NEWS THE TRAVEL CONVENTION 2018
The Travel Convention 2018: Present and future technology were a key focus of debate in Seville
Dr Paul Redmond, University of Liverpool
Travel Weekly’s Lucy Huxley (right) chairs a panel discussion featuring, from left: Alistair Rowland, Midcounties Co-operative; Claire Irvine, Telegraph Travel; Derek Jones, Der Touristik; Becky Power, Google
Web conversion rates not rising rapidly, say operators
Online conversion rates lag face-to-face and phone bookings despite the vast increase in online travel search, say industry leaders.
Saga Travel chief executive Robin
Shaw noted more than two-thirds of customers across all age groups now visit the operator online, but he said: “What is not changing rapidly is online conversion.” Shaw told the Travel Convention:
“We’re not seeing the jump change in conversion that we see in browsing. People are less trustful of entering data [online].”
Richard Calvert, Specialist Leisure Group
“We’re not seeing the jump change in conversion that we see in browsing”
Specialist Leisure Group chief
executive Richard Calvert said: “We see exactly the same. The older generation seem to be more trusting of a voice than to put their card details into a phone.” Dnata Travel Europe chief executive John Bevan insisted:
“You need to be able to communicate with customers the way they want to communicate.” That can still mean “telephone
and face-to-face”, he said, adding: “Our B2B brand does a huge amount of business with the trade and has had a really solid time this year when B2C has had a more difficult time. Travel Republic is heavily online, [but] at Travelbag 90% of revenue is generated through calls and shops.” Bevan added: “In 2008, when
I was at lastminute, we were trying to move away from [asking users] ‘Where do you want to go and when?’ We have amazing technology, [but] we still can’t service that. When you go to an agent, they can serve that.” He suggested: “A lot of people
are going back to an agent. Millennials don’t care – my son just travelled to Japan on his own. But wait till they have kids – they will come back to you because they will want to speak to someone.” Calvert agreed, arguing: “You
can become channel obsessive. You should not push the customer.”
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travelweekly.co.uk 18 October 2018
Redmond gives tips on ‘Surviving the Zombie Apocalypse’
Travellers will soon be inter- acting with robot concierges and ‘visiting’ destinations via virtual reality, according to University of Liverpool director Dr Paul Redmond. “Some travellers will use augmented reality to enhance real-life experiences,” he said. “We will connect virtually with other travellers.” However, in a convention
session entitled ‘Surviving the Zombie Apocalypse’, Redmond warned technology is “hollowing out millions of professional jobs”. He suggested advances in artificial intelligence and other technologies were happening “faster than we can cope with”. Redmond said successful
companies no longer require large workforces. Instagram, he said, has 30 million users but employs just 13 staff. He forecast the roles of
marketing professionals, IT engineers, accountants and others would become automated in future. However, he said: “As some jobs go, others emerge.”
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