BUSINESS NEWS sector for its Build Back Better-themed conference. Ian Taylor reports from the Kia Oval, London


‘Covid sparks rethink on data use and partnering’


The Covid pandemic triggered “a mind shift” in attitudes to partnering and data in travel without changing customer expectations, say tech experts. Clare de Bono, Amadeus head of


prime retail customer and traveller solutions, told the Travolution European Summit: “Covid stopped everything except customer expectations. It forced a necessity to focus. Now there is an opportunity to see where the value is and how we partner. You gain by partnering.” She argued: “Covid forced us to


look differently. We realised we have to work together. The sector has been siloed. It’s been a breath of fresh air.” De Bono suggested: “I wonder


how many more people read terms and conditions now. I’m not quite so gung-ho about ticking boxes any more.” Carlos Cendra, sales and


marketing director at travel intelligence platform Mabrian, argued: “There is an urgency for the sector to have solutions. Confidence is the real focus. We monitor social media [and] have a security index that measures not whether


Trip.com boss slams chatbots as ‘waste of time’


Chatbots are “a waste of time” if travel companies aim to serve clients and see them return, according to Trip.com general manager Andy Washington. He told the Travolution


European Summit: “Lots of people travelweekly.co.uk Clare de Bono


a destination is safe, but whether people in a source market are comfortable to visit the destination. “There is a change of mindset


forced by the situation. For the last 40 years, the travel sector was going really well. The last 18 months everything changed. Almost everyone realised up-to-date data is a must.” Yet Cendra insisted: “No


one needs more data. People are overloaded with data. People need information based on data to make decisions, not worrying about the process of getting that data.” Marc Padrosa, global industry


director at currency management provider Kantox, told the summit:


Andy Washington


“[Businesses] say ‘We’re customer- centric, the customer is the centre of everything’, but we’re not seeing that.” Nick Shay, head of travel


and hospitality Europe at digital consultancy Publicis Sapient, agreed: “The focus on the customer experience has, if anything, increased. “There is a cost of not giving a


great experience. People vote with their money.” He explained: “You have the user


experience and then the broader customer experience, which might be the call centre or the experience boarding a cruise ship. Then there is the iceberg of the back office and all the things that feed into that.”


People won’t come back. Chatbots are a waste of time.” Travelzoo UK general manager


James Clarke reported Travelzoo research suggested “different generations want very different things” when booking online. “Younger adults want imagery


jumped to this chatbot technology on a cost basis. But if you’re doing it on a cost basis, you’re not looking after the customer.


and videos,” he said. “But older adults want to be able to speak to someone and don’t want to wait to do it. 75% of respondents said they used automated bot technology during the pandemic, but did the


Matthews: Travel businesses should share data more


Travel businesses should be sharing customer data more with partners, according to Hotelbeds’ Simon Matthews. Speaking at the Travolution


European Summit, the chief product and technology officer said: “We’re already starting to see what was a walled garden open up. We have partners sharing data on a daily basis. [But] the tech giants are super-open about what customers are doing and their consumption patterns. “Data openness is slowly


creeping along, but there is a lot more we could all do together.” Lucy England, partner at


law firm Fox Williams, noted: “The General Data Protection Regulation is now embedded, [but] there are ways of using the GDPR to your advantage.” Richard Piper, business


development director at Webloyalty, asked: “How do you interact with the customer the 99% of the time they aren’t buying a holiday? Can you bring curated third-party content to them for the rest of the year?”


technology provide the answers they wanted?” Clarke added: “We saw a


resurgence in the use of email for communicating during Covid.” He argued: “The way customers


use social media in travel is changing. Under-35s are not making complaints via social media, but those 35-plus don’t mind leveraging social media to make complaints.” Washington suggested younger


adults “don’t complain [on social media] because it’s not cool”.


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