SEO Travel Industry Review 2012

Transcription

1 SEO Travel Industry Review 2012 Travel aggregatrs have saturated Ggle in 2012, leaving airlines and htel brands with a dwindling SEO market share Reprt cmpiled by David Burgess

2 Intrductin As the summer draws ever clser, a fierce battle is cmmencing nline as travel websites fight fr the attentin f ptential custmers, searching fr their next vacatin nline. But whilst the paid advertising n Ggle is ften saturated by brands, the majr carriers and htel brands are ntably missing in the main search results fr cmpetitive terms. The battle is being wn hands-dwn by the travel aggregatrs and price cmparisn websites in the UK and US, whilst lng-established brands wbble n the rpes. The ffline big brands seem unable t cpe with the agility and techniques used by their yunger, leaner ppnents. Nr can they keep up with the latest Ggle updates that cntinue t strike hard n unsuspecting traditinal businesses. Ayima, a specialist Search Engine Optimizatin cnsultancy, has cllated vast amunts f data in the creatin f this reprt, allwing the battlefield t be clearly mapped. S, is this a recent change r a cntinuing trend? Market Intelligence Our industry analysis has been prepared using Market Intelligence Reprts fr each individual sectr, bth in the US and the UK. Market Intelligence Reprts assign a Traffic Scre metric t every website, calculated using the ranking psitin, estimated clickthrugh rate and traffic (reprted by Ggle) fr every relevant majr search term in the sectr. Each reprt usually includes arund f the highest traffic keywrds. Therefre, a travel site ranking #1 fr the mst cmpetitive keywrd (e.g. [cheap flights]) achieves a much higher scre than a cmpetitr ranking at #12 fr a less ppular term such as [flight fares]. When yu ttal up the scres acrss all f the keywrds, an accurate cmparisn can be made, f hw each website perfrms against thers in that sectr. By regularly generating the Market Intelligence Reprts, we can see trends in perfrmance ver time, including wh s imprving and wh s suffering. The keywrds used in Ayima s Market Intelligence Reprts are lcalized and the estimated traffic vlumes vary depending n the cuntry.

3 S, nw we understand the Market Intelligence metrics, we need sme sites t analyze. Rather than rely n any randm methd f selectin, Ayima has utilized RITA (US Gvernment), CAA (UK Gvernment) and MKG (Hspitality Industry) audited data. We ll be cmparing Market Intelligence Reprts frm 10th Octber 2011, t the mst recent data frm 11th June Data has been cllected n a daily basis and majr htel chains have been assigned a clr cde t help visualize them acrss a large dataset.

4 The gap at the tp f the tp f the sectr is increasingly taken by aggregatrs and price cmparisn sites T cmpare the perfrmance between 2011 and 2012, the Market Intelligence scres have been used as ur Key Perfrmance Indicatr. SEO Tp 10 - US Htel Sectr (2011 vs. 2012) Only 1 htel chain remains in the tp 10

5 SEO Tp 10 - UK Htel Sectr (2011 vs. 2012) The 3 chains ranking have all drpped SEO Tp 10 - US Flight Sectr (2011 vs. 2012) Aggregatrs radblck all 10 tp psitins SEO Tp 10 - UK Flight Sectr (2011 vs. 2012) The carriers ranking in Oct 2011 have drpped & been replaced by thers

6 Traffi c Scre Cmparisns in the Htel & Flight Sectrs In the htel sectr, we have cmpared the ttal Traffi c Scres f the 10 largest US Htel Chains and 9 f the largest UK chains. US Htel Sectr chicehtels.cm & marritt.cm have perfrmed very well lq.cm & Hiltn. cm have suffered in recent times The net scre acrss the 10 htel chains is psitive, but still nne f these large htel chain websites rank in the tp 10 verall, based n their SEO Traffi c Scre. UK Htel Sectr All f the websites have a negative scre change, indicating they have all drpped within the sectr Huge net scre drp

7 US Flight Sectr Suthwest. cm has imprved psitin within the sectr Jetblue.cm hwever has drpped sharply UK Flight Sectr Ryanair.cm has shwn a cnsiderable imprvement in perfrmance Virgin-atlantic meanwhile have suffered slipped within the sectr Hw can the balance f pwer shift back? Althugh Tweets, Ggle +1s and Facebk Likes are likely t be used as imprtant ranking factrs fr search engines in the future, links still remain as the mst pwerful identifi ers f authrity and trust. Inspecting the backlink data f the sites in each sectr shuld therefre prvide evidence as t why the aggregatrs are ut-stripping the lder established brands.

8 US Flights Sectr Link/Authrity Analysis Only kayak.cm has reached the 10k backlink level with thers cnsiderably lwer 5 f the largest carriers dminate the aggregatrs in terms f backlinks UK Flights Sectr Link/Authrity Analysis The majr carriers greatly utweigh the aggregatrs in terms f backlinks. The Market Intelligence leader f the sectr has many fewer links We can see frm the data abve, that links and authrity d nt seem t be slely t blame fr the pr perfrmance f majr airlines. The link prfi les f majr carriers als display a huge brand fcus in the way that peple link int them. This highly natural link prfi le is ften the case with well-knwn and highly referenced brands. The charts belw shw the tp 10 mst prevalent anchr (link) text used when referencing United.cm, Delta.cm and Suthwest.cm. In each case, the tp 10 cnsists f branded anchrs, URLs r randm terms such as website r here. This is entirely natural and is ften hw users r website wners link t an external website.

9 United Mst Cmmn Linking Text (Anchr) Delta Airlines Mst Cmmn Linking Text (Anchr) Suthwest Airlines Mst Cmmn Linking Text (Anchr) Suthwest.cm has attracted many hugely authritative, high PR links

10 S why are the brands lsing market share? With the data t hand, there seems t be n clear reasn as t why the majr carriers and htel chains are cnsistently being utperfrmed. All f the data pints t them having a much strnger Off-Page SEO presence. What is hlding them back? Why have the price cmparisn sites been able t vertake these lng established, industry behemths? David vs. Gliath In the SEO wrld, aggregatrs are the metaphrical agile, nimble fl y-weights wh are running rings rund the mre cumbersme, heavy-hitting, super-weight brands. The carriers especially have websites that evlved frm the very dawn f the Internet, as yu ll see belw frm screenshts f the hmepages f United.cm and BritishAirways.cm. United.cm - 7th April 2000 Surce:

11 BritishAirways.cm - December 3rd 1998 Surce: The Impact f Change It s impssible t knw hw many redesigns and redevelpment cycles each airline s website has gne thrugh. Prgramming languages evlve, Cntent Management Systems change, bking engines get replaced. Persnnel changes within teams r external agencies ften have dramatic effects n websites and applicatins pwering them, as key knwledge can be lst as individuals leave the business. With such states f fl ux, and such cmplex websites, it is impssible fr them nt t becme cumbersme and see them diverging frm SEO Best Practice. This is nt smething that the smaller dt cm start-up aggregatrs have t wrestle with.

12 The aggregatrs are in a much mre frtunate psitin. Arriving later in the market and with a greater understanding f nline marketing and SEO in particular, their websites are able t cnfrm t better standards f On-Page SEO. They can create the idealized website structure. They are leaner and dn t have legacy systems t cause issues with search engine indexatin. With a yunger cdebase, they are als able t deply changes that mre crprate applicatins culd nt supprt. Implementing the very latest tags and practices recmmended by search engines is nt always pssible. Nr wuld ranking the crrect versins f cntent acrss the glbe, fr example, be a strategy knwn by their in-huse marketing team r large multi-natinal marketing agency. Many f the larger cmpanies suffer frm cmmn issues related t SEO, which are dissipating the equity f their hugely authritative link prfiles. Of these issues, there will always be quick, sizeable wins t bst perfrmance in a shrt space f time as well as lnger-term fixes. It s imprtant t priritize the develpments that will give the fastest and safest results. In this age f such fierce cmpetitin then, what are sme f the sme key questins and areas f fcus fr the majr brands? On-Page Issues Website Issues Reslving internal redirect issues Emplying an ptimized URL structure Crrecting lingering issues with legacy website migratins Reslving website errrs and infinite lps

13 Internatinal SEO Emplying the crrect dmain name strategy Presenting translated cntent in the crrect manner in the right regins Prviding sufficient value t the lcalized cntent t rank highly Cntent Generatin What types f cntent shuld be generated? Where shuld it be hsted? Hw t ptimize the cntent? On-Page Issues Re-acquiring value frm brken links Citatin link cnversin Outreach prgrams t generate expsure, PR and the all imprtant backlinks

14 Cnclusin Every website will present its wn specific challenges and issues t address, but by embracing a strategy that aims t accmplish gals related t these areas, will deliver in the shrt, medium and lnger terms. It is clear frm the research that sme f the websites analyzed have a lng way t g t redress underlying issues. A guide as t hw best undertake the wrk can be taken by peaking ver the fence and taking sme lessns frm the aggregatrs and price cmparisn sites wh are currently perfrming s well. The Authr David Burgess has been wrking in SEO fr ver a decade, currently heading up Ayima s New Yrk ffice in dwntwn Manhattan. When he s nt sifting thrugh terabytes f client and cmpetitr data, David spends his days engaging with clients and implementing SEO best practices n even the mst cmplex and legacy f CMSs, release schedules and rganizatinal structures. The Cmpany Ayima was funded in 2007, by the frmer in-huse SEO team f a FTSE 100 nline gaming cmpany. With extensive experience wrking in the tughest verticals and with the mst crprate f cmpanies, Ayima nw strives t make its clients the SEO market leaders either lcally r wrldwide. Headquartered in Lndn, Ayima emplys ver 100 peple and has reginal ffices in New Yrk, Raleigh, Vancuver and Asia. Wrking With Ayima If yu re interested in wrking with Ayima r finding ut mre abut ur services, we d lve t hear frm yu. We have the knwledge and resurces necessary t drive yur SEO rankings, traffic, market share and sales. Damian Canning - Glbal Business Develpment Manager Telephne: damian@ayima.cm

15 Appendix Why SEO? The prcess f Search Engine Optimizatin shuld be an integral part f any business that is aiming t establish a prminent nline presence. The ability t enhance a website s visibility within rganic search results (SERPs) is a crucial tl t prpel a business s virtual presence abve that f its rivals. The widespread prevalence f Pay Per Click PPC ads ($28 billin was spent in the US alne in 2010), highlights hw imprtant Search Marketing cntinues t be. With click thrugh rates (CTRs) fr PPC at arund 14.5%, there is still much mre audience share t aim fr in the Organic Search realm. The tp three psitins in rganic search listings averaged ver 35% f all click thrughs in 2011, shwing the ptential traffic wins available frm perfrming truly effectively in SEO. What it takes fr yu t rank ahead f yur cmpetitrs An incredible amunt f research, analysis and n-ging prmtinal activity is required fr a successful SEO campaign. Even then, ver 200 ranking factrs are cnsidered by Ggle many f which underg tweaks and amendments n a daily basis. This means that knwledge must be cntinually updated and expertise regularly hned t adjust t a search landscape cnstantly altered by minr algrithm tweaks. Search Engine Optimizatin requires a fully integrated apprach, including buy-in frm technical departments, marketing staff, PR and ther marketing agencies. Ayima has hned their cmmunicatin and SEO planning prcesses ver many years, ensuring cmpany-wide visibility and understanding f SEO requirements. We cnsider all aspects f the client s business, frm the prduct itself t website design, functinality and visitr cnversin. Ayima aims t help clients create a technically sund and user intuitive website which, when cupled with creative prmtinal campaigns, will in turn bst traffic, search rankings and sales fr the cmpany.

16 Our clients Ayima is frtunate enugh t wrk with glbal market leaders in the fi elds f Retail, Mbile Cmmunicatin, Online Gaming, Insurance Services, Media and Entertainment, as well as Charities and NGOs. Ayima des nt publicize its client list, t prtect the interests f its clients. Fr US airline carriers, Ayima surced data frm RITA (Research & Innvatin Technlgy Administratin), where yu can access the detailed fi nancial statements f US carriers: Any accuntant will tell yu that metrics such as Equity Rati will give greater insight int the health f a cmpany. In this instance thugh we ve gne fr gd, ld-fashined cash in the bank. US Airlines Cash in the bank end f Q4-2011

17 Cntinental Air Lines Inc. was purchased by United Air Lines Inc. in May 2010, creating the wrld s largest air carrier ( Data in the UK cmes frm the Civil Aviatin Authrity, where the balance sheets f majr carriers in the fi nancial year 2010 t 2011 are published. UK Airlines Ttal Cash in the Bank - Financial year

18 US Htel Grup Rankings Surce: MKG Hspitality Database - September 2011