· Online messaging platforms preferred tool for
travellers to interact with airlines, hotels and resorts
· Travel Forward at ATM Virtual bridging the gap between
uncertainty and resilience during global COVID-19 pandemic
· Global Exhibitions Day 2020 takes place today with
simple message: Exhibitions are key to rebuilding economies
At a time when face to face communication has not be
possible as a result of the global COVID-19 pandemic, the face of travel
technology has evolved with consumers turning to messaging to interact with all
forms of travel brands from airlines to hotels and resorts, industry experts
revealed during the debut Travel
Forward at ATM Virtual event.
During the month of March 2020 alone, messaging
increased by more than 50% in many of the countries hardest hit by the global
health crisis, according to the latest data from Facebook, with over 20 billion
messages currently exchanged with businesses every month on Messenger.
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| Ameen-Malhas-head-of-aviation-hospitality-mena |
During Travel Forward session Conversational
Commerce for Travel Brands, Facebook’s Head of Destinations &
Events, Sara
Gentile, and Head of Aviation & Hospitality MENA, Ameen
Malhas, provided insights into what travel technology will have to
offer beyond 2020, including the potential c-commerce will have in helping travel
and hospitality brands to connect and transact with consumers.
 |
| Sara-Gentile-head-of-destinations-events |
“Travellers value personalisation from brands and
this trend is only likely to heighten in a post-COVID-19 world, with around 54%
of travellers who opt to book with online travel agents (OTAs) seeking
on-location recognition from brands. Adding to this, the top three engagement
travellers seek from aviation and hospitality brands are live updates,
discounts and helpful tips,” said Sara Gentile.
“By combining chat with automated and AI-driven
systems, brands can target information and offers precisely to individual
travellers. This increases relevance, which is exactly what people want, with
an overwhelming majority more likely to buy from brands that remember who they
are and that provide relevant recommendations.”
Personalisation isn’t the only factor driving the
popularity of messaging in today’s society, convenience, immediacy and
scalability also make it well suited for engaging with travellers. However, the
execution must be right to succeed.
“Ultimately, messaging must be responsive and
sophisticated to meet consumers’ needs – especially during these challenging
times when travellers want interactions to be fast and efficient,” said Ameen Malhas.
“A messaging system which is executed correctly
- with a clear strategic role,
anticipates what consumers want to talk about with the help of innovative
technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) and is built around a strong
ecosystem - can be a powerful and convenient tool for engaging consumers and
driving purchase intent.”
As governments begin to lift lockdown restrictions
across the Middle East, businesses are cautiously re-opening workplaces with
strict social distancing measures in place and asking employees to travel again.
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| Heidi-Myers-head-of-marketing-emea-uber-for-business |
During the final Travel Forward session of day two, Technology
and the New Normal, Heidi
Myers, Head of Marketing, EMEA, Uber for Business, discussed how
technology can be a force for good and support businesses in the challenge of
the ‘new normal’ that we are beginning to embrace.
According to a recent survey conducted by Uber,
around 44% of businesses said employee safety is their primary concern, with
60% of employers saying they will only allow essential workers to commute and
33% of organisations surveyed considering implementing daily commute
programmes.
With getting to work in the post COVID-19 landscape
a primary concern for a large number of employees and a stressful commute sited
as one of the leading causes of employee dissatisfaction and turnover, Uber are
implementing a number of stringent hygiene and safety procedures in an attempt
to support businesses during this challenging period.
Heidi Myers, said: “At Uber, the safety of both our
employees and our customers is of prime importance and as a result, in line
with government and public health authority guidance in the regions in which we
operate, we have implemented a number of strict health & safety procedures.
“Before drivers can begin using the Uber app, they
are fully screened and provided with access to resources and education which
focus on how to wear a mask properly, how to wash their hands in line with
guidance and how to disinfect their vehicle.
“In addition, both drivers and riders are required
to wear masks or face coverings in most countries, with drivers required to
verify through our Selfie-Verification technology that they are wearing a mask
which fully covers their nose and mouth.”
With Global Exhibitions Day 2020, taking place today
(3rd June), WTM London will be using the event to tell the world it
will be open for business as usual at the ExCel in London this November.
Due to the devastation caused by the global COVID-19
pandemic, GED2020’s message is a simple one: Exhibition are key to rebuilding
economies.
Danielle Curtis, Exhibition Director ME, Arabian
Travel Market, said: “As we look ahead to restarting and rebuilding the global
travel and tourism industry, exhibitions such as ATM and WTM London will be a
crucial platform for kick-starting global economies.
“The debut ATM Virtual has been a huge success and
has further underscored ATM’s mission to support and guide the region’s vast
travel and tourism industry during and beyond COVID-19.”
Also part of the debut Travel Forward on day two was
the ‘How
Cross-Sector Collaboration is Key to Igniting Economic Growth in the Tourism
Industry in the MENA Region and Beyond’ session moderated by Intelak
Manager, Mia
Jafari. The panel discussed how cross-sector collaboration between
the government, corporates and start-ups will create the fertile ground for
economic growth in the travel sector post COVID-19.
Other sessions taking place today include an interview
with Wizz Air CEO, Joszef Varadi; the International
Travel Investment Conference summit and the responsible tourism
session, ‘The
Implications of COVID-19 for Responsible Hospitality’, followed by
the Influencers’ session titled ‘Make
Your Connection: Influencers as a Key Part of the Marketing Mix – COVID-19 The
Road to Recovery’. Videos of all sessions will be available on
demand – to view them, please log on to atmvirtual.eventnetworking.com/online-conference/
Concluding the event this afternoon is a
webinar titled ‘What
are you doing to energise your operational performance?’, which will
discuss the power of data analytics in helping to maximise performance.
ATM Virtual
concludes today, Wednesday 3rd June 2020, however a series of independently
moderated, roundtables are available on-demand and include
‘The Future
of Corporate Travel’ led by Breaking Travel News; The
Changing Face of Luxury Family Travel hosted by Destinations of the World News; ‘The New
Normal: What the Future Looks Like for the Hotel and Tourism Industry’ and ‘Middle
East: The New Asian Source Market’ both by Trav Talk Middle East, as well as
TTN Middle East’s ‘Challenges
Faced Today by the Travel Providers’ and ‘Latest
travel updates, projections and upcoming trends and focus on near-, mid- and
long-term travel prospects’.
The Ministry of Tourism Saudi Arabia and the
Italian Tourist Board are both Gold sponsors of ATM Virtual.
Tags: ATM Virtual
