I am a big advocate of technology but, hell, today I really needed a good old-fashioned travel agency with humans!
Technology MUST enable a better service, not be an excuse to cut jobs and costs. Travel is a service industry – let us not forget that.
Today I headed off to the airport to fly to Nairobi for the Magical Kenya Travel Exhibition. I booked my flight using a well-known OTA, received my confirmation, tickets, notifications as per normal. Everything seemed on track; I said goodbye to my family and headed to the airport as per normal.
When checking in my baggage I was asked for a visa for Congo, which I obviously did not have (as I had never booked for Congo). The airline had me travelling onward to the Congo from Nairobi (while my booking from the OTA had my final destination as Nairobi). I had a valid ticket to Nairobi but could not board as it was connected to another flight to Congo. The lovely lady at the desk tried to help and called superiors, but rules are rules, with no room for common sense.
My only hope was to get hold of the OTA and cancel the booking to Congo from Nairobi. The airline could not take instruction from the client, only the OTA who had originally made the booking. After battling with the chatbot, I think I might have got hold of a human. I was informed that there was no booking to Congo showing on their system, so they obviously could not cancel a booking that did not exist.
I tried everything, but once the gate had closed, the game was up. I was then advised by Kenya Airways to cancel the ticket, so as not to be a no-show. This they could do in seconds....?
I left the airport feeling very frustrated, but on the way home I breathed deeply, told myself 'nobody died' and looked for the lessons learned. There seemed to be a few:
1 - Value of a travel agent #travelagents. If only I could have phoned someone!
2 - It highlighted the importance of service (will never use that OTA again).
3 - Chatbots cannot and should not replace all HUMANS.
4 - #technology must improve the service, not reduce it.
5 - #technology should enable people, not replace them.
6 - #travelagents are cheaper to use in the long run - this was a very expensive mistake.
So if Wetu Tourism Solutions EVER starts replacing humans with #tech #chatbots and makes it impossible to get hold of someone in their time of need, please call me and give me HELL!!
