Directline-holidays.co.uk has made changes to its website to signify a strong business performance in 2007 and to remain competitive in the fastest growing industry worldwide.
(PRWEB) June 15, 2007 -- Directline-holidays.co.uk has made changes to its website to signify a strong business performance in 2007 and to remain competitive in the fastest growing industry worldwide.
People now expect more from the travel industry, dynamic Packaging gives customers more freedom, literally allowing travellers to pick and mix their holiday options, whilst sites such as TripAdvisor and directline-holidays invite customers to share their experiences with others.
directline-holidays.co.uk Director Matthew Flint said:
“Maintaining our reputation and brand image was identified as a top priority, being one of the most valuable things the company has. directline-holidays.co.uk have made changes to reflect the expanding market and to give consumers a better experience on the site.”
Changes have been made to allow easier site navigation with simplicity being the key factor. Aesthetically, the most visible change is in the site header, with Matthew Flint stating:
“We have embraced new changes in the industry and wanted to reflect that in the aesthetics of the site. The introduction of the new header is important as you cannot underestimate the power of first impressions to customers. Hopefully the new look will not only inspire confidence in users but also convey the values of directline-holidays.co.uk at a glance.”
Flint stressed the need to ensure they stand out from the crowd, feeling that what they offer in terms of information available to customers is different from anyone else, the early signs are positive too as the changes convey an improved image perception amongst their customers:
“Homepage views on the site are up by over 300% compared to May 2006 and more customers are coming straight to the site rather than finding us via a search engine. There is also a noticeable decrease in the amount of users exiting the site since the changes have taken place signifying more users are engaging with the site in a way they could not before.”
The re-branding coincides with the emergence of the online holiday company starting to compete with more established names. Hitwise has already identified directline-holidays.co.uk as one of the ‘top 20’ travel agents in the UK* and the prospective merges between Thomas Cook and MyTravel, and First Choice and TUI owned Thomson holidays show many leading companies have identified the need for change, joining forces to keep up with the online market.
The World Travel and Tourism Council predicts a sustained growth in travel over the next ten years with forecasts suggesting an annual increase in turnover of 4.3%, prompting President Jean-Claude Baumgarten to state that he had “never seen such a strong world economy.”
Many travel companies today are capitalising on the benefits of new opportunities and innovative mediums such as the Internet. The current buzz surrounding web 2.0 sites offering much more to users by way of media and quality of information has encouraged more changes at directline-holidays.co.uk. More destinations have been added to the improved search facility to keep up with the constant stream of new resorts emerging as the latest hotspots.
However, Flint stressed the need for quality not just quantity:
“Understanding that customers want quality information made available to them, further pages have been added for each holiday resort with ideas on things to do, weather information and customer reviews to signal a change in direction, focus and attitude of the company. However, it was important to not make wholesale changes with the look and feel of the site as we are aware of customer sensitivity to changes to a trusted brand -- it’s about subtle change rather than a more significant re-branding.”
The changes embraced by directline-holidays were intended to coincide with the summer peak and what is expected to be a record breaking year both for directline-holidays.co.uk and the travel industry.
directline-holidays.co.uk specialises in selling cheap package holidays, flights and hotels.
*Source = Travel Weekly 26 January 2007, Top 20 Travel Agencies.
Contact: Ross Marchant
Tel: 020 8239 8844
Website: www.directline-holidays.co.uk
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