIGHEST Q1 2012 AIRFARE – US AIRPORTS 6

AIRPORT AVERAGE DOMESTIC ITINERARY FARES

CINCINNATI, OH $526.25

MEMPHIS, TN $519.97

HOUSTON BUSH, TX $504.58

HUNTSVILLE, AL $502.80

WASHINGTON DULLES $485.35

As average airfare prices continue to increase so too do the search queries for cheap tickets and variations thereof. Geo-targeting metropolitan areas surrounding airports with paid search ads can provide an opportunity for travel industry sites to capture these price-conscious travelers. Source: Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Q1 2012

TOP DESTINATION 7

POLL: Which destination was the most popular among US-based Google searchers between September and December, 2011? a)  New York b)  Las Vegas c)  Hawaii d)  Mexico e)  Oak Ridge, TN

“The 2012 Traveler”, Google, August 2012

Market level search insights can help fuel strategies in which there is high demand (and we want to leverage this) or where there is low demand (perhaps in a market we are trying to dominate).

TRAVEL INDUSTRY SEARCH DEMAND 8

KEYWORD US MONTHLY (APPROXIMATE) SEARCHES

VACATION SPOT 165,000

BOOK A FLIGHT 110,000

PLAN A TRIP 110,000

BOOK A HOTEL 90,500

Source: Google

Collectively, the travel industry has a substantial amount of monthly searches within the United States. Online searches are often indicative of offline demand. This emphasizes the need for visibility within search engines and search engine results pages in order to capture this traffic.

‘BOOK A FLIGHT’ SEARCH ENGINE RESULTS 9

Online booking sites represent a majority of search engine results page real estate for ‘book a flight’

Airlines appearing in PAID SEARCH PLACEMENTS for ‘book a flight’:

•  American Airlines

•  Delta

Airlines appearing on Page 1 in ORGANIC SEARCH RESULTS for ‘book a flight’:

•  Delta

•  American Airlines

•  United Airlines

•  Southwest

*paid placements are paid advertising available through search engines, organic search results are the listings that are free and do

not require a hard media investment

‘BOOK A HOTEL’ SEARCH ENGINE RESULTS 10

Similarly, online booking sites also represent a majority of search engine results page real estate for ‘book a hotel’

Hotels appearing in PAID SEARCH PLACEMENTS for ‘book a hotel’:

•  Taj Hotels

•  Marriott

Hotels appearing on Page 1 in ORGANIC SEARCH RESULTS for ‘book a hotel’:

•  Radisson

*paid placements are paid advertising available through search engines, organic search results are the listings that are free and do

not require a hard media investment

TRAVELERS

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RESEARCH BEHAVIOR

ONLINE ACTIVITES 12

Top online activities for US travelers are researching upcoming trips, brainstorming trip ideas, and reading reviews by other travelers. These online search habits indicate the need for visibility within search engines and search engine results pages during this critical research period. Source: Mediabistro Data

43%

45%

62%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%

Commented on travel related blog

Commented on travel reviews

Uploaded video related to past travel

Posted travel reviews

Read travel related blog

Watched travel video

Read reviews from other travelers

Sourced initial trip idea

Researched an upcoming trip

VIDEO AS RESEARCH SOURCE 13

Travelers watch online videos throughout their entire travel planning process. Creating a YouTube channel or incorporating video on your website surrounding these consumer needs (amenity and attraction information) may help influence consumers to book with your site or plan a trip to your city. Source: “The 2012 Traveler”, Google, August 2012

When thinking about taking a

trip

66% When choosing a destination

64%

When looking for ideas of activities

to do at a destination

62%

When choosing destination

accommodations

57%

When deciding on which website

to book

34%

TYPES OF VIDEOS WATCHED 14

Travelers using video for research watch a mix of user-generated content and professionally-made videos. Including both internal marketing videos and customer-made videos on your websites will provide these travel researchers with the content they are looking for when they come to your site, preventing them from seeking this content elsewhere on the web.

62%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%

Videos made by people like me

Trip reviews from people like me

Videos from travel-related channels

Trip reviews from experts

Videos from hotels, airlines, cruises, tours, etc.

Source: “The 2012 Traveler”, Google, August 2012

SMARTPHONE USAGE 15

As smartphone ownership increases so does the necessity of having a mobile website for consumers using these devices for travel research and booking. Source: comScore, June 2012

110 MILLION Americans own a smartphone

More than

MOBILE RESEARCHING + BOOKING 16

U.S. smartphone travel researchers represent 30.4% of online travel researchers in 2012, while U.S. smartphone travel bookers only represent 16.1% of online travel bookers in 2012, suggesting most travelers still prefer making travel-related purchases through more traditional means such as a desktop or telephone.

Source: eMarketer Data, August 2012

36.4 MILLION

travel researchers

15.8 MILLION

travel bookers

MOBILE AS RESEARCH SOURCE FOR AIR 17

Most travelers using a mobile device for research want to check prices, find contact information, view flight schedules, and check the status of a flight. Ensuring these elements are prominent and easy to use on your mobile site will provide a good user experience for mobile website visitors. Source: comScore Data, April 2012

25%

25%

25%

26%

0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30%

Cancelled a flight

Tracked the status of a checked bag

Received SMS alerts for a flight status

Booked a flight

Received price alerts for flights

Checked in for a flight

Looked up airport information

Checked flight status

Looked at flight schedules

Looked up airline phone number

Checked airfare prices

MOBILE AS RESEARCH SOURCE FOR HOTEL 18

Most travelers using a mobile device for research are looking for the hotel address and directions to get there, followed by researching attractions and places to eat near their hotel. Including directions, nearby things to do, and favorite local dining spots on your mobile site will fulfill the needs of these travel researchers.

Source: comScore Data, April 2012

29%

0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35%

Cancelled a hotel reservation

Looked up/ researched ground transportation at my destination/ near my hotel

Received price alerts for hotels

Booked a hotel room

Compared hotel prices + availability

Read a hotel review

Looked up/ researched places to eat at my destination/ near my hotel

Looked up/ researched attractions/ things to do at my destination/ near my hotel

Looked up hotel address/directions

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LIKE WHAT YOU SEE? WANT TO SEE MORE?

This is just the beginning of what we can tap into, imagine what we could do with the data you have internally…

At Levelwing, we specialize in interpreting your data and providing you with applications (and not just graphs) that can impact your MARKETING, MERCHANDISING, INVENTORY or even TALENT RECRUITMENT. We help companies utilize data to OPERATE WITH GREATER CLARITY + PROFITABILITY.

Bottom line, we move your business forward by helping you make sense of your data so that you can ACHIEVE WHAT COULD BE.

For additional information, please contact:

LUKE FROST Business Development Analyst lfrost@levelwing.com 1+843.647.7314

THANK YOU

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Want to learn more about Levelwing? Just keep reading.

WHO IS LEVELWING?

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The Right Data Changes Everything

Marketing Budgets Should Be Smaller, Not Larger

Accountability is Essential

Success Should Pay For Itself

Leverage Existing Demand First

OUR BELIEFS 22

We use data to illuminate all facets of your business. You’ll sell more and enjoy greater cost-efficiency.

More importantly, you’ll operate your business more PROFITABLY.

THE RIGHT DATA CHANGES EVERYTHING 23

Bigger is not necessarily better.

We believe by holding media and ideas accountable through advanced analytics, you can do MORE with LESS.

MARKETING BUDGETS SHOULD BE SMALLER, NOT LARGER

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We measure and create insights based on what’s important, not just metrics that are easy to calculate.

We create real ACCOUNTABILITY.

ACCOUNTABILITY IS ESSENTIAL 25

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An understanding of Return on Investment leads to marketing efforts that are more than just an expense line item.

We build SELF-FUNDING initiatives.

SUCCESS SHOULD PAY FOR ITSELF 26

A demand-driven strategy creates media efficiency and greater profitability by focusing on existing IN-MARKET PURCHASERS.

AWARENESS

INTEREST

CONSIDERATION

PURCHASE

LEVERAGE EXISTING DEMAND FIRST 27

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Our BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE SOLUTIONS help organizations understand consumer brand perception, gain competitive information and uncover real opportunities to improve organizational and operational efficiencies.

WE BELIEVE in informed, evidence-based decision-making, only made possible by complex and comprehensive data collection + analysis.

INTELLIGENCE IS AT OUR CORE

Competitive Insights | Data Enrichment | Operational Efficiency | Price Sensitivity

Analysis | ROI Analysis | Analytics Solutions | Data Knowledge Management

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GLOBAL REACH We currently serve clients throughout North America, Europe, China and Japan

UNIQUE APPROACH Levelwing is the leader in business intelligence and marketing solutions with data mining + analytics at the core

MEASURED SUCCESS Levelwing has experienced 10 consecutive years of growth with industry leading client satisfaction results

FULLY INTEGRATED We employ a matrix organization of marketers, analytics design experts, statisticians, researchers and creatives

WE ARE LEVELWING 29

“Some of the most innovative and strategic minds in the industry” - Novartis

“Some of the most sophisticated things I’ve seen being done with analytics and ROI measurement” - Adobe

SOME OF OUR PARTNERS 30