Travel agents today are in
a dilemma as online booking tools have cropped up everywhere. As they offer
regular travellers the opportunity to search from a range of potential
suppliers in order to find the best offer possible. This leads to many
companies exploring niche markets in an effort to create new business
opportunities, with a particular focus being placed on the corporate market.
The new corporate travel
agent places focus on the level of service that they can provide, ensuring that
they make use of a modern corporate booking tool (CBT) in order to help
business clients with the various issues that surround their journey. There are
a number of ways that this has had an effect on the travel agency that business.
Cost
The cost of booking travel
has changed substantially, with prices increasing in agencies where corporate
booking solutions (CBT) have been adopted. This change is attributed to corporate
travel agents as they tend to charge per Passenger Name Record (PNR), rather
than via each ticket that has been issued.
While this may seem like a
fairly minor difference at first, it is important to note that a PNR not only
contains information about the passenger’s ticket, but also information
relating to their itinerary and the various fees related to the traveller’s
trip. All of this information must be stored on a database that needs to be
maintained, which also adds to the cost of incorporating a CBT into the
existing travel agency model.
Unlike others, this model
also allows for a much more personalised service to be offered in relation to
business travel, as the company can now pull records related to the traveller,
making changes where needed while also gaining an instant understanding of
their itinerary and what needs to be done in order to ensure all of their
requirements are met.
The corporate travel using
CBT offers a level of convenience and service that is hard to find through a
regular travel agent and almost impossible to find with an online booking
service. Initially it appears a little restrictive, the introduction of CBTs
has opened up an entire niche in the travel industry, with corporate travel now
becoming a major concern for travel agencies that wish to stay ahead of the
pack.
Branding and Reach
Travog, is one such Corporate Booking Tool that QuadLabs offers is available as a package that
can be branded to the specific business travel agency that is using them, which
offers corporate travel agency a level of reach that they may not have been
able to achieve using their more traditional methods.
Solutions like Travog
provide a range of services to travel agencies. They offer access to hotels and
other organisations that are part of the corporate travel package. It also allows for the
travel agency to brand itself around the model. Travog, the platform provided
by QuadLabs is particularly useful for corporate travel agents who don’t
maintain a dedicated web presence, as it offers them many of the advantages of
a corporate website, with much less of the work.
CBTs like QuadLabs Travog
are increasingly common in the corporate travel environment means that a level
of trust can be created between the travel agency and the traveller simply due
to the fact that the agency makes use of a trustworthy CBT. The traveller is
assured that their arrangements will be made using a renowned package, with the
agency being able to focus on the personal relationships they build with their
business clients as a result. This allows for the maintenance of existing
clients, in addition to the branding and reach offered by such packages
ensuring that new clients are rarely far behind.
Working a Niche
To adopt a CBT a travel
agency will often need to focus completely towards a corporate clientele. The
cost of using the CBT, many of which run on a subscription model based around
the number of users and amount of services provided by the package, require its
use. Some companies feel the pinch to advertise solely towards corporate
travel, placing less of a focus on regular travel.
This is not necessarily a
bad thing, as the world of online booking has already eaten away at much of the
business that traditional travel agencies have enjoyed for so many years. Talking
about Business travel, it is much more based around the service provided,
rather than how cheaply you can get the flights and accommodation. Countless
travel agencies have now repurposed/specialized themselves so that they become
dedicated to offering services to corporate customers, while perhaps placing
less focus on traditional travel packages.
The Final Word
So how have corporate
booking solutions impacted the traditional Travel agency? Some travel agencies
are uncomfortable paying an added cost, particularly if they do not want to
focus their services around business travel, they have also opened up a niche
in the industry. Software solutions like Travog, make it easier for agents to
satisfy the travellers that fit into that niche, offering them a complete
package that allows the agent to fully satisfy the requirements of the
traveller, without the agent having to develop the package for themselves.
Technological solutions
like Travog, have helped bring many travel agencies into the digital age without
requiring them to compete directly, or become a part of, many of the online
booking tools that exist solely to compare prices and find the cheapest travel.
Many companies which focus on corporate travel, take advantage of this new
niche thanks to the increased capabilities offered to them by the CBT. They
allow for increased reach and positive branding, at a cost that may be lower
over a large period of time than incorporating a home-grown system. It must be
noted, they also require a level of dedication to the service that some
traditional travel agents may still be uncomfortable providing.
QuadLabs travel technology system help these travel agents and tour operators to
organize and keep track of their bookings, business processes and front and
back office data in a systematic manner, thus providing utmost satisfaction to
the traveler regardless of the type of the travel. They are highly specialized
and reliable travel technology
provider who plays a very important
role in maintaining a healthy relationship between the travel company and the
customer for years.
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