TrustYou Releases New Research Analyzing the Impact of Review Content on the Booking Behavior of Digital Natives
++ New White Paper Explores the Travel Needs and Expectations of Millennials and Generation Z ++ Respondents Reveal What Review Attributes Influence Their Booking Decisions ++
TrustYou has announced today the release of its latest research paper, highlighting the impact of review content on the booking behavior of digital natives. The free white paper is based on a study which was undertaken in collaboration with the IUBH International University of Applied Sciences and the travel company TUI. The study narrowed down its target group to consumers of the age of 18 to 28, born between the years 1990 and 2000 and unveils their preferences in terms of consuming online review content. Furthermore, the research reinforced the importance of review scores and widgets on hotel websites, OTAs, and tour operators, along with their role in guiding the purchase decisions of modern travelers. The study is available as a free download.
As the importance of a good online reputation undeniably impacts travelers' booking decisions, TrustYou has now participated in this research to target younger generations of travelers, born and raised in the technological era, pinpointing the exact review attributes that drive them towards a booking.
Among the findings of this study, the most important insights can be summarized in the following way:
- 83% of the digital natives say that reviews play an important or a very important role for making a booking decision
- To trust a review, young travelers appreciate an authentic writing style (73%) as well as detailed (69%) and current (66%) reviews, not older than 3 months
- For hotel bookings, they prefer Booking.com (68%), followed by Google (61%), TripAdvisor and Expedia with 30% each as a review source.
- 68% believe that scores are the best way to present reviews. Furthermore, 51% consider a consolidated representation (e.g. combination of a visual (e.g. stars) and score) to be good and 29% prefer widgets.
"Our company's vision is to enable hoteliers to listen to what their guests have to say, in order to adapt, adjust, and deliver an excellent guest experience. It is our firm belief that studying the particularities of each generation of travelers gives us specific insights into what they want, expect, and demand from a hotel business. We are positive that the results of our latest study will prove themselves beneficial for many businesses" said Valerie Castillo, TrustYou's VP of Marketing. "Given our findings, we emphasize the rising importance of user-generated and visual content, when referring to online reviews. It has become essential for hotels, OTAs, and tour operators to provide supporting content on their website - such as scores and widgets - in order to encourage a booking."
The German version of the study is available on the website of the IUBH International University of Applied Sciences.
Find more information on TrustYou and the guest feedback platform on www.trustyou.com.
About TrustYou
TrustYou is the #1 Hospitality AI platform. Since 2008, the company has supported hotels and hotel groups worldwide in turning guest feedback, customer data, and automated interactions into measurable results. The platform unifies three core products in one system:
- Customer Experience Platform (CXP): Centralizes all reviews and surveys, applies AI-driven analysis, and automatically responds to feedback with ResponseAI. Hotels gain deeper insights into the guest experience, strengthen their online reputation, and make more informed service decisions.
- Customer Data Platform (CDP): Consolidates all guest data into so-called Golden Profiles, integrates consent management, and enables precise audience segmentation. This powers personalized marketing campaigns, drives more direct bookings, and fosters long-term guest loyalty.
- AI Agent: Handles 100% of inbound communication—24/7, in any language, and across all channels. The TrustYou Agent delivers instant, context-aware responses, support bookings, upselling, and free up operational teams.
With TrustYou, hotels invest in a future-ready platform that makes the Always-Reply Future a reality: better guest experiences, more direct revenue, and more efficient operations.
Learn more at www.trustyou.com.
