Travel firms 'can best engage with web through SEO'

30/07/2008

Search engine optimisation (SEO) is the best way in which travel firms can get the most from the online medium, it has been claimed.

According to Roamfree.com chief executive Chris Dodd, the current economic downturn means that travel companies need to adopt more flexible online marketing strategies, with SEO one of the best channels for these organisations.

Addressing delegates at the Eye for Travel Sales and Marketing in Asia Pacific Conference for 2008, Mr Dodd noted that integrating offline and online marketing can be particularly beneficial, although firms should be wary of placing too much emphasis on social media, e-Travel Blackboard reports.

"The internet is an evolution, not a revolution," he remarked, also explaining that another way in which travel firms can take advantage of the web is to offer a more personalised approach to online bookings and sales.

Earlier this year, a comScore study suggested that the current economic climate is prompting a growing number of web users to go straight to the websites of individual hotels when making bookings, rather than go through an online travel agency or comparison site.