Agents should start managing their client relationships as an algorithm would, according to Robyn Christie, ex Travelport SA country manager and owner of Just Saying.
Robyn was speaking to eTNW after Google travel specialist, Benedicte Conway’s suggested the travel trade mirror innovators such as Netflix by making use of AI and Big Data technologies.
Benedicte said: “80% of what is watched on Netflix comes from recommendations the streaming service suggests to users, which is based on a user’s behaviour online and things they have watched previously.” She added that because consumers saw it in one industry, they expected it from another. “That creates a massive opportunity for us in travel to jump on that and start showing more tailored, personalised content to our consumers.”
However, in the SA market, barriers to entry make it difficult to capitalize on this technology. Robyn said: “Many local agencies that don’t have the scale, or capital, to justify making large investments in AI and Big Data. These agencies need to take every opportunity to use human resources to source information about their clients, consolidate it, and proactively market personalised products. In this way, they will have the advantage of not only making use of data to personalise packages, but also going further than the technology can by providing the valued ‘human touch’.”
She added that packages that did not have a personal touch were often ‘over commercialised’ and failed to meet the client’s experiential and ethical requirements.
Mary Shilleto, ceo of Thompsons Travel, agreed that clients were more attracted to businesses that offered a comprehensive understanding of their needs and likes. “I too believe that personalised product demands create immediate gratification. AI and Big Data gives the trade the power to predict what consumers want and use that to up our value proposition. The theme of the XL Travel Group’s 2018 conference was ‘keep up or become irrelevant’, and I think Benedicte’s message emphasises the relevance of this theme. Agencies must invest in personalisation or risk becoming irrelevant.”
