“The future depends on what you do today” is a popular quote from Mahatma Gandhi, and looking forward in how we are going to serve the travel industry and our travellers is something Amadeus is invested in.
So it begs the question: what should the travel industry be focused on today with a view toward tomorrow? It’s as easy – and challenging – as three words: mobilising, socialising and personalising.
Mobilisation will continue its prominent rise across all business sectors in future years. While addressing the individual needs and expectations of today’s leisure travellers is critical to achieving success in the travel industry, road warriors will also simultaneously expect all things digital, all the time. The continuing growth of mobile, specifically in Africa, and the simplification of the booking process across any type of device, will be critical in our progressively connected world.
Social media continues to evolve and permeate all areas of the travel industry. As companies ‘connect’ buying patterns with social media and other information using carefully developed algorithms, it will become easier to deliver on specific wants and needs of customers and entice travellers to take advantage of personalised offerings throughout the booking process.
But moving toward the future does not come without its challenges. Travellers throughout Africa want to begin their searches on one device and complete the buying process hours later by picking up exactly where they left off using a different device. They want real time information and they want it now. This means, from a socialising point of view, one needs to always be on top of the game. As stated in our ‘Digital Savannah’ study, Africa is showing a strong appetite for digital to facilitate travel. As the continent becomes more connected, it is already producing innovative digital tools and Amadeus is adopting this trend too.
If the future depends on what we do today, our focus now on mobility, business intelligence, information sharing, collaboration and conversion, and the ability to deliver to both broad audiences and individuals will go far in ensuring we continue to shape the travel experience of tomorrow.
Santiago Jimenez
Director, Sub-Saharan Africa
Amadeus