Online power assessed
New Zealand marketing agency First Digital has performed an analysis of rankings-based research (RBR) on travel insurance providers in the country to investigate which websites are leading when it comes to travel-insurance related searches online
According to the findings, there were 10,750 total searches for travel insurance in June 2014, with 9,900 searches for the term ‘travel insurance’, and the next most popular search was ‘cheap travel insurance’, with 480 searches. Looking at page one of the search engine results for ‘travel insurance’, First Digital found that Southern Cross Travel Insurance, 1Cover and Travel Insurance Direct are consistently taking the top three positions for the paid search results, although Air New Zealand and STA Travel are also very prominent in this category. The results, said First Digital, demonstrate that the market is highly competitive.
Looking at the natural search results, First Digital said: “The RBR leader is Southern Cross, which reaches a fantastic RBR or more than 90 per cent. The closest followers are AA and State. ANZ, BNZ and Kiwibank rank in 8th, 9th and 10th position. The RBR is below two per cent for nearly half of all analysed companies, which means that there is a lot of room for improvement.” For searches on mobile, where First Digital says it is even more important to appear on the first page of search results, the majority of travel insurance providers are not visible. “There is a lot of room for improvement,” noted the analysis.
The company also asked questions of consumers, perhaps the most important of which was ‘have you ever applied for travel insurance?’, finding that more than 80 per cent of Kiwis have applied for travel insurance in the past, leaving 20 per cent saying that they have never applied for a travel insurance policy. Asked why they didn’t take out travel cover, the majority of respondents didn’t travel, followed by 15 per cent of people who took the risk of travelling uninsured, a further 15 per cent said it was too expensive, while 10 per cent were insured through their bank or credit card. Two per cent said the insurance wouldn’t cover their medical conditions, and the same percentage said the buying process was too difficult.
Most Kiwis go to the website of a known insurance company to find information concerning travel insurance, found the survey, although a significant number of people mentioned that they would find advice or information through their travel agent. Interestingly, the survey showed that Kiwis are very concerned by a company’s reputation and credibility, with most ranking these as the most important criteria to consider when buying a policy, followed by transparent policy information and then price. Online is certainly the most popular distribution for travel insurance, with just one in nine respondents to the survey saying they would call on the phone.
Forty-two per cent of respondents are happy with the service provided by travel insurers, although it was noted that improvements could be made through explaining options to customers more clearly, and also by insurers being more concerned about the customer.
First Digital concluded: “A considered digital strategy that integrates both organic and paid search should be a key customer acquisition and revenue driver for travel insurance providers.”