Should Traveloka prioritize expanding our hotel inventory or improving the user experience of our existing booking flow?

Introduction

The trade-off we're examining today is whether Traveloka should prioritize expanding our hotel inventory or improving the user experience of our existing booking flow. This decision is crucial for our growth strategy and customer satisfaction. I'll analyze this trade-off by considering various factors including business impact, user needs, and technical feasibility.

Step 1

Clarifying Questions (3 minutes)

• What's our current market share in the hotel booking space, and how does our inventory compare to competitors?

• Why it matters: This helps us understand if inventory is a significant limiting factor for growth.
• Hypothetical answer: We have 20% market share, with 70% of the inventory of our largest competitor.
• Impact: If true, this suggests expanding inventory could be crucial for growth.

• What are the main pain points in our current booking flow, based on user feedback or analytics?

• Why it matters: Identifies if UX improvements could significantly impact conversion rates.
• Hypothetical answer: Users find the filter options limited and the payment process cumbersome.
• Impact: This would indicate that UX improvements could lead to substantial conversion rate increases.

• What's our current conversion rate from search to booking, and how does it compare to industry standards?

• Why it matters: Helps determine if our UX is significantly underperforming.
• Hypothetical answer: Our conversion rate is 3%, while the industry average is 5%.
• Impact: This gap suggests that UX improvements could yield significant returns.

• Do we have the technical resources to simultaneously expand inventory and improve UX, or is this truly an either/or decision?

• Why it matters: Clarifies if this is a true trade-off or if we can pursue both to some degree.
• Hypothetical answer: Our resources are limited, and we can only focus on one major initiative at a time.
• Impact: This confirms we need to prioritize one option over the other.

• What's our timeline for implementing either of these changes, and are there any upcoming seasonal factors to consider?

• Why it matters: Helps us understand the urgency and potential impact timing.
• Hypothetical answer: We're aiming for implementation within 6 months, ahead of the peak summer travel season.
• Impact: This timeline could influence which option provides more immediate value.