A survey by The Harris Poll  reveals that consumers are not only ready and willing to spend more for personalized services but also more likely to rely on digital guides than their significant others when considering a purchase.

The study was carried on on behalf of enterprise data solutions company DataStax.  The findings come from an online survey conducted this April of more than 5000 adults aged 18 and older in the United States (c2000), UK (1,0o0), Germany (1,000), and France (1,0000).

The survey reveals that the “instant gratification” of digital transactions will justify a higher spend. This creates new opportunities not only to price travel products based on convenience when compared to competitors but also potentially to convert “speed” into an ancillary.

Timing is everything

• Nearly 7 in 10 (69%) international adults are willing to spend extra to reduce their wait times for services they care about.
• Those willing to pay more will shell out, on average, 21% extra to reduce their wait.
• US adults are by far the most willing to pay a premium: on average 29% more than the asking price. They are followed by the UK at 23%, France at 18%, and Germany, the least willing to fork over additional money, at 15%.
• In the United States, Millennials (age 18-34) who are willing to pay more, on average, will pay 40% over the regular price.

Sharing data

When it comes to sharing the information necessary for personalization, US adults are more open than their European counterparts. As DataStax reports:

• More than half (53%) of adults in the United States are more willing to share their personal data with a company that personalizes its services/products based on that data. Adults in the UK, Germany, and France are a bit more cautious – 43%, 39% and 36% respectively.
• More than half of all adults surveyed described personalization as “somewhat or very important to their experience”—52% said it was important for airline travel.
• American adults are more likely to value personalization when it comes to car service transportation (58% vs. 43% in the UK, 42% in Germany, and 45% in France).

Persuasive tech

When it comes to influence, it seems the majority of international adults (56%) value the insights of digital resources are more than the opinions or advice of their significant others (SO)—except in France where love still reigns supreme.

• In the United States, 64% of adults choose digital resources over their SO
• In the UK, 61% of adults choose digital resources over their SO
• In Germany, 52% of adults choose digital resources vs their SO
• In France, 55% of adults choose their SO over digital resources

Also, US adults are about twice as likely to cite social media as one of the best sources for recommendations (32%) when compared to adults in France (14%) and Germany (17%).

Billy Bosworth, chairman and CEO of DataStax said:

“Today’s ‘Me’ Culture demands that services and experience must be relevant, always available, instantly responsive, and accessible wherever and however they want it.”

“Brands of all sizes across all markets must adapt to meet the needs of today’s ‘Me’ Culture with their customer experience, products, and solutions. This is especially true for large enterprises who must effectively scale this right-now, highly relevant customer experience in order to differentiate from competitors.

“Consumers now expect enterprises to be as flexible and agile as start-ups, respond in real-time, and know them better than ever before.”

Related reading:

Contrary Brits want to see personalised offers without sharing data (Sept 2018)

A context for the rise in personalisation (Aug 2018)

7 revealing insights on data-driven marketing from Cambridge Analytica at ITB (March 2018)