Travel Forward Get connected
This year, the Travel Tech Show at WTM has been transformed into an unmissable, stand-alone event running alongside WTM London. Gary Noakes reports
T
his year’s World Travel Market London sees the launch of Travel Forward, a major upgrade of the former Travel Tech Show at WTM into an exciting standalone conference.
Travel Forward has a specifically sourced audience of buyers with purchasing responsibility for technology and is expecting about 200 exhibitors.
Unlike the Travel Tech Show, Travel Forward has its own entrance and registration process, with a dedicated keynote speaker stage and two conference theatres, plus a dedicated Buyers’ Lounge. Another feature is a dedicated area for product demos.
As with WTM London itself, participation is from around the globe and includes many first- timers. Among those making their debut are Wex Europe (TT230), Klook Travel (TT220), Yalago (TT200), Hospitality Industry Club (TT212) and Gimmonix (TT835). Richard Gayle,
Travel Forward’s event manager, talks about WTM London’s new technology conference, exhibition and buyer programme.
Why have you launched Travel Forward this year? We wanted to increase satisfaction levels with the technology offering for exhibitors and visitors, and ensure there was a match-up with what visitors were looking for and their expectations. Previously, the Travel Tech Show was only serving a narrow part of the market at the SME level. WTM London is a global destination event, but we were not marketing the tech part to these people – the buying chain on the tech side includes the IT director, so people who would not naturally come to WTM London.
How have you persuaded these people to attend? Primarily through content. We have launched a conference with content designed for this audience to look into the future and to showcase technology. We realised we were
“We aim to give real examples of how tech such as virtual reality can benefit
businesses” Richard Gayle, event manager
missing out on the innovation side and not really representing what was happening in the real world, so it will include things like artificial intelligence (AI), virtual reality (VR) and blockchain. It’s a peer-to-peer approach – if a chief technology officer from one company is speaking, then a rival chief technology officer will want to hear them.
What’s different about the conference content? Our aim is to give real examples of how things like AI and VR can bring benefits to businesses through practical, real-life examples. Some of these areas are fairly new, so there will be an education process around these new technologies. We will also look at how much these things will make a difference to the bottom line. Blockchain is an example – people don’t understand how it will benefit them. We are trying to find people who will help with that. The aim is to answer
questions such as “how can I use it?” and “what will it do for me?”.
Should Travel Tech Show regulars be apprehensive about the new format? We have kept what we had before, so there will still be the main booking and reservations systems present. We’re not taking anything away.
Will attendees notice any physical difference?
Yes, we have moved the show from the North Hall west entrance and put it at the other end of ExCeL so it’s not hemmed in. That allows us to brand the east entrance as Travel Forward. We’re not dismantling it from WTM London, we are giving it greater emphasis.
And what about the size of the event?
We had 100 exhibitors last year and we’re looking to double that. We also have two theatres for conferences holding 400 people. We’re expecting 5,000 dedicated visitors at Travel Forward. It’s an open door for WTM London delegates, but we will be scanning people so that we know who’s attending.
Is Travel Forward relevant to those who don’t normally attend technology shows? Technology is driving the way business operates more and more. What we’re hoping to show is a range of products that people can use to improve their business with their legacy infrastructure. Given that every business uses technology, I think there’s something for everyone.
05.11.2018 25
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92
