FlightHub and JustFly Debunk Travel Tuesday 2019

MONTREAL, Nov. 28, 2019 /CNW/ - Travel Tuesday is a consumer, marketing and shopping phenomenon. It's been gaining in popularity for the past 2 years. Companies in the travel space are looking for new ways to market their products and services. Popular national holidays are sometimes used as opportunities to give deals to customers. The goal is to capitalize on the sense of urgency other shopping holidays create.

American Thanksgiving is a prime example of this. In recent years, Thanksgiving in the United States is rarely mentioned without Black Friday and Cyber Monday in the same sentence. Travel Tuesday is quickly becoming a part of the Thanksgiving weekend lineup.

FlightHub and JustFly weigh in with travel industry advice.

The Birth of Travel Tuesday:

The travel and booking trend known as Travel Tuesday took off with an eponymous social media hashtag in 2017. Twitter and Instagram's travel community captioned #TravelTuesday alongside photos of popular destination, expert advice and more. It was likely used before 2017, but the popular hashtag is now being associated with travel deals. It currently appears on over 1,100,000 Instagram posts.

Is Travel Tuesday Actually Cheaper?

A popular online travel agency analyzed their 4^th quarter 2018 booking data. They found that flight bookings on the Tuesday following Thanksgiving had increased. In fact, when compared to Cyber Monday and Black Friday of the same year, more bookings were made on Travel Tuesday than both previous popular shopping days.

However, FlightHub and JustFly conducted their own research. The results were largely inconclusive. There were slightly more bookings on Travel Tuesday in 2017. On the other hand, in 2016 and 2018, Cyber Monday bookings were notably higher. Several factors could lead to increased (or decreased) bookings on specific days.

Here's a short list:

• Email marketing campaigns
• Airfare deals
• Weather
• World events
• Social media deals and more

The Psychology Behind Travel Tuesday:

What causes customers to spend so much more on days like Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Travel Tuesday and Boxing Day? There are several factors. First, these days typically present their sales as 1-day only. This limited window of opportunity creates a sense of immediacy.

Social psychology also influences consumers to spend when they normally wouldn't. Simply put, people don't want to feel left out during water cooler talk or in other social settings.

How to Get the Best of Travel Tuesday:

"To get the best of Travel Tuesday, keep a cool head, " says FlightHub and JustFly's Matt Keezer. "Do your best to plan your trip thoroughly. Flights are typically the most expensive portion of a trip, but other expenses accumulate quickly. Subscribe to airfare trackers and price trend tools to stay on top of cheap flights.  Book the flights you've budgeted for and truly want, regardless of what day of the week it is".

SOURCE FlightHub