The travel search journey is diversifying; with the rise of AI and younger generations turning to social for their travel research, how should travel brands approach the evolving landscape of online search?

Changes in consumer habits and technology are creating a more fragmented landscape, altering how users search and book travel. From dreaming to planning to booking, the future of travel search encompasses a multifaceted approach, providing brands new ways to reach audiences throughout their travel journey.

• Social: 46% of Gen Z and 35% of Millennials are more likely to use social media as their primary search engine. Social platforms play a significant role, particularly in the discovery phase of the travel booking journey, as users seek inspiration and information through short, engaging videos. Creators are replacing brands for travel inspiration through authentic content that resonates with travellers.

  TikTok is emerging as a dominant source in this landscape, with nearly two-thirds of Aussies (61%) under the age of 25 using the platform as their first destination for travel inspiration. Travel content continues growing, with posts containing “travel” up 250% year over year in 2023, globally.

  At AGM, we help travel brands drive discoverability within social search and increase visibility across non-branded searches through optimisation of content, keywords, and hashtags. We leverage trusted influencer partnerships to drive engagement from authentic sources.

• Artificial Intelligence (AI): AI Search will become mainstream and facilitate itinerary planning, revolutionising how travellers build their trips and offering more personalised and efficient experiences. Google's AI Overviews now appear in 30% of travel-related searches, marking a 700% increase from September to October. YouTube is also a core source of AI Overviews, making high-quality content optimised to meet user intent is crucial for travel brands, with a focus on comprehensive guides for specific destinations.

  Although Australians have been relatively hesitant to use AI for travel planning, usage continues to grow, with AIO rolling out across Australia and ads expected to be introduced in 2025.

  At AGM, we are helping travel brands to prepare for the impact on organic search results and capture AIO visibility through website optimisation, improving relevance of site content for AI. Leveraging content that answers common travel research questions and enhancing ad relevance with structured data that is more likely to feature in AI results.

• Visual & Voice: Visual inspiration is a driving force behind Millennials’ and Gen Z’s travel planning. With more travellers using video and images to plan their trips, the future is no longer text-driven: it’s about creating rich, visual content that resonates with users.

  Visual and voice search is increasingly popular for travellers, bringing a new dimension to how people discover destinations and plan their trips. With people using Google Lens for nearly 20 billion visual searches every month, Google has expanded on visual search, enabling users to use voice and video search with Google Lens.

  As we see further rollouts to AI engines allowing the integration of voice, image, and even video, AGM works with travel brands to enhance organic visibility in visual and voice searches and integrate voice-optimised and visual search ad units within paid media strategies.

• Traditional: Despite the buzz around AI search engines, traditional search remains crucial, with users still reverting to Google for lower funnel branded searches in the planning to booking phase of travel.

  Google may be losing its hegemony, yet it still represents 94% of search traffic in Australia and remains a key player in the search evolution. With their expansion into AIO, visual search (Google Lens), voice search, and travel search products, like Hotel Ads and ‘things to do’, travel brands have multiple opportunities for greater visibility.

  While travel brands must future-proof search strategies, a strong SEO foundation—focusing on relevance, authority, and expertise—is still vital and can increase the likelihood of being featured in AI Overviews.

AGM offers a multi-faceted approach to ensuring brands stay ahead of the curve in the online search landscape. Our Enhanced Search Optimisation services cover AI-powered semantic search, influencer content optimisation, and visual, voice, and social media search. Want to learn more about our approach? Get in touch.