Digital Media

Audit
Escape Travel
Word Count: 1643

Tutor: Alicia Marr

Megan Hunter
n9154507
1.0 Introduction
Escape Travel is one of Australias most trusted travel retailers providing a
premium service, catering to couples and travellers within the 45+ market
(Herron & Rogers, 2017). They pride themselves in their customer service,
providing 24/7 support; interest free holidays; and their vast range of travel
options. The product which differentiates Escape Travel from its competitors are
their Tailor-Made Holidays, which involves in-store specialists creating your
dream holiday for you. They compete with some of Australias largest travel
providers which have already established larger audiences which brings with it
greater challenges of gaining consumer loyalty and favourability.

S OURCE : E SCAPE TRAVEL , 2017 C

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2.0 Digital Audit
To appropriately identify how Escape Travel is progressing in achieving their
online goals and business objectives, a digital audit has been conducted across
all platforms with which they have an online presence. The results and ratings
are discussed in the table below.
Client: Escape Travel Date:
25/3/2017

Ratin
Criteria Examples or observations g1
to 10
Broad Escape Travel provides a highly involved, customised 6
vision of service experience where You dream it, we create it
how digital (Herron & Rogers, 2017). Social Media can support
media can Escape Travel to create these intimate relationships
transform with consumers and establish communities to boost
the their brand reputation (Singh, Sao, Nagare &
company Dharmarajan, 2016). They allow for quick and easy
communication and support towards enquiries,
feedback and complaints. Whilst Escape Travel has a
strong digital presence, and utilises its current tools
well when interacting with consumers, there is little
information or distinct focus on the customisability of
their main product which provides them with their
competitive edge.
Integration The digital branding of Escape Travel seems low 5
of priority compared to its other marketing platforms. By
marketing, still having a strong focus on in-store purchases and
IMC and interactions, digital media seems to fall behind from
digital their traditional media campaigns and lack the push of
strategy its main brand focus of tailored-holidays.
Inconsistencies through multiple mediums can cause
consumers to become confused and lack the
connection to the brand which can increase
relationships and loyalty (Weitzl, Zniva, Einwiller &
Beldad, 2017).
Digital Escape Travels digital strategy is to keep an active 8
strategy online presence through consistent posting on all
(please platforms, ensuring there is a focus on keeping
articulate) consumers minds thinking of future holidays, plans
and ideas whilst linking to their website.
Strategicall Escape Travels Tailor-Made Holidays brand message 4
y is at the forefront of offline media platforms, but is
consistent, lacking in promotion digitally. Currently the brand posts
company- consistent messages relating to holiday ideas over
created their different channels, but without highlighting this
brand distinct product, the business has no differentiation
messages from competitor travel suppliers online.

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Degree of The business gives digital media less priority over the 4
company traditional market and in-store capabilities. There are
involvemen few staff assigned to the social media channels of the
t in digital business with most responses to consumers made by
and social the same employee, often with delayed response times
media (Escape Travel, 2017a). This is bad for brand equity as
users of these sites look for brand interaction as a sign
of trust and commitment to them (See-To, Del Rio & Ho,
2016).
Digital Escape Travel utilises all major social media platforms 7
tools and Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Google+ and
social used Pinterest, increasing their opportunity for new
by the consumers to identify and engage with their brand.
company However, using too many platforms at once may cause
the business to lack the focussed attention required for
consumers on each platform to maintain brand
reputation (Weitzl et al., 2017).
Frequency On all major platforms, there is consistent posting with 9
of use of regular schedules. However, Facebook is the favoured
digital and platform with daily posts, whilst other platforms are
social only updated weekly (Twitter, Google+, Instagram,
media tools Pinterest) or even less (YouTube). This may still be
suitable as the target market engages in Facebook the
most out of all platforms (Sensis Social Media Report,
2016).
Examples 7
of content
shared

FIGURE 1. S OURCE : E SCAPE TRAVEL , 2017 A & E SCAPE T RAVEL ,

2017 C

Their photos and blogs are targeted towards anyone

who wants to travel, as they are largely a provision of
travel ideas and information (Figure 1). The ideal action
for the blogs is for audiences to click through, read the
post and start forming travel plans with Escape Travel
imprinted in their mind. Whilst the photos are to be
shared or saved to the same effect while promoting the
brand to friends or family.

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 FIGURE 2. S OURCE : E SCAPE TRAVEL , 2017 A
The competition was targeted towards females, from
mid to low-income households at the higher end of the
age bracket (Figure 2). This is identified through
research stating participation in online communities is
largely performed by females (Duggan & Brenner,
2013; Johansson & Gunnarsson, 2016). Opportunities
to save money on luxury goods is also ideal for those
low-income families or money conscious Baby Boomers
(Parment, 2013). The goal is for target audiences to
click through to the page and eventually supply their
information which acts as an entry point for future
marketing.

Strategic The content posted provides minimal encouragement 5

user for consumers to interact and contribute as its largely
engagemen images, videos or blog posts giving information
t targeted towards a broad audience (i.e. anyone who
wants to travel). There are few comments, likes and
shares on their social media channels as they lack
incentives and activities which promote user
participation (Rauniar, Rawski, Yang & Johnson, 2014).
Comments made by consumers are only responded to
if they are complaints or negative views, as seen on
their Facebook page (Escape Travel, 2017a). Poor
response time and a lack of community engagement
can reduce brand reputation and decreases chances of
word of mouth publicity (Sing et al., 2016).
Measureme The brand collects minimal data on its performance or 5
nt of digital lacks the analysis of it. The brand realises they get the
performanc most audience engagement from photos and videos,
e but little else has changed content-wise to adjust for
future strategies. Ongoing monitoring and feedback of
social media is a key step in increasing brand equity
and consumer loyalty (French, 2017). Understanding
the actions of current consumers can help uncover
insights in how to attract new consumers (Park & Oh,

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 2017).
*Where 0 indicates a lack of achievement and 10 represents optimum
achievement.

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 3.0 Target Audience Analysis, Competitor and
Product Overview
3.1 Target Audience
Escape Travel aims to target the 45+ demographic within Australia. These
customers fall under the Traditional Family Life Roy Morgan value segment and
may be retired with more free time and money (Levine & Benjamin, 1997). They
value trusted, well-known and local brands, as well as personalised customer
service interactions would likely become repeat purchasers if they have a good
experience both pre-purchase, and through the experience of their purchase
(holiday) (Herron & Rogers, 2017; Parment, 2013). 36% of these consumers use
the internet daily with Facebook being the prime social networking site (Perrin,
2015; Sensis Social Media Report, 2016). Theyre online in the evenings or first
thing in the morning to keep in touch with family or for how-to and information
searching (Rauniar et al., 2014).

3.2 Competitor Overview

There is a large volume of competitors within the travel industry which include
online travel agencies, airlines and direct suppliers. Three key competitors of
Escape Travel have been listed in the table below. It is shown that these
competitors have a large following on their social media channels which may
prove difficult for Escape Travel when trying to attract new consumers to their
brand, if they are already loyal to alternate brands (Singh et al., 2016). However,
there is minimal difference in their digital offerings with similarly designed
websites and social media posts. Therefore, the main threat towards Escape
Travel is the reach of the competitors marketing and advertisements.
TABLE 1. ESCAPE TRAVEL' S KEY C OMPETITORS AND DIGITAL P RESENCE
Expedia Qantas Flight Centre Escape Travel
Website 7/10 8/10 8/10 7/10
- Simple - Simple - Simple design - Simple design
design design - Extensive search - Relevant
- Extensive - Easy to use options information
search options - Relevant - Large pool of - Lacking date
- Information information information search features
cluttered - Visually - Eye-catching - Visually
- Lacking appealing banners appealing
visual appeal (Qantas, 2017) (Flight Centre, (Escape Travel,
(Expedia, 2017) 2017b)
2017)
Mobile 10/10 10/10 10/10 10/10
Compatibl
e
Facebo 6,357,941 990,238 823,876 330,480
Following

ok
Twitter 387,000 423,000 27,000 3,675
Instagr 139,000 479,000 98,400 15,500
am
Social 7/10 9/10 6/10 6/10

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 Media - Strong - Strong - Fair customer - Minimal
customer customer interaction customer
interaction interaction - Consistent posts interaction
- Consistent - Consistent - Reasonable - Consistent
posts posts Consumer posts
- Reasonable - Large engagement - Slight
consumer consumer consumer
engagement engagement engagement
Total 24/30 26/30 24/30 23/30
3.3 Product Overview
Escape Travel offers exclusive airfares, elite travel add-ons and a range of
holiday activities which are customisable and personable, which they strive to
reflect in their business values. Travel purchases and decisions are high
involvement, with consumers taking the time to thoroughly research price,
quality, deals, options or past consumer opinions through blogs, social networks
or googling (Xiang & Gretzel, 2017). Organic search is the main form of site
recognition when researching for travel information, followed by direct search
(Figure 3) (SimilarWeb.com, 2017). Digital media can help aid in the search path
leading to Escape Travel by bringing the brand into focus and getting consumers
familiar with the offerings, services and products available for the future when
they may begin researching for their holiday. This can also assist in overcoming
barriers of trust and unfamiliarity (Weitzl et al., 2017). Escape Travels main
product of Tailor-Made Holidays is still very much an in-person consumer
interaction; therefore, digital media can be utilised through the same means for
awareness and providing information whilst directing consumers in-store.

FIGURE 3. DIFFERENT CHANNELS CONSUMERS GO THROUGH TO REACH

ESCAPETRAVEL. COM . AU (SIMILAR W EB. COM , 2017)

3.4 Consumer Insight

Semi-retired or retired consumers over the age of 45 will be more inclined to
choose a specific brand or product when everything is made as easy as possible
and most, if not all the work is done for them. If customer service isnt prompt, if
information is misleading or irrelevant and if they feel their requests or
expectations are not met they will search elsewhere for an easier alternative that
meets their needs (Fuchs, Ricci & Cantoni, 2012; Xiang & Gretzel, 2017).

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4.0 Recommendations
4.1 Engaging Content
Escape Travel should produce content which provides incentive for consumers to
engage and interact with the brand and motivate them to comment, like or share
posts. Polls, quizzes, questions and competitions increases the involvement and
enjoyment of visiting the page and promotes future visits and increases word of
mouth publicity; especially if theyre incentivised with rewards like discounts,
giveaways or exclusive offers (Rauniar et al., 2014; Sensis Social Media Report,
2016; Xiang & Gretzel, 2017). User generated content and word of mouth
publicity is important for the target demographic as they perceive this similarly
as recommendations from friends or family, increasing brand trust (Fuchs, Ricci &
Cantoni, 2012).

4.2 Date Search Functionality

The website (http://www.escapetravel.com.au/) should add the functionality to be
able to search for flights with a specific date in mind. Allowing consumers to
customise their searches to align with their travel requirements or queries will
ensure they stay on the website and not look elsewhere to find the relevant
information (Hudson & Thal, 2013). As stated previously, this target demographic
looks for ease of service while researching, and providing them with further tools
will cater to this need (Parment, 2013).

4.3 Tailor-Made Holiday Information

To highlight the Tailor-Made Holiday product, Escape Travel should provide
consumers ways to easily access this information on their website. By providing
a form or interactive document online, consumers can get more accurate
information with ballpark figures of costs, best times to travel, things to do and
other relevant information. This will increase consumers relationships with the
brand, building trust and increasing brand equity whilst giving them easy to
access information which they can bring with them when visiting in-store (See-To,
Del & Ho, 2016; Weitzl et al., 2017).

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5.0 Reference List
Duggan, M., & Brenner, J. (2013). The Demographics of Social Media Users
2012 (1st ed.). Washington: Pew Research Center. Retrieved from
http://www.pewinternet.org/2013/02/14/the-demographics-of-social-media-
users-2012/
Escape Travel. (2017a). Facebook.com. Retrieved from
https://www.facebook.com/EscapeTravelAU/
Escape Travel. (2017b). Escapetravel.com.au. Retrieved from
http://www.escapetravel.com.au/
Escape Travel. (2017c). Twitter.com. Retrieved from
https://twitter.com/escapetravelAU
Expedia. (2017). Expedia.com.au. Retrieved from https://www.expedia.com.au/
Flight Centre. (2017). FlightCentre.com.au. Retrieved from
http://www.flightcentre.com.au/
French, J. (2017). Social Marketing and Public Health (2nd ed.). Oxford: Oxford
University Press.
Fuchs, M., Ricci, F., & Cantoni, L. (2012). Information and Communication
Technologies in Tourism 2012 (1st ed., pp. 13-24). Vienna: Springer.
Herron, C. & Rogers, B. (2017). AMB330 Digital Portfolio: Escape Travel Brief
[Supplemental material]. Retrieved from
https://blackboard.qut.edu.au/bbcswebdav/pid-6725621-dt-content-rid-
7964899_1/courses/AMB330_17se1/Escape%20Travel%20Brief.pdf
Hudson, S., & Thal, K. (2013). The Impact of Social Media on the Consumer
Decision Process: Implications for Tourism Marketing. Retrieved from
http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10548408.2013.751276
Johansson, G., & Gunnarsson, I. (2016). Its All About Money: Consumer
Engagement with Brands on Social Media (Dissertation). Retrieved from
http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:lnu:diva-54625
Levine, M., & Benjamin, C. (1997). Traditional Family Life. Roy Morgan Research.
Retrieved from http://www.roymorgan.com/products/values-
segments/traditional-family-life
Park, J., & Oh, I. (2017). A Case Study of Social Media Marketing by Travel
Agency: The Salience of Social Media Marketing in the Tourism Industry.
Retrieved from
http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/15980634.2012.11434654
Parment, A. (2013). Generation Y vs. Baby Boomers: Shopping behavior, buyer
involvement and implications for retailing. Science Direct. Retrieved from
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S096969891200149X
Perrin, A. (2015). Social Media Usage: 2005-2015 (1st ed.). Washington: Pew
Research Center. Retrieved from

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 http://www.pewinternet.org/2015/10/08/social-networking-usage-2005-
2015/
Qantas. (2017). Qantas.com. Retrieved from https://www.qantas.com/au/en.html/
Rauniar, R., Rawski, G., Yang, J., & Johnson, B. (2014). Technology acceptance
model (TAM) and social media usage: an empirical study on
Facebook. Emerald Insight. Retrieved from
http://www.emeraldinsight.com/doi/abs/10.1108/JEIM-04-2012-0011
See-To, E., Del Rio, P., & Ho, K. (2016). Social Media Effects in Virtual Brand
Communities. International Journal of Systems and Service-Oriented
Engineering, 6(2), 66-88. http://dx.doi.org/10.4018/ijssoe.2016040104
Sensis Social Media Report 2016. (2016) (1st ed., pp. 3-53). Melbourne. Retrieved
from
https://www.sensis.com.au/asset/PDFdirectory/Sensis_Social_Media_Report
_2016.PDF
SimilarWeb.com - Competitive Intelligence Tool. (2017). Similar Web. Retrieved
from https://pro.similarweb.com
Singh, S., Sao, A., Nagare, T., & Dharmarajan, A. (2016). Role of Social Media
Marketing in Brand Building: The New Age Marketing
Strategy. International Journal of Scientific Research, 5(9), 458-463.
Retrieved from
http://www.worldwidejournals.in/ojs/index.php/ijsr/article/view/11883
Weitzl, W., Zniva, R., Einwiller, S., & Beldad, A. (2017). Success Factors of Brand
Communication on Facebook: A Structured Abstract. Creating Marketing
Magic and Innovative Future Marketing Trends, 293-297.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-45596-9_57
Xiang, Z., & Gretzel, U. (2017). Role of social media in online travel information
search. Science Direct. Retrieved from
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.tourman.2009.02.016

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