Digital Transformation in Travel & Hospitality

Digital transformation is affecting to all trends and all industries nowadays, from healthcare, retail, finance to travel, hospitality. And of course, all these updates and changes are following the upward trending which results in the better living standard. 

Previously, we usually visit travel agencies to plan for a family vacation or a work trip. Nowadays, with the appearance of smartphone, internet and technology, everything is now simple in a click. Booking the ticket, booking a hotel or even local transportation, all of them can be done using smartphone and internet. And then when the travel business as Airbnb was born, the booming of travel started. Now, let’s take a look at how the digital transformation affects hospitability and tourism industry. 

Applications and smartphone

Mobile application and smartphone have to be the first factors being mentioned here because the born of them is the root of changing in travel and hospitability. Many booking apps were born for the end users’ requirements as well as the needs of developing a travelling business. From the connected platform as Booking.com, Agoda, Traveloka to the business own platform as AirAsia, Vietjet, all of these apps created the vibrant market for business owners and travelers in the win-win situation. 

AI and Chatbots

Instead of directly calling to the hotels or ticket agencies to book the room or ticket, end-users can send a short message and their information to the hotels or online checking and booking the ticket. Due to AI and Chatbots, the communication among agencies, business owners and customers become easier and more convenient. 

IoT integration

The Internet of Things (IoT) is really the renovation for the travelling industry. With the information collected from customers, the service provider can easily meet the customers’ requirements. Automatically sending a message to customers or analyzing customers’ hobby and interest, all the impossible tasks that we never think about can come true. It also saves the steps of taking care of and satisfying customers.

Data analysis

With the reviews, comments, ratings and customers’ information, the huge data collected from the digital transformation is huge enough to analyze and predict customers’ next behaviours. Then the new trends of business can easily be built by the business owners targeting to improve and boost the business.

Rating and reputation

The review, comments, and ratings play an important role in the service industry. Just need an experienced software engineers, an e-market can integrated the review community to show the trusted of members as well as recommends the best solutions for customers. One bad review can make a huge change in the position of service in the service platform, and also affect the customers’ final decision. Because the reviews are from the real experience of travelers, also it is a good reference source for other newcomers. That’s why the service quality is focused by the providers for the good recommendations on the website or the service platform. 

Virtual experience

Yes, what I’m talking about is the real photos, images of the residence, hotels, or any destination that the visitors can meet. Tourist can check the real photos on the platform before making a decision. Sometimes, the decision changes just because of the photos, images about the destination are different from the expectation. So the community that people would like to use should include not only enough information but also enough proofs to raise their truth. 

When the development of technology is day by day improve, the service quality, the service standard also needs to improve, and the competitiveness in the business becomes harder than ever. Business owner should continuously update new technology, predict the new trends, and outsourcing software development if needs to catch users’ trend and requirements. That is why it can be said that the digital transformation changes the travel and hospitability business in positive ways, which results in the most advantages to the end-users, who use the service.