Two thirds of online Brits (67%) are now using the Internet to research, source and plan their holidays both here in the UK and abroad, according to the latest research from Memonic, the free web based note-taking software company, and YouGov.
The research, conducted online by Memonic and YouGov, found that only 15% of British travellers now use travel agents to research their holidays.
Dorian Selz, CEO of Memonic stated: “According to ABTA itself, over three quarters of the UK workforce holidayed in the 12 month period to September 2010. UK workers also took an average of 3.2 holidays; two in the UK and 1.2 abroad!
“Our research has found that 74% of online Brits that research holidays online are spending anywhere from at least two hours upwards researching each holiday online, with 20% spending 8 or more hours, the equivalent of an entire working day, conducting research.”
When it comes to researching and sharing information, British consumers appear to be stacking paper and stockpiling bookmarks on their PCs. Some 48% of online Brits who do their holiday research online stated that they print off their collated holiday research, whilst 33% use all their bookmarks.
Other key findings from those who research holidays online include:
• 21% write down the information, while 29% copy and paste into a ‘Word’ document
• When sorting through information they collate, 34% print everything relevant out, while just under a third (31%) review their hand written notes
• 30% share information with travel companions by simply printing off paper; 60% share the information in person
• Additionally, almost half (47%) of all GB adults online are interested in a tool which would save web content, make notes as they do their research and organise their holiday research
“With 48% of online holiday researchers printing details rather than collating information on-line in one place no wonder we are seeing so much time being spent on a simple task. In contrast, Memonic is a free web based note-taking software offering web users the ability to capture information onto an online notebook to share with family and friends with no printer in sight and all details are available online on the slopes or at the airport via your mobile devices or Smartphone!”
As we spend more time working, we need a time-saving way to share this information. With Memonic you can clip just the essential from each web page, store it on your online notebook and share this with your family and friends.
Not only does Memonic allow you to clip facts and figures about your ski resort, you can also copy videos and photos all in one place to share before you travel. Once saved you can organise the content into different sets which you can then share with different groups of friends or family.
The standard application is free and easy to download from the website (with 100 items and 3 groups) and the premium currently offered at the special rate of £18 per year offering unlimited items and groups. As Memonic is also available for the iPhone, iPad and any Smartphone, you can take it anywhere with you.
Once your holiday is over, you would normally throw away the print-out details of where you stayed and ski hire information but with Memonic, you can keep it future reference in your online notebook.
Methodology
All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc. Total sample size was 2016 adults. Fieldwork was undertaken between the 7th – 10th January 2011. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all GB adults (aged 18+).
Source: www.memonic.com