Live From London: Travelers Like the DM Trip

U.K. travelers like — and want to receive more- direct communications, but a whopping 81% don’t currently participate in loyalty building schemes.

These are among the findings of recent surveys by the Direct Marketing Information Service. Jo Howard-Brown, managing director of the DMIS, told attendees of the International Direct Marketing Fair at Wembley yesterday that 19% of consumers surveyed said that their vacation plans had been influenced by direct mail, while another 25% said they’d responded to a generic holiday brochure received in the mail.

“Travel is a priority subject because its aspirational,” said Howard-Brown. “Do you want to hear about it? Sure you do, even if you can’t afford it. It gives you something to look forward to.”

Thirty-eight percent of consumers surveyed said they would have used a travel firm again if the company had bothered to stay in touch via some sort of relationship building effort. But surprisingly, only 6% of the travel marketers surveyed said their marketing campaigns were geared to increased loyalty; 44% said their goal was short-term sales.

Vacation-bound U.K. consumers are still concerned with money — 50% said their company loyalty was based on who offered the best value — but 51% said they counted being treated as an individual as a key factor.

Peter Varlow, head of new media marketing for the British Tourism Authority, noted that increased competition for international tourist dollars has led his office to implement relationship marketing strategies. He hesitated to call the efforts customer relationship management–as the customer relationship ultimately is in the possession of the travel operator.

But for the BTA, regular, timely communications with a one-to-one feel are essential, he said, noting the Authority also plans to better capitalize on the two million personal contacts it makes annually in its overseas offices.