Holidaymakers are looking for the best service driven companies when choosing who to organise their travel with, compared to opting for the companies that offer the best loyalty programmes.

Gregory Ciotti of HelpScout said: "If you plan on out-supporting the competition, plan on investing heavily in a team that can deliver. Leadership has one main objective from which they should never stray: Hire who you trust and trust who you hire."

Whilst customer service is important, customer loyalty programs could be angled towards personal experiences.

The study's authors said: "Loyalty is a constant choice, and marketers must think about earning both types. Attitudinal loyalty comes down to what people associate with your brand and how differentiated you are. Is the total customer experience ... so compelling that people will remember it? Or are you losing customers by not even meeting their basic expectations ... ?

"Behavioural loyalty is a matter of being present, with content tailored to your audience when they need it most, across channels and devices. Is your advertising optimized for channel efficiency or for providing value to your best customers?"

Sam Suthar, CMO of Acquire.io, added: "It takes ages to gain a loyal customer and the onus falls on your shoulders to retain them. Loyal buyers like it when a business recognises their loyalty and persistence. Rewarding or giving preference to that loyal customer should be on your books."