Online travel agencies in Europe are missing out on sales by focussing too much on flights, according to a study released today (August 24).
The research, carried out by Hermes Management and commissioned by Amadeus, shows that for European online agents, sales of non-air products accounts for 14% of their gross sales, compared to 50% in the US.
Selling other travel products, such as hotels and car rental, also has the potential for higher margins - 12.8% compared to 6.6% on air bookings, according to the findings.
The study also suggested European online travel agents could improve travellers' overall shopping experience, by providing more relevant content to cover all elements of a trip.
Another aspect where European agents lagged behind was in automation.
Stéphane Durand, director of online and leisure at Amadeus, said: "European online agents have shown resilience in the last couple of years, increasing thei revenues year-on-year despite the tough economic downturn.
"They now need to move a step forward to transform this positive trend into revenue opportunities."
The study looked at five medium-sized online travel agencies in France, Germany, Sweden, Norway and the Netherlands.
www.amadeus.com