Technology created a monster. Customers demand more personalized services, presented to them without even having to look for themselves, with faster access. It is that time, companies are proactively notifying customers of what is relevant to their preferences and push customers to take action. This is no different in the travel industry. As a matter of fact, travel industry is one of the industries that need the magic of Big Data Analytics the most, to please its customers.

While analyzing big data is quite a challenge for many organizations, it is one of the key factors driving the evolution of the travel industry. The travel industry handles an enormous quantity of data around. Thus the ever generated data from different sources and actions (reservations, itineraries, accommodation, inquiries, transportation, price, cancellations, customer feedback, geolocation etc.) need to be processed wisely. Travel companies are now embracing Big Data Analytics to leverage this big data to provide their customers more targeted campaigns which ultimately lead to profitable services and products.

Let`s see the most important ways in which Big Data Analytics increase business efficiency in the travel industry;

Designing Business Strategy with Customer Insights

As an initial step, companies need to understand their customers` preferences to build business strategies. Big data analytics allow travel companies to understand their customers` patterns, behaviours and feedbacks collected from various sources to design the right strategy. Tracking, analyzing and understanding all these valuable data help the companies to determine what offerings and services they have to bring to the table in the future.

Personalization

This is probably the biggest opportunity travel companies can achieve from big data analysis. With the availability of receiving a large quantity of personal data from user behaviours, preferences, previous interactions and social media platforms; companies can turn this big data into a related and focused service around the travelers’ needs. For example, by analyzing a customer pattern, it is possible to predict and offer a pet-friendly hotel within the price range of that individual customer’s preferences.

Needless to say, approaching customers with a unique and personalized service will bring more loyal customers which will directly have a positive impact in every way, from boost in sales to increased company reputation on social media.

Competitive Differentiation

When travel companies differentiate their services and products from their competitors with the use of big data analytics, they will stand out from the crowd. For instance, a hotel can make use of big data such as automatically presenting a customer room options if he misses a connecting flight. Amadeus -a Global Distribution System (GDS) – has features ‘Extreme Search’ and ‘Featured Results’ which enable travelers to get very specific results when they ask ‘When are the cheapest flights to Spain available?’ or ‘Can I go somewhere for 400$?’ without even submitting a detailed question.

These details in differentiation will transform customer experience into a true delight, allowing the companies to overcome the challenges of competition.

Improving Pricing Strategy

Price is one of the most important decision factors for travelers when planning their trips. Big Data Analytics can track, index and analyze competitors’ prices and gain a clear picture of trends from multiple sources. This smart automation with real-time analytics helps companies build a consistent pricing strategy and track changes in pricing for better customer experience.

Dynamic analyzes can also be used to present a consistent price information. KAYAK uses analytical models in air travel to ensure that prices displayed on its website are consistent with those on airline sites, not to face synchronization issues across various data sources. With the help of Big Data predictions KAYAK has also recently introduced flight price forecasting, which predicts whether the price of a particular flight will go up or down in next seven days.

Improving Marketing Strategy

Analyzing big quantities of data from travelers enables travel service providers to gain valuable insights which will ultimately optimize their marketing efforts. They will be able to deliver targeted offers including location-based real-time offers and receive the optimal results from these highly tailored marketing activities. Big data analytics also help digital marketers maximize their ROI through personalized marketing messages and allows them to design the right marketing strategies.

All this shows us that big data analytics are reshaping the travel industry and have the potential to transform it more. While it looks like big data analytics have brought huge benefits for customers, on the other side, they also bring in opportunities for service providers to improve their services and increase their sales. The ones, who realize the potential of big data analytics in the travel industry, will identify market trends, offer targeted services, increase customer loyalty and foresee opportunities so that they will be one step ahead from their competitors.