By Krishna Rao

‘Cheap holidays’ and ‘Holidays’ most popular search terms

Consumers appeared unperturbed by where they were headed. If the price was right, so too it seemed was the destination. This is borne out in Greenlight’s data which shows the majority of holiday-related searches (61%) were non-destination specific. In fact, these generic holiday searches totalled 1.9 million in February, increasing a whopping 192% on November 2010 levels when 667,000 were performed. What’s more, the terms ‘cheap holidays’ and ‘holidays’ were the most popular search terms used by consumers looking to find getaways online. Search volumes for both terms increased a massive 233% on the previous quarter, when each keyword was searched for 135,000 times.

Other popular terms used to conduct holiday searches online included ‘direct holidays’, ‘last minute holidays’ and ‘package holidays’.

Search for holidays to European destinations up 10%

In terms of region, holidays to European destinations were most popular, accounting for 41% of geographic-related searches. In fact, the search market for holidays in Europe increased by 10%, totalling 514,000 in February compared to 191,000 in November. Meanwhile North America accounted for 18% (223,782), Africa 13% (161,281), Caribbean & South America 12% (146,990), Far East & Australasia 10% (127,633) and Middle East & South Asia 6% (74,029).

Thomson.co.uk the most visible UK website to searchers, IceLolly most visible advertiser, TravelRepublic the most popular brand in social media

Greenlight determined the 60 best positioned and hence most visible websites to consumers searching for holidays, based on the search volumes for each keyword and the site’s respective ranking for those terms on page one of Google, representing visibility to a total of 3.1 million searches in February.

Thomson was the most visible website in natural search*. It achieved a 64% share of voice, increased its visibility by 9% on November levels and the site was visible to over 2 million searches. TravelSupermarket and ThomasCook followed with 57% and 43% share of visibility, respectively.

IceLolly was the most visible advertiser in paid search**, achieving a 51% share of voice. Thomson followed with 39% and yet again increased its visibility by 21% on the previous quarter, ascending Greenlight’s paid search league table from position 12 to two.

TravelRepublic remained the most popular brand in Greenlight’s social media league table, attracting a combined following of over 51,000 Facebook fans and Twitter followers. It continued to encourage people to join its Facebook group by advertising that people who pressed the ‘like’ button could win ‘free flights and hotel stays’.

Top 10 of the 60 most visible holiday websites in both in natural and paid search, UK

Notes

*Natural Search - Listings in search engine results pages that appear because of their relevance to the search terms.

**Paid Search – an Internet advertising model used on websites, in which advertisers pay their host only when their ad is clicked. With search engines, advertisers typically bid on keyword phrases relevant to their target market.

Greenlight’s report, ‘Holidays February 2011’, profiles search behaviour in this sector. It assesses which brands, websites and aggregators are the most visible in natural and paid search results, and hence have the greatest share of consideration when UK-based searchers go to Google to search for holidays. For social media, Greenlight’s social media popularity index (SMPI), highlights and ranks the 15 most followed and proactive brands in social media.

About the author

Krishna Rao is PR at Greenlight, a leading independent specialist search and social marketing firm, with over 100 blue-chip clients including Santander, New Look, Thomas Cook, Sky and ghd. Greenlight is recognized worldwide for its commitment to delivering record ROI for its clients and investing in the future of search. Greenlight publishes widely read industry reports, original research, speaking at trade events, and delivering a digital marketing training programme via the Greenlight Academy. Founded in 2001, Greenlight is headquartered in London, with offices in New York.

www.greenlightsearch.com