Travelers Angry with Web

NostraChuckus was wrong.

That’s painful to admit, but a new study by Forrester Research proves (even mocks) the fallibility of this famed prognosticator:

Worst Part of a Trip May Be Booking It on the Web
A new report, to be released Tuesday by Forrester Research, found that far from embracing the do-it-yourself era, many consumers were fed up with the complicated process of planning and booking travel.

Travel Agents are gloating:

Forrester Research Sees Travelers Angry with Web
* Travelers Are Fed Up With Bad, Inconsistent  Travel eBusiness Experiences
* The Travel Industry Fiddled With eBusiness While Rome Burned
* Weak Economy And Angry Travelers Demand New Travel eBusiness Approach

NostraChuckus was sure the online travel biz would make things easier and easier, more fun and more fun – where one of the best parts of a trip would be planning it. 

Here’s what he predicted in January 2004:

 
Cavalierly plagiarizing himself, NostraChuckus divined even more from his Crystal Ball of Common Sense and scribbled it all in his book (1st Edition, 2005):

 

 NostraChuckus is taking his crystal ball to Dervish and Banges for a tune-up.

2009: The First Half+ (Online Presentation)

An overview. Length: 25 minutes.
Topics Covered
News Articles &
The Economy 
The Media
Boomer Women
Television Campaigns New Resources

Links to articles and sites profiled in the above presentation:
Boomers key to economic recovery

BusinessWeek
Get set for wave of Boomer startups
Businesses Fighting For Baby Boomer Dollars

Economy Faces Bigger Bust Without Boomers

Baby boomers adopting responsible consumerism
Recession Turns Boomers Into Perfect Catch For Advertisers
Ask an Expert: Boomers are a once in a lifetime opportunity
Older folks like Wii, PCs and cellphones, too
Grandparents get their widgets on
Latest IRI Baby Boomer Report Reveals $50 Billion Growth Opportunity for CPG Industry
Who’s gonna buy this car?
Coming Boom in Boomer-Friendly Transport
Tech Marketers' Next Opportunity: Boomers
Why Television Still Shines in a World of Screens
Marketing Vox
Harris Poll (PDF)
Boomers: The Overlooked Media Sweet Spot
Advertising to Baby Boomers (Book Review, PDF)
Harris Poll & Advertising & Social Networking
Chico's and Baby Boomer Women ... NOT
Amid Sales Slump, Chico's Taps New CEO
The Forgotten Market Online: Older Women
Depend.com
Adult underwear no longer being given the silent treatment
Crestor.com
Engage:Boomers
Aging In Place Technology Watch
Mark Miller/Huffington Post
www.evergreenam.com.au (Resources)
Baby Boomer Knowledge Center
MetLife Mature Market Institute
Henry Stewart Talks

Reg Starkey’s IMMN Webinar

IMMN is sponsoring a webinar on August 19th with iconoclast and creative problem-solver Reg Starkey:

Four out of five mature consumers claimed to have tuned out advertising. Why? 
Starkey has specialized in the mature markets for over 10 years. He is the author of Samples of One and a contributor to "The Definitive Guide to Mature Advertising and Marketing" and "50+ Marketing." Also the former editor of Circus, Starkey was featured in BBC TV's "Should I worry about ageing?"

I’ve blogged Reg a bunch of times:

Reg Starkey blogs…

Check out an issue of Circus Magazine (PDF).

It should be a fun webinar. Reserve your virtual seat now.

Craig Ferguson has figured it out: Why everything sucks.

My sister Jill (who has yet to establish herself in the ether – but her husband Gary has) watched this and called me the next day:

I searched for it, couldn’t find it.  Thanks to The Ad Contrarian, I finally saw it.

And loved it.  Sort of the humorous version of the first chapter of my book.  (If you’d like to take a look, be my guest – I scribd it – but don’t tell my publishers.):

Chapter One

New Advertising Research Study

Another study about advertising and the use of technology:

New Study Shows Consumers' Affinity for Using Technology Increasingly Important in Success of Advertising Campaigns
Integrated Media Measurement Inc. (IMMI), a leading provider of consumer behavior and audience exposure data to media companies and advertisers, today released data showing that there is a rapidly growing subset of the population who are tech savvy regardless of their age … "There are signs that the non-tech Boomers will catch up and embrace new technologies for viewing content, so marketers should time their options and not write them off," said Welsh.

Sounds familiar.  Culled from my book, first published in early 2005:

… This is due to misconceptions about Baby Boomers and our knowledge of technology.
We’re lumbering Luddites, according to conventional wisdom ...

… The computer/internet ethos for most Baby Boomers is that they pick and choose what technology they want to use, buy, or install. Some are all over Skype, video and music uploading and downloading, research, education, travel planning, shopping—while eschewing blogging, communities, and web page design. Or it’s the other way around. Or variations thereof. When it comes to new technology, most Baby Boomers learn only about what interests them, what they believe will be useful. They don’t feel the need to know everything there is to know about technology, computers, and the web.

… It will be the Baby Boomers who will be the first to pick and choose, to ignore or be seduced by leading-edge technology marketing. There’s a simple reason for this. We have the money to buy this stuff. Experts say we’ll continue to have the money for at least the next twenty years. Write us off at your own peril.

I like it when marketing research finally catches up.