Jonathan Hassell, chief executive at Hassell Inclusion, says many companies continue to make it difficult for a significant proportion of customers to buy their services
As the traditional peak holiday season comes to an end, many customers will now be hoping to take advantage of lower off-peak prices. It is likely that a proportion of these will be in the over-65s demographic, who are often keen to travel during the quieter times of the year.
In pursuit of sunshine and relaxation, imagine the disappointment for these customers when they go online and encounter a difficult, anxiety-inducing booking experience. Unfortunately, that is the reality of many travel web sites for older consumers – many of whom have significant spending power – where their specific needs are not being catered for.
High street travel agents wouldn’t barricade the doors or fail to provide older customers with help when entering the shop, so why aren’t the specific needs of this demographic being fully supported in the digital environment?
From booking holidays and short breaks, through to managing the whole travel process from tickets to car parking and vehicle rental, the use of technology is now embedded throughout the travel industry – it cannot be avoided. And yet, many travel companies continue to make it difficult for a significant proportion of customers to buy their services, by not addressing digital accessibility.
Our report – ‘A golden opportunity: Are you serving the needs of older online consumers?’ – shows that over-65s are a highly active online community. They are also keen to spend – 58% have booked a hotel online and 45% have booked a flight, while two-thirds (66%) have used a cost comparison site.
However, many people in this demographic will be dealing with age-related impairments, such as reduced fine motor skills, deteriorating eyesight, hearing loss, poor memory, and increased anxiety, all of which can make using websites and apps more challenging.
This is borne out in our research, which reveals that 81% of the 1296 over-65s we surveyed said they are frustrated by inaccessible websites and apps, while 70% say businesses fail to consider age-related impairments. One third (33%) also said they had abandoned an online purchase due to difficulties in using a website or app.
Problems they experience include not remembering complicated passwords (37%), confusing site navigation (34%), not having enough time to complete a task before being ‘timed out’ (32%), and text being difficult to read (30%). More than one in ten (11%) also said they found it difficult to hear the sound in online videos.
That is why it’s so important to take the online requirements of this important demographic into account when designing websites and apps – not least because of the commercial imperative. More than one in 10 over-65s said they would spend more online if websites and apps were easier for them to use. This is even higher (17%) among older consumers who are employed either full or part-time, and, interestingly, among those with age-related impairments. More than one in four consumers (26%) with deteriorating eyesight said they would spend more online if websites and apps were easier for them to use.
This shows that there is a real opportunity for travel companies to differentiate their offering from competitors by focusing on the needs of ‘silver spenders’.
There are three key steps to take to ensure your digital estate meets the specific needs of this audience:
- Acknowledge the specific problems older consumers might be experiencing with your websites and apps.
This can be achieved by researching their needs – conducting focus groups and gathering feedback about their specific accessibility requirements. You should also review the accessibility of your websites, apps and communications, including social media, email, and PDFs.
- Address the practical fixes that will improve your user experience for older consumers.
For example, make sure your videos have captions for customers who are hard of hearing, make your buttons big enough to confidently tap for those with poor hand control, and ensure your website and app design provides a clear layout and makes good use of white space.
- Adopt an age-positive mindset across your organisation.
Make effectively addressing the needs of your older customers part of your long-term strategic approach to digital. Embedding this throughout your company will ensure the needs of older consumers are considered at the outset of any digital project. Retrofitting for their needs is neither efficient nor effective in the long-term.
What is clear is this demographic has become increasingly tech savvy. In just 20 years’ time, older consumers will be those of us who are currently in our forties and fifties, are used to doing everything online, and expect the experience to remain user-friendly as we age.
None of us can stop the impairments that come with ageing, so the travel sector needs to consider how this will influence the design of their digital platforms so that they meet the needs of an increasingly tech-enabled older generation.
At the end of the day, can you afford not to?