Tag Archives: new agents

The travel industry is undergoing a seismic shift, according to leading authority on travel research and events, Phocuswright. A new age of technologies, empowered consumers, and emerging players are redefining how we travel, book trips, and interact with the industry. Phocuswright will tackle these disruptive forces head-on at The Phocuswright Conference, themed “The New Age(nts),” taking place November 19-21 at the JW Marriott Phoenix Desert Ridge Resort & Spa in Arizona. ‘The New Age(nts)’ has been designed to be more than a theme – a call to action for the travel industry to adapt and evolve. Through a programme of keynotes, panels and thought leadership sessions, the conference will examine four key areas of transformation: 1. A New Age: The dominance of Google at the top of the funnel is challenged by social platforms like TikTok and Instagram, while AI-powered conversational search offers personalized travel recommendations. Airlines are leveraging NDC to regain control over distribution, potentially setting a precedent for hotels to follow suit. Non-traditional players like big-box retailers and financial institutions are also entering the fray, redefining the online travel agency landscape. 2. Customers in Control: Self-sovereign identity, personal data vaults, and secure digital wallets empower consumers to own their data and decide who to share it with. Travel businesses must adapt to this new reality and build trust with consumers to access their profiles and wallets. 3. Emerging Agents: Intelligent agents are already augmenting trip planning and personalization, streamlining tasks for travelers and offering efficiencies to businesses. These tools are not a distant future; they are reshaping the travel industry now. 4. Enduring Agents?: As travelers become more empowered and new tools automate tasks, traditional travel agents must …

According to Phocuswright, an increasing number of companies from outside of travel are entering the online travel agency (OTA) space. This comes ahead of the 2023 Phocuswright Conference, which will be themed around what recent powerful advances in technology could mean for the future of the industry – and how travel businesses must adapt to remain relevant. Although outside players are plugging into online travel companies’ platforms, it is mainly the OTAs that will reap the rewards of this trend, according to Phocuswright: “Historically it was travel suppliers who partnered with the OTAs in a bid to supplement their core products,” said Lorraine Sileo, senior analyst, at Phocuswright.  “However, non-travel brands, such as financial institutions, retailers and loyalty clubs, are now partnering with OTAs to sell travel. “These companies now really want to get into the travel business – and technology is enabling them to do so.  Over the past two years, several have launched travel booking platforms or announced ambitious plans to do so, even though the online travel agency market is already near saturation and uber competitive.  The goal for these companies is not to gain substantial revenue directly from travel, but to keep their customers coming back, for example by encouraging card usage and giving customers more ways to earn or redeem loyalty points.  But, for the OTAs, these partnerships can be directly profitable.” This trend is set to benefit the big brands in the OTA space, as many “outside” companies will simply be tapping into their various plug-and-play models without needing much experience or expertise in the travel sector.  Here are three companies in the finance space that are now tapping into OTAs to drive loyalty …