2009-11-18 20:50:03 -

Leisure travelers who spend on extras beyond meals and basic shopping hold great potential for travel marketers, who can gain insights into these consumers through a new study released today by Acxiom ® : Corporation (Nasdaq: ACXM).

Findings from Acxiom’s PersonicX ® Consumer Dynamics Report : can help marketers target travelers most likely to be interested in add-on activities such as tours, shows and sporting events.

“A traveler who will spend extra money above the base cost of a trip is the holy grail consumer for travel marketers,” says Steve Brown, Acxiom travel industry : executive. “By having the ability to identify these specific travelers, travel marketers can target the most profitable consumers to maximize

their revenue per available room.”


Among the insights from the proprietary study.

- The two higher-spending groups have much in common in how they travel and how they spend their leisure time. As a result, destination marketers can use similar marketing strategy and messaging rather than taking separate approaches that increase their costs.


- Only one in 20 travelers is likely to spend over $100 per day on entertainment, with an additional one in 10 likely to spend $51-100.

The spending data came from an open-ended survey by D.K.
Shifflet & Associates : that explored entertainment and recreation spending excluding travel expenses, food, drinks and shopping.

Ranking PersonicX ® Classic : clusters within each group recognized travelers most likely to spend at each level. This unique segmentation creates a basis for exploring demographic and other factors that offer insight into travel behavior as well as overall leisure time and entertainment preferences.

“In the face of a struggling economy, it’s more important than ever for travel marketers to understand consumers and identify the groups that have the highest propensity to spend on additional amenities and entertainment at their destinations,” says Louis Rolleigh, Acxiom’s senior manager for analytic, geospatial and segmentation products. “In this study, Acxiom introduces critical insights into travel consumers and examples of how this information can be applied to improve marketing efficiency.”


Titled “The Dime and the Time,” Acxiom’s study is powered by Acxiom PersonicX : , which provides precise and actionable household-level segmentation with a life stage framework. This framework can be linked to consumer research and visualization tools, providing the detail and insights necessary for sophisticated consumer analysis. Based on historical improvement rates, PersonicX can deliver increased marketing ROI of up to 20 percent. For more information, visit www.acxiom.com : .


About Acxiom

A global leader in interactive marketing services and infrastructure management, Acxiom connects clients with their customers through deep consumer insight, powering effective and profitable marketing initiatives and business decisions. Our consultative approach spans multiple industries and incorporates decades of experience in consumer data and analytics, information technology, data integration and consulting solutions for effective marketing across digital, Internet, email, mobile and direct mail channels. Our secure, high-performance technology services deliver consistent value and reliability. Founded in 1969, Acxiom is headquartered in Little Rock, Ark., and serves clients around the world from locations in the United States, Europe, Middle East and Asia-Pacific. For more information about Acxiom, visit www.acxiom.com : .

Acxiom and PersonicX are registered trademarks of Acxiom Corporation.

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Acxiom Public RelationsScott Maple, 501-252-5399 scott.maple@acxiom.com : mailto:scott.maple@acxiom.com GACXM