Traveler Reviews: As Rate Returns, Traveler Sentiment Slumps
PhoCusWright Webinar and report explore traveler sentiment and how social media impacts online travel

August 18, 2011

Guests are returning and rates may be improving, but as the hotel market makes its gradual recovery it also faces a tougher customer. A new report from PhoCusWright finds that travelers' sense of satisfaction is related to how much they have paid, and traveler sentiment is declining as hotels' ability to raise rates increases.

PhoCusWright's Social Media in Travel 2011: Traffic, Activity & Sentiment analyzes nearly 2.9 million online traveler reviews, covering more than 26,000 U.S. properties of 65 top hotel brands. To gauge traveler sentiment across all reviews, PhoCusWright developed the Social Travel Advocacy Index (STAI), and found a correlation between the perceived value of a hotel stay, and travelers' expectations about quality. The report reveals that traveler sentiment in online reviews declined sharply at the end of 2009 and throughout the first half of 2010, as the U.S. economy showed signs of recovery and hotel rates rebounded.

The relationship between ADR and travel sentiment, and the impact of traveler reviews on online travel planning and shopping are explored in Tweet This! Social Travel Grows Up… Or Does It?, a special one-hour Webinar (Wednesday, August 24 at 12:00 pm EDT), including a Q&A session. The event, which examines the role of social media in online travel is hosted by Douglas Quinby, PhoCusWright's senior director, research and includes key findings from PhoCusWright's Social Media in Travel 2011: Traffic, Activity & Sentiment. Douglas is joined for questions and answers by Mario Jobbe, co-founder and COO of Circos Brand Karma.

Tweet This! Social Travel Grows Up… Or Does It? provides insights on the following key topics:

• Impact of traveler reviews on online travel planning and shopping
• Cross-visitation and referrals between hotel websites and social networks, including Facebook and Twitter
• Traveler review volume by hotel class and type of website (OTAs vs. traveler review sites)
• Online traveler review sentiment by hotel star category

Register today for this special PhoCusWright Webinar – Tweet This! Social Travel Grows Up… Or Does It? – to find out how tweets, friends and followers really impact online travel. Discounted pricing is available for PhoCusWright Research seatholders.

Created in partnership with Circos Brand Karma, Compete and Travelport, PhoCusWright's Social Media in Travel 2011: Traffic, Activity & Sentiment, a Global Edition publication examines the role and impact of social media and content on the online travel ecosystem. Order now (US$1,095) to learn how social media influences the major online travel categories, and leverage the power and potential of the social Web.

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