The Tourism and travel industry has been going through drastic transformation, due to technological advancements and digital tools which have brought travel packages online and accessible more than ever.
At this modern age, travelers’ journey begins from online researching to know more about the planned travel destination, hotel price and facility review and how to get to the destination methods. Few hotel booking and airline companies such as Travel agents and the Ethiopian airlines post inspirational messages at their websites to entice travelers to make the trip. Such digital age has become so powerful, pushing companies to sharpen their technological agendas and accessibilities.
The travel influence on the digital world and the strong competition started over the past decade, with Africa actively stepping into the trend. Companies interface avail itself offering flight and hotel availability with much broader option to compare price and facility ranges. Online tourism facilities are becoming the best options as customers demand one stop shop efficient service that allows them to grab the best option.
Companies keep up with the advancement of technology and the ever changing industry trends not only to provide customers with more exciting travel experiences, but also to stay in business and remaining at the top of the competition. Having a relevant online presence as well as crafting mobile apps will make any business earn the customer’s choice. More importantly, the introduction of mobile apps is adding a great value to travel industry; since now users can get customized information at any time and place.
Gone are the days where people go to airline ticket offices to purchase ticket and show up at hotel receptions to check prices and availability. Users now can get any information they want sitting on their couch by just browsing travel official pages. They can get neutral customers’ opinions and experiences about the service, making them to make informed decisions. These also benefits the service providers as they can keep the customer in their website enjoying the free marketing that can potentially attract new travelers from all over the world.
The new travel trend demands inspiration researching destination on websites and social media. Seeing other people’s experiences shared on social media has become the growing initiator of travel plans. Nevertheless, travel inspiration messages that appear on websites and blogs remain to be the fundamental foundation of inspiration for new travelers. This is mainly due to their ability to provide convincing information, detailing every relevant information travelers might have on mind. Particularly, these methods are vital for countries like Ethiopia; as the industry does not enjoy a lot of finance for local and international destination promotion.
The travel trend development has come to a growth level to allow customers participate in innovation co-creating new apps, products and solutions for the sector. These method of allowing customers to provide their solutions and ideas is posing the industry for more future development. Travel is now going beyond creating mobility, flexibility and easy quick access to information offering personalized experiences thus empowering users.
Evidently, travel and tourism is highly influenced by economic, political and physical factors. The more people have disposable income and the need to travel to get away from the regular day to day activity has made the hospitality industry to remain untapped despite the presence of several service providers. New investors in the sector still have strong potential for business success.
Gearing towards grabbing traveler’s attention long enough and making them happy is the key to success in the industry. To capitalize on this, companies must deliver the same quality of hospitality service online similar to their physical offices offer that fits visitors expectations, speaking to them in their language. With so many service providers and several options to pick from, having travel advisers that shortlist facilities and services based on the buying capacity of the travelers; puts any service provider at a clear advantage. Organized service delivery in digital forms gives travelers more control in their choices, allowing them to follow their experience unfold in their digital device while traveling.
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