Expedia announced on Monday a new brand position to “become the ultimate travel companion, helping travelers every step of the way.” From an updated look and feel to enhanced product offerings, Expedia is overhauling its programs to deliver on travelers’ evolving wants and needs in a post-pandemic world.
At the heart of the rebrand is a refresh of Expedia’s platform experience across its mobile app and more than 70 websites. The new home screens reflect a clear and simple layout, with product features that will bring together multiple trip elements.
A new itinerary experience now allows travelers to see all the details of their trip in one place, be it on the mobile app or web. Available now on the Expedia mobile app, travelers have the ability to pick up where they left off with a ‘keep planning’ feature that plays back recent searches as well as recent bookings to help travelers build a complete trip. Expedia will soon be launching a new package offering that will provide ‘pre-bundled products’ (flights + accommodation + activities) with upfront total pricing.
Over the course of the year, Expedia will simplify the insurance experience, including translating the policy wording into easy-to-digest content, improving the process of submitting claims through clear steps on documents required as well as the status and next steps once a claim is submitted. It is also adding broader functionality and delivering value in real-time by monitoring the events of a user’s trip journey for claim eligibility.
Expedia will also continue to invest in its virtual agent platform. Through the ‘one-click cancel’ function, travelers can cancel their entire trip or ask the virtual agent questions about their itinerary, including viewing the health and hygiene information for a particular hotel for fast resolution and no wait times.
Travelers can now see the popular activities near their accommodation on the accommodation details page. The activities will be available post-booking and in-trip.
Expedia also announced that its Expedia Rewards program will be simplified by merging with the existing account setup process, allowing 25 million travelers who were not already enrolled in Expedia’s loyalty program to start earning points on travel experiences the next time they log in. Expedia will be introducing additional benefits to the Expedia Rewards loyalty program over the course of the year, making it easier for travelers to understand how they can earn and use points while providing a richer program offering.
Expedia recently launched the ability to shop by lodging amenities. Previously, many of the features included in each room rate were bundled, such as parking or a complimentary breakfast. Expedia now explicitly calls out the difference in pricing for amenities.
Alongside platform enhancements, Expedia will be unveiling its new global creative across multiple touchpoints supported by the brand’s largest marketing spend in more than five years. Using a singular creative platform and a new tagline “It matters who you travel with”, travelers will see the idea of Expedia as the ultimate travel companion. A new approach for 2021, the U.S. film creative will feature American actor, writer, director and producer, Rashida Jones, and the U.K. spot will feature English actor Naomie Harris.