Many others cannot be wrong
Why booking.com uses Social Proof to increase hotel conversion? By all means, we are social creatures. For this reason, humans pay a great deal of attention to the behavior of other people. Consequently, social proof tactics work so well to increase the conversion rate of the websites.
In brief, Social proof is a phenomenon where people conform to the actions of others assuming that those actions are reflective of the correct behavior.
Booking.com uses our tendency to believe others in many ways.
Booking.com rating system
The rating itself is a great feature to help visitors to choose. A great number of reviews make the final rating look more trustworthy.
Personalized reviews’ display
Booking.com shows the most relevant reviews (using the same language as the website version, showing reviews depending on guest profile, number of guests, etc)
Icons
Check out the thumb up icon just after the hotel name. With yellow stars, it looks like approval or some sort of a rating. Our brain gives an extra point for the hotel. Yet it is just a Preferred Partner icon, designated for hotels who pay booking.com more for better visibility.
Persuasive elements
Persuasive elements such as “others did it = it must be right”, use cognitive bias:
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- When the room was last booked
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- How many people are looking at this hotel now
- Badges and descriptions for hotels expressing other guests’ interest and satisfaction.
This is a post from the “Why booking.com converts so high and what hotels can learn from it?” series. In this article, we learned how to Increase hotel conversion rates with Social Proof. Read all the posts to find out how to boost direct sales:
- Cognitive ease to increase conversion
- Extreme Personalization
- Adding Value with direct bookings
- Directing Visitors throughout the reservation process
- Scarcity Effect
- Emotional Marketing
- Booking.com Conversion Optimization Techniques. What hotels can learn from it?
