64% of holidaymakers surveyed browse holiday destinations or book online. 80% of these individuals go online to get holiday inspiration and enjoy going online to read articles on holiday destinations. The results showed that those who browse holiday information online are very influential too, often being asked their opinion on where to go on holiday by their family and peers. 73% of people browsing holiday content were likely to recommend a travel site to family or friends, and a further 58% refer to themselves as the person other people come to for travel advice.
Gustav Goosen, CEO of The SpaceStation, says that South African holidaymakers who use the web for travel research and booking are passionately engaged with their online experience. "These users see real value in what the internet can offer them. They trust what they read, take matters into their own hands, and are willing to spend money, which makes them a highly valuable audience. These users spend a lot of time planning their holidays (most for more than a few months) which shows an extended consideration phase, highlighting the importance and potential power of extended ad campaigns."
South Africans are spending substantially on their travels with 43% of respondents spending between R10,000 and R50,000, while a sizable 18% spent over R50,000. These figures reflect changing holiday choices which show that 65% spend more on holidays than they used to, 60% are considering an overseas holiday, while 65% would rather spend a few days in luxury than have a longer holiday for less.
Sometimes holidays or weekends away are the only time people get to relax and pursue their sport or leisure activity of choice, this was prevalent as some of the main reasons for taking holidays. Supporting this we discovered that internet users who travel by air are seven times more likely to purchase sports and leisure equipment.
Internet users are more than twice as likely to travel by air inside South Africa, and they also travel more frequently and utilise a broad range of airlines. According to AMPS 2014BA 12% of internet users had travelled by air outside South Africa, but the IAB Poll shows that 60% of people who actively browsed holidays online were considering an overseas holiday, indicating a more affluent and high intent consumer browsing IAB publisher websites.
Although holidays are all about relaxing, an incredible 84% were concerned about their home security when on leave. Internet users are three-times more likely than average to have a home security system with armed response, highlighting that the home security market is becoming increasingly important and there is a significant need for people to have peace of mind that their home is secure when they aren't there.
"These survey results show a valuable high intent audience who are actively browsing the web for inspiration as well as travel advice," says Natasha Fourie, Strategist at The SpaceStation. "What is clear is the perfect synergy between digital and travel throughout the decision making process from inspiration, through to advice, comparison and booking."
Natasha added that what stood out for her the most was the impact of holidays on lifestyle items. For example, an incredible 68% of the respondents said their choice of car was influenced by their holiday requirements. Says Natasha: "As such, internet users that browse for holiday information are disproportionately valuable not only to endemic travel and holiday advertisers, but also to lifestyle brands such as motor vehicles, accessories and services, security systems, photography and leisure equipment."
For further insights, please contact The SpaceStation team to arrange a presentation of the full research data: http://www.thespacestation.co.za/contact-us/. Specific sites in The SpaceStation portfolio that speak to this data are Traveller24, Go! and Weg.
About The SpaceStation:
The SpaceStation is the largest premium display advertising sales house in Sub-Saharan Africa.
A Naspers' lead digital media sales company in Africa, through an innovative partnership between 24.com and DStv Media Sales, The SpaceStation is able to offer clients - whether advertisers or media planners - an effective, single point of access to the biggest online and mobile portals in Africa.
Their full service team of more than 40 staff offer creative, customised, innovative and engaging advertising solutions to strategically targeted audiences across a range of premium digital platforms including web, mobile, app, email and interactive TV. This provides the opportunities for powerful cross platform and multi-channel integration of campaigns.
With over 30 million International and 16 million South African Unique Browsers each month, The SpaceStation exclusively represents more than 50 of Africa's favourite websites, mobi-sites and mobile apps, affording their clients unrivalled, strategic and competitive access to Africa's online population.
For more information, visit www.thespacestation.co.za
