Expedia Pulls Ahead of the Pack in Online Travel
Expedia.com Rated #1 Online Travel Provider in ACSI Customer Satisfaction Survey
BELLEVUE, Wash., Feb. 24 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Expedia.com®, the world’s leading online travel site, today announced it has the highest customer satisfaction rating among online travel providers according to the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) E-Commerce Report. Expedia also recorded the greatest score increase in the online travel category.
Expedia differentiated itself from the online travel pack by increasing its score 3.9 percent over last year for a score of 79, while the other major online travel agencies dropped 1.3 percent each.
“Travelers are demanding more and more from online travel providers as adoption continues to grow,” says Steven McArthur, president, North America Leisure Travel Group, Expedia.com. “We are proud to be the best-in-class online travel company in an age when the customer knows best.”
Each year, ACSI releases a report on online customer satisfaction, segmenting e-commerce into four subcategories: e-retail, online auction, e-brokerage, and online travel companies. The report is compiled from online interviews conducted in the fourth quarter of 2005. While the 2004 ACSI scores showed that online travel companies were not significantly differentiating themselves, consumers began to distinguish their higher satisfaction with Expedia in 2005. After years of parity in the online travel industry, Expedia has positioned itself as the cream of the crop.
“Some companies have really figured out how to take customer satisfaction to the next level, and the stakes just keep getting higher,” said online customer satisfaction expert Larry Freed, president and CEO of ForeSee Results. “While all of the e-travel companies tout their guarantees and their focus on customer service, Expedia seems to be best living up to its promise in customers’ eyes.”
“At Expedia, we strive to give customers what they want, when where and how they want it,” says Angie Blackburn, SVP of Operations, Expedia.com. “In an industry where differentiation is a key to winning a travelers’ loyalty, we are thrilled to be recognized for our efforts in customer satisfaction.”
Expedia also recently embarked on a groundbreaking initiative that sets a new industry standard for empowering travelers in booking their travel. The company introduced three customer-centric product initiatives: a Best Price Guarantee (http://www.expedia.com/guarantee); Your Personal Trip Guide, which brings Expedia’s extensive travel data and information directly to bear on designing travelers’ personal itineraries; and the Expedia Promise (http://www.expedia.com/promise), which outlines the company’s commitment to stand behind its customers through the entire travel experience.
About Expedia.com
Expedia.com is the world’s leading online travel provider, helping more than 25 million travelers per month easily plan and book travel. Expedia.com (http://www.expedia.com/ ) aims to provide personalized service, the latest technology and the widest selection of vacation packages, flights, hotels, rental cars, cruises and in-destination activities, attractions, and services. With the Expedia Best Price Guarantee, Expedia.com promises to offer to its customers the best rates available online for all types of travel, making it the most comprehensive customer guarantee in online travel. Expedia.com is an operating company of Expedia, Inc. (NASDAQ: EXPE) CST: 2029030-40
NOTE: Expedia, Expedia.com, and the airplane logo are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Expedia, Inc. in the United States, Canada and/or other countries. Other product and company names mentioned herein may be trademarks of their respective owners. The awards were given based on 2005 customer reviews. Hotels with fewer than 5 reviews were not included in the rankings.
About ForeSee Results
ForeSee Results is the market leader in online customer satisfaction management and specializes in converting satisfaction data into user-driven web development strategies. Using the methodology of the University of Michigan’s American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI), ForeSee Results has created a model that scientifically quantifies the elements that drive online customer satisfaction and predicts future behaviors, including the likelihood to return to the site or recommend the site to others. ForeSee Results, a privately held company located in Ann Arbor, Michigan, can be found online at http://www.foreseeresults.com/.
About the ACSI
The American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) is the only uniform, national, cross-industry measure of satisfaction with the quality of goods and services available in the United States. A key distinguishing feature of the ACSI methodology is its patented scientific approach to customer satisfaction measurement. The technology behind the ACSI computes scores that reflect performance — based on the relative impacts of various components of satisfaction on overall satisfaction and the likelihood of desirable future behaviors, such as repeat purchases. Accordingly, the ACSI methodology is able to isolate and determine the importance of customer satisfaction drivers most likely to produce these behaviors — an important distinction from basic customer satisfaction ratings.
FCMN Contact: shaas@expedia.com
SOURCE: Expedia, Inc.
CONTACT: press only, Katie Deines of Expedia.com, +1-425-679-4317, or
press@expedia.com; or Sarah Allen, +1-202-535-7800, ext. 105, or
sallen@kearnswest.com, or Chaat Butsunturn, +1-415-391-7900, ext. 114, or
cbutsunturn@kearnswest.com, both for ForeSee Results</br/></br/></br/>
Web site: http://www.foreseeresults.com/
Web site: http://www.expedia.com/