When you hark back to the ancient days of yore, you will find that human beings were natural wayfarers, and traveling was a primordial requirement. Rapid industrialization, coupled with an exponential upsurge in technological advancements, engendered multitudinous purposes for travel and effectuated the genesis of the tourism industry.
Cut to the Information Age, The tourism industry is a booming one though today the competition is cut-throat and severe. Rest on your haunches, and rival companies will mercilessly supersede you. Remain averse to technological innovations, and your engine disintegrates into oblivion.
‘Customer relationship management (CRM) technology has proved to be a lifesaver for the travel industry, especially after the ravages of the COVID-19 pandemic. The provision of services, which was already instantaneous, now had to be carried out at a breakneck pace.
Customer satisfaction is the touchstone for every company’s success rate. It allows centralization of data that helps one gauge and analyze customer expectations in detail. Access to precise real-time data relating to every customer enables a company to identify unique tastes, preferences, and habits. Such intimate catering establishes customer loyalty which directly results in retention – the most elusive element of revenue generation.
New generation CRM is now being powered with ‘Artificial Intelligence (AI), and now you have an unparalleled combination. From forecasting flights to searching for hotels, AI acts as an efficient non-corporeal travel agent. AI-powered CRM is intimately connected to data science, which enables the seamless organization of enormous data sets from multiple channels and provides automated insights. Apart from enhancing the quality of data, such valuable insights help the business develop better prescriptive and predictive models to achieve pinpoint perfection in delivering excellent services. The application of AI chatbots has helped tourism companies assist customers online in the twinkling of an eye. A brand’s value depends on customer sentiments.
The marriage between AI and CRM is still in its embryonic stages. But the outlook is promising, and the prospects are enticing. Tourism is a burgeoning industry, and the adoption of new technologies will only germinate innovative business practices and trailblazing marketing strategies. It looks like the right time to hit the road as travel companies set to embrace a novel journey.
(The author is Mr. Abhishek Mimani, Founder, eWards and the views expressed in this article are his own)
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