Consumer Insights > World

Implications - Focusing on both safety and empowerment, brands are offering travel services and tips for the LGBTQ+ community. These programs and services aim to enhance the lives of people in this community by offering them accessible forms of travel, prioritizing the safe spaces that LGBTQ+ people often require in order to live and enrich their lives. [More]

Implications - Between discriminatory Airbnb hosts and prejudicial airline practices, the travel industry hasn't always been as accommodating as it should be for people of color – a fact that is slowly changing via travel brands led by and prioritizing people of color. By creating such specific spaces, these brands are showcasing the importance of grassroots and self-led empowerment in the process of creating large-scale change. [More]

Implications - Millennials today are known for their preference to spend on experiences rather than products, and this has impacted and contributed to the popularity of travel among this generation. Layering onto this interest in exploring the world is millennials' interest in self-improvement, which has led to the creation of tailored travel experiences focused around providing a path to wellness as well as a chance to explore the world. This shift speaks to the ways in which wellness has the capacity to impact a huge variety of segments, and the ways in which companies can leverage that interest to create something more appealing to today's young adult consumer. [More]

Implications - As activists with disabilities and their allies continue to push for all-encompassing accessibility related products and services, travel brands are responding by offering services and trips that are focused on accessibility for people with disabilities. These emerging programs speak to the need for brands to view accommodation and inclusivity as not simply a necessity, but as a means to enhance the consumer’s lifestyle. [More]

Implications - Consumers today -- particularly millennial consumers -- continue to place a high value on not only the function of products they purchase, but the aesthetics of those products as well. One space that's been slower to keep pace with the demand of products that marry fashion, function and affordability, however, has been the travel industry. Spearheaded by a few disruptive brands, more and more products that blend all of these consumer desires together are becoming more popular. This is reflective of not only the increased importance of meeting heightened consumer expectations today, but small companies' willingness to disrupt based on those unmet needs as well. [More]

Implications - Where once, the major risks associated with mobility stemmed from automobiles, today a rise in popularity of transportation alternatives like e-bikes have necessitated new forms of insurance coverage. By providing coverage or support for loss and damages or injury for electronic bikes, these companies are aligning with the values and transportation preferences of consumers, while more importantly, driving forward the economic and social progression of the future of mobility. [More]

Implications - Going beyond biometric integration into tangible identification systems, governments and other organizations are increasingly offering options for exclusively virtual forms of identification. As a complement to existing ID cards, users are now able to choose between presenting a physical card and a digital copy. This shift speaks to consumer preference for the balance between the continued blurring of our physical and virtual selves and our desire for convenience and security in every day life. [More]

Implications - As travel becomes more accessible thanks to decreased prices and technology to make things easier to navigate, more travelers are going taking trips on their own. To help support this shift, companies from across the travel space, including those in hospitality as well as those in tech, are creating products to help solo travelers have a more positive, social experience. This shift is reflective not only of this specific change within the travel space, but a consumer base more open to networking with others more generally. [More]

Implications - As Millennials become increasingly interested in travel, tastes shift away from the traditional amusement park in favor of more authentic, sophisticated destinations. Amusement parks are integrating foodie features as a response. This speaks to how Millennial values transform and translate -- yet fundamentally remain the same -- as they age. [More]

Implications - Airlines are upping their in-flight services to offer flyers customized and exclusive menus to increase consumer satisfaction. Options that only exist on certain airlines or flights (not even in stores) entice consumers and ensure the post-flight cravings will keep the brand on the consumer's mind. Offering exclusivity is one way that brands can let their consumers know how much they value their loyalty. [More]